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!
2005 Honda Pilot electrical complaints
Page 3 of 3: complaints 41 to 57 of 57, newest first, as owners wrote them.
My wife called me one morning on her way to the shop. She was frantic saying "my steering wheel is smoking. I don't know what to do. I'm just about a minute from the shop. Should I pull over or just try to make it to the shop?" I told her, if it's not too bad and she is that close just keep coming unless it gets worse. When she made it to the shop, I pulled off the plastic cover around the steering column. And found the yellow wire going to the headlamp switch burnt. The molex plug and headlamp switch were also melted. I called local honda dealer and asked them if their was a recall for this. They said no. Also saying this never happens. I had to purchase a new headlamp switch and make repairs to the wiring and plug. I own an automotive shop. If not this would have been a very costly repair..I also have pictures of the burnt wire and molten plug and switch if needed. ..updated 04/19/12 *bf updated 05/11/12 updated 05/17/2012
The first incident occurred while traveling at highway speeds. The car violently jerked forward 3 times and came to a complete sudden stop on the interstate. Luckily no one was following too close or we would have been rear ended. My foot was on the accelerator maintaining a steady speed, and it was like I stomped on the break rapidly three times and then the car came to a complete stop. We took the car to the honda dealership and they could not repeat the issue but said that the battery wasn't putting out the proper amount of amps and was likely resulting in the computer sending faulty messages. They replaced the battery. The car seemed to be fixed when the battery was replaced, but then the issue recurred about two months later at the end of february 2012. While accelerating at about 30 MPH, the car violently came to a sudden stop in the middle of the road. Again, we were lucky to not be not rear ended. We took the car to another auto shop, but they weren't able to duplicate the issue. They assessed the computer and noted a faulty egr valve and replaced it. The car drove fine for two weeks after that, then the issue recurred for a third time, again at about 30 MPH. The same thing occurred; the car came to a sudden stop in the middle of the road after the sensation of stomping on the breaks several times. The car is in the shop again, and they can't recreate the problem. Their assessment is leading them to believe there is a faulty ABS switch or brake booster. After several failed repair attempts, we aren't confident that anyone knows what the problem is. However, if you read the forums online, this is a problem that has been reported by dozens of people with my year, make/model and at the approximate mileage as my car. If we continue driving the car, we are scared we may injure ourselves or others.
The climate control lights inside our honda pilot have all burned out. It is extremely dangerous to change the settings at night because the light bulbs do not light up. Please fix this honda!
Display lights on several buttons on climate control unit are not lit up,this makes it difficult to see & make adjustments at night.checked all fuses,all ttare intact.dealer states problem not covered by warranty .I checked various sites & noticed similar complaints .plz notify if there are any service bulletins or recalls tnks. *
Lights for HVAC system do not illuminate. Unable to see controls for defroster, A/C, heat, etc. When driving at night.
Srs warning light goes on and stays on for days, then goes off and seems ok for a while. Sometimes it comes on briefly and goes off. Lately it has come on again and has not gone off for a couple of weeks straight. There has been no accident or airbag deployment in this vehicle.
The climate control lights on my 2005 honda pilot are non-functional. I purchased this car new and these lights failed after about two years. This appears to be a common issue with the pilot.
Srs wargning light on. Dealer determined that both SRS front impact sensors are faulty and needed to be replaced. Front airbaigs would not deploy if needed.
While driving on city road I heard a loud bang and smoke appeared under the vehicle. The vehicle then started running very rough so I pulled off the side of the road. I got out of vehicle and found a coil laying on the ground along with some other plastic pieces. I had the vehicle towed to my mechanic. My mechanic examined the vehicle and found that a spark plug had blown completely out of the engine block head along with the blown coil that I had picked up. The spark plug was never recovered even though I returned to the scene of the incident.
Both the left and right airbag sensors for my 2005 honda pilot exl failed six months apart. In the first case, in february 2009, the sensor light came on while we were driving back to pennsylvania from north carolina. Examination at the honda dealer in pa determined that one of the two front sensors had failed due to corrosion and an electrical short. The unit was replaced. Six months later the sensor light came on again and it was determined that the other sensor failed. The cause of the failure was corrosion and an electrical short. In both cases, the airbag would not have operated had their been an accident. The dealer claimed the failures were, "just one of those things". Having worked with passive restraint systems in the past and having worked with nearly all automobile companies (including toyota and honda in japan), I doubted this explanation. These were improperly manufactured and sealed sensors and corrosion/failure was inevitable. This is a rare failure if the components are manufactured properly.
All of the dashboard lights in the AC control panel in my 2005 honda pilot have burned out. This seems to be a common problem with the 05 pilot. It's just he AC control panel lights. It is very dangerous at night, as the only way to see the controls is to have to turn on the inside dome lights. Seems like a manufacturer's defect to me.
Driving along highway, headlights fail to turn on. Brights work. Unable to use headlights for any driving. Checked fuses all good, though incorrect marking on a 15a fuse slot that is 20a. All lights bulbs are good, even replaced to be sure. Found melted 16 pin connector with combination stalk switch. Unable to repair yet.
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.
On june 30th, 2005 I purchased a new 2005 honda pilot with 65 odometer miles as a personal family vehicle. On december 27, 2006 my 18 year old son was driving the vehicle go shopping in ventura ca. At approximately 11:00 am when he noticed smoke coming from the A/C / heater vents in the dash area. He pulled the vehicle over to investigate. After he pulled over he turned the ignition switch off and realized that smoke was also coming out of the hood and engine compartment. He called 911 to dispatch a fire truck, but before they arrived the vehicle became engulfed in flames and subsequently the engine area and interior were destroyed. The fire crew put out the flames but could not save the vehicle. It was considered a total loss. It is my opinion that the vehicle manufacturer should be responsible for my damages because I have not altered the vehicle's configuration in any manner and something mechanically wrong with the vehicle caused the fire. I would appreciate any assistance you can lend me to resolve this situation.
On june 30th, 2005 I purchased a new 2005 honda pilot with 65 odometer miles as a personal family vehicle. On december 27, 2006 my 18 year old son was driving the vehicle go shopping in ventura ca. At approximately 11:00 am when he noticed smoke coming from the A/C / heater vents in the dash area. He pulled the vehicle over to investigate. After he pulled over he turned the ignition switch off and realized that smoke was also coming out of the hood and engine compartment. He called 911 to dispatch a fire truck, but before they arrived the vehicle became engulfed in flames and subsequently the engine area and interior were destroyed. The fire crew put out the flames but could not save the vehicle. It was considered a total loss. It is my opinion that the vehicle manufacturer should be responsible for my damages because I have not altered the vehicle's configuration in any manner and something mechanically wrong with the vehicle caused the fire. I would appreciate any assistance you can lend me to resolve this situation.
Dt : contact stated on october 8, 2005 the vehicle started by itself. He vehicle will be taken to the dealer on october 17, 2005. There was no forewarning and no noise. There was no remote starter on this vehicle. This is a 2005 honda pilot.
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