The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that shortly after refueling, the vehicle suddenly experienced unintended acceleration, causing the speed to increase to approximately 45 MPH while approaching stopped traffic. While pressing the brake pedal to avoid a collision, the vehicle continued to accelerate and crashed into the rear of a second vehicle. During the air bag deployment, the air was deflated, causing the driver's head to contact the steering wheel. Also, the contact indicated that metal fragments were present during the air bag deployment. The contact sustained a lacerated left wrist and lacerations to the chest area. The driver also sustained contusions and bruised to the head, ankles, and legs, along with neck and back stiffness, which will all require medical treatment. No other injuries were known regarding the second vehicle occupants. A Police Report was taken at the scene, and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failures was not determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failures, but no assistance was offered. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 150,000.
2005 Honda Pilot brakes problems
134 complaints (20% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 101,393. 10 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 134
- of this car's complaints
- 20%
- typical mileage
- 101,393
- crashes
- 10
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip5
- Foundation components: master cylinder1
- Antilock: wheel speed sensor1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Honda Pilot brakes problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2005 Honda Pilot brakes
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Vehicle Stability Assist Malfunction
The Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) system in the model year (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 fail-safe mode, disabling all VSA functions.This Preliminary Evaluation has been upgraded to Engineering Analysis (EA13-002) to further 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.
PE12028
What 2005 Honda Pilot owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
The contact owns a 2005 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving 25-35 MPH, the vehicle slowed down unexpectedly, and the brake pedal was hard and slow to respond when depressed. The contact stated that the steering wheel was pulling to the left, and it was difficult to correct the steering wheel. The vehicle was difficult to control. The VSA light was illuminated. There was a triangle with an exclamation mark symbol displayed on the instrument cluster. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the VSA module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired because the parts were on backorder. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 173,273.
In the highway the car brakes for no reason for a moment than it release
2005 pilot was repaired under vsa recall in 2013. As of the last couple of weeks, again I experienced same exact vehicle safety issues prior to repair. This past week while I had my three children in the car, we almost lost our lives. A semi driver instead risked his own lives to keep from slamming in the back of us. We took our pilot to honda dealership that has serviced our vehicle over the years and they do not want to recognize issue and instead point to the same thing I am now reading here online. The dealership service department states it is the yaw sensor as the issue, not faulty repair. It is not a coincidence that pilot owners are now once again are experiencing the same issues all over again. How many lives will be lost or changed for the worst before honda is forced to reckon with this issue? This is wrong and unacceptable. There are other poor design flaws that we think also may have cost us so much more money, such as the vvt issues. However, the vsa repair issue is not something that can be overlooked and must be dealt with now. Specifically, my experience mostly on flat surfaces with exception of one time on a slight incline at a stop light. Both in town driving and intersate and all dry weather conditions except one occasion. The vsa light flashed, vehicle applied brake at without my foot on brake pedal. My foot was on accelerator at the time vehicle was being harshly stopped by the brakes applied. This caused the vehicle to make a bucking motion or jerking motion, also I've experienced the slight swerve. I was driving in a straight direction all of the times this occurred since the repair in 2013. It depended on the amount of pressure and length of time the vehicle acted up. Everything is just as it did prior to the repair in 2013, nothing is any different, all the same. Yet, honda wants to say I need to cover repair.
The yaw rate lateral acceleration sensor is faulty and should be included in honda's 2013 recall of the vsa. The vehicle has the exact symptoms of the vsa recall, which was fixed on my vehicle. I purchased the car last year with very low miles, only drove for a few months before it started having issues. Started out having the vsa triangle light on dash and losing power (limp mode) only after coming out of a turn after driving vehicle for awhile. Increased to the point where after roughly 30 minutes of the vehicle running the vsa issue would happen at least once during the drive. Severity of the vsa/limp mode got worse, no power for longer at a time and the horrible grinding noise directly underneath cabin. Took to honda complaining of these issues, couldn't replicate it so nothing was wrong. One month ago, my vehicle started having the un-commanded braking problem. Driving at 55 MPH, the slightest touch to the brakes causes the vehicle to hard brake, causing a swerve at least going that fast. It has done this un-commanded braking more than once, I have been afraid to drive it and at least got it 30 minutes to my honda dealer, which I also purchased the vehicle from. It was diagnosed with the faulty yaw rate lateral acceleration sensor. I have argued with honda for the last three weeks over the issue, ultimately to be told that it was not included in the final recall, even though the investigation names the yaw sensor as possibly being implicated in the malfunction. $994 for the sensor alone. It is absolutely dangerous and even the dealer recommends it be fixed immediately, yet honda has declared no fault.
While driving straight at 40 MPH my right front brake locked up. We changed the brake caliper thinking it was the problem. It did not fix the problem. Looking online it seems to be an issue with the 2005 honda pilot. I searched and called honda and my local dealer. They said there weren't any recalls or safety bulletins.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. The contact stated the vehicle stability assist warning light illuminated and remained illuminated. The contact was unable to deactivate the control module. The contact referenced the failure to the federal safety agency campaign number: 13v092000 (service brakes, hydraulic, traction control system). The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for a diagnosis or repairs. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 154,000.
The brakes are applying randomly without applying pressure on the brake pedal. The vsa light remains illuminated and it is unsafe to drive. 13v092 is the recall bulliten I believe applies to my vehicle, but when I search my VIN, it shows no unrepaired recalls. I have verified that the vsa subharness has not been installed prior to my purchase of the vehicle. My manufacture date falls between the timeline of this recall and also my VIN begins with 2hk, which is specified in campaign 13-026 as requiring vsa sub harness installed. I have taken it to my local honda dealer and they have told me that it does not qualify for the recall because it is "VIN specific".
2005 honda pilot with 145k miles suddenly started to apply brakes without warning while driving on straight, flat, dry roads at moderate speeds. If has also occurred at highway speed, but never associated with skidding, sliding, etc. The brakes appear to apply differentially, causing a swerve that needs to be corrected quickly to avoid collision with traffic. The vsa light comes on, and the triangular vsa disconnect light comes on. They both go out after the car is shut off and restarted. The local honda dealer says there is no recall for this, but that they had reprogrammed the car's vsa during an earlier service visit.
When driving down the slope on the curb my car apply the breaks without any input.
Questions about the 2005 Honda Pilot brakes
Does the 2005 Honda Pilot have brakes problems?
Owners have filed 134 complaints about the brakes of the 2005 Honda Pilot, 20% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2005 Honda Pilot brakes problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 101,393 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2005 Honda Pilot brakes?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Honda Pilot have bad brakes?
The Honda Pilot model years with the most brakes complaints are 2005 (134 complaints), 2019 (43 complaints) and 2013 (42 complaints).
Other 2005 Honda Pilot problems
Transmission 176Airbags 120Driver assistance 100Engine 90Electrical 57Acceleration 46Suspension 38Steering 37Lights 34Body 23Seats 22Seat belts 13Wheels 9Fuel system 7Tires 7Visibility 6Locks 1
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