Check a VIN

2004 Honda Pilot seats complaints

Page 2 of 4: complaints 11 to 40 of 85, newest first, as owners wrote them.

See the summary of 2004 Honda Pilot seats problems: which part fails, at what mileage and related recalls.

Filed Mar 12, 2018 · Seats · 168,000 miles · PA

Drivers side seat mounting bracket has cracked and is now split open. Vehicle was stationary and driver had turned around and leaned back to back out of a parking spot when seat bracket cracked. Drivers side seat now is loose and rocks back and forth. Very unsafe to drive. Afraid entire seat will break loose from mounting points. Note: multiple instances of this same defect have been submitted on the internet, across multiple honda pilot years.

Filed Dec 20, 2017 · Seats · MI · fire

The drivers seat has been so hot that it feels like it can burn your skin. Today on the way to work my daughter said she smelled something burning. She looked down on her seat and it was smoking and burned the leather. The seat was actually catching on fire. I have looked this up and see numerous complaints on this and people have reported this to you. I don't see what you are reporting no complaints or recalls. We were on the highway when the incident happened.

Filed Nov 28, 2017 · Seats · 285,000 miles · NC

The drivers seat has a bracket that broke when I was driving and I almost control of the vehicle because it caused me to lean back very far in the seat and my steering and acceleration was affected. I was exiting onto a freeway and almost collided with other vehicles. This bracket is located on the drives side that holds a motor that moves the seat up and down; in close proximity to the left side panel for the seat controls. Bracket has two rivets holding in place. Was hoping their was a recall on this defect because I found lots of incidents reported on various websites. Thank you.

Filed Nov 22, 2017 · Seats · 140,000 miles · AK

The vehicle was stationary, not in any accidents or driving off-road. Sat down and found driver's seat unexpectedly will now tilt back, raising the left front of the seat. The seat is obviously not secure, nor would it be safe in an accident. Took it to the dealer, and they said the seat frame is broken inexplicably (part 81660-s3v-a30). This does not appear to be a wear part - one of the metal bracket pieces holding the seat bottom to the body I guess just sheared off along the rivet line. A brief web search found this is a common problem, so I'm surprised there has not been a recall by honda. The dealer quoted a repair price of approximately $1,850.

Filed Nov 9, 2017 · Seats · 200,000 miles · GA

Front left bracket that holds the drivers seat to the frame of the vehicle snapped. This is a common, known defect and is a safety issue.

Filed Jun 7, 2017 · Seats · 140,000 miles · VA

My husband (195 lbs) reached in his pocket to get his wallet and the metal brace holding the seat broke. The seat is now not still when driving. What worries me is, what if I had been in an accident? The aforementioned brace should hold under much more rigorous situations. There appears to be a lot of 2004 honda pilots who have experienced this exact same break, as noted online. This is a very serious flaw and should be fixed by the manufacturer at their expense. Per online comments, the dealership is charging $1200 to fix a problem that should never have failed. I am bringing my car in for assessment on monday, june 12, 2017, at 1:00p.

Filed Dec 7, 2016 · Seats · OK

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 honda pilot. Upon entering the vehicle, the front driver side of the vehicle was leaning. Upon inspection, the contact noticed that the weld was fractured. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was confirmed that the driver's seat bracket was fractured and the seat would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was not provided.

Filed Oct 17, 2016 · Seats · 234,000 miles · NJ

While leaning back in the driver's seat to remove my wallet to purchase gasoline I heard "pop" and then the seat seemed to become dislodged from the body of the vehicle. The front left of the seat was no longer connected to the body of the vehicle. Upon further inspection it was revealed that the steel bracket holding the top assembly of the seat to the bottom assembly of the seat tore clean through.

Filed Jul 20, 2016 · Seats · 150,000 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 honda pilot. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the driver seat would move independently. The contact stated that the seat felt as though it would dislodge from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the seat bolt had fractured and that drivers seat would have to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.

Filed Jul 9, 2016 · Seats · 162,000 miles · CA

The drivers seat lower metal bracket broke causing the drivers seat to be unstable when sitting in the SUV and when accelerating. I have seen at several other complaints both on this web site and in the honda pilot forum. I called the dealer about asking for a repair who referred me to honda USA. I called and reported the problem to honda and they are unwilling to fix this safety issue which is a safety defect because there is no recall issued for this problem. If this vehicle were to be in an accident the seat would likely break loose and throw the driver and the seat out of the vehicle. I just noticed this problem while driving the vehicle .

