What breaks most · 1997 to 2026 model years
Honda CR-V problems by year
Owners have filed 15,865 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Honda CR-V across model years 1997 to 2026. Three years stand out: 2018 for engine complaints, 2017 for engine complaints and 2019 for forward collision system complaints. The quietest years are 1997, 1999 and 1998.
- Years to check closely: 2018, 2017, 2019
- Fewest complaints: 1997, 1999, 1998
- Complaints on file
- 158651997 to 2026, all trims
- Worst year
- 20182128 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 820178 fires · 662 injuries · 9 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 42kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 196Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 108 | 9 | 2 | Electrical system (31) | |
| 128 | 15 | 3 | Electrical system (38) | |
| 127 | 8 | 3 | Air bags (28) | |
| 129 | 11 | 2 | Air bags (43) | |
| 142 | 11 | 1 | Air bags (52) | |
| 515 | 48 | 16 | Air bags (143) | |
| 468 | 44 | 14 | Air bags (125) | |
| 501 | 34 | 13 | Engine and cooling (142) | |
| 479 | 40 | 14 | Air bags (129) | |
| 398 | 27 | 13 | Exterior lighting (118) | |
| 887 | 34 | 12 | Air bags (267) | |
| 961 | 44 | 11 | Air bags (325) | |
| 386 | 29 | 12 | Air bags (176) | |
| 480 | 31 | 15 | Air bags (217) | |
| 552 | 29 | 13 | Air bags (295) | |
| 403 | 27 | 3 | Engine (89) | |
| 381 | 22 | 2 | Engine (97) | |
| 586 | 36 | 1 | Engine (189) | |
| 669 | 38 | 3 | Engine (243) | |
| 391 | 40 | 3 | Engine (100) | |
| 1759 | 42 | 7 | Engine (528) | |
| 2128 | 46 | 5 | Engine (525) | |
| 1088 | 30 | 8 | Forward collision system (297) | |
| 350 | 21 | 7 | Forward collision system (76) | |
| 325 | 14 | 4 | Steering (110) | |
| 253 | 5 | 3 | Steering (132) | |
| 515 | 21 | 3 | Steering (323) | |
| 385 | 26 | 2 | Steering (123) | |
| 245 | 29 | 1 | Steering (51) | |
| 126 | 9 | 0 | Unknown or other (30) |
What fails on the 2018 Honda CR-V
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 25% |
525 | 4 | Shop engine parts for the 2018 Honda CR-V |
| Forward collision systemRadar and camera sensors | 18% |
391 | 4 | Shop forward collision system parts for the 2018 Honda CR-V |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 17% |
367 | 5 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2018 Honda CR-V |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 15% |
320 | 5 | Shop all steering parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 13% |
278 | 5 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2018 Honda CR-V |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 11% |
230 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2018 Honda CR-V |
| Unknown or other | 10% |
205 | 3 | — |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 9% |
186 | 13 | Shop brakes parts for the 2018 Honda CR-V |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
I took my car to honda north for a diagnostics test bc its not running correctly and they told me I need a head gasket my car is to new to need a head gasket and I still have a loan out on it it has 115,000 miles the head gasket should not be blown
-
At 110644 miles had to have head gasket replaced June 2023. Then July 17 had to have head gasket replaced again at 182782 Very upsetting
-
Car automatically hit the brakes for no apparent reason while going at 45 mph. There was no vehicle or any kind of obstacle ahead of behind. Also resulted in tightening of driver seat belt. No injuries. Vehicle was being operated by an authorized and licensed driver.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Honda CR-V years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2018, 2017, 2019 carry the most filings on the Honda CR-V. The 2018 alone has 2128 complaints, led by engine.
What is the most common Honda CR-V problem?
On the 2018 model year, the most-reported component is engine with 525 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Honda CR-V problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Honda CR-V complaints that include mileage is about 42,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.