NHTSA Complaint #11498755 — 2021 HONDA PASSPORT

I am writing to make you aware of an alarming incident that happened with our 2021 Honda Passport this fall. My wife backed out of the garage and was in our driveway when the vehicle engine suddenly turned off and a message appeared on the entertainment display. It said that the antitheft system had lost power and that the power button needed to be pushed to restore it. She finally got the car to start by pushing the “volume” button, NOT the power (engine on/off) button. The message disappeared. If this would have happened while actually on the road, there could have been serious consequences. Can you image your vehicle suddenly shutting off on a highway? About a two months later, I also received the same message when driving through my subdivision, but the engine did not shut off. I immediately took the vehicle a local Honda dealer who tested the battery (the original battery – just about to turn two years old) and found that it needed to be replaced. There was no indication that it was going bad prior to these incidents. As I stated earlier, it is the first scenario that is a red flag. Why did the engine shut off? Have other Passport or Honda owners had a similar experience? I thought you should know what happened to us.