Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL | ||||||
| EA13002 | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) | 02/21/2013 | Vehicle Stability Assist Malfunction | |||
| The vehicle stability assist (vsa) system in the my 2005 honda pilot vehicles integrates braking control strategies for anti-lock braking, traction control, electronic stability control and brake assist functions. the system consists of a vsa modulator (an electronic control unit and electronic/hydraulic actuator) that receives data from an integral brake pressure sensor and from wheel speed sensors (four wheels), the steering wheel angle sensor and a combination yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensor. allegations of unexpected braking appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the brake assist (ba) function.the ba system is designed to minimize stopping distances in emergency braking maneuvers by rapidly applying maximum braking force when a panic stop is detected. odi's analysis of complaints and information provided by honda in its response to dp12-002 and pe12-028 identified fault conditions that may result in false detection of a panic stop by the ba system, resulting in unexpected, severe brake application. the vsa control algorithm should detect inappropriate ba activation in less than 1 second and turn the system off.however, some complaints allege longer duration incidents of severe braking with no brake pedal application.honda implemented countermeasures in the control and fault detection algorithm in the my 2006 pilot vsa modulators, which are not interchangeable with the my 2005 parts. allegations of steering anomalies appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the vsa stability assist function. the vsa system uses information from the wheel speed, steering wheel angle, yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensors to calculate the rate of change in vehicle side slip with respect to time. if excessive side slip is calculated, the system modulates brake force pulses to individual or combinations of wheels to maintain stability.odi has identified 22 voqs and 18 honda reports that appear to be incidents caused by a faulty yaw rate sensor.as judged by the complainants these incidents typically last two or less seconds.honda identified a problem with faulty yaw rate sensors sending an incorrect yaw rate signal to the vsa modulator.this may result in inappropriate vsa system activation, which is perceived by the driver as a momentary steering pull.the vsa control logic is designed to detect the yaw rate sensor faults in less than one second and place the system in failsafe mode, disabling all vsa functions. an engineering analysis has been opened to assess the scope, frequency, and safety-related consequences of the alleged defect.the voqs associated with the opening of this investigation are:brake assist: 10158094, 10160741, 10213049, 10247329, 10248833, 10257672, 10257728, 10260943, 10270110, 10279468, 10282189, 10321302, 10334571, 10360371, 10366406, 10367757, 10381501, 10382911, 10399198, 10407070, 10410421, 10427031, 10443505, 10447413, 10448010, 10450564, 10451781, 10453607, 10459818, 10464695, 10466790, 10472620, 10472803, 10479999, 10480852, 10481312, 10481341, 10481372, 10483238, 10486558, 10487248, 10487492, 10487554, 10487784, 10489358, 10492006, 10493019, 10494637.yaw rate sensor: 10481310, 10492846, 10467571, 10368257, 10491748, 10307606, 10493497, 10194731, 10351927, 10492007, 10485841, 10462811, 10476925, 10482439, 10429988, 10487141, 10482567, 10359591, 10486281, 10486397, 10380979, 10486651. | ||||||
| DP12002 | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) | 06/04/2012 | 10/11/2012 | Vehicle Stability Assist Malfunction | ||
| In a letter dated april 9, 2012, a consumer petitioned the national highway traffic safety administration (nhtsa) to initiate a defect investigation of alleged stability control failures in model year (my) 2005 honda pilot vehicles. the petitioner alleged that, in the malfunctioning of these systems, steering failures occur and the brakes apply involuntarily. on june 4, 2012 the office of defects investigation (odi) opened defect petition dp12-002 to evaluate whether to grant or deny the petition. the petition is hereby granted. the vehicle stability assist (vsa) system in the my 2005 honda pilot vehicles integrates braking control strategies for anti-lock braking, traction control, electronic stability control and brake assist functions. the system consists of a vsa modulator (an electronic control unit and electronic/hydraulic actuator) that receives data from an integral brake pressure sensor and from wheel speed sensors (four wheels), the steering wheel angle sensor and a combination yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensor. allegations of unexpected braking appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the brake assist (ba) function.the ba system is designed to minimize stopping distances in emergency braking maneuvers by rapidly applying maximum braking force when a panic stop is detected. odi's analysis of complaints and information provided by honda in its response to the dp12-002 information request letter have identified fault conditions that may result in false detection of a panic stop by the ba system, resulting in unexpected, severe brake application. odi's analysis of consumer complaints has identified 185 incidents of unexpected braking of varying duration, including several allegations of rapid decelerations from highway speeds to near stops in highway travel lanes (voqs 10450564, 10467571, 10427031, 10257672, 10453607). honda implemented countermeasures in the control and fault detection algorithm in the my 2006 pilot vsa modulators, which are not interchangeable with the my 2005 parts. allegations of steering anomalies appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the vsa stability assist function. the vsa system uses information from the wheel speed, steering wheel angle, yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensors to calculate the rate of change in vehicle side slip with respect to time. if excessive side slip is calculated, the system modulates brake force pulses to individual or combinations of wheels to maintain stability.honda identified a problem with faulty yaw rate sensors sending an incorrect yaw rate signal to the vsa modulator.this may result in inappropriate vsa system activation, which is perceived by the driver as a momentary steering pull.the vsa control logic is designed to detect the yaw rate sensor faults in less than one second and place the system in failsafe mode, disabling all vsa functions. odi has identified a total of 20 complaints that appear to be related to inappropriate vsa activation.the petition is granted.preliminary evaluation pe12-028 has been opened to assess the scope, frequency, and safety-related consequences of the alleged defect. | ||||||
