When at a red light or stop sign the vehicle will idle and turn off. The vehicle doesn’t want to restart. It takes a bit to get started again then it progresses.While parked I turned the car off for 5 minutes and it would not start up again. Tried the jump cables to make sure it wasn’t the battery had to have a tow truck come they were able to get the car jumped and started. Took the battery to get tested and the battery was perfectly fine. Something is wrong with the starter. It doesn’t happen all the time but it has happened to me a few times and it’s not safe with me and kids in the car.
2019 Honda Pilot: won't start
49 of the 929 complaints about the 2019 Honda Pilot describe won't start.
- owner complaints
- 49
- of this car's complaints
- 5%
- recalls
- 2
Won't start by model year
What owners say
When my Pilot is stopped and the engine idles off, you should be able to take your foot off the brake and it start back up. My engine continuously shuts down completely when I take my foot off of the gas and multiple alert lights on the dash come on. About 70% of the time, I can shut the car off completely, breathe a second and then press the ignition button and the car will restart. Now, increasingly it stalls completely and will not crank for several minutes. I have had this happen more than once at busy intersections and once while stopped in traffic on an interstate. I had to put my hazard lights on so cars would go around me. I have taken it to the Honda dealer a couple of times just for this and they say there is nothing showing to be fixed and there is nothing they can do to fix it. They only told me to remember to press the button to turn the feature off. Yes, I know that’s possible but I’m a busy mom and I often forget. What is the point of having the feature if it continuously stalls out? I have searched this problem on the internet and I’ve seen other Pilot owners have had the same problem. Any help you can offer would be appreciated.
Fuel gage read incorrectly staing we had gas and estimated fuel for 70 miles. We stalled while driving. Several error lights came on, car would not start. After researching we saw alot of complaints about fuel Guage issues so we were able to get 2 gal of gas and then make it to a gas station. Took car in for diagnostic, no known problem. ????
This vehicle continues to have issues related to a problem that was issued for the fuel pump earlier this year. My fuel pump was replaced, but the vehicle continues to do the same thing. It stalls and jerks while I am driving and does not start sometimes after getting gas. When I am trying to accelerate the vehicle does not go at full power. One time I was going out into traffic and had to reverse because I knew that I would not make it and get hit. In addition to this, the vehicle has an issue with the braking system. Other years have been recalled for what they call ghost breaking, and although this one does this, it has not been recalled. I will be driving and the car will all of a sudden just brake on its own as if there is a vehicle/object in front of me. Sometimes this happens in the same location. Honda is supposed to be a reliable car, but it seems they have failed with this year/model of the Pilot because it has been big issue after big issue.
After starting my vehicle and leaving the office, several different warning messages began flashing on the dash ABS, lane departure mitigation, Power Sterring, Towing. I pulled over and turned the vehicle off. When I attempted to restart the vehicle, the brake pedal was hard and felt stuck. The car did not start. When roadside assistance came, they tested the battery, and it was fine. The car was towed to a Honda dealer and the technician informed me the Brake Pedal Position Switch failed. He said that it would have caused all the different warning messages to appear. This was the second time this occurred, where the different warning messages lit up, but that time the car restarted. When I took it to the dealer that time, they could not determine the issue, and no repairs were done. I am concerned because I have seen that these vehicles have issues with this and it is very dangerous and unsafe when it comes to issues with the brakes.
My 2019 Honda Pilot start/stop feature shut down my car in a busy intersection and would not start up again. Dashboard warning lights flickered and no response to trying to start the vehicle. Towed to dealer at my expense and had to replace battery on 04/04/2023 for 2019 car.
The Pilot has exhibited unusual behavior that seems tied to the autostop functionality when at a stop light. Three times now I will let my foot off the brake and the car completely shuts down. When I try to restart the vehicle, the accessory power turns on but the vehicle will not start. It will start to turn over, but the turn over terminates abruptly and the car completely shuts off. The behavior seems similar to what is in the federal safety agency Action Number PE22005
At random times, but seemingly becoming a more frequent occurence, when the stop/start system engages & shuts the vehicle down at idle (at a stop light for example), the vehicle will not restart for a period of time afterwards. This has also happened on the highway multiple times in traffic in which the vehicle will not start for a short period of time. This is a big safety issue and I was almost rear-ended a couple of times in those highway cases. When the problem happens, the lighting on the meter (indicator lights) will randomly flash & the clicking sound from the blinker will continuously go on/off during the timeframe of when the vehicle will not restart. I've raised this concern to Honda multiple times with no support coming back from them since they can't re-create the issue.
