Model record
Honda Accord Years to Avoid: Reliability and Recalls
Every Honda Accord model year in NHTSA's owner complaint file, 2010 to 2025: how many complaints each year drew, the problem owners named most, and the recalls to check before you buy.
NHTSA owner complaintsChecked Oct 3, 20268,994 complaints16 model years
The Honda Accord years with the most owner complaints are 2018, 2013 and 2014. Owners named the engine most for 2018, the steering for 2013, and the electrical system for 2014.
It's a count of reports, not a failure rate, and the newest years have had less time on the road to collect them.
The ninth-generation Accord drew the most complaints, though the single worst year is 2018, with 1,853.
Honda Accord complaints by model year
Every Honda Accord model year in NHTSA's owner complaint file, 2010 to 2025. Years with 2,000 or more complaints are dark; beside each bar is the system owners named most that year.
- 2010Airbag system23%579
- 2011Airbag system39%296
- 2012Seat17%373
- 2013Steering35%1,418
- 2014Electrical system37%977
- 2015Electrical system36%599
- 2016Electrical system32%596
- 2017Electrical system28%532
- 2018Engine29%1,853
- 2019Engine25%667
- 2020Automatic emergency braking21%350
- 2021Electrical system24%221
- 2022Electrical system38%234
- 2023Electrical system26%85
- 2024Steering33%137
- 2025Steering48%77
Best Honda Accord years by complaint count
Of the years with at least five years on the road, these drew the fewest owner complaints. Fewer reports is not a clean bill of health: check the recalls for the exact car, and remember 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 have had less time to collect complaints.
- 2021Electrical system · 4 recalls221
- 2011Airbag system · 9 recalls296
- 2020Automatic emergency braking · 5 recalls350
Most common Honda Accord problems
The systems owners named most across all 16 model years, counted from each year's six most-named systems.
- Electrical systemNamed most in 7 of 16 years1,950
- EngineNamed most in 2 of 16 years1,614
- SteeringNamed most in 3 of 16 years878
- Braking systemNever the top system in a year864
- Fuel and power deliveryNever the top system in a year566
Our guides for these problems
Check engine codes Honda Accord owners name
The OBD-II codes owners wrote into their complaints for the Accord years we have read in full (2018), one count per complaint. Tap a code to read our guide; grey codes have no guide yet.
Honda Accord years to avoid by generation
Honda called the 2013, 2018 and 2023 Accord all-new generations, so the years in the file fall into four groups. NHTSA's file has the Accord from 2010 to 2025.
2010–2012
Eighth generation
2010 most complaints · airbag system
- 2010579
- 2011296
- 2012373
1,248 complaints · 3 model years
2013–2017
Ninth generation
2013 most complaints · steering
- 20131,418
- 2014977
- 2015599
- 2016596
- 2017532
4,122 complaints · 5 model years
2018–2022
Tenth generation
2018 most complaints · engine
- 20181,853
- 2019667
- 2020350
- 2021221
- 2022234
3,325 complaints · 5 model years
2023–2025
Eleventh generation
2024 most complaints · steering
- 202385
- 2024137
- 202577
299 complaints · 3 model years
Honda Accord recalls by year
Recall campaigns NHTSA lists for each model year, read Oct 3, 2026. A campaign that covers several years counts in each of them. NHTSA's recall service returned no answer for 2025, so that year is not counted. Recall repairs are free at the dealer; check one car with its VIN.
- 2010Most often: airbag system13
- 2011Most often: airbag system9
- 2012Most often: airbag system8
- 2013Most often: fuel system5
- 2014Most often: electrical system4
- 2015Most often: fuel system, other5
- 2016Most often: fuel system, other4
- 2017Most often: fuel system, other3
- 2018Most often: fuel system6
- 2019Most often: fuel system6
- 2020Most often: fuel system5
- 2021Most often: airbag system4
- 2022Most often: airbag system4
- 2023Most often: fuel system5
- 2024Most often: seat belts3
- 2025No answer from NHTSA—
Honda Accord crash test ratings by year
NHTSA's overall star rating for each model year, with the frontal, side and rollover stars beside it.
- 2010No overall rating—
- 2011Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2012Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2013Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2014Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2015Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2016Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2017Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2018Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2019Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2020Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2021Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2022Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2023Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2024Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
- 2025Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 55/5
Federal investigations
NHTSA's defect office has opened 10 investigations into 8 problems that cover Honda Accord model years from 2010 to 2025. An investigation looks into a possible defect; it is not a finding.
Common questions
What are the Honda Accord years to avoid?
The years with the most owner complaints are 2018, 2013 and 2014. Treat them as the years to inspect hardest, not as a verdict on every car: run the VIN for open recalls and have the systems owners named checked before you buy.
What year is the most reliable Honda Accord?
Complaints can't name a most reliable year, because the file counts reports, not failures per car sold. Of the years with at least five years on the road, 2021 drew the fewest complaints: 221. Newer years have fewer still, but they have had less time to collect them.
What is the most common problem with the Honda Accord?
Across every year in the file, owners named the electrical system most, in 1,950 complaints, then the engine, in 1,614.
Which Honda Accord years have the most recalls?
2010, 2011 and 2012, with 13, 9 and 8 recall campaigns.
Accord year pages
20181,853What the complaint record can't tell you
Sources
Show all 5 sources
Counts by system and year cover vehicles with at least 10 complaints.