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Oct 14, 2024

Honda Recalls 1.7 Million Vehicles Over Steering Issue - Newsweek

Honda has recalled nearly 1.7 million vehicles in the United States over a steering issue that could lead to crashes. The recall was filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Honda has recalled nearly 1.7 million vehicles in the United States over a steering issue that could lead to crashes.

The recall was filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on October 3.

The NHTSA said in the recall that the steering gearbox assembly may have been manufactured incorrectly, leading to potential "excessive internal friction" that could make the car difficult to steer.

Cars from model years 2022 to 2025 were recalled. The recall included certain Acura Integras, Honda Civics, Honda Civic Hybrids, Honda CR-Vs, Honda CR-V Hybrids, Honda CR-V Fuel Cell EVs and Honda HR-Vs.

The recall did not mention any accidents or injuries caused by the steering defect.

Owners of affected cars will be mailed notification letters about the recall on November 18. These owners will be asked to take their cars to Honda and Acura dealerships to get their steering gearboxes fixed free of charge.

The recall follows a probe by the NHTSA announced in March which looked into over 100 complaints from Honda Civic owners that their steering can stick, causing them to put more effort into turning the wheel. Most of the complaints were related to incidents at highway speeds and involved cars with low mileage.

At the time, the NHTSA said extra steering effort can cause an overreaction or inability to avoid a road hazard. There were no reports of injuries or crashes related to the issue at the time.

Honda explained the dangers of an improperly produced steering gearbox worm wheel in a press release on Wednesday, saying it "can swell when exposed to environmental heat and moisture, reducing the grease film thickness between the worm wheel and worm gear."

The car manufacturer continued: "In addition, the worm gear spring preload was set improperly high, increasing the sliding force between the components. Excessive friction between these components can cause abnormal steering noise, increased steering effort and difficulty, or 'sticky' steering."

Meanwhile, earlier this month, Tesla announced it was recalling over 27,000 Cybertruck vehicles that may have rear-view image delays, which could increase the risk of crashes. This is not the first time Tesla has issued a recall for its Cybertruck.

The company said in a report filed with the NHTSA that the rear-view camera image in the affected vehicles may not display for up to six to eight seconds when the vehicle is shifted into reverse. The delay is caused by the system failing to complete a shutdown process before it is commanded to boot up.

The recall filed with the NHTSA detailed that the Cybertrucks in question are vehicles manufactured between November 13, 2023, and September 14, 2024.

The report stated that, as a remedy, Tesla released an over-the-air software update, free of charge, on or shortly after September 19, adding that "no further action is necessary from owners of affected vehicles that are equipped with software release 2024.32.5.2 or a later release."

Separately, owner notification letters are expected to be mailed to those in possession of a Cybertruck by November 25, 2024.

This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.

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Rachel Dobkin is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting on politics. Rachel joined Newsweek in October 2023. She is a graduate of The State University of New York at Oneonta. You can get in touch with Rachel by emailing [email protected].

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Rachel Dobkin is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting on politics. Rachel joined Newsweek in ...Read more