VehicleVerdict

2020 Honda CR-V problems

Verdict · NHTSA data

One of the years to avoid

The 2020 Honda CR-V carries two red flags at once: 438 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA and an open NHTSA defect investigation (subject: Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking). It is one of the CR-V years to avoid. Complainants reported 28 injuries in total across these filings.

No single system dominates the record — complaints spread across driver assistance (100), airbags (46), and electrical system (44), which usually points to general build quality rather than one defect. In government crash testing it earned 5 of 5 NCAP stars overall.

438

NHTSA complaints

7

Recalls

2

Investigations · 1 open

34

Crash-involved

2

Fires reported

28

Injuries

0

Deaths

5

NCAP overall · of 5 stars

How does 2020 compare to other CR-V years?

CR-V NHTSA complaints by model year, 2020 highlighted2,923 complaints1997: 129 complaints1998: 136 complaints1999: 158 complaints2000: 156 complaints2001: 159 complaints2002: 661 complaints2003: 580 complaints2004: 603 complaints2005: 601 complaints2006: 522 complaints2007: 1,158 complaints2008: 1,221 complaints2009: 447 complaints2010: 588 complaints2011: 646 complaints2012: 508 complaints2013: 498 complaints2014: 795 complaints2015: 975 complaints2016: 544 complaints2017: 2,596 complaints2018: 2,923 complaints2019: 1,502 complaints2020: 438 complaints2021: 438 complaints2022: 291 complaints2023: 644 complaints2024: 514 complaints2025: 339 complaints2026: 140 complaints
CR-V NHTSA complaints by model year, 2020 highlighted. Red bars are years to avoid.

See all CR-V years to avoid →

What are the most common 2020 Honda CR-V problems?

ComponentComplaintsShare
Driver Assistance10023%
Airbags4611%
Fuel System4410%
Electrical System4410%
Other348%
Engine327%
Steering317%
Brakes307%
Transmission184%
Speed Control113%
Visibility & Wipers92%
Seat Belts92%
Tires & Wheels82%
Lighting82%
Body & Structure72%
Seats41%
Suspension31%

Does the 2020 Honda CR-V have recalls?

7 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.

23V524000OtherJuly 27, 2023 · 5 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017, 2020, and 2022 CR-V vehicles. The certification label on the driver's side door states incorrect Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR), and tire size information. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."

Consequence

An incorrectly sized tire may cause premature tread wear, or a tire blow out, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will install a new corrected label, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 18, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is CF7.

23V158000Seat BeltsMarch 9, 2023 · 448,613 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017-2020 CR-V, 2018-2019 Accord and Accord Hybrid, 2018-2020 Odyssey, 2019 Insight, and 2019-2020 Acura RDX vehicles. A manufacturing issue with the front seat belts may cause the seat belt buckle channel to interfere with the release button, preventing the seat belt buckle from latching.

Consequence

An unlatched seat belt cannot properly restrain the seat occupant during a crash, increasing their risk of injury.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the driver and front passenger seat belt buckle release buttons or the buckle assemblies as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 18, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are NDA, QDB, BDC, MDD, LD9. TDF, FDG, ODH, YDI, ZDE.

22V380000Fuel SystemMay 26, 2022 · 212 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020 CR-V vehicles. The clip for the absorber inside the fuel tank was not secured properly and may detach, which can cause an inaccurate fuel gauge reading.

Consequence

An inaccurate fuel gauge may result in the vehicle unexpectedly running out of fuel and stalling, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 5, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is RCB.

19V865000Body & StructureDecember 5, 2019 · 358 units

Defect

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019-2020 CR-V vehicles. The rear subframe bolts were improperly manufactured and may loosen, allowing the rear subframe to separate.

Consequence

A separated rear subframe reduces vehicle handling and can suddenly disable the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the rear subframe bolts and retorque them or replace them, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began January 27, 2020. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is R6M.

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.

“When I was driving my vehicle on 7-21-22 at approximately 4:20pm my emergency breaking system was flashing and breaking on it's own. There was nothing in front of my vehicle at the time. Later at approximately 4:25pm a woman hit my passenger side after running a red light. My passenger side airbag…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Driver Assistance · July 21, 2022 · crash

“MY VEHICLE ( 2020 HONDA CRV) WAS TRAVELING APPROX. 50 MPH ON A HIGHWAY WHEN HIT BY A FORD 350 VAN AS IT ATTEMPTED TO CROSS THE HIGHWAY. MY VEHICLE WAS HIT DIRECTLY ON THE DRIVERS SIDE DEMOLISHING DRIVERS SIDE BACK PASSENGER DOOR AND A PORTION TOWARD BACK END INCLUDING FUEL DOOR. NO AIR BAGS…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Airbags · January 5, 2021 · crash

“My rear fuel pump failed suddenly when we were driving in highway. No warning at all. We just completed our vehicle inspections by the Honda dealer 3 days prior. We also had them do oil change, replace brake and transmission fluid. It cost us about $2000 for towing and repairs. We found that there…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Fuel System · December 3, 2023

“The contact owns a 2020 Honda CR-V. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked next to the home and under the carport. After starting the engine, the husband exited the vehicle, and moments later, flames were present inside the cabin of the vehicle. The fire department was called to the home…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Electrical System · June 26, 2025 · fire

“Car parked in driveway running, in park. Went inside for less than 5 sec, came out and car rolling backwards out of driveway, 15 month old inside. Car went across two yards, struck 3 trees and lamppost coming to stop in woods/creek. Car was in PARK when entered car and checked by bystander. By the…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Other · June 27, 2023 · crash

2020 Honda CR-V — common questions

Is the 2020 Honda CR-V reliable?

NHTSA data argues against it: 438 complaints put the 2020 model at #21 of 30 CR-V years, and a defect investigation remains open. It is one of the CR-V years to avoid.

What are the most common 2020 CR-V problems?

According to NHTSA complaint data, the leading problem areas are driver assistance (100 complaints), airbags (46 complaints), electrical system (44 complaints).

Does the 2020 Honda CR-V have recalls?

Yes — NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns affecting the 2020 Honda CR-V. Recall repairs are free at franchised dealers; check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to confirm the work was done.

Is the 2020 Honda CR-V 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 CR-V years should you avoid?

Based on complaint rates and open investigations, the CR-V years to avoid are 2018, 2017, 2019, 2008, 2007, 2015, 2014, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2003, 2006, 2012, 2013, 2021, 2020, 2022. The cleanest record among CR-V years belongs to 1997.

How safe is the 2020 Honda CR-V?

In NHTSA's NCAP crash testing, the 2020 Honda CR-V 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.