| DP12002 | HONDA (AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO.) | 06/04/2012 | Vehicle Stability Assist Malfunction | |||
| In a letter dated april 9, 2012, a consumer petitioned the national highway traffic safety administration (nhtsa) to initiate a defect investigation of alleged stability control failures in model year (my) 2005 honda pilot vehicles.the petitioner alleges that, in the malfunctioning of these systems, steering failures occur and the brakes apply involuntarily.a copy of the petition will be placed in the public file.the office of defects investigation has identified a total of 35 reports, including the petitioner's complaint, that appear to be related to inappropriate stability control system activation in the subject vehicles.inappropriate stability control system activation is generally perceived by the driver as inappropriate autonomous brake application, resulting in unexpected vehicle deceleration, and may also include, as reported in a few of the complaints, allegations of steering pull and/or lane departure.the first incident was reported to odi in 2006.ten of the incidents have been reported in the last 12 months.the petition will be evaluated for a grant or deny decision.the compliant numbers for the 35 complaints listed in the summary are: 10459818, 10453607, 10450564, 10448010, 10447413, 10443505, 10429988, 10427031, 10410421, 10407070, 10399198, 10382911, 10381501, 10380979, 10368257, 10367757, 10366406, 10360371, 10359591, 10351927, 10334571, 10321302, 10307606, 10282189, 10279468, 10270110, 10260943, 10257728, 10257672, 10248833, 10247329, 10213049, 10194731, 10178891, 10158094 | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL | |||
| 01/02/2012 | 89070 | ||
| 2-15-2011 prior complaint of vehicle stability assist locking the brakes, occurred 3 times. honda had no solution to abrupt jarring braking. continued to drive with vsa turned off. 1-2-2012 vsa, even though vsa turned off, brakes locked while going 45 mph on a highway, middle lane, then braked 4 more times before i could pull out of the way of traffic. very close near accident. took vehicle to honda 1-3-2012. spoke to dealership service director again, spoke to honda florida rep, no ideas, denied knowledge of problem, even though internet & nhtsa documented. finally i agreed to split repair, spent $793.61 and they replaced 57110-s9v-a61 modulator assembly vsa. honda refused to acknowledge what the braking was caused by, or that their vsa replacement that day would solve problem. if vsa off why did it happen 5 more times? since nhtsa has an open investigation on this well documented problem i wanted you to have an update. | |||
| 02/13/2013 | 118000 | ||
| First incident, my wife was driving approximately 45 mph when 2005 honda pilot began to vibrate and make a groaning noise or a noise almost like when you drive on a gravel road. 2005 honda pilot was also (while vibrating and making noise) abruptly slowing down/ stopping without depressing the brake pedal. it would also do this while applying the accelerator. second incident was later that same day. i picked the 2005 honda pilot up from my wife as she was now to afraid to drive it. after about 10 mins of driving, i was doing about 55 mph and the 2005 honda pilot made the same noise and vibration as described above and also slowed down abruptly as if i hit the brakes(which i didn't). about another half mile was a traffic light as i began to slow down for light i applied the brakes gently and as i applied the brakes the brake pedal left my foot and the 2005 honda pilot came to an abrupt stop. this happened two more times so i pulled into a parking lot because i did not feel safe driving at that point. when i stopped in the parking lot i noticed my vsa indicator light was on. it would not turn off until i turned the 2005 honda pilot off. same day i took my 2005 honda pilot to the local honda dealership and they have not been able to reproduce the symptom. | |||
| 01/21/2013 | 106250 | 1 | |
| Accelerating at relatively low speed, usually just after stopping, heard audible pop through car radio, abs and emergency brake lights came on. car braked rapidly, even though foot was on accelerator and not touching the brake pedal. forced car to almost a complete stop. this same sequence of events happened three times within 30 minutes. pulled car into parking lot and called honda service dept. they had never heard of this happening and car was towed in to run diagnostics. service dept drove car around for over three days and was unable to duplicate issue. they had some ideas to cause, but since they couldn't get it to repeat, could not fix anything. *tr | |||
| 01/21/2013 | 106250 | ||
| Accelerating at relatively low speed, usually just after stopping, heard audible pop through car radio, abs and emergency brake lights came on. car braked rapidly, even though foot was on accelerator and not touching the brake pedal. forced car to almost a complete stop. this same sequence of events happened three times within 30 minutes. pulled car into parking lot and called honda service dept. they had never heard of this happening and car was towed in to run diagnostics. service dept drove car around for over three days and was unable to duplicate issue. they had some ideas to cause, but since they couldn't get it to repeat, could not fix anything. | |||
| 08/08/2012 | 100000 | 1 | |
| While driving, airbag, (!), vsa, vtc and brake lights all lit up. horn stopped working as did all controls from steering wheel (cruise, radio airbag light). i pulled over, everything seemed to work but lights would not turn off. went to honda in ft pierce, fl. was told it's probably a low battery. replaced battery, lights all stayed on. contacted johnston honda in stuart, fl. head mechanic told me he had no idea what would cause this and if he ran it on diagnostics, it could take 8 hours at $80 an hour and he still may not find the problem. brought this lemon to local mechanic who ran on diagnostics for 2 hours. could not find problem so he did not charge. as almost all other complaints above, while driving at 35 to 40 the car starts to shudder as though it will turn off. was told it's possibly defective motor mounts. i have contacted american honda motor works in california with these issues and they essentially told me to 'gfy'. stated car is not their problem. *tr | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 90000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vsa warning indicator illuminated and the brakes began to lock without applying any pressure to the pedal. the vehicle pulled to the left on its own and was then maneuvered to the side of the road. the engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a vsa trouble code was detected. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a trouble code was not detected. the vehicle was not repaired. there was an open and closed investigation under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). a preliminary evaluation pe12-028 was opened. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000 | |||
