Carlexica

2020 Honda HR-V: problems, recalls and reliability

5 recalls and 82 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is electrical system (22% of complaints).

Data updated weekly · 2 new complaints in the last 90 days · latest recall May 2026

5
recalls
82
owner complaints
2
fire reports
37,000
typical failure mileage, mi

All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.

NHTSA crash testOverall ★★★★★Front ★★★★Side ★★★★★Rollover ★★★★
Among the quietest HR-V years (#9 of 10 by complaints, age-adjusted)5-star NHTSA overall safety ratingWeak spot: electrical system (22%)2 fire reportsProblems reported early (median 37,000 mi)

Common problems

Computed from 82 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.

Electrical System (battery, wiring, electronics)22% · 17 complaints
Fuel System, Gasoline (fuel pump, tank, lines)18% · 14 complaints
Fuel/Propulsion System (fuel pump, tank, lines)14% · 11 complaints
Power Train (transmission, axles, driveline)13% · 10 complaints
Air Bags (airbags and crash sensors)8% · 6 complaints
Engine (engine mechanics)5% · 4 complaints
LKAS lights all came on and ACC warnings. Brake system and auto high beams. Mechanic seems to think it's the camera, car only has 84,000 miles on it and very well taken care of. This seems to be a big common issue with a lot of HRVs and it's expensive to fix.Owner report · Forward Collision Avoidance · Jul 2026
- What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The transmission failed and yes it's available upon request. - How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? My car stop in the middle of the street. No warning or anything. - Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes - Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Manufacturer - Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No, everything happened on 03-09-26. LOwner report · Power Train · Mar 2026
The contact owns a 2020 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the vehicle bucked, and several warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with CVT failure. The contact was informed that the CVT needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact referenced an unknown recall; however, the VIN was not under recall. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,700.Owner report · Power Train · Feb 2026
Show 7 more owner reports
The contact owns a 2020 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 MPH or faster, and while driving uphill, the vehicle suddenly stalled. During the first failure, the message "Emergency - Stop Driving Vehicle" was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was turned off and restarted, and the message was no longer displayed. The vehicle was then driven to the residence. The vehicle had stalled three times on three separate occasions. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 37,000.Owner report · Engine · Feb 2026
I have a 2020 Honda HRV and the gas gauge flickers on and off. I have overheard technicians say this is a common problem with the HRV. The dealer wants to charge 177 to hook it up on the computer to diagnose the HRV. This HRV has only 20,000 miles on it. It has struts that are going bad and this HRV has had all the services done. My wife drives it 2.6 miles a day. I think these issues need to be looked into further.Owner report · Wheels · Jan 2026
The whole radar that controls collision mitigation, steering, lane departure, etc. quit working. The car is only a few years old. All these lights go off in the car often times causing the car not to work properly. When we went to the dealership, the maintenance man said that this is a common issue due to the fact that they put the radar system in a location that gets overheated. We filed a claim, but they only will pay for a small portion of it to be repaired. Many of these cars have the same issue.Owner report · Lane Departure · Nov 2025
Car has 22,000 miles and has a bad fuel pump causing multiple cylinder misfire and loss of power. There was a recall on others in the same year but not this one giving the year and millage and the fact that it's the same issue as the recalled other units logically it should have been part of the recall, and the recall needs to be broadened to include these batches of fuel pumps as well. as is its and expensive repair for a defective part that could be a safety issue. ThanksOwner report · Fuel/Propulsion System · Oct 2025
My car keeps stalling. It stalled on me about 10 times already. It keeps happening when I'm driving slow and on a stop light. I took it to 2 mechanics and they said the system is not showing anything. I took it to the dealer and said the same thing. The dealer had my car for 3 days, trying to test drive it but they said nothing happened and they don't know what's wrong. I took the car back, drove it the next day and it stalled on me again. It stalled on a parking lot, it stalled on a stop light 4 times today 9/25/2025. I took it to another mechanic and they said it's the fuel pump. They told me that 2020 Honda HRV had recalls for the fuel pumps but my car VIN is not part of it.Owner report · Fuel/Propulsion System · Sep 2025
I bought this car because of the Honda name and it's been a disappointment. Not only does my display flicker in and out, my heater has completely gone out. The heater box and connecting wires need to be replaced, which to me is a factory default, but nope it's coming out of pocket. And beaches of the location it's going to be expensive. Don't buy the 2020 HRVOwner report · Unknown Or Other · Sep 2025
Our Honda hrv driver side visor has broken. It's been broke 2 years. My warranty won't cover it, but it hangs in the driver eyesight. You push it up and it hangs down at a 45 degree angle in the drivers eyesight. It you pull it back, it won't go back up to the roof.Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Aug 2025

When filing, owners marked a crash in 8 of these complaints and injuries in 2 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.

Recalls - 5 campaigns

AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER26V332000 · May 2026

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.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 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.

BACK OVER PREVENTION:DISPLAY FUNCTION24V384000 · May 2024

Honda (America Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2020 Fit and 2019-2022 HR-V vehicles that were previously recalled under NHTSA recall number 23V-046. The rearview camera image may not display when the engine is started with a key, due to a design error in the audio display power circuit. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Remedy: Dealers will update the display audio unit software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 8, 2024. Owners may contact Honda service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are TIQ and DIR. Vehicles previously repaired under recall 23V-046 will need to have the new remedy completed.

AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER24V064000 · Feb 2024

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.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. 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.

BACK OVER PREVENTION:DISPLAY FUNCTION23V046000 · Feb 2023

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2020 Fit and 2019-2022 HR-V vehicles. The rearview camera image may not display when the engine is started with a key, due to a design error in the audio display power circuit. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Remedy: Dealers will update the display audio unit software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 13, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is 6DW. This recall has been superseded by NHTSA recall number 24V-384. Vehicles previously repaired under recall 23V-046 will need to have the new remedy completed under recall 24V-384.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP23V858000 · Dec 2023

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.

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.

Trouble codes owners mention

OBD-II codes that appear in NHTSA complaints about this car.

Specifications

Factory options offered for the 2020 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.

Engines1.8L
Cylinders4
FuelGasoline
TransmissionContinuously Variable Transmission (CVT)
Drive type4WD/4-Wheel Drive/4x4
Body stylesSport Utility Vehicle [SUV]/Multipurpose Vehicle [MPV]

How other years compare

Check your exact HR-V by VIN

Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.

Open VIN decoder

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2020 Honda HR-V reliable?

NHTSA has 82 owner complaints and 5 recall campaigns on record for the 2020 Honda HR-V. The most complained-about area is electrical system (22% of complaints).

At what mileage do 2020 Honda HR-V problems usually appear?

Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 37,000 miles or less.

Does the 2020 Honda HR-V have open recalls?

5 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning air bags:sensor:occupant classification:front passenger. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.

Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.