Honda has issued a massive recall for several models because the passenger-side airbags could unintentionally deploy. It affects more than 750,000 Honda and Acura cars from 2020-2022 and nearly every model.
The defect involves the front passenger seat weight sensor. A capacitor on the sensor's circuit board may crack, leading to an internal short circuit. If that happens, the front passenger frontal and knee airbags could still deploy even with the presence of an occupant who weighs too little for the safety device, like a smaller adult or a child, increasing the risk of injury.
Here's the full list of recalled vehicles:
| Year | Car |
| 2020-2022 | Honda Accord |
| 2020-2021 | Honda Accord Hybrid |
| 2020 | Honda Civic Coupe |
| 2020-2022 | Honda Civic Sedan |
| 2021-2022 | Honda Civic Hatchback |
| 2021 | Honda Civic Type R |
| 2020-2021 | Honda CR-V |
| 2020-2021 | Honda CR-V Hybrid |
| 2020 | Honda Fit |
| 2020-2022 | Honda HR-V |
| 2021 | Honda Insight |
| 2020-2022 | Honda Odyssey |
| 2020-2022 | Honda Pilot |
| 2020-2021 | Honda Passport |
| 2020-2021 | Honda Ridgeline |
| 2020, 2022 | Acura MDX |
| 2020-2022 | Acura RDX |
| 2020-2021 Acura TLX | Acura TLX |
According to Honda in the recall report, the issue arose from a supplier that changed the base material in the circuit board during the manufacturing process due to a natural disaster at another supplier. The alternative base material wasn't verified for this use, which could allow additional strain on the board, leading to a cracked capacitor. Affected vehicles could have the SRS warning light illuminated, and the passenger airbag indicator may remain off.
Honda received its first warranty claim for the issue in August 2020. The company investigated but didn't discover any defects at the time. However, by October 2021, the company had multiple claims, so it continued to investigate, noticing the trend increase through November 2023 before finding the defect last month. Honda hasn't received any reports of injuries or deaths related to the issue, but it has received more than 3,800 warranty claims.
Honda will fix the weight sensor for free, informing affected owners by March 8.