| 08/08/2012 | 100000 | 1 | |
| While driving, airbag, (!), vsa, vtc and brake lights all lit up. horn stopped working as did all controls from steering wheel (cruise, radio airbag light). i pulled over, everything seemed to work but lights would not turn off. went to honda in ft pierce, fl. was told it's probably a low battery. replaced battery, lights all stayed on. contacted johnston honda in stuart, fl. head mechanic told me he had no idea what would cause this and if he ran it on diagnostics, it could take 8 hours at $80 an hour and he still may not find the problem. brought this lemon to local mechanic who ran on diagnostics for 2 hours. could not find problem so he did not charge. as almost all other complaints above, while driving at 35 to 40 the car starts to shudder as though it will turn off. was told it's possibly defective motor mounts. i have contacted american honda motor works in california with these issues and they essentially told me to 'gfy'. stated car is not their problem. *tr | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 90000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vsa warning indicator illuminated and the brakes began to lock without applying any pressure to the pedal. the vehicle pulled to the left on its own and was then maneuvered to the side of the road. the engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a vsa trouble code was detected. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a trouble code was not detected. the vehicle was not repaired. there was an open and closed investigation under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). a preliminary evaluation pe12-028 was opened. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000. rvk | |||
| 08/08/2012 | 100000 | ||
| While driving, airbag, (!), vsa, vtc and brake lights all lit up. horn stopped working as did all controls from steering wheel (cruise, radio airbag light). i pulled over, everything seemed to work but lights would not turn off. went to honda in ft pierce, fl. was told it's probably a low battery. replaced battery, lights all stayed on. contacted johnston honda in stuart, fl. head mechanic told me he had no idea what would cause this and if he ran it on diagnostics, it could take 8 hours at $80 an hour and he still may not find the problem. brought this lemon to local mechanic who ran on diagnostics for 2 hours. could not find problem so he did not charge. as almost all other complaints above, while driving at 35 to 40 the car starts to shudder as though it will turn off. was told it's possibly defective motor mounts. i have contacted american honda motor works in california with these issues and they essentially told me to 'gfy'. stated car is not their problem. | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 90000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vsa warning indicator illuminated and the brakes began to lock without applying any pressure to the pedal. the vehicle pulled to the left on its own and was then maneuvered to the side of the road. the engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a vsa trouble code was detected. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a trouble code was not detected. the vehicle was not repaired. there was an open and closed investigation under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). a preliminary evaluation pe12-028 was opened. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000. rvk | |||
| 08/08/2012 | 100000 | ||
| While driving, airbag, (!), vsa, vtc and brake lights all lit up. horn stopped working as did all controls from steering wheel (cruise, radio airbag light). i pulled over, everything seemed to work but lights would not turn off. went to honda in ft pierce, fl. was told it's probably a low battery. replaced battery, lights all stayed on. contacted johnston honda in stuart, fl. head mechanic told me he had no idea what would cause this and if he ran it on diagnostics, it could take 8 hours at $80 an hour and he still may not find the problem. brought this lemon to local mechanic who ran on diagnostics for 2 hours. could not find problem so he did not charge. as almost all other complaints above, while driving at 35 to 40 the car starts to shudder as though it will turn off. was told it's possibly defective motor mounts. i have contacted american honda motor works in california with these issues and they essentially told me to 'gfy'. stated car is not their problem. | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 90000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vsa warning indicator illuminated and the brakes began to lock without applying any pressure to the pedal. the vehicle pulled to the left on its own and was then maneuvered to the side of the road. the engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a vsa trouble code was detected. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a trouble code was not detected. the vehicle was not repaired. there was an open and closed investigation under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). a preliminary evaluation pe12-028 was opened. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000. rvk | |||
| 07/01/2008 | |||
| Tl* the contact owned a 2005 honda pilot. the contact stated that the driver was traveling at an unknown speed when the vehicle unexpectedly began to pull to the left before crashing into an oncoming vehicle. the driver was killed as a result of the impact. a police report was filed of the incident. the vehicle was destroyed and towed to a savage facility. the vehicle was inspected by an independent engineer and informed the contact that the failure was possibly related to a faulty electronic stability control. a defect petition was opened and closed under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). there was a concurrent investigation associated with nhtsa action number pe12-028 (electronic stability control) that could possibly have been related to the failure. the manufacturer was not notified of the incident or the defect. the failure mileage was unavailable. | |||
| 08/08/2012 | 100000 | ||
