Problems with 2005 Honda Pilot SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

2005 honda pilot. lawyer wrote in on behalf of client. sudden malfunction which resulted in personal injuries*cw according to the letter, the brake system locked up, while his client was traveling at a high speed. *jb

2005 honda pilot. consumer writes in regards to unsatisfactory repair service from dealership. *smd the consumer stated the dealer did not clear the (vsa) brake light from the dashboard.

2005 honda pilot. consumer writes in regards to a defective vsa electrical control unit recall notice and seeks reimbursement for repairs. *smd the consumer stated without warning, the vehicle came to a complete stop in the middle of the intersection. the vehicle was towed to a repair shop, where the vsa/abs modulator assembly was replaced.

2005 honda pilot. consumer writes in regards to malfunction of alarm system in vehicle. *smd the consumer stated the alarm system went off, while driving. the consumer made every effort, to stop the horns from blaring. soon after, the vehicle stalled. he put the gear in park and turned off the ignition. he attempted to re-start the vehicle, but it would not go into any gear. the consumer managed to get help, to push the vehicle off the road. the tires would not roll, and shortly thereafter, the brake lights and horns went off, as well as the vsa was lit. the vehicle was towed to a repair facility. the next the day, the same problem occurred, a couple of days later, the consumer received recall notice 13v092000. the description of the recall, described the problem he experienced.

While exiting a driveway at approximately 5 miles per hour the brakes locked without the driver applying pressure. the driver was able to get the vehicle to the center painted median with extra gas and still under unwanted braking. once the car came to a complete stop for 30 seconds or so the brakes released. the driver then drove the vehicle at a slow speed along the curb to our house within 2 miles. it's now parked as we are afraid to drive it. a call to metro honda in montclair was of no assistance. they said my vehicle was not effected by the recent honda recall on the issue. the vsa light remains illuminated as well as the system warning light. *tr

While driving on the highway at approximately 60 mph the brakes suddenly activated and the vehicle rapidly decelerated. tires actually screeched due to the rapid deceleration. the brakes pulsed off and on until the vehicle came to a complete stop. pressing and releasing the brake pedal had no effect. i turned off the car then re-started it and continued on with no further problem. if a car would have been behind me it certainly would have caused an accident as my vehicle stopped so abruptly i surely would have been rear-ended. i have owned this vehicle for 5 yrs and this has happened 5-6 times, the first time about 6 mos after i purchased the vehicle. the date here is the most recent incident. it has occurred at different speeds and happens when the brake pedal has not been touched. it is random and i have gone as long as a year between incidents. i have not yet taken it to a dealer because it is such a random occurrence and not possible to duplicate, and numerous accounts of this problem on-line indicate that honda does not have a fix and does not acknowledge the problem. my experience is exactly as described in nhtsa action number dp12002 and pe12028. *tr

Vsa system malfunction. front left brake engages while vehicle is in motion. *tr

My pilot has a very bad shake in the steering wheel whenever i reach speeds of 70mph. i've had three wheel balances (one road force balance), two alignments, rotors and brakes checked with no issues with those items. i've had to of the motor mounts replaced on the vehicle since i purchased it which i never had to do on any other vehicles i've ever owned. i told the honda dealer that i think honda corporation should do a recall on the motor mounts because all pilot owners are complaining about the same issues. i still have the shaking in the steering wheel and i'm afraid that i might have to replace the third motor mount to resolve the shaking in the steering wheel. this is another expense that i can't afford but it doesn't seem honda cares about their customers so i guess we have no other options since it seems we (honda owners) can't get through to honda corporation to help us! *tr

Traveled ~15 miles at highway speed. exited highway onto secondary roads thru a busy town. traveling approx 30 mph. car shuddered and speed dropped to about 10 mph. transmission wouldn't shift out of low with rpm approaching 4000 rpm. stopped at light, car stalled all sensor lights came on and flashed. got it restarted, had to put in low to move...got it moving at ~3500 rpm, went a block to get off the main road into parking lot. cooling fan running, but temp gauge showed no issue. puddle of brown fluid formed under passenger side front of engine. looked like fluid sprayed through front passenger side of engine compartment no indication on sensor lights or temp gauge that anything wrong prior to stall and all sensor lights came on. had car towed to honda...they diagnosed as 2 transmission cooling lines burst mixing the transmission and cooling fluid. fix options...1) flush cooling & tranny system 5-7 times, replace radiator, filter, and lines for $1600-1800 but won't know if transmission needs replacing. 2) full replacement of radiator, lines and transmission $3800 or if option 1 chosen and subsequently transmission needs to be replaced it would cost the initial $1600-1800 plus an additional $4000 for a total of approx $5800. no indicator from dealer of the problem history for this vehicle. had previously complained about shudder and the dealer replaced a wheel bearing first, then when kept complaining they replaced my rotors saying the rotors had warped ...after being resurfaced only ~3600k miles prior. learned lesson....investigate any problems on -line before you accept the dealer explanation. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. the contact stated while traveling 30 mph with the brake pedal engaged to slow down, the brakes became stuck and the vehicle started to shutter for approximately one minute. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer who stated they could not find the problem. the failure mileage was 110,236 updated 04/10/12*lj updated 04/23/12

