AutoUtility currently tracks 155 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2018 Honda HR-V. Electrical System issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 47 complaints (30.3% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 11 filings cite a crash, 5 report one or more injuries.

Key Problem Findings
  • Total NHTSA Complaints: 155 reports
  • #1 Reported Problem Area: Electrical System (47 reports • 30.3% of submitted complaints)
  • Secondary Problem Areas: Fuel & Propulsion System (40), Brakes & Traction Control (18)
  • Crash-Citing Complaints: 11 filings
  • Fire-Citing Complaints: 0 filings
  • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 5 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
155
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
11
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
0
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
5
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2018 Honda HR-V

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 30.3% of complaints

Electrical System

47 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ 3 crash reports 🩹 2 injury report entries
#2 Problem Area 25.8% of complaints

Fuel & Propulsion System

40 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#3 Problem Area 11.6% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

18 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 5 crash reports 🩹 2 injury report entries
#4 Problem Area 9.7% of complaints

Powertrain & Transmission

15 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#5 Problem Area 7.1% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

11 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 Honda HR-V

Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis

AutoUtility uses deterministic phrase matching to identify recurring symptom descriptions within consumer-submitted NHTSA complaint narratives.

Powertrain & Transmission 3.9% of complaints

Loss of Motive Power While Driving

6 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Symptom Identification Method: A complaint may describe more than one symptom, so percentages may sum to more than 100%. Symptom identification reflects text contained in consumer-submitted complaint records and does not establish a confirmed mechanical diagnosis.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 Honda HR-V

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Electrical System NHTSA ODI ID: #11758802
Filed: 08/22/2026

"Far right gauge in cluster, namely fuel level, mileage, warning icons etc only is visible when the vehicle is extremely warmed up. Otherwise, this gauge is totally black. Has been this way since 2019."

Incident Date: 10/01/2019 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Body & Structure NHTSA ODI ID: #11757340
Filed: 08/17/2026

"Car paint is White Orchid Pearl and had been issued NHTSA complaint about it. The manufacturer lately issued warranty for the paint limited to 7 years (Mar/2025). Car paint started to chip off firstly on the driver side door as a small spot in 2022 and when notified the dealer, they did not pay..."

Incident Date: 06/20/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: STRUCTURE
Air Bags & Restraints NHTSA ODI ID: #11756868
Filed: 08/14/2026

"SRS / airbag light permanently remain on which indicates a fault with the system. Technician said it’s most likely due to a faulty sensor in the passenger seat."

Incident Date: 07/21/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: AIR BAGS
Visibility, Wipers & Glass NHTSA ODI ID: #11755924
Filed: 08/10/2026

"The rear glass/rear windshield of my parked car unexpectedly broke after using the rear defrost on XXX I am concerned about a possible defect involving the rear glass and/or rear defroster. Curry Honda, a Honda-authorized dealer, inspected the vehicle and confirmed the glass failure, but the..."

Incident Date: 06/11/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: VISIBILITY/WIPER
Electrical System NHTSA ODI ID: #11748651
Filed: 07/06/2026

"I am filing a formal complaint regarding two critical manufacturing defects on my 2018 Honda HR-V that pose immediate safety risks and financial losses: 1. CRITICAL SAFETY ISSUE (Instrument Gauge Failure): The digital display gauge on the right side of the driver's dashboard consistently blinks out..."

Incident Date: 07/05/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Honda HR-V

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2016–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2016 Honda HR-V 238 13 2 View 2016 Problems →
2017 Honda HR-V 121 13 0 View 2017 Problems →
2018 Honda HR-V Current Page 155 11 3 Current
2019 Honda HR-V 227 17 7 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Honda HR-V 83 8 5 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Honda HR-V 62 5 4 View 2021 Problems →
2022 Honda HR-V 84 10 3 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Honda HR-V 685 7 3 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Honda HR-V 107 8 4 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Honda HR-V 42 2 1 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Honda HR-V 0 0 0 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2018 Honda HR-V

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 45 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 31 0 0 0 0
Fuel System NHTSA category: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 26 0 0 0 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 15 0 0 0 0
Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN 10 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES 8 3 0 0 0
Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE 7 0 0 0 0
Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 6 0 0 0 0
Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER 5 0 0 0 0
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 4 0 0 0 0
Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS 3 2 0 2 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES 2 2 0 2 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 1 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 0 0 0 0
Tires NHTSA category: TIRES 2 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE 1 1 0 1 0
AIR BAGS,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 1 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 1 0 0 0
Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
Visibility / Glass NHTSA category: VISIBILITY 1 0 0 0 0
VISIBILITY,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (155). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (1)

1 CLOSED

Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)

Official Federal Inquiries: NHTSA opens a defect investigation when safety screening or consumer defect trends indicate a potential unreasonable safety risk. An open investigation is a formal inquiry and does not by itself confirm a defect or result in a mandatory recall.
CLOSED Preliminary Evaluation (PE) ODI Action #PE22011
Opened: 2022-11-28 • Closed: 2024-07-22

Rear Differential Seizure

Affected Component: POWER TRAIN:AXLE ASSEMBLY:AXLE SHAFT

On November 29, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE 22-011 after reviewing field reports alleging rear differential seizure in 2018-2022MY Honda CR-V and HR-V vehicles equipped with all wheel drive. To date, ODI has not received any consumer complaints. Some of the field reports received alleged the vehicle’s wheels locked up with no warning while the vehicle was in motion. These vehicles were towed to a dealership. Examin...

Closed without associated recall campaign. Official NHTSA File →
Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.