2017 Honda Pilot: battery drain or dead battery

Filed Aug 12, 2025 · Electrical · NJ

Electrical System – Body Control Module The BCM in my 2017 Honda Pilot fails intermittently, causing the alarm to activate randomly, warning lights to flicker, and battery drain. The issue occurs without warning, even while parked or driving, creating distraction and reducing confidence in the vehicle’s safety. Numerous other owners have reported identical issues online and with the federal safety agency, indicating a systemic defect. Honda should issue a recall to address this problem.

Filed Apr 1, 2025 · Electrical · TX

Pilot will shut off at stop signs and red lights. Software update completed in 2023 but issue persists. I shut the “feature” off as soon as I turn car on. It has happened despite this. It may be draining the battery. On third battery in two years. Currently at dealership to complete next warranty update.

Filed Jun 5, 2023 · Electrical · FL

Beginning in February 2023, around 2AM, my car alarm would sound. Upon inspection, the vehicle dashboard was lit up and clicking relay sounds could be heard from the dashboard. In essence, the car was trying to "start" itself. When the attempted start reached a certain level, the car would recognize the absence of a key fob, and thus, the alarm would sound. To remedy this, I had to leave my key fob in the car - which did not prevent the attempted starts, but at least prevented the alarm from sounding. In the morning the battery was dead from the headlights and interior lights flashing all night. Additionally this was a safety issue as I had to leave keys in an unlocked car. The dealership cannot reproduce the problem, as it happens in the middle of the night (particularly when it is raining or very humid outside). I have found SEVERAL Honda forums with dozens of other Pilot owners who are experiencing the same problem. Dealerships have tried several remedies, all at the customer's expense, including battery replacements, START/STOP switch replacements, etc. The only thing that fixes the problem is replacement of the Control Unit-Smart Power ( 38320-TG7-A32 for my year/make). This part is $400 and labor at my dealership was estimated at $700-800. The part is on backorder. I can only assume it is because there are so many of us Pilot owners trying to get our hands on a working unit. The part is not part of a recall or warranty extension, and frankly, it should be. It is preposterous that so many customers have the same faulty part in 2016-2018 models and that Honda is not covering the cost of these repairs. In the mean time, I have had to disengage my hood sensor to prevent the alarm from sounding, which is a safety issue if the car is stolen. And periodically the battery drains out because the problem persists, lighting up the dashboard while the Smart Power unit tries to start the car all by itself.

Filed May 5, 2023 · Electrical · AK

Alarm spontaneously went off while in garage & several indicator lights lit up and repetitive clicking sounds heard. Honda dealership Johnson City, TN diagnosed problem as a faulty body control unit module. I was told I could drive the vehicle and afterward unhook the battery cable to keep the alarm from going off & draining the battery. I followed instructions but then it would not start and was then told the body control unit module is at fault. My understanding is that some features of safety are compromised with body control unit module malfunction so perhaps I should not have been given this advice?? When we first got vehicle, 2017 awd honda pilot w RES - the NAV system did not work. Supposedly they replaced it - still does not work. The RES quit approx 2019 - still not work. My wife was told it would cost 2-3,000$ to fix it - did not offer to file a claim on our warranty; we were told to hang an ipad back seat. On 6-19-2019 clock froze; 6-17-19 dash computer not work - Honda replaced display audio replace Navigation unit - warranty covered...9/29/21 starter & battery replaced at 37,394 miles we paid $1020.86 despite having a platinum warranty covering electrical. 10/4/22 at 46,779 miles fuel injectors replaced - warranty covered. 3/26/23 alarm spontaneously went off - Honda diagnosed as body control unit module as problem - "lucky if part arrives by 5/8/23 would cost us $725 to fix (even though we have platinum warranty). Once we reminded them to file warranty will cover but I have to pay for my own rental car (over $900 at this point). Interestingly 737,000 recalls for BCM in 2020. Honda says quote: Our goal is customer satisfaction, that is why we keep a large stock of body parts, mechanical & electrical parts on hand. We have one of the largest inventories in East Tennessee, Western N.C., SW Virginia. 6 times we've had this vehicle at Honda dealership for electrical issues. The SUV has been garaged, driven gingerly, has 51,000 miles on it.