| While driving, airbag, (!), vsa, vtc and brake lights all lit up. horn stopped working as did all controls from steering wheel (cruise, radio airbag light). i pulled over, everything seemed to work but lights would not turn off. went to honda in ft pierce, fl. was told it's probably a low battery. replaced battery, lights all stayed on. contacted johnston honda in stuart, fl. head mechanic told me he had no idea what would cause this and if he ran it on diagnostics, it could take 8 hours at $80 an hour and he still may not find the problem. brought this lemon to local mechanic who ran on diagnostics for 2 hours. could not find problem so he did not charge. as almost all other complaints above, while driving at 35 to 40 the car starts to shudder as though it will turn off. was told it's possibly defective motor mounts. i have contacted american honda motor works in california with these issues and they essentially told me to 'gfy'. stated car is not their problem. | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 90000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vsa warning indicator illuminated and the brakes began to lock without applying any pressure to the pedal. the vehicle pulled into the left direction and was then maneuvered to the side of the road. the engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. the vehicle was taken to an independent auto shop for diagnosis who informed that a vsa trouble code was detected. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a trouble code was not detected. the vehicle had not been repaired. there was an open and closed investigation under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). a preliminary evaluation pe12-028 was opened. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000. js | |||
| 07/01/2008 | |||
| Tl-the contact owned a 2005 honda pilot. the contact stated that the driver was traveling at an unknown speed when the vehicle unexpectedly began to pull to the left before crashing into an oncoming vehicle. the driver was killed as a result of the impact. a police report was filed of the incident. the vehicle was destroyed and towed to a savage facility. the vehicle was inspected by an independent engineer and informed the contact that the failure was possibly related to a faulty electronic stability control. a defect petition was opened and closed under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). there was a concurrent investigation associated with nhtsa action number pe12-028 (electronic stability control) that could possibly have been related to the failure. the manufacturer was not notified of the incident or the defect. the failure mileage was unavailable. kmj | |||
| 01/02/2013 | 196750 | 1 | |
| I was driving under slightly wet conditions at a fairly low speed (approx. 25 - 30 mph) and the car seemed, momentarily, as if the left front tire had gone flat and an indicator light with a triangle and an exclamation point and the vsa light simultaneously came on. i pulled over, checked the tire, turned the car off, restarted it and everything was fine for the rest of that day. the next morning, i experienced the same thing after the car had sat all night. after turning it off and back on, the indicator and vsa lights were out, but then came back on less than 30 minutes later while idling. the weather conditions this day were cold, but dry. i made an appointment and took the car to leith honda. i experienced the same condition while driving it to the dealer. the service advisor told me that there was no indication of a problem and the car's computer didn't indicate that the vsa had even been on. i picked the car up that night, after they had closed, and experienced the problem less than 15 minutes after i left the dealer. i then experienced it again the next day, after a cold start, and then again today, also after a cold start, but this time while idling. this is a scary and potentially dangerous situation and there are lots of reports about this problem floating around the internet. my particular experiences haven't been as bad (yet) as others have described, but the symptoms are the same (front brakes momentarily locking and steering pulling, in my case, to the left). *tr | |||
| 07/01/2008 | |||
| Tl-the contact owned a 2005 honda pilot. the driver was traveling an unknown speed and unexpectedly the vehicle began to pull into the left direction and then crashed into an oncoming vehicle. the driver was killed as a result of the impact. a police report was filed of the incident. the vehicle was completely destroyed and towed to savage facility. the vehicle was inspected by an independent engineer who informed that the failure could possibly be related to the faulty esc. a defect petition was opened and closed under nhtsa action number dp12002 (electronic stability control). there is currently an open investigation associated with nhtsa action number pe12-028 (electronic stability control). the manufacturer was not notified of the defect. the failure mileage was unavailable. js | |||
| 01/02/2013 | 196750 | 1 | |
| I was driving under slightly wet conditions at a fairly low speed (approx. 25 - 30 mph) and the car seemed, momentarily, as if the left front tire had gone flat and an indicator light with a triangle and an exclamation point and the vsa light simultaneously came on. i pulled over, checked the tire, turned the car off, restarted it and everything was fine for the rest of that day. the next morning, i experienced the same thing after the car had sat all night. after turning it off and back on, the indicator and vsa lights were out, but then came back on less than 30 minutes later while idling. the weather conditions this day were cold, but dry. i made an appointment and took the car to leith honda. i experienced the same condition while driving it to the dealer. the service advisor told me that there was no indication of a problem and the car's computer didn't indicate that the vsa had even been on. i picked the car up that night, after they had closed, and experienced the problem less than 15 minutes after i left the dealer. i then experienced it again the next day, after a cold start, and then again today, also after a cold start, but this time while idling. this is a scary and potentially dangerous situation and there are lots of reports about this problem floating around the internet. my particular experiences haven't been as bad (yet) as others have described, but the symptoms are the same (front brakes momentarily locking and steering pulling, in my case, to the left). *tr | |||
| 01/02/2013 | 196750 | ||
