NHTSA Complaint #11568181 — 2017 HONDA PILOT

driving down the highway at 65mph the car started bucking and losing acceleration leaving almost no control to the driver to maneuver effectively and avoid other cars. after a terrifying experience of losing control of the car my wife and children stranded on the side of the road for hours in sub 32 degree weather. the vehicle goes into limp home mode on the highway causing her to pull off with little to no acceleration control. barely avoiding other commuters she was able to pull the vehicle to the side of the road. once stopped the vehicle locks itself in park and will not go into gear or neutral so the vehicle cannot be pushed when needed. had to have the vehicle towed. after diagnosis and thorough investigations the following information was collected. The 9 speed automatic transmissions are "lifetime" meaning there is no dipstick for fluid checks. no external sensors or actuators can be replaced when they fail. the transmission failed internally (p0841) because all solenoids sensors and switches are internal non serviceable parts. no electronic part lasts forever understandably. however this means when one small item fails the entire transmission is to be replaced with the same part number and no new fixes or remedies. they seem to all fail right around 60,000 miles or after. seems to be a very common issue with no recall or fixes listed. meaning even with a new transmission installation the transmission is still a ticking time bomb. leaving the customer on the hook for several thousand dollar repairs every 60k. a class action lawsuit has been filed in California for these exact reasons and i would hope that honda makes and effort to have a redesign, fix, or full recall.