2012 Honda Ridgeline

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect.  During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW.  The ECU receives signals from crash sensors mounted in the vehicle and deploys the vehicle air bags and seat belt pretensioners in accordance with manufacturer design specifications.  The ECU in the subject vehicles contains a model DS84 application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) which controls the communication of the crash sensor signal, firing commands (i.e., when to deploy the airbag(s) and/or pretensioners), and fault information (e.g., diagnostic trouble codes). In September 2016, FCA announced recall 16V-668 for certain model year (MY) 2010 to 2014 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products manufactured with the subject ZF-TRW ACU.  In this recall, FCA discussed an EOS condition that resulted in a failure of the subject DS84 ASIC, which caused air bag non-deployment.  FCA noted that the defect condition had only been observed in vehicles equipped with sensor harnessing routed across the front of the vehicle.  Other FCA vehicles that also used the subject ACU, but were not equipped with cross-car harnessing, had not experienced EOS failures, despite similar time in service. During the course of this investigation, ODI sent two separate Information Request (IR) letters to six vehicle manufactures (including FCA, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Mitsubishi, and Toyota) and one IR letter to ZF-TRW.  These IR letters resulted in ODI receiving comprehensive data from these manufacturers and suppliers. Studies of this data found that the DS84 ASIC does not have sufficient protection against negative electrical transients or electrical overstress (“EOS”) that can be generated in certain severe crashes.  An electrical transient occurs when the electrical power supplied to a circuit changes momentarily over a short duration of time.   In these severe crash cases, the crash sensors and other powered wiring can be damaged and short circuited so as to create a negative electrical transient of sufficient intensity and duration (that are outside the vehicle manufacturer's specification) to damage the ASIC before the restraint device deployment signal is received by the SRS ECU.  This damaged signal can lead to incomplete or nondeployment of the air bags and/or pretensioners.  Airbag non-deployment and/or lack of pretensioner operation can increase the risk or severity of injury in a crash.A total of 8 fatalities and 14 injuries were associated with known EOS events. The common element in all investigated manufacturers vehicles is the SRS ECU containing a DS84 ASIC manufactured by ZF-TRW.  The risk associated with the ASIC is equally shared among all OEMS involved in the investigation.  The actual real-world risk can be mitigated by other factors which were assessed by ODI during this investigation. The first mitigating factor involves protections built into the ACU design which protect the DS84 ASIC from damage.  There are multiple strategies and levels of protection employed by different OEMs that provide effective EOS mitigation.  The two most common strategies at the ACU level are circuit protection diodes on the remote senor signal lines, and current limiting resistors that protect critical components. The second mitigating factor is found at the vehicle level and involves the location and routing of the wires leading from the crash sensors to the SRS ECU.  If the wires are well protected in a crash and are not routed with other power wires carrying large currents, the risk for an EOS event is significantly reduced or eliminated. These design specific factors combine to produce a spectrum of risk for the vehicles equipped with ACUs using the DS84 ASIC.  Given the many of years of field exposure, it is possible to divide the subject population into two groups; vehicles which have experienced EOS events, and vehicles which have not experienced EOS field events. Four of the six OEMs involved in this investigation have experienced EOS field events on at least one of their models equipped with a DS84 ASIC.  All vehicle models (including the Toyota models identified in the Failure Report Summary of the opening resume for this investigation) with field events have been recalled.  In an abundance of caution, ODI kept this investigation open five years to monitor field performance and did not identify any field events on vehicles not included in existing safety recalls. Given the spectrum of risk identified in this investigation and that all vehicles with a demonstrated unreasonable risk have been recalled, ODI is closing this investigation. ODI is closing this investigation with the following manufacturer safety recalls: 16V-668, 18E-043, 18V-137, 18V-363, and 20V-024.  With the recall actions taken by the subject vehicle and equipment manufacturers, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exists on other model or model year vehicles outside of the recall scopes. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.

Because of well known water intrusion into the cabin from the firewall, over time the seat risers rust away, and then the compromised metal breaks, at which point the front of the seat is no longer bolted into the floor board. The seat swings backward uncommanded, and may is likely to startle driver, and cause crash. While the seat is swung backward, the driver has NO CONTROL OVER HIS POSITION IN THE VEHICLE. THE SEATBELT ALSO BECOMES COMPROMISED AS THE SEATBELT BELT BUCKLE IS CONNECTED TO THE SEAT ITSELF WHICH ITSELF BECOMES LOOSE FROM THE BODY OF THE VEHICLE. I have a video of the broken riser due to rusting over time due to the well known water intrusion issues. I can email you a video so you can see the danger of this issue.

