Most common 2018 Honda Pilot problems
Share of the 440 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Honda Pilot complaints by model year
Best Pilot years: 2015, 2014, 2012. Years to avoid: 2016, 2017, 2019, 2025, 2021. Compare all years →
2018 Honda Pilot recalls (7)
Suspension › Rear
American Honda Motor Company (Honda) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Honda Pilot, 2017-2023 Ridgeline, 2019-2023 Passport, and 2014-2020 Acura MDX vehicles that were sold in Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New…
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the rear subframe and install a rear subframe reinforcement kit and, as necessary, repair or replace the rear subframe components, free of charge.
Air bags › Sensor › Occupant classification › Front passenger
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic…
Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138.
Fuel system, gasoline › Delivery › Fuel pump
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda…
Remedy: Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD.
Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Hard parts internal/mechanical
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.
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.
Latches/locks/linkages › Hood › Latch
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019 Passport, 2016-2019 Pilot, and 2017-2020 Ridgeline vehicles. The hood latch striker may become damaged and separate from the hood, which can result in the hood opening while driving.
Remedy: Dealers will either repair the hood latch striker, or replace the hood if necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 18, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138.
Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline › Belts and associated pulleys
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.
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…
Show 1 more recall
Seats
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018 Honda Pilot and Ridgeline vehicles and 2018 Acura MDX vehicles. The front driver and passenger powered seats in the Honda vehicles and the driver powered seats in the Acura vehicles may have been assembled with improperly manufactured rivets.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver seat frame assembly in Acura MDX vehicles, and replace the driver and front passenger seat slide rail frames in Honda Pilot and Ridgeline vehicles, free of…
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 4 possible defects involving the 2018 Honda Pilot:
Engine failure
On November 8, 2024, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Recall Query RQ24013 to assess the scope of Honda recall 23V-751 after receiving complaints that alleged connecting rod bearing failures in vehicles that were not within the scope of recall 23V-751. In November 2023, Honda recalled 248,999 various Model Year (MY)2016-2020 Honda and Acura vehicles equipped with the 3.5L V6 engine.
Engine failure
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 414 reports of connecting rod bearing failures in the 3.5L V6 engine used in the following vehicles: Model Years (MY) 2018-2020 Acura TLX, MY2016-2020 Acura MDX, MY2016-2020 Honda Pilot, MY2018-2020 Honda Odyssey, and MY2017-2019 Honda Ridgeline. The subject engine failures were analyzed as part of a Recall Query (RQ24013).
No Restart After Auto Start/Stop Engages
On June 3, 2022, the O ce of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE22005 after the agency received VOQs and several eld reports concerning the Auto Idle Stop (AIS) feature on 2016-2019MY Honda Pilot vehicles. The complaints allege that the engine fails to restart on its own from a complete stop at a tra c light or road intersection with the AIS function engaged.
No Restart After Auto Start/Stop Engages
On June 3, 2022, the O ce of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE22005 after the agency received VOQs and several eld reports concerning the Auto Idle Stop (AIS) feature on 2016-2019MY Honda Pilot vehicles. The complaints allege that the engine fails to restart on its own from a complete stop at a tra c light or road intersection with the AIS function engaged.
What 2018 Honda Pilot owners say
Engine & cooling all 162 →
I was driving on the highway, and the sensor stating the transmission is too hot popped up on the dashboard. This is an issue I have brought to Honda's attention on a few other occasions over the past three years, as this light has shown up before, but only when the outside temperatures had exceeded 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and I was driving at speeds of 55mph or more. I'd been told that since there was no active re-call, there was nothing they could do each time I reached out to Honda. Shortly after the light showed on the dashboard, I lost the ability to accelerate. I was pushing the gas pedal down, the RPM's were increasing, but my speed was decreasing. At that point, I decided it was best to exit at the upcoming Oasis, and before I could start to merge right, I heard a loud "pop" noise from presumably from the engine. Flames began to shoot out from under the hood on the driver-side. …
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that when the vehicle was cold-started, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine compartment. The knocking sound was constant. The contact stated that the vehicle nearly stalled recently, and the check engine warning light was flashing. The vehicle was no longer able to accelerate above 35 MPH. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the connecting rods needed to be replaced, and the engine was inspected for internal damage. The contact stated that the independent mechanic checked the oil and observed that the oil was black and the oil level was low. The contact recently had an oil change prior to taking the vehicle to the independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. …
Fuel & propulsion system all 125 →
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the message stated that the transmission was overheating was displayed. The contact pulled over to the nearest exit to park the vehicle and allowed the engine to cool off. The contact then continued to drive; however, the message displayed after driving for a while, caused the contact to pull over and allow the engine to cool off again. The failure recurred while driving. …
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated while depressing the accelerator pedal from a complete stop, the vehicle hesitated to respond. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving from a complete stop, nearly causing a crash. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure could not be duplicated, and the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was determined that the failure could be related to the fuel injectors and the transmission. The TCM software was updated, and a transmission flush was performed; however, the failure persisted. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline), and related the failure to the recall; however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. …
Electrical system all 85 →
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, she depressed the brake pedal and noticed that her vehicle was not slowing down. The contact stated that as she was approaching another vehicle, she looked to make sure she was indeed depressing the brake pedal, however it would not allow her to press down and seemed to be accelerating faster than 40 MPH. The contact stated that her vehicle then caused her to crash into the rear of another vehicle, however, the vehicle still seemed to be accelerating, even though it had crashed. The contact stated that she attempted to power the vehicle off, however, the vehicle powered itself back on. The contact stated that she powered it off 3 times before the vehicle would remain off. The contact stated that the airbags did deploy and there were no injuries reported. …
The contact owns a 2018 Honda Pilot. The contact stated that while driving 75 MPH on the interstate, the vehicle started shuddering. The vehicle was pulled over safely to the side of the road. The AWD, Hill Descent Assist, power steering, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The contact checked the manual and continued to drive. While driving days later, there was an abnormal fuel odor coming from the vehicle. The contact continued driving approximately 20 MPH. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The failure was associated with the fuel pressure pump. The lower fuel pressure pump was previously replaced. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, and the contact was informed that the high-pressure fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. …
2018 Honda Pilot engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 9-speed automatic | FWD | 20 / 27 / 23 |
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 6-speed automatic | FWD | 19 / 27 / 22 |
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 9-speed automatic | AWD | 19 / 26 / 22 |
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 6-speed automatic | AWD | 18 / 26 / 21 |
EPA ratings. Class: Small SUV.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2018 Honda Pilot a good car?
Based on 440 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2018 Pilot rates avoid: 3.1× as many complaints as a typical year of the Pilot at the same age. It is one of the Pilot years we suggest avoiding. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 2018 Honda Pilot?
The engine & cooling — 162 complaints, 37% of all complaints for this model year, most often about exhaust system › emission control › gas recirculation valve (egr valve). Next are the fuel & propulsion system (125) and electrical system (85).
How many recalls does the 2018 Honda Pilot have?
There are 7 recalls for the 2018 Honda Pilot, the most recent from June 4, 2026 (rear). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Honda Pilot?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2015, 2014 and 2012. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2016, 2017, 2019, 2025 and 2021. See the full Honda Pilot years comparison.
At what mileage do 2018 Honda Pilot problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 50,000 miles; 50% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.