Problems · NHTSA complaints

2021 Honda CR-V problems

Owners filed 338 complaints about the 2021 Honda CR-V with NHTSA between Feb 2021 and Oct 2026. The most-cited component is steering (114).

Complaints
338
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
14
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
13
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Steering114
  2. Forward collision avoidance88
  3. Electrical system34
  4. Engine33
  5. Fuel/propulsion system27
  6. Service brakes25
  7. Lane departure17
  8. Air bags15
  9. Power train12
  10. Visibility/wiper10
  11. Vehicle speed control6
  12. Wheels5
  13. Suspension4
  14. Exterior lighting4

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
202119
202237
202326
202469
202587
2026100

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Steering

114 reports4 crashes
“Electronic power steering failing. Honda dealer verified. EPS keeps sticking and pulling when turning right and over sharp turns particularly more pronounce over uneven roads.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 20, 2026SteeringODI 11772409

Forward collision avoidance

88 reports3 crashes
“While I was driving my kids home my 2021 Honda CRV had every warning light turn on my dash and the car started jerking and braking and nearly caused me to get in accident with my [XXX] and [XXX] in the car. My husband took the car into the shop and the shop said it was the fuel pumps. They are trying to charge us over 1000 for something that is a Honda issue. Many Honda cars have had this issue and there should have been a recall for this.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 22, 2026Fuel/propulsion system, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11772890

Electrical system

34 reports
“Hello NHSTA -- My Honda is a 2021 CR-V AWD Hybrid. Two very unsafe events to report which occurred within a few weeks of each other, apparently from the same cause. First event, on 27 Feb 2026, I was driving on a two lane county road, traveling about 40 mph, I was in the lead with 2 or 3 cars behind me. Suddenly, on a fairly level grade, I noticed that the car was gradually slowing down; I was not touching the brakes, my foot was on the accelerator. When I pushed it to speed up, there was no effect, no change in the engine sound. I put on my flashers, and scanned for a place to pull-over, but there was no shoulder. My speed had reduced to around 5 mph. The check engine light flashed I believe, but it did not stay on. In about a hundred yards I was able to locate a broad drive-way entrance to pull in to and I was able to let the cars behind go by. Turned the engine off 2 or 3 times. On the 3rd time, the car moved a little bit. When I put it in reverse, it moved back a little bit. So, when the road was clear I put it in drive again and it took off like normal. I drove directly to my local Honda shop. The kept it for a couple of days. They couldn't find anything,…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 15, 2026Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11757183

Engine

33 reports1 crash
“While Driving on freeway, engine suddenly stops. This has happened four times now in the last two years one time was almost deadly as we were surrounded by semi’s and lost power completely except for the small amount of hybrid power. I had to quickly get to the side, barely missing a semi truck. 2021 Honda CRV hybrid. I have taken it into Bountiful Honda in Utah after each episode, the first time they did some adjustments it was about $600. The second time they just kept it for six weeks and couldn’t find anything wrong. Third time was the same and this last time they changed the fuel injectors. But we’re scared to death to drive our car. We’ve been renting cars every time we have to go more than an hour away from our home or get on the freeway for very long. We are hesitant to trade it in because we don’t want them to turn around and sell it to someone else that would not be aware of the problem. But we were able on the last episode to retrieve a code with a little machine we purchased. But that code just meant severe engine failure. The dealership kept my car for almost 2 months on the third episode and drove it over 2500 miles and were unable to get it to…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 21, 2026EngineODI 11751701

Fuel/propulsion system

27 reports
“my fuel pump failed on an interstate in [XXX] while I was going 65 miles an hour and the speed of my car dropped to 20 mph and I was lucky to change to the right lane and get onto the shoulder or I would have been hit by an oncoming car.I had the car towed to [XXX] where my mechanic diagnosed failure of high and low pressure fuel pumps and I had the repair done.When the pump failed,all the lights on the dash showed systems failure.Honda would not reimburse me for the repair because my car was six months out of warranty.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 6, 2026Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11769226

Service brakes

25 reports2 crashes
“On the morning on 7/10/26 I was driving 30mph around a gentle turn and the brakes activated briefly. I also received a dashboard notification to brake. The weather conditions were sunny and probably around 80 degrees. There was no one in front of me and the closest car, in oncoming traffic was around 40 feet away. The safety risk was my car temporarily applied the brakes but did not stop completely. Luckily, the closet car behind me was ~30 feet behind me. Over the past 2 years I have received occasional dashboard notifications to brake, but the situation/driving conditions did not warrant the need to brake. This was the first time that the braking system actually applied the brake and slowed the car down.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 10, 2026Service brakes, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11749590
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.