NHTSA ID

11658675

Incident

May 1, 2025

1. Left Rear Cam Bolt Seized, YES 2. This will not allow for any movement to have tires probably aligned. 3. Yes, I have documentation available upon request 4. No 5. It was caught during an alignment, I first noticed it during the first rear end recall but area was outside of "recall area" and was not addressed by Honda.

NHTSA ID

11549158

Incident

Oct 7, 2023

After returning from a short trip to the local convenience store smoke was observed coming from under the hood and also into the cabin as the truck was entering the driveway. Driver immediately opened the hood and witnessed that the engine was smoking and on fire. Driver immediately gained access to a hose and extinguished the fire with water. Per the attached photo and the attached service record the fire was initiated and involved the alternator and the attached wire harness. (Note that same week I observed a 2012 Honda Pilot in the shop with the same exact fire (cause and engine location). The VSA warning appeared on the dash and then the smoke was observed. I paid to have vehicle towed to closest Honda dealer, paid for repairs because Honda refused to take responsibility.

NHTSA ID

11487806

Incident

Sep 18, 2022

The contact owns a 2012 Honda Ridgeline. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V430000 (Structure) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer and manufacturer were made aware of the issue. The contact was informed by the dealer that no Southern States had the tools to complete the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. The contact stated that the recall was completed and that it is no longer an outstanding issue.

NHTSA ID

11487288

Incident

Jul 27, 2022

Roof Garnish Molding it’s pop ups two times and i change everything new but my concern is when i drive in the highway or interstate that part can blow off to the air and can cause an accident. Last time I went to the dealership was 07/01/2022. That’s my concern. Thank you.

NHTSA ID

11472293

Incident

Jul 1, 2022

ABS AND VSA LIGHTS COME ON INTERMITTANT AT WHICH TIME THE VEHICLE CANNOT BE SHIFTED OUT OF PARK. PUMPING THE BRAKE ALLOWS SHIFT BUT LIGHTS STAY ON, THEN SOMETIMES JUST FLASH OFF AND STABILITY CONTROL AND ABS RESUME OPERATION. CAN BE DANGEROUS ON A SUDDEN STOP OR HIGH SPEED TURN.

NHTSA ID

11206829

Incident

May 9, 2019

Mileage

30,000 mi

THIRD BRAKE LIGHT PANEL (ABOVE REAR WINDOW) BLEW OFF AT 75 MPH. IN CHECKING ONLINE, THIS HAS HAPPENED TO MANY OTHER RIDGELINE TRUCKS.

NHTSA ID

11192134

Incident

Mar 27, 2019

Mileage

67,000 mi

2012 HONDA RIDGELINE SPORT. CONSUMER WRITES REQUESTING A STATUS UPDATE ON DRIVERS FRONT AIRBAG INFLATOR RECALL. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED A REASNABLE AMOUNT OF TIME HAD EXCEEDED FOR THE RECALL TO BE COMPLETED. THE CONSUMER WOULD LIKE AN UPDATE. *JS

NHTSA ID

10980571

Incident

Mar 1, 2016

Service Bulletin - Warranty Extension: Customer Support Program For Driver's Airbag Inflator for 2007-11 CR-V and Other Listed Years and Models.

Service Bulletin - A pop or clunk is heard from the rear suspension in cold weather going over bumps potentially due to the rear bump stops loosening and are moving in the top mounting cap for the rear dampers.

Service News - The navigation clock and date are incorrect. This is due to a limited GPS receiver Capacity resulting in rollover of the internal chip memory; the rollover occurred on January 1, 2022, at 12:00AM local time.

Service Bulletin - (Repair Procedure and Parts Information Revision) In salt-belt states where de-icing agents are used to maintain the roadway, the de-icing agents, along with mud and dirt, could accumulate along the rear frame where the fuel tank is mounted. Over time, the accumulated de-icing agents/mud/dirt mixture could cause the fuel tank band mounts to corrode and separate from the frame. If this occurs, an unsecured fuel tank can become damaged from undercarriage impact, which can possibly result in fuel leakage. Inspect the rear frame for rust and corrosion, if needed, install the kit.

Service bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects in the replacement front passenger's airbag inflator only.

ServiceNews Article - The clock shows the incorrect time. This issue is due to a limited GPS receiver capacity resulting in "rollover" of the internal chip memory; the "rollover" will occur on January 1, 2022, at 12:00AM local time. As a result, once specific triggers are met, the navigation date and time will be incorrect.