| I was driving under slightly wet conditions at a fairly low speed (approx. 25 - 30 mph) and the car seemed, momentarily, as if the left front tire had gone flat and an indicator light with a triangle and an exclamation point and the vsa light simultaneously came on. i pulled over, checked the tire, turned the car off, restarted it and everything was fine for the rest of that day. the next morning, i experienced the same thing after the car had sat all night. after turning it off and back on, the indicator and vsa lights were out, but then came back on less than 30 minutes later while idling. the weather conditions this day were cold, but dry. i made an appointment and took the car to leith honda. i experienced the same condition while driving it to the dealer. the service advisor told me that there was no indication of a problem and the car's computer didn't indicate that the vsa had even been on. i picked the car up that night, after they had closed, and experienced the problem less than 15 minutes after i left the dealer. i then experienced it again the next day, after a cold start, and then again today, also after a cold start, but this time while idling. this is a scary and potentially dangerous situation and there are lots of reports about this problem floating around the internet. my particular experiences haven't been as bad (yet) as others have described, but the symptoms are the same (front brakes momentarily locking and steering pulling, in my case, to the left). | |||
| 10/22/2012 | 98700 | 1 | |
| Vsa warning light and ! light come on at the same time when vehicle is in motion. lights come on after approximately 5 minutes and stay on until the vehicle is turned off and restarted. this problem began about one month ago and happens almost every day. the warning lights seem sensitive to the cold as well. the on board diagnostic computer has no registered any malfunction codes. fortunately have not yet experienced the intense braking of other owners but there seems to be a significant problem with the vsa system on 2005 honda pilots. *tr | |||
| 10/22/2012 | 98700 | ||
| Vsa warning light and ! light come on at the same time when vehicle is in motion. lights come on after approximately 5 minutes and stay on until the vehicle is turned off and restarted. this problem began about one month ago and happens almost every day. the warning lights seem sensitive to the cold as well. the on board diagnostic computer has no registered any malfunction codes. fortunately have not yet experienced the intense braking of other owners but there seems to be a significant problem with the vsa system on 2005 honda pilots. | |||
| 09/12/2012 | 119000 | 1 | |
| We recently purchased this car used from anderson honda of palo alto. on several occasions the vsa has engaged for no apparent reason at speeds ranging from 10-35 mph. the vsa engaged at slow speeds when turning and at the faster speeds on the straight-a-way. when the vsa engages the vsa light and warning light turn on. the lights do go off after the car has been turned off and at rest for a few minutes. most often when the vsa engages the car shudders slightly, both the brake and the gas pedal shudder and vibrate. the car feels like it is slowing momentarily. in the most recent episode on nov. 27. the car was traveling 35 mph down hill and the steering pulled slightly to the left. *tr | |||
| 10/22/2012 | 98700 | ||
| Vsa warning light and ! light come on at the same time when vehicle is in motion. lights come on after approximately 5 minutes and stay on until the vehicle is turned off and restarted. this problem began about one month ago and happens almost every day. the warning lights seem sensitive to the cold as well. the on board diagnostic computer has no registered any malfunction codes. fortunately have not yet experienced the intense braking of other owners but there seems to be a significant problem with the vsa system on 2005 honda pilots. | |||
| 09/12/2012 | 119000 | 1 | |
| We recently purchased this car used from anderson honda of palo alto. on several occasions the vsa has engaged for no apparent reason at speeds ranging from 10-35 mph. the vsa engaged at slow speeds when turning and at the faster speeds on the straight-a-way. when the vsa engages the vsa light and warning light turn on. the lights do go off after the car has been turned off and at rest for a few minutes. most often when the vsa engages the car shudders slightly, both the brake and the gas pedal shudder and vibrate. the car feels like it is slowing momentarily. in the most recent episode on nov. 27. the car was traveling 35 mph down hill and the steering pulled slightly to the left. *tr | |||
| 09/12/2012 | 119000 | ||
| We recently purchased this car used from anderson honda of palo alto. on several occasions the vsa has engaged for no apparent reason at speeds ranging from 10-35 mph. the vsa engaged at slow speeds when turning and at the faster speeds on the straight-a-way. when the vsa engages the vsa light and warning light turn on. the lights do go off after the car has been turned off and at rest for a few minutes. most often when the vsa engages the car shudders slightly, both the brake and the gas pedal shudder and vibrate. the car feels like it is slowing momentarily. in the most recent episode on nov. 27. the car was traveling 35 mph down hill and the steering pulled slightly to the left. | |||
| 10/21/2012 | 127400 | 1 | |
| While driving on the highway at approximately 60 mph the brakes suddenly activated and the vehicle rapidly decelerated. tires actually screeched due to the rapid deceleration. the brakes pulsed off and on until the vehicle came to a complete stop. pressing and releasing the brake pedal had no effect. i turned off the car then re-started it and continued on with no further problem. if a car would have been behind me it certainly would have caused an accident as my vehicle stopped so abruptly i surely would have been rear-ended. i have owned this vehicle for 5 yrs and this has happened 5-6 times, the first time about 6 mos after i purchased the vehicle. the date here is the most recent incident. it has occurred at different speeds and happens when the brake pedal has not been touched. it is random and i have gone as long as a year between incidents. i have not yet taken it to a dealer because it is such a random occurrence and not possible to duplicate, and numerous accounts of this problem on-line indicate that honda does not have a fix and does not acknowledge the problem. my experience is exactly as described in nhtsa action number dp12002 and pe12028. *tr | |||
| 10/21/2012 | 127400 | ||
