Honda Electrical Problems

Electrical issues make up roughly 6% of all Honda owner complaints. The majority of the issues have been reported by Accord owners.

The complaint we hear about most often is starter failure in the 2013 Accord.

Common Honda Electrical Problems

  1. Dead Battery in Accord and CR-V

    Certain generations of Accord and CR-V vehicles chew through batteries. Leave one of these sitting a couple days and there's a good chance it won't start due to an underpowered battery, parasitic drains, and an ineffective battery charging …

    Continue reading article "Dead Battery in Accord and CR-V" An overhead view of a car's fuse box with various colored fuses

  2. Starter Failure for Accord and Crosstour

    The starter system in the 2013-2015 Honda Accord and Crosstour has a defect that makes starting the engine completely unreliable. The starter motor grinds and whines but the engine never starts. Honda denies any out-of-warranty claims on th…

    Continue reading article "Starter Failure for Accord and Crosstour"

  3. Rodents Chew Soy Wiring

    Honda switched to a soy-based coating for their wiring that is more biodegradable. It sounds like a pro-Earth move by the automaker, but the real reason is probably a little less triumphant: the coating costs less than plastic. Still, less …

    Continue reading article "Rodents Chew Soy Wiring"

Where Electrical Complaints Happen

Sometimes it helps just to tally up the complaints and see where the biggest stacks are. Use this information to learn about troublespots or to run for the hills.

Worst Issues

Worst Models

What Honda Owners Say About Their Electrical

Honda's Underpowered Battery is Subject to Parasitic Drains

Problem first occurred after 4 months of ownership. Tried to start car, battery was dead, towed to dealer, they replaced battery. Six months later same problem, towed to dealer, they did a "hard reset of ecm". Six months later, same problem, towed to dealer, they still have the car. This car has about 8500 miles on it.

2019 CR-V Owner

Honda's Underpowered Battery is Subject to Parasitic Drains

Inconvenient to say the least! Worried about this happening in case of an emergency and car won't start! Looking to trade in after reading other owners having same problem with the same outcome from dealer....can't find anything wrong!

2014 CR-V Owner

Recent Electrical News

There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters. We try to boil down it to the most important bits about things that actually help you with your car problem. Interested in getting these stories in an email? Signup for free email alerts over at CarComplaints.com.

  2. Software mistakes in over 770,000 Honda cars can suddenly disable the power windows, turn signals, windshield wipers, defroster, and rearview cameras.

    That's a lot of very important things. Honda has issued a recall after discovering electrical disruptions in the body control module's controller area network or CAN. Although I guess in this case it's more like a CAN'T, amirite?…

    keep reading article "Honda Announces Large Body Control Module Recall for the Accord, Accord Hybrid, and Insight"

  6. Honda has been hit with a second proposed-class action for starter problems in the 2013-2015 Accord and Crosstour.

    The suit aims to cover all owners in the USA outside of New Jersey which already has a pending lawsuit.

    The suit claims that Honda has known about the problems for quite some time based on hundreds of customer complaints and service bulletin #16-002.

    keep reading article "Another Proposed Starter Class Action Seeks Nationwide Status"

  7. For years 2013-2015 Accord and Crosstour owners have been complaining about problems with their starters and the costs associated with it.

    In addition to the threat of being stranded, owners have ponied up a lot of cash for new batteries, towing fees to the dealership, and replacement starter motors.

    And as it turns out the problem is likely a manufacturing issue. So a proposed class-action wants to know why Honda is refusing to help any owner outside of the warranty period?

    The lawsuit as it currently stands is for affected Honda owners in the state of New Jersey.

    keep reading article "New Jersey lawsuit is Tired of Honda Ignoring Starter Complaints"

  8. Some 9th generation Accord and 1st generation Crosstour owners are having a heck of a time getting their cars to start.

    The theory has been a combination of an underpowered battery and a defective starter motor were to blame, but there might be more to it according to Service Bulletin #16-002 which Honda released earlier this month.

    In the bulletin, the automaker says the clearance between the starter motor gear and the torque converter ring gear is not optimal and that can cause issues with the starter system.

    To fix it, technicians are advised to rotate the torque converter clockwise by one bolt in addition to replacing the starter motor. The fix is covered under warranty but that only covers vehicles up to 3 years and 36,000 miles.

    keep reading article "Here's Why Some Accord and Crosstour Sedans Are Having Such a Hard Time Starting"

  9. A lawsuit says the soy-coated, environmentally friendly electrical wiring used by Honda in 2012-2015 vehicles is irresistible to rabbits, mice, and other rodents.

    Soy vey. When the lead plaintiff brought his 2014 Crosstour in for service, the mechanic found a rabbit living in the engine compartment and using the wires as a chew toy. To be fair, it is a warm place to hang out with lots of free soy-based snacks.

    Of course, it wasn't really free. The damage cost the owner $765 dollars. That's a lot of carrots.

    We've certainly heard about this before. Honda defends itself by saying it sells anti-critter tape that can be wrapped around the wires. The tape is laced with enough capsaicin (the stuff that makes peppers hot) to melt the whiskers off anything that comes sniffing around.

    The lawsuit thinks owners shouldn't get stuck paying for repairs and the red-hot-chili-tape should be available for free. What do you think?

    keep reading article "Rodents Just Love Honda's Soy Wiring"

  10. recalling 6,786 Accord Hybrids

    because of software problems in the battery cell voltage sensor.

    The battery sensors can get freaked out by electrical noise from the inverter or motor circuit, switch the car into "fail-safe" mode, and turn your sedan into a glorified go-kart. That's because fail-safe shuts off the internal combustion engine, limits speeds to 40 mph and only gives you 2 miles before the battery drains and your car stalls out.

    Sounds like a fun day if you're a big fan of headaches and getting honked at.…

    keep reading article "Accord Hybrid Freaks Itself Out"