Filed May 18, 2016 · Seats · 144,330 miles · AL

I am the original owner of a 2004 honda pilot ex-l and have had only very minor issues up until now. Yesterday, while entering the vehicle, I noticed a great deal of play in the driver's seat back. Assuming an anchor bolt was loose, I checked the left front seat area where the movement was the greatest and discovered the left adjuster assembly arm almost completed sheared from the main adjuster assembly. The structural integrity of the seat is now severely compromised and is a safety hazard as the seat will become detached in any accident. I've noted numerous complaints of this exact same piece on this and other websites.

Filed Apr 23, 2016 · Seats · 106,000 miles · NC

Bracket on left front power seat broke; it holds the seat to the floor; and seat rocks back and is not fastened at left front to the car. Very dangerous and must be fixed.

Filed Apr 6, 2016 · Seats · 140,000 miles · NC

The heating element on the driver side seat gets so hot you have to turn it off to keep from getting burnt. It gets so hot you can't stand it. It happens on both the hi and lo settings. It doesn't happen all of the time but when it does it continues until the heater is turned off. As many people who have had this problem, I'd think something should be done to fix the problem before it cause a more serious problem. When it happens it gets hot fast. One time when I noticed it was getting hot before I could get it turned of it got so hot I could hardly stand it. Fortunately I was not in heavy traffic or the reaction to it could have caused an accident. This has happened both while the vehicle was stationary and while driving down the road. It has happened in all sorts of weather conditions.

Filed Mar 21, 2016 · Seats · 210,000 miles · WI

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 honda pilot. While the contact was seated in the driver seat, an abnormal sound emitted from the vehicle without warning. The contact discovered that the seat bolt was fractured. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the bolt between the seat and seat frame assembly was fractured and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 210,000.

Filed Mar 17, 2016 · Seats · OK · 1 injury

I am the original owner of my 2004 honda pilot. Overall, good vehicle but has always been a problem with the driver side heated seat. It gets too hot and felt like a burn to your skin. I mentioned to the dealer early on and was told to decrease the use. So, I have decreased the use of the heated seats or used on low for a short time until the SUV was warm and completely turned off. The seat is not heating at all now. It has approx. 175,000miles and has been well maintained. I feel that there has been too many complaints and this issue never addressed or a recall done.

Filed Mar 13, 2016 · Seats · 180,000 miles · TX

The driver's seat popped and now tilts backwards from the left. Upon investigation I found the exact problem others have reported to the federal safety agency regarding this year model: the left side bracket that holds the motor for the power seat back broke along the rivet line. This holds the seat bottom to body of the seat. This was perfectly described in a complaint lodged 4/25/2015 from tampa, fl. This appears

Filed Feb 5, 2016 · Seats · 200,332 miles · NC · 1 injury

While driving to work this morning (cold morning, on city street) I turned my driver seat heater on high. The driver side seat heater was on for about 20 minutes when suddenly the back became very hot. It started to smell and my back was slightly scalded before I realized what was happening. I quickly turned my seat heater off and soon after turned my car off to investigate. The back portion of the seat (middle spot) was still very hot to touch and remained that way for at least 15 minutes in 35 degree weather! My car and especially the driver side seat has a burnt rubber odor. I truly feel that if I had not turned my seat heater off when I did, that it would have caught fire with me driving! No I'm afraid to utilize the seat heater. Honda needs to do something about this via replacement of faulty wiring or element before something more serious happens to someone!

Filed Nov 4, 2015 · Seats · 203,000 miles · NY

Left front bracket on driver seat has broken on its own without any outside influence. Wife parked in drive way leaned back to exit vehicle and the bracket broke.

Filed Sep 28, 2015 · Seats · 180,958 miles · NC

The seat began moving earlier today and then when my husband was getting out of the car there was a loud pop and the seat started rocking. It seems to have become detached from the car on the front left. When accelerating it rocks back and when breaking it rocks forward. My husband looked and the metal bracket has broken completely. It seems very unsafe and would be extremly worried that in an accident the air bag would cause serious injury when you are thrust even farther into it or if the other side were to break and you be thrown out regardless of having a seatbelt.

Filed Aug 24, 2015 · Seats · 145,000 miles · KS

We noticed that the plastic panel covering the driver's seat controls came detached. Shortly after the seat began rocking slightly. Finally, there was a loud pop and the seat now rocks freely. It is scary and dangerous to have to drive a vehicle while the seat responds to all movement. It will no longer allow you to increase the incline of it, so it's reclined at the same time. What started as two screws breaking free from the decorative lever cover quickly turned into a major structural issue.

