VehicleVerdict

2020 Honda Accord Hybrid problems

Verdict · NHTSA data

One of the years to avoid

The 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid carries two red flags at once: 62 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA and an open NHTSA defect investigation (subject: Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking). It is one of the Accord Hybrid years to avoid. Reports tied to this model year include 2 deaths and 3 injuries, per the complaint records themselves.

No single system dominates the record — complaints spread across other (15), driver assistance (12), and electrical system (11), which usually points to general build quality rather than one defect. In government crash testing it earned 5 of 5 NCAP stars overall.

62

NHTSA complaints

5

Recalls

2

Investigations · 1 open

4

Crash-involved

0

Fires reported

3

Injuries

2

Deaths

5

NCAP overall · of 5 stars

How does 2020 compare to other Accord Hybrid years?

Accord Hybrid NHTSA complaints by model year, 2020 highlighted283 complaints2005: 43 complaints2006: 0 complaints2007: 1 complaints2014: 34 complaints2015: 64 complaints2016: 1 complaints2017: 69 complaints2018: 169 complaints2019: 140 complaints2020: 62 complaints2021: 67 complaints2022: 82 complaints2023: 283 complaints2024: 131 complaints2025: 41 complaints2026: 0 complaints
Accord Hybrid NHTSA complaints by model year, 2020 highlighted. Red bars are years to avoid.

See all Accord Hybrid years to avoid →

What are the most common 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid problems?

ComponentComplaintsShare
Other1524%
Driver Assistance1219%
Electrical System1118%
Brakes58%
Engine46%
Fuel System46%
Body & Structure35%
Transmission35%
Steering23%
Visibility & Wipers23%
Speed Control12%

Does the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid have recalls?

5 NHTSA recall campaigns on file. Recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.

26V332000AirbagsMay 21, 2026 · 98,892 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.

Consequence

Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed July 6, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.

24V064000AirbagsFebruary 1, 2024 · 750,114 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.

Consequence

An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024, October 18, 2024, and August 2025. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.

23V858000Fuel SystemDecember 18, 2023 · 2,490,460 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Consequence

Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.

20V798000Electrical SystemDecember 17, 2020 · 27,838 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020 CR-V Hybrid, Accord Hybrid, and 2020-2021 Insight vehicles. The DC-DC converter may shut down and prevent the 12-volt battery from recharging, possibly resulting in a loss of drive power.

Consequence

A loss of drive power can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the power converter unit (PCU) software, free of charge. The recall began February 12, 2021. Owners can contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is K9E.

20V771000Electrical SystemDecember 10, 2020 · 737,233 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2020 Accord Sedan, Accord Hybrid, and 2019-2020 Insight vehicles. A software error may cause intermittent or continuous disruptions in communication between the Body Control Module (BCM) and other components. This may result in malfunctions of various systems such as the windshield wipers and defroster, rearview camera, exterior lights, audible warning of a stopped vehicle, and power window operation. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 103, "Windshield Defrosting and Defogging Systems" and number 111, "Rear Visibility" as well as FMVSS numbers 104, 108, 114, 118, and 305.

Consequence

Various system malfunctions such as inoperative windshield wipers, defroster, rearview camera, or exterior lighting can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the BCM software, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin February 22, 2021. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is X95.

Open NHTSA investigations

EA24002

Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking

On February 21, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation (PE22003) to assess reports of inadvertent activation of the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS), an automatic emergency braking (AEB) system, in model year 2017-2019 Honda CR-V and 2018-2019 Honda Accord vehicles.  The reports allege that activation of the AEB system occurs while driving with no apparent obstruction in the vehicle's forward path, resulting in sudden vehicle deceleration. Honda indicated that they were aware of a total of X,XXX reports that may relate to the alleged defect. Honda provided analysis of the alleged defect and alleges that some customers possibly had an inadequate understanding of the CMBS and its limitations.  However, many consumer complaints allege that Honda dealerships were unable to reproduce the condition or state that they were informed that this is considered normal CMBS operation. To date, ODI has received a total of 1,294 consumer complaints of inadvertent activation of CMBS in 2017-2022 Honda CR-V and 2018-2022 Honda Accord vehicles. A total of 31 complaints alleged a crash and 50 alleged an injury.  The Total column in the Failure Report Summary removes duplicate reports and shows the total number of reports with unique VINs from all Manufacturer, ODI, and EWR data sources.  In some cases, there were multiple reports associated with a particular vehicle in which recurring failures were alleged.  In total, there were X,XXX reports, 93 injury incidents and 47 crashes involving vehicles with unique VINs that may relate to the alleged defect. PE22-003 has been upgraded to an Engineering Analysis to further assess the scope, frequency, and potential safety related consequences of the inadvertent AEB activations. The scope has been expanded to include assessment of model year 2020-2022 Honda CR-V and Accord vehicles. To review the ODI reports cited in the Opening Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.