| While driving on the highway at approximately 60 mph the brakes suddenly activated and the vehicle rapidly decelerated. tires actually screached due to the rapid decelearation. the brakes pulsed off and on until the vehicle came to a complete stop. pressing and releasing the brake pedal had no effect. i turned off the car then re-started it and continued on with no further problem. if a car would have been behind me it certainly would have caused an accident as my vehicle stopped so abruptly i surely would have been rear-ended. i have owned this vehichle for 5 yrs and this has happened 5-6 times, the first time about 6 mos after i purchased the vehicle. the date here is the most recent incident. it has occured at different speeds and happens when the brake pedal has not been touched. it is random and i have gone as long as a year between incidents. i have not yet taken it to a dealer because it is such a random occurence and not possible to duplicate, and numerous accounts of this problem on-line indicate that honda does not have a fix and does not acknowledge the problem. my experience is exactly as described in nhtsa action number dp12002 and pe12028. | |||
| 10/13/2010 | 30000 | 1 | |
| While driving the braking system suddenly started to activate the anti-lock braking system, violently applying the brakes regardless of how hard or softly i touched the brake pedal. this anomaly has occurred multiple times without warning and for no apparent reason. i could not address this problem because it was unpredictable and went away when i would get the car to a safe place and turn off the key. it would no longer be happening, similar to rebooting a computer. no dash symptom lights would appear during these incidents. please advise if i have any recourse with honda since the vehicle is out of warranty. reference nhtsa action number pe12028. *tr | |||
| 10/13/2010 | 30000 | ||
| While driving the braking system suddenly started to activate the anti-lock braking system, violently applying the brakes regardless of how hard or softly i touched the brake pedal. this anomaly has occured multiple times without warning and for no apparent reason. i could not address this problem because it was unpredictable and went away when i would get the car to a safe place and turn off the key. it would no longer be happening, similar to rebooting a computer. no dash symptom lights would appear during these incidents. please advise if i have any recourse with honda since the vehicle is out of warranty. reference nhtsa action number pe12028 | |||
| 09/24/2012 | 126000 | 1 | |
| This problem began earlier in 2012 and was investigated by the dealer in june. while driving at various speeds (45-75mph), the vsa system engages, locking one wheel for a second or two, and pulling the steering wheel as if in a skid. when this stops, the vsa light is on as well as a yellow triangle with an exclamation point. when the dealer 'fixed' this in june, they repaired a tpms sensor. they also found a brake caliper stuck and fixed that as well as replaced the brake pads. since june the issue has not occurred until yesterday. it has happened at 3 times in the past 2 days, all at @ 45 mph. this seems to be a widely reported issue and is certainly a safety concern. when this happened in june on the interstate, traffic on both sides of me dropped back because they could tell i lost control of the car. *tr | |||
| 09/24/2012 | 126000 | ||
| This problem began earlier in 2012 and was investigated by the dealer in june. while driving at various speeds (45-75mph), the vsa system engages, locking one wheel for a second or two, and pulling the steering wheel as if in a skid. when this stops, the vsa light is on as well as a yellow triangle with an exclamation point. when the dealer 'fixed' this in june, they repaired a tpms sensor. they also found a brake caliper stuck and fixed that as well as replaced the brake pads. since june the issue has not occurred until yesterday. it has happened at 3 times in the past 2 days, all at @ 45 mph. this seems to be a widely reported issue and is certainly a safety concern. when this happened in june on the interstate, traffic on both sides of me dropped back because they could tell i lost control of the car. | |||
| 07/09/2012 | 100000 | 1 | |
| Approximate date i put was today, but this has happened several times to my spouse within the last few years. today is the first time i had been able to duplicate it. i just started the car, pulled out of the driveway on my way to work. about 300 yards down the road at approximately 25 miles per hour the car braked on its own twice and stopped the car. i had to get to work so i continued on. it occurred two more times on my way to work. i was never going faster than 40 miles per hour. it happened once while i was braking and two times while i was at a coast. my wife just told me that it happened again to her as recently as 3 days ago. i am concerned obviously because of the safety aspect of this. i have 3 children and god forbid this happen on the freeway or at high speeds. i have seen multiple complaints on the internet of this same occurrence with the 2005 honda pilot and they all said to file a complaint with this site. *tr | |||
| 07/09/2012 | 100000 | ||
| Approximate date i put was today, but this has happened several times to my spouse within the last few years. today is the first time i had been able to duplicate it. i just started the car, pulled out of the driveway on my way to work. about 300 yards down the road at approximately 25 miles per hour the car braked on its own twice and stopped the car. i had to get to work so i continued on. it occured two more times on my way to work. i was never going faster than 40 miles per hour. it happened once while i was braking and two times while i was at a coast. my wife just told me that it happened again to her as recently as 3 days ago. i am concerned obviously because of the safety aspect of this. i have 3 children and god forbid this happen on the freeway or at high speeds. i have seen multiple complaints on the internet of this same occurence with the 2005 honda pilot and they all said to file a complaint with this site. | |||
| 06/18/2012 | 53350 | ||
| On three hot afternoons (around 75 degrees) the car repeatedly had problems - mostly when turning. it felt like the antilock brakes went on by themselves even though my foot was not on the brake. the car quickly slowed and made grinding noises. most of the times that it happened, the stability control warning light came on. it felt and sounded similar to the way it stops on icy roads in the winter, but the slowdown was more severe. the car seemed fine during the cooler morning hours and the problem worsened as the temperature rose. it is currently sitting at the honda dealership while the problem is being diagnosed. | |||
| 04/16/2012 | 75000 | ||
