Honda Recalls More Than 750,000 Vehicles Due To Faulty Hoods

Imagine you are driving on the highway in your SUV, clocking anywhere between 60 to 80 miles per hour. Suddenly, you hear something click, and the hood of your vehicle swerves towards the windshield, accelerated by the force of the wind that is acting against your car. It crashes into the windshield, which may either cause cracks in it, or smash it entirely. Plus, you will be thrown off by the incident, and the impact will cause you to cover your face with your hands, thus losing sight of the road. After this, it will take all of your willpower and concentration, coupled with a stroke of divine intervention, that can save you from a fatal accident.

We hope this scenario was made up, but for hundreds of thousands of owners of Honda SUVs and pickup trucks, the likelihood for this incident became higher when they found out that their vehicles were fitted with faulty hoods, which could fly open at any time. This is why Honda decided to recall more than half a million vehicles in the United States to fix the problem. This is a perfect time to contact Naderi Law Group a Lemon Law firm in Los Angeles. Since our attorneys specialize in lemon law, we have the requisite experience and industry knowledge to handle your case properly and ensure the best outcome.

How Did It Start?

Earlier last month, American Honda Motor Co. filed a report with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), stating that the hoods of several models of its vehicles posed a risk of an accident, as their hoods could pop open when being driven at higher speeds.

This was also followed by a Safety Recall Report, which mentioned several models, as well as their quantities. According to this report, a total of 788,931 vehicles worldwide were mentioned to have the hood-related problem, out of which 725,000 belonged to the United States.

Which Honda Vehicles Were Recalled?

According to the Safety Recall Report that American Honda Motor Co. presented to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which was submitted on the 29th of November, a total of 724,896 vehicles were identified, with a 100% estimated percentage with defect.

2019-2019 Honda Passport

A few models of the Honda Passport that were produced between 8th November 2017 and 9th April 2019 were identified to have a likelihood of the hood snapping open as the owners drove it. A total of 18,704 Honda Passport vehicles were affected and recalled.

2016-2016 Honda Pilot

185,832 units of the 2016 Honda Pilot, which were produced between 21st May 2014 and 7th November 2016, were identified and recalled by American Honda Motor Co.

2017-2017 Honda Pilot

Some models of the 2017 Honda Pilot, which were manufactured between 20th October 2016 and 5th December 2017, were also mentioned in the Safety Recall Report. A total of 153,503 models of the mentioned vehicle were identified to be recalled.

2018-2018 Honda Pilot

Nearly 107,321 units of the 2018 Honda Pilot were recalled as per the Safety Recall Report, and these models had a production date between 5th December 2017 and 16th July 2018.

2019-2019 Honda Pilot

The 2019 model of the Honda Pilot was also known to have a manufacturing defect that caused the hood to fly open. The number of affected units is 110,653, and these vehicles were manufactured between 18th September 2017 and 9th April 2019.

2017-2017 Honda Ridgeline

The Honda Ridgeline is another model that came with its set of manufacturing issues, and nearly 49,490 units produced between 8th May 2015 and 31st August 2017 were going to be recalled back to Honda’s factory.

2018-2018 Honda Ridgeline

21,381 units of the 2018 Honda Ridgeline, an adventure truck, were recalled back into production as the hood problems were identified by American Honda Motor Co. These vehicles were manufactured between 27th July 2017 and 7th March 2018.

2019-2019 Honda Ridgeline

The number of affected units of the 2019 Honda Ridgeline was 58,235, and they will be recalled in due course.

2020-2020 Honda Ridgeline

Last but not least, the 2020 Honda Ridgeline also came with its fair share of manufacturing problems, which is why 19,707 units of the vehicle, which were produced between 2nd April 2019 and 27th August 2020, were recalled to the production facility by Honda.

The number of units for each model was determined by the manufacturing records, and the amount represented all the vehicles that could possibly have the problem. Apart from these, the vehicles that didn’t fall within the manufacturing dates were fixed with a quicker solution.

Description of the Defect

The manufacturing defect that caused Honda to recall more than 780,000 vehicles were identified as gaps in the front seal that held the hood and grill. When the vehicle moved at high speed, this caused air to enter from the gaps at high speed, causing a vibration in the hood. Over time, the vibration would rattle the hood latch striker, causing it to dislodge from the hood. As a result, this would cause the hood to swing open and obstruct the driver’s view, thus causing danger to their lives.

When Was the Defect First Identified?

It appears that Honda was aware of the hood manufacturing defect as early as July 2016, according to documents that were filed with the NHTSA. Back then, Honda identified stress fractures on the hood latch striker when it was conducting durability testing of a prototype of the Honda Ridgeline. Following this, the manufacturer started applying adhesive to the hood latch striker and started mass producing the vehicle.

However, it didn’t investigate the likelihood of the problem in any of the similarly designed vehicles that were manufactured prior to this. In the years following this, Honda continued to identify causes and problems with the hood in different models, and it wasn’t until last month when the company finally decided that there is a defect with the aforementioned vehicles.

Honda also reports that there weren’t any accidents or crashes caused due to the manufacturing defect, and the company received 116 warranty claims regarding these models.

What Does Honda Plan to Do?

Following the safety recall announcement, Honda has informed owners of the affected vehicles that they will be informed by mail, following which they would have to take their vehicles to the nearest authorized Honda dealer. The manufacturer will then repair the hood according to the condition of the hood latch striker. Moreover, the dealer may also install a striker support plate, or fully replace the hood with a new one for free.

If you also have a Honda vehicle that comes with the manufacturing defect, you would have to wait to be called by Honda via mail, and the recalls will be conducted in January 2022. We can only hope that the problem is resolved for good.

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