2-15-2011 prior complaint of vehicle stability assist locking the brakes, occurred 3 times. honda had no solution to abrupt jarring braking. continued to drive with vsa turned off. 1-2-2012 vsa, even though vsa turned off, brakes locked while going 45 mph on a highway, middle lane, then braked 4 more times before i could pull out of the way of traffic. very close near accident. took vehicle to honda 1-3-2012. spoke to dealership service director again, spoke to honda florida rep, no ideas, denied knowledge of problem, even though internet & nhtsa documented. finally i agreed to split repair, spent $793.61 and they replaced 57110-s9v-a61 modulator assembly vsa. honda refused to acknowledge what the braking was caused by, or that their vsa replacement that day would solve problem. if vsa off why did it happen 5 more times? since nhtsa has an open investigation on this well documented problem i wanted you to have an update. *tr

The first incident occurred while traveling at highway speeds. the car violently jerked forward 3 times and came to a complete sudden stop on the interstate. luckily no one was following too close or we would have been rear ended. my foot was on the accelerator maintaining a steady speed, and it was like i stomped on the break rapidly three times and then the car came to a complete stop. we took the car to the honda dealership and they could not repeat the issue but said that the battery wasn't putting out the proper amount of amps and was likely resulting in the computer sending faulty messages. they replaced the battery. the car seemed to be fixed when the battery was replaced, but then the issue recurred about two months later at the end of february 2012. while accelerating at about 30 mph, the car violently came to a sudden stop in the middle of the road. again, we were lucky to not be not rear ended. we took the car to another auto shop, but they weren't able to duplicate the issue. they assessed the computer and noted a faulty egr valve and replaced it. the car drove fine for two weeks after that, then the issue recurred for a third time, again at about 30 mph. the same thing occurred; the car came to a sudden stop in the middle of the road after the sensation of stomping on the breaks several times. the car is in the shop again, and they can't recreate the problem. their assessment is leading them to believe there is a faulty abs switch or brake booster. after several failed repair attempts, we aren't confident that anyone knows what the problem is. however, if you read the forums online, this is a problem that has been reported by dozens of people with my year, make/model and at the approximate mileage as my car. if we continue driving the car, we are scared we may injure ourselves or others. *tr

It was night, and my girlfriend and i just exited the freeway, we just turned onto a side street and made it 100 yards when all of the sudden it felt like my left front tire went flat or i hit something and it dragged, i immediately pulled over to inspect, and found nothing. i did notice the vsa and vsa activation indicators on, turning the car off and then on again reset the indicators. oddly concerned we circled back to check for anything in the road, there was nothing. it happened again just a few minutes later, and the indicators came back on. it repeated itself a third time, and i drove home very worried it would happen on the freeway. each instance was momentary and it pulled hard left each time with a load antilock brake type jarring vibration. from reading other stories i can see that this problem isn't one of a kind, and i haven't seen anyone post a fix for it. *tr

Vehicle engaged anti-lock brakes randomly as coming to stop. vsa light would come on and then disappear when the vehicle would start. acceleration affected at highway speeds of 50-60 mph and on side roads at 20-40 mph. no indicator light when car was restarted as to issue with car. car would lurch randomly both braking and accelerating. first dealer towed (willet honda, morrow, ga) did not find issue and sent driver on way. car lurched randomly less than one mile drive out of the dealer service lot. second dealer service station (ed voyles honda, marietta, ga) contacted american honda for issue. identified as electrical system failure causing full brake failure including antilock brakes and vsa system. total cost of repairs $1565.16. no indicator at all to indicate failures. willet dealership should not have released vehicle to owner with safety issue. *tr

2005 honda pilot .. purchased used had for 2 weeks and the brakes locked up 4 times with 2 passengers in car. occurred while tapping brakes at about 30 mph also happened twice with out tapping brakes. taking it back to dealership i purchased from. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 15 mph the brakes engaged involuntarily. the vehicle came to a stop for a few moments before the brakes released. the failure recurred intermittently. during the failure, the vehicle stability assist light was illuminated. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer four times in which the vehicle stability assist was repaired. the failure persisted. the failure mileage was 134,000 and the current mileage was 134,213. *vin corrected smch

