Although quality has gone down in the past years due to cost-cutting measures, Honda is still up there with Toyota. In any case, mistakes can – and will certainly – happen, either on the automaker's part or because of a supplier.
Redesigned for the 2023 model year, the Pilot has been hit with a safety recall over improperly manufactured steering racks. The first incident of steering lock occurred at Honda Manufacturing of Alabama on August 30 while a brand-new Pilot was moved in preparation for shipping. This, in turn, prompted the Japanese manufacturer to investigate.
Through early September 2023, the folks at American Honda Motor Co and Robert Bosch Automotive Steering analyzed the suspect rack. Come September 21, two additional steering lock incidents occurred at the production facility. Honda eventually discovered that Bosch didn't assemble certain steering racks correctly. More to the point, Bosch acknowledged that a loose ball bearing may have contaminated a number of assemblies.
The bearing in question may fall into a gap within the steering rack, causing the loss of steering or steering lock. As per documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the supplier was much obliged to revise the process that led to steering rack contamination in the first place. Bosch claims that suspect assemblies were potentially contaminated during rework.
The rework process may have allowed previously assembled bearings to remain in the steering rack, subsequently becoming misplaced within the steering rack during reassembly. On the upside, Honda isn't aware of warranty claims or field incidents related to said concern.
Photo: Honda
Attached below, the report for safety recall number 23V-735 reads 519 potentially affected vehicles, of which 1% are believed to feature a loose ball bearing in the steering gear box assembly. The vehicles in question were produced for the 2023 and 2024 model years between June 30 and September 25 at Honda's Alabama-based assembly plant.
Identified as 53600-T90-A04 in the automaker's parts system, the steering rack will be replaced at no charge whatsoever to affected customers. Honda dealers nationwide were informed about said recall on November 3, whereas known owners will be informed via first-class mail no later than December 18. In the meantime, owners can identify whether their three-row crossovers are recalled or not by running the VIN on the NHTSA's web portal.
A mid-size crossover twinned with the two-row Passport and Ridgeline pickup truck, the Pilot is Honda's fifth best-selling nameplate in the United States of America. No Fewer than 90,620 were delivered stateside from January 2023 through October 2023. Nameplates that performed better than the Pilot include the HR-V (98,730), Civic (164,109), Accord (167,548), and the CR-V (293,748).
As of November 2023, prospective customers are presented with six different grades, beginning with the $37,090 LX. Excluding the destination freight charge and options, the most expensive trim level is the $52,480 Elite. Regardless of grade, the Pilot comes standard with a 285-hp V6 mill.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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