On cold days the dashboard is showing a foreign language.
- NHTSA ID
- 11733771
- Incident
- Jan 2, 2026
Owner-reported complaints naming the electrical system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2021 Honda HR-V submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 15 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
On cold days the dashboard is showing a foreign language.
My husband and I were driving down the road on the way home from dinner in the rain when the car suddenly started braking very hard but very quickly. I thought at first that my husband had braked a little too hard all of a sudden, but he said he did not. Before he could tell me that though the dash started lighting up. Brake system failure, electronic parking brake failure, hill start assist problem, power-steering problem, and many others - pretty much every safety sensor that could come on. I then worried we would not be able to brake when needed, but luckily we made it home. As soon as we were able to this morning, my husband brought it to the Honda Service to be checked out. We have to heard from them yet other that $230 to diagnose the problem. We were very lucky there were not others close to us when it happened. This could have been a very serious wreck if we were in traffic or going an even higher speed on the interstate(which we had been doing earlier).
An electrical issue with the right-hand side gauge cluster. This contains the fuel gauge, odometer, trip meter, temperature, & clock. Parts of the instrument cluster functions intermittently or shows scrambled, incorrect information. More recently it has turned completely off all together. This defect has created situations where I was unaware that the vehicle was about to run out of fuel. Also created situations where I couldn't track my mileage on long car trips to monitor my fuel.
I have gone in for service many times since this recall was released and have been told each time that they do not have the pats.
The fuel gauge, odometer, and trip meter portion of the instrument cluster functions only intermittently. In most instances, the display turns on but shows scrambled, incorrect, or misleading information. This defect has created multiple situations in which we were unaware that the vehicle was close to running out of fuel, placing us at risk of becoming stranded in remote areas of our state (New Mexico). Although the low-fuel warning light does illuminate, depending on our location, it may not provide sufficient warning to reach a gas station safely. This issue was confirmed by a local Honda dealer and has existed since approximately one year after the vehicle was purchased.
The contact owns a 2021 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that the instrument cluster was inoperable on several occasions and displayed erroneous information on other occasions. The contact stated that the failure occurred on colder days, with temperatures between 30-40 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, the contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted several times and was notified of the instrument cluster failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
The contact owns a 2021 Honda HR-V. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (AIR BAGS). However, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that when the "Odometer/Trip" button was pressed, the lights on the instrument panel flickered. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.
Panel flickered on the side where it tells you your milage to empty and how much gas you have in the car yesterday. This morning it was completely blank on that side of panel. My mechanic sade that it was something electrical but not the fuses. And he doesn't have the equipment to tell if it's an software update issue or not.
The LCD display which indicates fuel levels and such is made by a bad connection and will short out in all Honda 2021 HRV models that experience cold weather. This was told to me by a mechanic at a Honda Dealership in Colorado Springs. This screen going out would cause you to not know where your gas levels sit causing issues and potential safety concerns.
My digital cluster that displays how many miles my vehicle has, how many miles I have until I am out of gas and how much gas I have does not display correctly. From my own research this is due to the solder used during manufacturing being lead free. Because it is lead free it cracks in cold weather and causes a poor connection causing the display to be unreadable. I have read online and thousands of people are having the exact same issue. This is not a normal wear and tear issue and rather a manufacture defect that Honda is aware of.
I have had several issues happen where the battery will drain quickly if the doors are open for 40 minutes. One time recently happened last week when I was trying to take my wife to the hospital for a back pain issue. I tried to get her into the vehicle but the pain was too great so we called the paramedics to come and take her instead. Once they arrived and removed her from the vehicle, I went to start the vehicle and it wouldn't start. You could hear a repetitive fast clicking from the dash and a pulsing of the dash lights but no attempt of the engine to start.
Car's information gauge only displays at temperatures 70 degrees and above. The gauge (displayed on the right in the photo) contains, fuel level, odometer reading, warning icons. Car could run out of gas on highway with no warning. A Goggle search revealed many owners of different model years experiencing the same issue. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Odometer section of dashboard failed to light up/turn on. Continued to happen after restarting the car. Eventually after running the car for ~20 minutes it started flashing and turned on. If this continues to occur or fails completely/indefinitely, there is a risk of stalling on the road or highway if unable to monitor the gas gauge.
The contact owns a 2021 Honda HR-V. The contact that after a rainstorm, the power lock system would not allow her to open the doors, and that the theft alarm system would activate independently. The contact stated that she had also been trapped in the vehicle when the power locks failed to unlock the doors. Additionally, while driving at undisclosed speeds, the doors would lock and unlock independently. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the battery needed to be replaced. The battery was replaced; however, the failure recurred after inclement weather. The contact returned the vehicle to the same dealer who diagnosed and determined that an electrical junction box need to be replaced and a portion of the wiring located under the headliner needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.
The contact owns a 2021 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that the key would not go in the ignition. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, but the dealer could not duplicate the failure. The failure recurred and while taking the vehicle back to the dealer, the vehicle would not turn off. The dealer was able to turn off the vehicle but could not duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 876.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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