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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched an investigation into reports of engine failures affecting up to 1.4 million Honda and Acura vehicles. The investigation covers the 2016-2020 Honda Pilot and Acura MDX, the 2018-2020 Honda Odyssey and Acura TLX, as well as the 2017-2019 Honda Ridgeline models.

According to documents released on Monday, the issue stems from potential failures in the connecting rod bearings in vehicles equipped with 3.5-liter V6 engines. The connecting rod bearings—which connect the pistons to the crankshaft and facilitate the conversion of vertical motion to wheel movement—can fail and lead to complete engine failure.

Previously, Honda recalled approximately 250,000 vehicles in November 2023 to address this specific problem. Despite this, NHTSA has received 173 complaints from owners reporting connecting rod bearing failures on vehicles not included in the initial recall. One such complaint involved a crash, although no injuries were reported.

NHTSA has decided to open a recall query to assess the severity of this issue in the vehicles not included in the 2023 recall. Honda has stated that it will fully cooperate with the agency's investigation. In the documentation related to the 2023 recall, Honda noted it had logged 1,450 warranty claims related to this issue, though it did not report any injuries. To address the problem, dealers were instructed to inspect the vehicles and repair or replace the engines as necessary.