Filed Aug 14, 2015 · Seats · 129,000 miles · AE

When sitting down in my vehicle this morning, there was a snapping noise and the seat rocked back toward the right rear. Removing the plastic cover, it was plainly visible that a metal part that holds the upper seat to the lower seat assembly has snapped where it attaches with two industrial rivets. Seat now tips backward rather easily, and does so when I climb in or out of the vehicle, and upon acceleration. Clearly the structural integrity of this seat is destroyed until I can have it fixed/replaced. I am fearful that if I were to have an accident, the seat will come completely detached. In a 5 min web search I have found dozens of other instances of this occurring; this is not a rare problem and needs to be fixed! Compounding my problem, I am in the usaf stationed in the uk, and getting this fixed will be difficult to say the least, as this vehicle is not sold here.

Filed May 4, 2015 · Seats · 170,500 miles · FL

Front left structural bracket on driver's seat failed, allowing seat to tip backward. Bracket failed along a line with two rivet/fasteners, detaching seat tray from power fore/aft positioner rails. Apparently design defect, as there are 12 other essentially identical the federal safety agency complaints on file for this make/model/year.

Filed Feb 14, 2015 · Seats · 85,600 miles · CA

The drivers side seat bracket, 81630-s3v-a30, has broken at a weak point in the metal where the seat motor attaches. The break caused the seat to rock back and forth freely. This is the second time this bracket has broken. The first time was in july, 2011; most recently february 2015. Each time I purchased a new bracket arm at the expense of almost $300. Both brackets broke at the same spot, where the seat motor mounts. The sudden metal break almost caused us to have an accident on two separate occasions. In each case, norm reeves honda in huntington beach refused to replace the defective bracket at their cost but offered, instead, to order the part and install it for a cost of $1200.

Filed Jan 1, 2015 · Electrical, Seats · 148,500 miles · IL

Noticed an extreme hot spot on drivers side lower seat cushion when heated seats are on hi or lo. Spot is so hot that you cannot let it touch your pants without burning you. I have read many accounts of this same issue with other honda owners that ultimately resulted in a fire. Now drivers side lower seat cushion heating element no longer works. Drivers side back and passenger side heating elements still work.

Filed Dec 14, 2014 · Seats · 126,000 miles · TX

While stopped at a stop sign, I began to accelerate when I heard a 'pop' and the seat tilted back, startling me. A metal bracket on the front-left side of the driver's seat has broken and the seat now shifts back and forth!

Filed Aug 4, 2014 · Electrical, Seats · 100,000 miles · OR

When we turn on the seat warmer in the front passenger seat of our honda pilot 2004, we smell a strong odor of rubber or foam burning. Now our seat warmer will not work at all. We've stopped using the seat warmer due to concerns of a fire starting.

Filed Jul 31, 2014 · Seats · 110,000 miles · NC · fire · 1 injury

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 honda pilot. The contact stated that the drivers side seat warmer was activated and became extremely hot. In addition, there was a burning odor throughout the vehicle. As a result, the driver sustained a burn. The failure occurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 110,000. The VIN was not available.

Filed Jul 8, 2014 · Seats · MD

Husband parked car leaned forward to get wifi off dash and left front of driver seat detached from the adjuster. Seat now leans to front left and rocks around. Updated 2/27/2015

Filed Jul 8, 2014 · Electrical, Seats · 72,000 miles · OR

When the driver side heated seat is turned on the seat gets so hot that it literally burns the skin on anyone sitting in the seat. It happens on both low or high setting. The seat then begins to emit smoke.

Filed Jun 30, 2014 · Airbags, Electrical · 170,000 miles · TN

We were on another summer trip and the airbag warning light came on. This is the big red light to the far left of the panel. Calling honda in franklin tn they had no idea what could happen while continuing to drive the vehicle. Calling another dealership they assured me that it was most likely a sensor and the airbags would simply not deploy. Honda as recalls now for bad airbags. 1- our 2004 does not fall into the recall period 2 - honda should pay for any issue related to bad airbag technology regardless of how old the car is, just like they do with seat belts. If we would have been in a wreck during the time that light was on, the airbag would not have deployed. 3- any part of the airbag/sensor/ seatbelt system should not be merely covered under a limited warranty. It should be covered for the life of the car. This is a safety issue. If they cannot stand behind the safety of the car they need to get out of the business.

VIN decoder

See the problems and recalls for an exact car

Buying a used 2004 Honda Pilot?

Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.

Check its history