Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government
holds on this vehicle.
Owners have filed 24 safety complaints
about the 2018 Honda Clarity Electric with the US government. Of those, 2 describe a crash and no death is recorded. No recall campaign has been matched to this year, make and model.
The most complained-about system is the electrical system,
named in 5 complaints, 21% of the total.
The typical failure was reported at 12,488 miles,
the median across the 6
complaints that gave
an odometer reading.
Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files
· Covers April 2018 to January 2026 · How this is counted
What is on file
24 complaints on file
24
Complaints
2
Describe a crash
0
Mention fire
0
People injured
0
Deaths
A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a
finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts
them.
No recall campaign was matched to this year, make and model. That is not
the same as a clean vehicle: recalls are issued against production
ranges, and the only reliable check is your own VIN.
Which system owners named
Complaints naming each system
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 7 · 29%
7 29%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 5 · 21%
5 21%
ENGINE 4 · 17%
4 17%
SERVICE BRAKES 4 · 17%
4 17%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 4 · 17%
4 17%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 3 · 13%
3 13%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 3 · 13%
3 13%
POWER TRAIN 3 · 13%
3 13%
LANE DEPARTURE 2 · 8%
2 8%
AIR BAGS 1 · 4%
1 4%
SEATS 1 · 4%
1 4%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 1 · 4%
1 4%
048
One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 24.
When the complaints arrived
By the year NHTSA received them
By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures
happened. They peaked in 2024 at 8.
This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure
happened. The range runs from 2018 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.
Crash test ratings
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program
NHTSA has not crash tested the 2018 Honda Clarity Electric. Its New Car Assessment Program
tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach
motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so
an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It
is not a low score.
What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a
different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people
inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke
during ordinary use.
Defect investigations
1 on file
An investigation means NHTSA has decided a pattern is worth examining. A
preliminary evaluation is often closed with no action; an engineering
analysis is the stage that usually precedes a recall.
Pedestrian alert sounds
DP22005
Closed defect petition · opened January 27, 2023 · closed August 7, 2023 · led to recall 22V063000
the electrical system
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
In owners’ own words
Quoted from the complaint file
Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the
people who filed them, not findings of fault.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
crash · towed · 9,975 miles
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 HONDA CLARITY ELECTRIC. THE CONTACT STATED AFTER REVERSING INTO A PARKING SPACE AND SHIFTING TO PARK THE VEHICLE STARTED TO MOVE FORWARD AT 5 MPH ON ITS OWN COLLIDING WITH A POLE. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL TO STOP THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED NO AIR BAGS DEPLOYED, NO ONE WAS INJURED, AND NO POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT STATED NO WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO LOCAL DEALER FREEWAY HONDA (1505 AUTO MALL DR, SANTA ANA, CA 92705) WHERE THE FAILURE CAUSE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED. THEN THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO CALIBER COLLISION (1620 E MCFADDEN AVE, SANTA ANA, CA 9270) TO DO THE BODY REPAIRS. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN …
NHTSA complaint 11316151, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
crash · towed · 21,000 miles
THE CAR STOPPED AND TURNED INTENSELY. *TR
NHTSA complaint 11325464. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The vehicle exhibits a dangerous electrical defect involving uncontrolled power-cycling. After shutting down the car, it automatically restarts itself in a continuous loop. During these episodes, the dashboard flickers, the drivetrain shudders, and the vehicle becomes unresponsive to manual 'Stop' button or brake inputs. Most critically, the car autostarts while parked in an enclosed garage. As a Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV), once the EV battery depletes, the internal combustion engine (ICE) engages automatically. This creates a life-threatening risk of Carbon Monoxide (CO) poisoning for residents in the connected home. A Honda dealership has professionally diagnosed the cause as a failure of the …
NHTSA complaint 11708588, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
SERVICE BRAKES
Since last Wed. (9/24/2025), the car started to show the warnings of "Adaptive Cruise Control Problem", "Brake Hold System Problem", "Brake System Problem", "Electric Parking Brake Problem", and "Road Departure Mitigation System Problem" from time to time. I bought this VHonda Clarity Plug-in Hybrid 2018 in June 2023 as the HoneTrue Certified. Then probably the same time, the car lose the EV mode by itself, and only drives in the gas mode. I found this issue and late manually changed it to EV mode. WHile then it again dropped the EV mode during the driving today (9/28/2025). When I tried to press the EV button, it shows "Drive Mode Change Unavailable"! After stopped at home, I re-started …
NHTSA complaint 11690222, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The AC hasn't been out for a while and the defrost option doesn't work because of that. I believe that is a safety issue.
NHTSA complaint 11687181. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
STEERING
The steering makes a horrible clunking sound, and is impercice/sloppy. Dealership refused to acknowledge any issue. Increased effort required to stay within lane. Tie rods are not damaged or worn, issue appears to be with steering rack as far as I can tell.
NHTSA complaint 11625285. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
VISIBILITY/WIPER
I bought this car used with a governmental help from replace my ride program, since I bough the car form a dealer [XXX] ) within few days, I took it to the dealer twice for thermostat replacement and spark plugs. and recently, There was an extended warranty from Honda for the ac condenser as this car has a major problem with ac. I took it to the dealer Honda of Riverside, California and they told me, indeed your condenser needs replacement and the good news, In California, Honda has extended its warranty. Then, they said, but you need to replace your evaporator and I need to pay $2350.26 and they refused to replace the ac condenser under warranty without replacing the evaporator and paying …
NHTSA complaint 11601789, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
VISIBILITY/WIPER
AC working intermittently since the day I bought. Honda replaced the condenser but now the evaporator is leak. This caused the defrost can not work properly. The leaking condenser and the evaporator are well known problems for Clarity owners. Honda should recall this.
NHTSA complaint 11595039. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's
lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How
many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by
the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.
Complaints: NHTSA's ODI
complaint file, published October 2, 2026. One
complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.
Recalls: NHTSA's recall
campaign API, no campaign on file for this vehicle.
Investigations: NHTSA's ODI
investigation file, published October 2, 2026.
A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by
us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that
sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.
G
Compiled and maintained by guarledes Independent developer and analyst