While driving the braking system suddenly started to activate the anti-lock braking system, violently applying the brakes regardless of how hard or softly i touched the brake pedal. this anomaly has occurred multiple times without warning and for no apparent reason. i could not address this problem because it was unpredictable and went away when i would get the car to a safe place and turn off the key. it would no longer be happening, similar to rebooting a computer. no dash symptom lights would appear during these incidents. please advise if i have any recourse with honda since the vehicle is out of warranty. reference nhtsa action number pe12028. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. the contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph, the vehicle began making a clicking noise, suddenly stalled and the vsa light illuminated on the instrument panel. the vehicle was restarted and taken to an authorized dealer who stated that the brake sensor had failed but they could not see a blatant problem. the vehicle had not been repaired. the failure mileage was 105,864.

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. the contact stated that while driving approximately 30 mph the brakes decelerated on their own. the vehicle came to a complete stop and stalled. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer. the dealer was unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was approximately 55,000. updated 12/23/11... updated 02/17/12 *bf the consumer stated the electronic stability control system was defective, which caused the steering to fail and the brakes to apply involuntarily. updated 04/2412 updated 05/03/12

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. the contact stated that while driving 45 mph there was a loud noise and the brakes locked. the vehicle also stopped moving while his foot was on the accelerator pedal. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that they diagnosed and duplicated the problem but there was no defect. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileages were 115900.

Had a honda dealership service center complete repairs on warped front brake rotors. dealership informed me that the front motor mount is broken and collapsed and that the right rear shock is starting to leak. the vehicle has 77,606 miles and has been well taken care of and regularly serviced. after researching these issues, it appears that the motor mount and rear shock failures are not uncommon issues for 2005 honda pilots. *tr

The brakes in my 2005 honda pilot suddenly apply themselves. over the past 4 years, this has happened to me 3 times when i tapped the brake pedal and once just driving down the road. my wife recently had it happen once to her just after taking off from a stop sign. it happened to me while driving down the road at between 40 and 50 miles per hour. i've seen this problem reported on other web sites...one was going 60 when it happened. two honda dealers did diagnostics and found nothing. they could not "reproduce the problem"...no surprise since it's random! the last time (incident date below) my wife was out of town had the car towed to the second dealer. (the brake pads were replace by them but we've put less than 150 miles on it since then.) i believe this is not related to the mechanics since it happens suddenly and unexpectedly under different conditions...but who knows. *tr

2005 honda pilot brakes suddenly lock up while driving. has occured on four occasions. operator not touch brake pedal. *tr

3/20/10. 2005 honda pilot ex with 110k miles. brake pedals feel 'soft' and gradually exhibit a pedal height that gets lower (closer to the floor) before the vehicle stops. i noticed this issue a week ago, but thought it was just me being paranoid. however, it appears be increasing very slowly over time.this is the same problem as the 3/16/10 honda recall to modify the vehicle stability assist' (vsa) modulator for only 344,000 odysseys and 68,000 elements. i'm contacting the dealer on monday. keep in mind that they replaced both my front and back breaks less than 6 months ago. the 2005 honda pilot should have been included in the 3/16/10 recall. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving 30 mph the brakes felt soft and the pedal extended to the floor which made it difficult to stop the vehicle. he stated that the failure occurred intermittently. he took the vehicle to the dealer twice a few years ago for the brake failure. the dealer checked the brakes and could not find anything wrong. the manufacturer stated that his vin was not included in the recall; therefore, they could not offer him any assistance. he will take the vehicle back to the dealer. the failure and the current mileages were 17,513.

My wife was cruising down the highway at 50 mph a week ago, under very good road condition, with her foot on the gas pedal, when she tried to dodge the passenger car from the next lane, her brake wasn't working properly, suddenly her car made lousy banging sound and sled 3 times in rapid toward left after toward right, and left again. luckily no contacts was made while in devastating moment. before heading to dealer, today snowy day, driving 10 mph to my daughter's school dropping, it happened again as similar but not so panoramic. barely avoid to collision with police patrol car on opposite lane. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving approximately 45 mph, she noticed that the brakes had suddenly seized and would not allow the vehicle to be moved in any direction. the dealer replaced the brake pads and rotors; however, the failure continued to occur. the current mileage was 45000 and the failure mileage was 35000.

