Honda Passport phantom braking problems

Filed Jul 22, 2026 · Brakes, Driver assistance · TX

My 2026 Honda Passport TrailSport Elite has twice applied its brakes on its own, with no obstacle, vehicle, or hazard in front of me to justify braking. On July 13, 2026, at approximately 5:36 p.m., I was driving in evening traffic when the vehicle suddenly braked hard on its own. Nothing was in front of me. The car behind me nearly rear-ended me and had to brake sharply to avoid a collision, and the driver reacted with road rage. On July 16, 2026, at approximately 6:03 p.m., my young son was in the vehicle with me. While I was driving in traffic, the vehicle again braked on its own with no obstacle ahead. A sedan behind me nearly rear-ended me. This sudden, uncommanded braking happens without warning while I am driving in traffic and has nearly caused a rear-end collision on both occasions. It is terrifying and I no longer feel safe driving this vehicle, especially with my child. The same vehicle also has ongoing electrical and drive-power failures (loss of power while driving, repeated stalling in reverse, and complete no-start events) that I have reported separately. Three dealerships have been unable to identify or correct the problems. No crash has occurred yet, but only because the drivers behind me reacted in time. The vehicle is available for inspection.

Filed Mar 11, 2026 · Brakes, Driver assistance · FL

On numerous occasions while driving on the highway with no other vehicles in the vicinity of my vehicle the forward collision active braking activates aggressively and brakes for no reason this is concerning at 70 mph with a vehicle behind that may be following to close on a slippery road surface. vehicle is available for inspection any time upon request. vehicle has not been inspected by any one yet. no warning lamps other than the one associated with forward collision braking.

Filed Feb 26, 2026 · Driver assistance · PA

2025 Honda Passport with 10k miles ***Braking issues - -Collision Mitigation System going off randomly and often, with no oncoming traffic, no obstacles or obstructions. -Phantom braking and “BRAKE” warning/steering wheel shake. Occurs often on windy, hilly roads with sharp curves, often to the right. Branches, guard rails, etc will activate the system at high speeds 50 mph and over, causing serious safety concerns of the vehicle stopping for no true cause. -White cars in oncoming traffic seemingly activate the “BRAKE” warning on occasion. -“BRAKE” warning went off and significantly slowed the car when a water filled pothole was to the right. -Issues have occurred with no cars ahead of the Passport. ***Engine issues after getting fuel - -After getting gas, check engine, power steering, and battery light will sometimes turn on. Only resolution is to restart the vehicle. -Brake pedal was also hard/stuck after getting gas, and vehicle could not be turned on until brake was pushed extremely hard/pumped. Power steering light came on after this incident. ***Lights- -Automatic adjusting high beams turn on and off erratically. Cannot use the automated system. ***Transmission- -Engine braking downhill on one or two occasions would not allow car to shift back up. Had to use paddle shifters to get the car moving again. Dealership cannot replicate these issues on a short ride with their tech, therefore the vehicle is “fine.”

Filed Aug 16, 2025 · Driver assistance, Engine · IL

The first major issue I just started running into at about 90,000 miles is the engine auto start stop feature. I usually disable it when I drive due to the inability for the car to provide adequate start from a stop, but when I don’t, I’ve had the vehicle completely stall on me at a stoplight and won’t let me restart the vehicle for several minutes leaving me stranded and vulnerable sitting in a lane on a highway. I’ve had about a dozen instances of this issue now over the last several months. The second issue is with the adaptive, cruise control or the emergency, stopping on the vehicle where it will jam on the brakes, even though there are no cars in front of me it inaccurately picks up vehicles in the oncoming lane. There are more than 8 feet separated from my vehicle. I have had the system recalibrated and have complained about it at the dealer, but I’ve been told that there’s nothing wrong with it. Just thought I’d report that as well because it’s almost got me into several accidents by jamming on my brakes for no reason and almost being rear-ended.

Filed Oct 26, 2024 · Brakes, Driver assistance · KY

The automatic emergency brake system will randomly activate despite there being nothing in the way, no car in front, and no obstruction. It causes the car to slam on the brakes for no reason which I’m afraid will cause someone to hit me from behind.

Filed Apr 17, 2024 · Driver assistance · NC

The Forward Collition Mitigation System is constantly braking on its own for no apparent reason. It happens a lot when going around a slight right turn and it interprets cars coming the opposite direction in the other lane as a trigger to start braking. It is a very dangerous situation each time, so I turn off that feature every time I start driving now to avoid it.

Filed Mar 12, 2024 · Brakes, Driver assistance · CA

Our 2021 Honda passport EX-L sometimes hits the brakes on its own. It happens every now and then, like when I'm exiting a freeway, or sometimes even when going with the flow of traffic. I've seen this issue talked about in the [XXX] , but today I saw an official article citing the federal safety agency concerns, so I'm writing to say that I too have experienced this potential dangerous issue while on road. My vehicle randomly brake checks on its own when it falsely detects the situation in front of me, which could result in a rear end collision. I'd like to see this issue resolved, so please feel free to contact me if you need any more information. Even back in 2022, I was experiencing this issue. This has happened occasionally. The last time was about a few weeks ago on the freeway. Please see the forum screenshot for my reference-- I'm [XXX] in that thread. Here's the article I read today: [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jun 28, 2023 · Driver assistance · FL

We drove about 100 miles yesterday. It all happened. False Brake light flash and brake applied because of oncoming traffic. Heavy brake application because of car in the left lane making a turn. Can't tell you how many times I've almost been rear ended, and people blasting their horns at me because this foolish car slams on the brakes for no reason. People think I'm brake checking them. Had 2 Hyundai before this, never encountered this. Honda needs to be forced to fix these issues. There are hundreds of similar complaints in online forum about this problem. This has happened many times, especially on an extended trip, like yesterday, over 100 miles round trip. Dealers do not have a fix for this. Honda needs to be forced to address this and fix all problem vehicles.

Filed May 16, 2023 · Driver assistance · 60,000 miles · NM

The contact owns a 2019 Honda Passport. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the vehicle experienced phantom braking. The contact stated that on one occasion, the failure caused the vehicle to come to a complete and abrupt stop. The brake warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the contact also stated that the steering wheel was shaking with an unknown chime heard. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer however, the failure could not be duplicated. The failure recurred and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the braking system needed to be recalibrated. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it remained awaiting diagnostic and repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Filed Jan 9, 2023 · Driver assistance · CA

On October 29, 2022, the CMBS emergency braking system slammed the brakes on for no obvious reason. This happened at least four or five times while traveling eastbound on I-40 in AZ. There were no cars in front of or changing into my lane. After it happened a few times, I called the dealer RSM Honda in Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, where i service the car to see if i could turn it off. They suggested reducing the sensitivity, which I did. After changing the sensitivity, I still experienced two or three more incidents of surprise emergency braking for no reason. After the fifth or sixth incident, I pulled over and searched a pdf copy of my owners manual and found a way to turn off the CMBS with a button on the dash. This worked to stop the braking incidents, but I had to do it over again every time I restarted the engine after stopping for gas, etc. This scared me and was dangerous as this would happen while i was going 70 mph. I think every instance occurred while I was passing a "big rig", but I was never in the same lane as the truck. Sometimes it was on a very gentle curve, but other times we (truck and I) were both going straight down a straightaway. I had done similar trips previously in February, June, and July without having this issue, but had it happen multiple times on my October trip as described above.