| This has happened several times to my wife and daughter over the past month or so. they are driving along at any rate of speed and all of a sudden the car looses all power and the vehicle abruptly slows down and then recovers and begins running again. during this time the lights on the dashboard go out and flash and there is a popping sound at times. the last time it happened there was loss of all electrical to dash board system including the radio. the radio needed the code reentered which is normal for when all battery power is lost to the vehicle. i had this checked by a mechanic and they were unable to locate any problems. they checked the alternator, battery, connections and the system for any errors and nothing can be found. this is consistent with all other complaints associated with the esa, vsa/vsc and electrical systems as reported on this forum. i believe there is a major and dangerous bug in the system causing the car to loose power and control and any rate of speed. i also informed honda customer service but they said that they are unaware of any problems (or i should say owning up to any of thier problems) and to issue a complaint through this forum. i'm afaid it's going to take a major accident and a loss of life, which is bound to happen based on the fact that the car comes to an abrupt halt, in order for honda to own up to thier responsibility of spending the effort to identify this problem and issue a recall and get this fixed. i've been a honda owner (currently 3 cars) for over 23 years. i'm beginning to loose loyalty and faith in the company and will definately strongly consider making a change to another make on my next purchase. please honda own up to the problem before someone is killed! | |||
| 10/12/2011 | 103000 | ||
| It was night, and my girlfriend and i just exited the freeway, we just turned onto a side street and made it 100 yards when all of the sudden it felt like my left front tire went flat or i hit something and it dragged, i immediatly pulled over to inspect, and found nothing. i did noptice the vsa and vsa activation indicators on, turning the car off and then on agian reset the indicators. oddely concerned we circled back to check for anything in the road, there was nothing. it happened agian just a few minutes later, and the indicators came back on. it repeated itself a thrid time, and i drove home very worried it would happen on the freeway. each instance was momentary and it pulled hard left each time with a load antilock brake type jarring vibration. from reading other stories i can see that this problem isnt one of a kind, and i havn't seen anyone post a fix for it. | |||
| 02/15/2011 | 75400 | ||
| While making 2 turns in a parking lot at 10 mph, the vsa (vehicle stability assist) engaged, causing the brakes to suddenly grind the vehicle to a jarring halt---stopped on a dime! a moment later, while driving straight ahead at about 20 mph, the vsa engaged again, causing another sudden grinding braking to a full stop. honda says they know nothing about this anomaly---despite easily finding numerous blogs on the internet of people having the same problem ---up to occurring at highway speeds. honda diagnostic equipment did not identify that this occurred nor tell them that there is any problem. i do not consider this vehicle safe to drive! | |||
| 02/10/2011 | 115000 | ||
| After pulling out of a parking garage and driving about 4 city blocks, our 2005 honda pilot made a loud groaning sound and came to a complete stop in an intersection while turning left. from that point, for the next half mile, the car screeched to a complete stop every 15 to 20 seconds, even while only pressing the accelerator going speeds up to 20 mph. i instructed my wife to pull into the first available parking lot, at which point we saw that the vsa caution and off lights were on. i turned the ignition off, pulled the key out, put it back in and started the car back up. the vsa lights did not come back on. i pressed the vsa off button in order to avoid this malfunction on the way home. this is an extremely scary defect. i have read other owners' experiences of this same issue and i am convinced that it is a potentially life-threatening defect. we had our two year old and our newborn in a car which screeched to an unexpected full stop in the middle of an intersection halfway through a turn. there was no ice, the roads were dry, and the turn was controlled and normal. there was no reason for the vsa to engage. we were lucky no cars were coming the other direction to hit the pilot in the intersection. i have also read of this unprompted full stop occurring at speeds up to 60 mph. the potential implications of this are devastating. we purchased this car used with 105,000 miles on it. it now has approximately 115,000 miles. we have been pleased with the vehicle until now, but this one issue is enough of a safety issue that i will immediately pursue getting rid of the vehicle and finding something safer. | |||
| 01/25/2011 | 95000 | ||
| I own a 2005 honda pilot since 2008 and this car has 95'000 + mileage.recently the vsa light started coming on.i have taken this car to severals shop for diagnostics and the codes coming up is not readable.i went online to research on this and discovered that so many people do have the same problem.can you compel honda to do something before the problems get out of hands pls. | |||
| 11/29/2010 | 61000 | ||
| Honda pilot 2005 vsa issue and malfunctions: sometimes the light came up even i drove on a flat road with low speed. there is a loud clunk noise and the brake and steering for a fraction of a second locks. one time it happened when i was in a turn and almost hit a wall. i am concerned that the vehicle stabilization system is not safe if i had to make an emergency turn and that the vehicle would roll. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 75538 | ||
| Beginning in september of 2010, my 2005 honda pilot made a groaning noise around the driver side area, swerved abruptly to the left on its own, while the cruise was set at 56mph. following the incident the vsa warning light and the ! light illuminated.after first incident, it was towed to the dealership where they found diagnostic codes for yaw rate sensor failure and battery voltage failure. they found the battery negative terminal to be very loose and they tightened it. techs could not duplicate the problem. this occurred 7 more times over the following 3 weeks. when returned to dealership, they were advised by honda techs to clean the connectors on the yaw rate sensor. codes went away and the car was returned to me. the following day the symptoms returned. honda dealership says they must now replace the yaw rate sensor. we are waiting for our appointment for that to occur. | |||
| 08/03/2010 | 47000 | ||