Consumer complaints filed with NHTSA

Representative excerpts, cleaned of personal information. These are consumer statements, not verified defects.

“LONG LOUD HUMMING SOUND WHILE DRIVING 53 MPH (BELOW 40 F DEGREE) AND SHORT LOUD HUMMING SOUND WHILE DRIVING AROUND 38 MPH. ACTIVE NOISE CANCELLATION SYSTEM WORKING NOT PROPERLY. A LOT OF HONDA OWNERS HAVE THE SAME ISSUE FROM 2018! HTTPS://WWW.CARGURUS.COM/CARS/DISCUSSION-T75510_DS980301…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Other · December 1, 2020

“I was on the Freeway ramp from I11N to I215 in Henderson, NV. I tapped off the interactive cruise control because my exit was Gibson - immediately after the ramp. Within a few seconds, the car braked heavily on its own, no dash warnings, and almost caused me to get rear ended. I pushed on the brake…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Driver Assistance · August 27, 2021

“LOUD BUZZING NOISE RANDOMLY. I THINK ITS AN ISSUE WITH THE ACTIVE NOISE CANCELATION SYSTEM. IT'S LOUD, RANDOM AND FREQUENT. NOTICED IT AS SOON AS I GOT THE VEHICLE. HAVE FOUND FORUMS WHERE THIS IS A COMMON ISSUE.”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Electrical System · December 2, 2020

“CAR WITH LESS THAN 8000 MILES HAD COMPLETE FAILURE OF BRAKES GOING THROUGH A STOP SIGN ON A CITY STREET (25 MILES AN HOUR) AND CAUSED A CRASH THAT TOTALED THE CAR. SHORTLY BEFORE THE CRASH THE BRAKES SEEMED HARDER TO STOP AT PREVIOUS STOP BUT STILL WORKED. ”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Brakes · October 19, 2020 · crash

“THIS VEHICLE WHEN DRIVING AT NORMAL SPEEDS TENDS TO MAKE A HIGH ACCELERATING NOTICES, IT MAKES A PERSON FEEL AS IF SOME OTHER VEHICLE WAS PASSING ON THE LEFT SIDE AT A VERY HIGH SPEED. THE FIRST TIME I HEARD THIS NOISE, I MOVED TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD, THINKING THAT A SPEEDING DRIVER WAS…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · December 24, 2020

2020 Honda Accord Hybrid — common questions

Is the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid reliable?

NHTSA data argues against it: 62 complaints put the 2020 model at #9 of 16 Accord Hybrid years, and a defect investigation remains open. It is one of the Accord Hybrid years to avoid.

What are the most common 2020 Accord Hybrid problems?

According to NHTSA complaint data, the leading problem areas are other (15 complaints), driver assistance (12 complaints), electrical system (11 complaints).

Does the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid have recalls?

Yes — NHTSA lists 5 recall campaigns affecting the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid. Recall repairs are free at franchised dealers; check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to confirm the work was done.

Is the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid under NHTSA investigation?

Yes — an investigation remains open (Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking). An open ODI action means NHTSA is actively assessing a possible defect.

Which Honda Accord Hybrid years should you avoid?

Based on complaint rates and open investigations, the Accord Hybrid years to avoid are 2023, 2018, 2019, 2024, 2022, 2021, 2020. The cleanest record among Accord Hybrid years belongs to 2026.

How safe is the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid?

In NHTSA's NCAP crash testing, the 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid earned an overall rating of 5 out of 5 stars.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.