Filed Mar 29, 2023 · Electrical, Engine · NJ

On March 18th, 2023 at 6:30 PM I parked my car and waited for the curbside pick up at a cafe with my 3 girls 6 (my niece) 7, (daughter), and 11 (daughter) years old. The car started blinking all the lights started accelerating by themselves and turned off immediately. while I tried to turn it on it never started instead it blinked and displayed many messages, including transmission system problem, emission system problem, etc. I thought the battery died and called my husband to jump-start the car and it took 30 minutes to get driving with all these scary movements. my kids were traumatized by the experience and I thought thank god they were safe and the problem is solved. After almost a week once again on March 27th at I'm driving the kids to Karate and driving back at 5:45 PM all of sudden it started blinking, shanking, grinding noise, loud noise, and many messages, transmission system problems, emission system problems, etc. "D" drive started blinking. smoke came and I was still on the road not sure what to do. I thought I will be hit by the other cars behind me. luckily I was almost close to our street and it made a loud noise and I parked the car. it still blinked and smoked heavily and I turned off and got out of the car. It was a very scary movement of my life. I have 2 kids and I drive them every day for their day-2 day school/activities. I cannot believe I bought a new car in 2017 trusting the brand and it is already failed, my family. The car has to be towed to the dealership the dealer gave me a code P-2652. I want Honda to take care of their mechanical issues. I cannot get over the trauma I went through and I'm still shaking while I'm writing this. My 7 year old do not want to talk about the car which made me very sad. My girls loved the family car and now I'm in tears thinking about their safety. I want the federal safety agency to safeguard the consumers who go through these issues. HONDA PLEASE WAKE UP. My girls are ready to draft a letter to HONDA and the federal safety agency.

Filed Aug 5, 2022 · Engine · CA

The auto start-stop feature is malfunctioning and has been malfunctioning since I purchased the car. When the start/stop initiates at a stop, the car turns off and then when the car turns back on, the entire car completely shuts off and then turns back on, resetting everything. That is how it begins and then after a week or two more, the car completely shuts off and then will not restart. The problem is getting worse and worse as the years go on. It is extremely dangerous to be stuck in the middle of an intersection and my car is stalled out and has no way of turning back on. I have taken the car to the dealership maybe 8 times for this problem since I purchased the car is early 2018. It has gone through 4 batteries in 4 years (even with the pandemic, it should have been more). This issue is somehow draining the batteries extremely fast. There is a huge problem with the auto start/stop and my hope is that Honda buys-back all of these defective cars. I have no clue what kind of damage this has done to my engine, starter, etc. and am worried that I purchased this car as a reliable unit for my family, but it seems extremely unsafe and unpredictable. I know this is already under investigation but I wanted to include my plea and maybe encourage others to do the same. I know there are a ton of other people out there with the same unsafe problem.

Filed May 6, 2022 · Electrical, Engine · TX

When parked, the car begins to try to turn on. The interior lights flash, systems fire and the battery drains. Twice I was left stranded having to rely on tow trucks, replacing batteries that were still functional and running car continuously in order to not drain it since it is my only car and I needed reliable vehicle to get to my kids. I could have been stranded in unsafe areas, thus impacting the safety of myself and family. There was no warnings before this happened the first time. Then, after changing the battery, it went another week without issue and then randomly happened again, without warning or indicators. It was looked at by 2 mechanics, the first (Christian brothers automotive) could not find a problem. The second (Honda dealership) diagnosed it as “body control module failure-code b12d3”. They were not able to fix my car after diagnosing the problem today because they didn’t have the part in stock. So, I am now having to disconnect my battery every time I park to prevent it from draining the battery and honking. As a single mom, with only one vehicle, this will be a long wait until the part arrives and can be fixed. On top of the exorbitant wait, the repair quote is $861.63 to correct. This is a manufacturing malfunction for which I do not believe should be my financially responsibility. Honda cars have had recalls of the BCM modules starting with the 2018 models. It is not a huge stretch to assume the 2017 pilot BCM was flawed as well. I hope this is made right, a recall issued and my repairs expedited and paid for by Honda.

Filed Mar 25, 2022 · Electrical, Engine · WA

Our 2017 pilot tries to turn on by itself, with the electronics in the dashboard starting and engine compartment relays firing, along with the exterior lights turning on without any driver being present or attempting to start the car. It happens even without the keys being present. As a result, the battery drains while the car is parked. We took our car to the dealership where we bought it and they confirmed the issue and stated we needed to replace our keyless access/TPMS unit to start and that we may need to a new start/stop switch. It cost $190.83 with tax to access. The car is serviced at Klein Honda in Everett, WA. The R/O number for the service visit is 652453/1. Instances of other Honda owners experiencing similar car issues can be found here: https://www.piloteers.org/threads/control-unit-problems.168522/ I noted that the 2016-2017 honda pilots have a recall/service bulletin for the start/stop switch (Honda Service Bulletin 20-117) and was told by the dealership my car is not included. I find that very disappointing since I own a 2017 honda pilot. I was quoted a repair cost of $967.36 + tax. This did not include the cost of the part (part number 38320-TG7-A32) costing $469.36 with tax. Therefore the total cost of the repair is greater than $1500. I ordered the part on March 16, 2022 and it is on back-order with no expected arrival date. I cannot currently drive my car because the battery is constantly being drained when the car is off due to this error. Our low-mileage 2017 Pilot (delivered on 5/31/17) should not have the failure(s) noted above. I am not aware of a greater recall that addresses the failure(s) and was told that our car is outside of the manufacturers warranty that could cover this since it is not part of the powertrain.