We purchased our 2019 Honda Pilot in the summer of 2020 and a few years later, we started getting issues with the car where it would have issues propelling smoothly between 1-2 RPMs, then we got the recall notice around January of 2024 re. the fuel pump, which i believe was the cause of our symptoms. the reason i say that is because we had 2 mechanics look at the car, and did not find anything wrong (we had changed out the spark plugs believing that was the issue and the symptoms did not go away; we had a transmission fluid flush and the symptoms did not go away. We have been concerned about the car for years, and when the recall came out, we kept calling to ask for them to repair the car and we kept getting told they did not have the parts (first it was they parts would be in around spring time, then they started saying summer, then they started saying fall, then late fall). I went into the recall notice on the federal safety agency and saw that it said something about if you were experiencing symptoms due to the recall, to call Honda and they should repair the vehicle. When i called Honda, i was told that unless the car completely failed and did not start, only t hen would they fix the vehicle. I felt that this was unsafe and concerned that the fuel pump would completely fail while being driven, so we had to unfortunately sell the vehicle due to the concerned safety issues Honda was not repairing. I loved the car other than for this issue so was very unhappy to have to resort to that as a solution. Honda should be held accountable for their failure to act for over 10 months to do something re. this matter.
Fuel injector is causing AWD error. No longer able to use the auto start on vehicle. Sometimes vehicle will not start. Unsure if that was due to the fuel pump recall either. Fuel pump has been replaced. Check engine light is still on and last time we had it checked it was due to fuel injector. The fuel injector was part of a recall for the year and model of our car but Was told our VIN was not part of the recall.
Stopped at a light and the auto start/stop system engaged and the cars engine turned off. Once the light turned green and took my foot off of the brake the engine did not automatically start. It would not start for about 30 seconds after trying to start it multiple time. The car was completely dead. Luckily the driver approaching me from behind was stopped without hitting me. This was very disturbing and dangerous.
When vehicle comes to stop, auto stop/start feature turns off the vehicle when brake is pressed. When brake is released the engine does not start, the car goes into park or neutral and will not move until the vehicle is shut-off and restarted after a period of time. Time varies. Dealership is blaming after-market battery, stating vehicle auto idle stop/start feature requires Honda OEM battery with specific voltage. Incident occurred in January 2024, reported at 50K mile service and again in June 2024. With both incidents there were no warning lamps, messages that appeared. Honda stated they could not recreate the issue then worked with Master techs that stated it was a battery issue. Blaming it on our specific vehicle and did not inform us of investigation of thousands of claims with this specific issue. There has been an issue with multiple occurrences when auto stop/start is engaged when stopped at light then restarted the navigation system would go blank and error No Audio Connection or the apps will remain and the No audio connection error will be on top of screen and cannot turn on any of the apps such as radio, etc.
Service bulletins that may apply
- Under certain circumstances, after coming to a stop and the auto idle stop feature engages, the vehicle...
- Dealer Message
- Under certain circumstances, after coming to a stop and engaging idle stop, the vehicle may not restart...
- Torque converters may not have been manufactured to proper specifications
- Torque converters may not have been manufactured to proper specifications
- MIL flashes and vehicle will not accelerate, low power
- The MIL flashes and vehicle will not accelerate, low power
- Service NewsDue to On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) regulation change starting with 2019 vehicles, American...
Related recalls
Engine and engine cooling: engine: hard parts internal/mechanical
- What is wrong
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016-2020 Acura MDX, 2016 and 2018-2019 Pilot, 2017 and 2019 Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine.
- Risk
- A damaged engine may run improperly or stall while driving, increasing the risk of a fire, crash, or injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and repair, or replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed March 28, 2024. 2016-2017 Acura MDX owner letters were mailed November 1, 2024. 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed in mid-December 2024. Honda began mailing owner notification letters as of March 18, 2024. 2015-2016 Acura owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-December 2024, 2018 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed the end of March/early April 2024, 2019 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-May 2024, 2020 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-June 2024, and 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed January 27, 2025. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1‑888‑234‑2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XG1 and GG0.
Recall number 23V751000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling: engine: gasoline: belts and associated pulleys
- What is wrong
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Acura MDX and Honda Pilot vehicles and 2019 Acura RLX, RLX Sport Hybrid, TLX and Honda Odyssey and Ridgeline vehicles. The timing belt teeth may separate from the belt.
- Risk
- Teeth separation from the timing belt may result in an engine stall, increasing the risk of crash.
- Remedy
- Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicle and replace any affected timing belt free of charge. Vehicles receiving a replacement timing belt will also have the engine inspected and any damaged components will be replaced for free. The recall began June 7, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1‑888‑234‑2138. Honda's number for this recall is L4M. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1‑888‑234‑2138. Acura's number for this recall is Z4L.
Recall number 19V298000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2019 Honda Pilot won't start
Is won't start a common problem on the 2019 Honda Pilot?
49 of 929 owner complaints about the 2019 Honda Pilot (5%) mention won't start. The model year with the most reports is 2016.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2019 Honda Pilot?
There are 2 recalls and 30 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2019 Honda Pilot
Backup camera 103Stalling 96Start-stop 70Collision warning 66Fuel pump 61Adaptive cruise 59Lane assist 54Check engine light 53Screen failure 38Headlights 36Hesitation 32Knocking 30Engine failure 27Jerking 24Warning lights 21Loss of power 15Misfire 13Shudder 11Battery drain 10Won't shift 10Phantom braking 7Sudden acceleration 6Transmission failure 6Harsh shifting 5
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