| While driving on a flat surface along i95 in good weather, i lost control of my steering/breaks for a second. the vsa light came on. i took the car to my local mechanic who ran several tests only resulting in an error code with the yaw rate sensor. the light went on again before i left the parking lot. he then ran more test, found the sensor lost it's memory and reset it. the next day it happened again, my mechanic then performed an alignment. through this he only charged me a minimal fee for one of the visits. he stated that the sensor may have gone bad. this happens daily at various speeds, conditions etc. a few times i turned the car on and before i left my driveway the light was on, other times, drove over an hr and it did not come on. i contacted my dealership to which they told me they do not know of any issues concerning the vsa. i have looked up several forums on line and found quite a few complaints on the same issue. they have gone through the same steps my mechanic has done, some had transmissions replaces, others master cylinders and some it remained a mystery. i only lose control for a split second, but that's all it takes to cause an accident. i just wanted to report this problem. thank you. | |||
| 03/23/2010 | 60000 | ||
| Traffic light turned green i proceeded through an intersection going straight between 10-15mph my brakes suddenly started pumping hard i tried to apply a little more gas the brakes started again , i hit the hazard light and managed to get out of the rush hour traffic into a parking lot , read my manual the vsa light came on the dash and the triangle below it came on as well. i turned the ignition off and then restarted the 2005 honda pilot exl the dash indicaters did not light up i drove the twenty or so miles home trying to stay in the shoulder lane just in case the brakes malfunctioned again. i did a lttle researching on the net there are a few other pilot owners that have had the same problem with no definitive solution. | |||
| 02/19/2010 | 68800 | 1 | |
| My wife was cruising down the highway at 50 mph a week ago, under very good road condition, with her foot on the gas pedal, when she tried to dodge the passenger car from the next lane, her brake wasn't working properly, suddenly her car made lousy banging sound and sled 3 times in rapid toward left after toward right, and left again. luckily no contacts was made while in devastating moment. before heading to dealer, today snowy day, driving 10 mph to my daughter's school dropping, it happened again as similar but not so panoramic. barely avoid to collision with police patrol car on opposite lane. *tr | |||
| 01/10/2010 | 50255 | 1 | |
| Our 2005 honda pilot vehicle statbility system (vsa) malfunctioned. on six seperate occasions and over the course of 7 days, starting january 10, 2010 the vehicle would brake spontaneously and abruptly at different speeds. this occurred at speeds from 10 mph to 60 mph. after each incident, the vsa light would come on. the temporary remedy was to turn off the vsa before before driving the pilot. the pilot was repaired at our honda dealer on january 27, 2010. a yaw rate sensor was replaced for $720 including labor. *cn | |||
| 08/01/2009 | 60080 | 1 | |
| 2005 honda pilot went into a full brake mode (slammed) without anyone touching the brakes from 45 mph. after the car stopped in the middle of the road we limped onto a side street with the brakes continuing to catch off and on. parked the car and returned later to get it to the dealer. we could not get it to duplicate the problem. this could have been a disaster if someone had been following the vehicle. *tr | |||
| 02/20/2009 | 58000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving 40 mph, the vehicle slammed into brake mode and came to a complete and sudden stop. the failure continued for several minutes, causing items to be thrown from the seat onto the floor. during the failure, the vehicle stability assist warning indicator was illuminated on the instrument panel. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer for diagnostic testing, which produced a low battery voltage code and a brake sensor code. the dealer tested and replaced the battery. they also notified the manufacturer and opened a case. the failure and current mileages were less than 58,000. | |||
| 02/05/2009 | 71500 | 1 | |
| Yesterday, my daughter's 2005 honda pilot with 71k miles since new, was rolling along at 60 mph on interstate 66 when brakes engaged bringing car to sudden stop. several cars behind her had to take defensive action to prevent piling up. vsa light and abs lights were on. this happened several more times to a point where car was undriveable and had to be pulled to side of the road. car was towed to honda by aaa. same thing happened in oct 2008 (about four months ago) but occurred only intermittently and car could be driven to dealership. diagnosis from dealer was need for new battery. original battery was replaced and car worked fine until yesterday. it appears that the honda diagnostic system at the dealers cannot properly identify this problem although it is surely serious enough to warrant a recall. according to members posting at hondapilot.org forum, this has happened to others and with the same potentially hazardous results. more troubling is the fact that honda dealers are unable to diagnose the problem with current technology. some have replaced tire pressure sensors, some have replaced steering wheel sensors and others have replaced side crash sensors and brake systems. in my case, the dealer replaced the battery. the fact remains, however, that the problem could not be the result of malfunctions of all these systems and the current diagnostic codes apparently are insufficient to pinpoint the exact component that failed. this level of uncertainty only compounds the original problem and increases the likelihood of a multi-car pileup when the vsa system engages for no good reason. *tr | |||
| 10/21/2008 | 50000 | 1 | |
| In may 2008 while approaching a curve at approx 30 mph lightly applied brakes. brakes locked up and vsa light came on. had the car checked by dealership and no issues found and no parts replaced. in october 2008, 5,000 miles later, the same issue happened at approx the same speed - applying the brakes to execute a turn, no vsa light indicator came on. took the car to the dealership a second time and filed a safety compliant with honda of america (ref case # n012008-10-22-00221) again no issues were found and no parts were replaced. honda would not commit to the safety of the car. *tr | |||
| 10/30/2008 | 67000 | 1 | |
| On 10/30/2008 my wife left home at approximate 6:00 am. at about 6:05 am the brakes on her 2005 honda pilot ex-l applied themselves without any pressure applied to the brake pedal. when she did push on the brake pedal, there was no effect. the brake pedal went to the floor. the vsa indicator light came on and a vsa activation indicator light came on. the vehicle behind her nearly rear-ended her. *tr | |||