NHTSA Complaint #11245132 — 2016 HONDA PILOT

THE HONDA PILOT HAS A FEATURE CALLED AUTO ENGINE IDLE STOP. TO MEET EMISSION STANDARDS, THIS FEATURE PUTS THE ENGINE INTO A STOP/OFF MODE WHEN YOU BRAKE FOR MORE THAN 3 SECONDS. HOWEVER, THIS FEATURE SOMETIMES CAUSES THE CAR BATTERY TO FAIL AND THE CAR TO STALL. THIS COULD HAPPEN WHEN STOPPED AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT OR ON A HIGHWAY STOPPED IN TRAFFIC. IF THE BATTERY HASN'T HAD ENOUGH TIME TO RECHARGE, THE CAR MIGHT STALL AND NEED TO BE COMPLETELY SHUTDOWN, WAIT A WHILE AND MAYBE WILL RESTART. WE BOUGHT OUR CAR IN LATE 2015. THE ISSUE PRESENTED ITSELF BY 2016/2017, MOSTLY AS BRIEF BLIPS AND THE CAR WOULD RESTART. IN SUMMER 2018, AFTER REPEATED VISITS TO HONDA AND NUMEROUS TIMES OF THE CAR COMPLETELY STALLING AT TRAFFIC LIGHTS, WE CHOSE TO REPLACE THE BATTERY. OUR HONDA SERVICE CENTERS KEPT TELLING US THAT THE BATTERY TESTS SHOWED IT WAS FINE AND THAT THE FEATURE ISN'T SUPPOSE TO ENGAGE IF THE BATTERY DOESN'T HAVE "ENOUGH JUICE" TO RESTART. BUT CLEARLY, THAT DOESN'T WORK, BECAUSE MY CAR WOULD INDEED COMPLETELY STALL AND NEED TO TRY TO RESTART. I ONCE HAD TO WAIT FIVE MINUTES STUCK AT A LIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF A 3 LANE ROAD, AND MY CAR FINALLY RESTARTED. BUT ONCE WE PAID TO REPLACE THE BATTERY (THAT SUPPOSEDLY WAS FINE), THE CAR DIDN'T BLIP OR STALL. BUT ONE YEAR LATER, IT STARTED HAPPENING AGAIN. SOMETIMES THE CAR WILL JUST BLIP, WHERE ALL THE LIGHTS, RADIO AND AIR CONDITIONING WILL BRIEFLY CUT OUT AND THEN COME BACK ON AS THE FEATURE RE-ENGAGES THE ENGINE. BUT SOMETIMES, IT JUST WON'T RESTART. THERE IS A BUTTON YOU CAN HIT TO DISABLE THE AUTO ENGINE IDLE STOP FEATURE. BUT YOU MUST REMEMBER TO HIT EVERY TIME YOU START THE CAR. IF YOU FORGET, ALL IT TAKES IS STOPPING AT ONE TRAFFIC LIGHT AND THE CAR COULD STALL. THERE ARE NUMEROUS ONLINE REPORTS OF SIMILAR ISSUES WITH THIS FEATURE.