Bt shimmy? is this a new dance? not!!!! dangerous vehicle~brakes transmission? shimmy? august 25, 2009 '05 honda pilot brakes lock up while driving. did thorough investigation when this started in may: brakes lock up and vehicle veers and stops while going over 35-40 mph. i am a journalist and did research. numerous complaints: honda says they don't listen to 'websites' what about your customers honda? this was fixed for $500 back in may and happened again while three year old daughter is in the vehicle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! danger danger danger. jack of diamonds service department in tyler texas wants to argue about it. sales manager says i can leave it there ~ b/c he is sure nothing is wrong and will resell it!!!! tyler, texas. further: stranded in greenville, texas most of the day with child. unsafe unsa unsafe. brakes? transmission? shimmy? i don't know. *tr

Happened to me 3 times yesterday. once while driving ~40mph the vehicle came to a sudden stop, throwing items from the seat into the floor. the first instance was brief and i drove ~2 miles before it happened again with the vsa indicator lights (caution and off) came. manual states vsa can reset by turning car off and back on (must be a microsoft system). drove the car to work. later left work and went about 5 miles before the violent sudden stop event. folks this is serious people could have been killed due to the violent nature of the car stopping. car is at the dealer right now, they could not repeat the event , yet and claimed the computer could not read any codes. they have a call into the factory. reference thread at www.hondapilot.org honda pilot .org > general > problems > vsa applies full brake for no reason. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. while driving 40 mph, the vehicle slammed into brake mode and came to a complete and sudden stop. the failure continued for several minutes, causing items to be thrown from the seat onto the floor. during the failure, the vehicle stability assist warning indicator was illuminated on the instrument panel. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer for diagnostic testing, which produced a low battery voltage code and a brake sensor code. the dealer tested and replaced the battery. they also notified the manufacturer and opened a case. the failure and current mileages were less than 58,000.

2005 honda pilot ex have applied sudden brake which completely stopped the car. it happened three time in this week (2/2 - 2/4). the weather is cold after a minor snow, the road is wet or dry. but each time there were snow and salt residue on the road, when the car roll over it, then it happened. moving speed was between 20 - 30 mph. since it was slow so not accident occurred, otherwise might cause an accident from behind. *tr

I have had a 2005 honda pilot for 2 1/2 years. on at least 3 occasions, the brakes apply themselves. it is a very dangerous event. the honda company must do something about this. the last incident of this type occurred last night, the date shown below. *tr

Brakes lock up while drving down the road. dealership says they don't know what is wrong with it. this has happened three times now. the car has been to the dealer twice. keeps happening. nearly rearended this last time. research on the internet shows that i am not alone. yet honda dealership claims they have never heard of this, they called headquarters and no one has heard of this. they want us to come and get it. i am afraid to drive it. it isn't safe to have your car locks its breaks out of no where. no warning at all. another person on the internet reports it happened on the freeway!!! car swerved all over, cars honked swerved to miss them. they have a claim number with honda as well. this is not safe and the honda dealership is acting like i should just forget about it and drive this car. *nm

I was driving my 2005 honda pilot form my home and made a left turn out of my subdivision. suddenly the vehicle made a loud grinding noise that seemed to come from the front of it. it went away and i continued driving slowly (about 15 - 20 mph) to see if i could detect something further wrong or if i had run over something. as i found no indication of the cause of the noise i continued on. within approximately one city block the vehicle seemed to apply the brakes and slowed itself to a crawl. i did not apply the brakes! the noise again occurred while this happened. the noise, i realized, was similar to anti-lock brakes activating during a hard stop. this occurred three more times in rapid succession and then went away. i continued on trying to figure out what was wrong and applied the brakes myself. they seemed to work ok. as i proceeded , the brakes once again applied themselves (with absolutely no action from me) another four times. at this time the vsa light came on the dash. i attempted to turn it off, but was not sure if it did turn off or not. i drove another two to three miles without further problems. on may 10, approximately three weeks after the first incident, the vsa light came on. i pulled over, shut off the car and restarted it as directed in the owner's manual and the vsa light did not come back on. later that day, while driving with four people in the pilot i had made a left turn and had accelerated to about 40 mph when the brakes again applied themselves, the pilot dived to the left and came to a complete stop. again, i did not apply the brakes, the pilot did this itself. the vsa light had come on again and i followed the procedure in the owner's manual. this seemed to work once again. as everyone in the pilot had their seat belts on, no one was injured. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 honda pilot. the contact was driving approximately 30 to 35 mph when the brakes engaged independently and then released within a few moments. the contact stated that the failure would occur sporadically and without warning. the vehicle was taken to the dealer several times for the failure but the dealer was unable to duplicate or diagnose the failure. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 2,500 and the current mileage was 101,000.

2005 honda pilot ex with less than 500 miles on it.. ~90% brake failure on vehicle on two occasions... 06/15/2005 and 06/24/2005. taking to honda of concord (concord nc) to be reviewed... may or may not repair depending on if they can "duplicate" the problem but are aware of some cases of the master cylinder going completely out for a "moment". alerting you all in case this happens to others and to have on record.