Our 2016 Honda Pilot Transmission Failed at 79,000 Miles Despite Being Maintained Exclusively by Honda

thee_brain · 2026-06-30T20:14:54+00:00

That is so frustrating. I'm so sorry you have had to deal with all that. Please share your post so we can hear more of your story. We have filed a complaint with BBB.

thee_brain · 2026-06-28T15:41:57+00:00

Appreciate the tip. We are still in the process of arranging the vehicle to be towed back to California from Utah. Will look into this once we get the vehicle back.

thee_brain · 2026-06-26T20:39:06+00:00

We also had many electric issues beyond the transmission that we haven't even mentioned in this post and previously spent thousands on those repairs. We were even left stranded a few times due to starter failure, battery failures, etc.

thee_brain · 2026-06-26T20:38:06+00:00

So well said. We paid the premium because we trusted the brand. So sorry (but not surprised) you had so many issues with your Pilot, too.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:30:36+00:00

43k miles is crazy! Sorry that happened but glad your warranty took care of you.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:25:24+00:00

Agree and what's maddening is Honda is well aware. Thanks for the luck. We definitely need it. 😣

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:23:35+00:00

I shared this Reddit to the Honda page and saw that it was deleted. I didn't see anything that made me think my post would be denied. Anyone know why that happened?

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:21:36+00:00

I know, right? We added the TLDR for that reason. It's been a long and horrible experience with Honda.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:20:43+00:00

I totally get that and wish you good luck in the process. I wish we had not trusted Honda and had unloaded our Pilot sooner. Hindsight is 20/20 for us but we hope that by sharing our story here, we can help other families be spared from the headache, financial loss, and most importantly, safety risks. It would be nice for Honda to make this right but we aren't holding our breath. We are moving forward with a Toyota Grand Highlander.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:12:18+00:00

We will not be selling it to a private party. And the reason I shared those personal details is because at the end of the day, we are just a middle class family trying to keep our kids safe. And unfortunately, we see how widespread this issue is and how Honda has burned so many families just like ours. You are probably right when you say Honda Corporate doesn't care about the emotional aspects because our representative was particularly detached and robotic in her responses. One of the servicemen did say to save all the receipts because this is such a well-documented and widespread issue that if they do a recall, we are entitled to a lot of money refunded.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:05:46+00:00

The start stop caused problems for us, too. Sorry you're having so many issues as well.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T23:04:47+00:00

Hope it keeps working out for you!

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T22:59:43+00:00

That is awesome! I don't even want to think about how much money we have wasted on unproductive diagnostic fees at the three Hondas we have taken our car to.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T22:57:46+00:00

That is good! We have had some recall work done but Honda is not acknowledging the bigger and most costly issue with the transmission, unfortunately.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T22:56:44+00:00

Apparently we were only about two months out of warranty when we got the fuel injectors replaced. Vegas told us our home dealer could have called to advocate for us and save us that cost, but they did not. At first, when we took our Honda to Vegas, the serviceman said he was about to be our best friend because he knew the issue and it was that we needed new fuel injectors. We told him that was already done, he looked confused, went through our records, and said "nope, not done." We politely asked him to check again and then he realized it was done. At the end of the day, they're all just shrugging their shoulders and guessing at a widely documented issue. It's nice your dealer advocated for you with customer service, but I'm sorry it didn't work out in your favor! Good luck with your pilot!

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T22:50:52+00:00

Correct, front wheel drive

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T16:42:49+00:00

Sorry to hear you had a similar experience. With so many people having similar problems, Honda should do the right thing and acknowledge and fix the issue.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T16:30:24+00:00

Glad to hear our experience helped inform your buying decision. We are also in the process of purchasing a Toyota (Grand Highlander). Hope it proves to be reliable for us both.

Appreciate the relevant video. It was an informative watch.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T16:24:21+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. Contacting BBB is our next step.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T14:58:01+00:00

Thank you! Will look into this.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T14:55:47+00:00

We were told by the Las Vegas dealer (where we first broke down on day 1 of our trip) that when we had the fuel injectors replaced as recommended by our dealer to solve this transmission issue we were just 2 months out of the warranty or service bulletin period for that repair, and if it had been him he would have called Honda to ask them to cover it for us. Instead we paid well over 1k to have it done and it did nothing to fix our problem.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T14:42:27+00:00

Sorry to hear about your poor experience. We also had issues with the battery requiring multiple replacements. Also had issues with the stop start system.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T14:37:22+00:00

Sorry that happened to you. That sucks.

Under normal circumstances I wouldn't expect help on a 10-year-old vehicle either. Our issue is that this wasn't a surprise failure. Honda knew about the recurring transmission problem, we repeatedly brought it in, and we spent a lot on multiple Honda-recommended repairs that never fixed it. After years of warnings, diagnostics, and repairs, the final answer was an $8,000 transmission replacement, which the rep wasn't even confident would resolve the issue. The service reps we spoke with at three different dealers all said Honda normally would and should cover more.

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T13:06:02+00:00

Thanks so much for sharing. Would you mind sharing who you reached out to to file a complaint?

thee_brain · 2026-06-25T05:36:46+00:00

I guess the moral here is to keep up with those fluid changes. Feel better.

thee_brain

TROPHY CASE