2019 Honda Insight Complaints

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM — Filed 04/09/2026

My vehicle underwent Honda’s fuel-pump safety recall repair at an authorized Honda dealer on April 1, 2025. After the recall repair, the vehicle developed a sensor warning directing me to return to the dealer. On February 17, 2026, the dealer inspected the vehicle. Its repair record states “HIGH CIRCUIT VOLTAGE” at terminal #2 and “FOUND PIN MELTED IN FUEL PUMP ASSEMBLY.” The dealer replaced the complete fuel-pump assembly at no charge. A dealership representative later told me their mechanic had accidentally caused the melted-pin condition during the earlier recall work. Since then, I have experienced recurring instrument-cluster/display corruption with vertical lines/banding that can make portions of the digital display unreadable. I have photos/videos documenting multiple occurrences. I am concerned because important vehicle information can become unreadable while driving. I have also observed estimated full-tank range decline from historically about 425 miles to approximately 373–395 miles. I have documented a fill of 7.438 gallons followed by a displayed range of 373 miles. I do not know whether this is related. I do not know whether the cluster malfunction or range concern is related to the recall repair, documented high-circuit-voltage/melted-pin condition, or subsequent fuel-pump replacement. I opened a case with American Honda. Its case manager characterized this as a “workmanship issue” and said he would contact the original dealer’s service manager to have it addressed. I have not received that promised contact. I ask NHTSA to investigate whether the recall repair and subsequent electrical and instrument-cluster problems present a safety defect requiring further action.

AIR BAGS — Filed 07/10/2026

The car was last driven and parked at about 8:30pm local time. At around noon the next day, we noticed that the dashboard in the vicinity of the passenger airbag was melted with an approximately 12-inch hole. There was soot staining the interior of the vehicle, and the windshield was burned and cracked above the hole in the dashboard.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 05/27/2026

The A/C evaporator failed due to a refrigerant leak caused by corrosion. The component is available for inspection upon request at the dealership where it was diagnosed. The failure resulted in complete loss of air conditioning. In hot weather conditions, particularly during highway driving and stop-and-go traffic, loss of A/C poses a risk of heat-related illness to the driver, especially in high-temperature climates. The defect was confirmed by a Honda dealership technician during an inspection in May 2026. The service advisor explicitly stated that the evaporator is manufactured from the same defective material as the A/C condenser, which Honda already acknowledged as a manufacturing defect under Service Bulletin 21-016. A Honda corporate customer relations representative independently confirmed the same information — that the evaporator shares the same material and is subject to the same corrosion issue. No warning lamps or messages appeared prior to failure. The first symptom was warm air blowing from vents, which progressively worsened until A/C stopped functioning entirely. Honda repaired the condenser under Service Bulletin 21-016 at no charge but refused to cover the evaporator repair, quoting approximately $2,600 out of pocket despite acknowledging the same root cause. I am requesting NHTSA investigate whether a recall or additional service bulletin covering the A/C evaporator on 2019-2021 Honda Insight vehicles is warranted, as other owners are likely experiencing the same defect.

EXTERIOR LIGHTING — Filed 01/01/2026

The daytime running lights started to fade it till there was nothing. I was told it would be over $2000 to fix

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM — Filed 03/04/2026

The contact owns a 2019 Honda Insight. The contact stated that while driving 75 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. In addition, several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had occurred while driving on a busy highway. The vehicle was driven onto the off-ramp and turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was started; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a corroded connector and broken pin at the leak detection pump in the rear of the vehicle. The contact was informed that the leak detection module and wiring harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure was a known failure with the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.

POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM — Filed 01/14/2026

Car was put into reverse to perform a T turn to drive in the opposite direction on 1/14. The "D" button was depressed to place the car into Drive. The car quickly accelerated backwards and crashed into the mailbox. Service Advisor at the David McDavid Honda Dealership was contacted yesterday regarding the issue but no response has been received yet. It is unknown if the backup camera was visible since attempts were being made to try to stop the car. Not much time was allowed.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 01/12/2026

Back up camera stopped working, no blown fuses and the system updates I can do on the car from the touch screen say everything is up to date. My car has no open/not repaired recall for this.

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 12/25/2025

The Honda Sensing suite's CMBS uses a combination of a front-facing camera and a radar sensor, it detected a sewerage as a hole and steel plates as a hole and made a sudden unsafe stop. Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) experiencing a false positive. We were going to like 15-20 over the steel plate and it made an emergency unsafe stop. It keeps doing it over and over. At this point it’s becoming really unsafe so I wanted to report it. It stopped all of sudden and made my neck in pain as my wife’s back. No the problem has not been talked to the dealer or they never told me about this kinds of problems will happen. No any warning lamps.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES — Filed 10/10/2025

While stopped at a train track, I used the Brake Hold feature and it was on when suddenly without touching peddles the car went forward and I hit the car in front of me

SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 09/04/2025

On [XXX] while driving my 2019 Honda Insight Touring at approximately 35 mph on [XXX] , the vehicle’s automatic emergency braking system suddenly activated without any obstacle present. The car braked very hard, creating a dangerous situation in traffic. This was not the first time it has happened. The same issue occurred on two separate occasions in 2022, also with no vehicles or obstacles nearby. Each time, the system engaged abruptly and without warning. I am concerned about the safety risk of the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) activating erroneously, as it could easily cause a rear-end collision. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY/WIPER — Filed 06/15/2023

The air conditioning system in my 2019 Honda Insight Touring Edition has failed three times in the last 3 years. Why is this a safety issue? In Southern California summer temperatures reach into the 90s and driving without air conditioning is impossible for any distance. For example today it is 93 degrees Fahrenheit in Los Angeles. It's impossible to use my car without air conditioning. Additionally, the A/C failure causes water vapor to condense on the windshield glass making it difficult to see through it and is an additional safety issue. The AC failure in the Honda Insights is a known issue to Honda USA. They have extended warranties of the air conditioning units to 10 years. This acknwledgement proves that Honda know of the issue and don't want to resolve it for consumers.

LANE DEPARTURE — Filed 08/01/2025

The lane departure warning system in my Insight has, for the six years I have owned it, regularly been confused by shadows on the road - flashing a departure warning and trying to adjust the steering while I am driving within my lane. I was prompted to write this today because the LDS went off four times during my 8-mile drive to work this morning. It's mostly been a distracting annoyance, but as far as I know the system can't be disabled - just turned off manually every time the car is started. In sum: the vast majority of the times the lane departure system has alerted, the vehicle has not in fact been departing from a lane, but the LDS appears to be responding to shadows on the road - particularly in the morning and afternoon when shadows are darkest, and specifically while crossing a cable-stayed bridge (the cables cast lines of shadows across the roadway). I will put a date in your form, but this has been going on since I bought the vehicle in 2019.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY/WIPER — Filed 06/30/2025

I have a 2019 Honda Insight that has had two previous air conditioner failures that were covered under an extended warranty that Honda issued for the compressor and condenser based on known problems with the system. The air conditioner, as of 6/2025, has again failed for the third time. The local dealer Victory Honda of Morgan Hill diagnosed a leaking evaporator which Honda is refusing to cover as the car is out of factory warranty. Upon researching the matter online I learned it is a widespread issue and even resulted in an unsuccessful class action lawsuit. The air conditioner failures are a safety issue because the defroster does not function effectively without it. This can result in fogged windows causing impaired visibility while driving. I believe that the evaporator repair should be included in the 10 year air conditioner condenser and compressor warranty that Honda previously issued. The air conditioner is a closed system and whatever the root issues causing failures are, they don’t appear to be limited to just the two components covered under the extended warranty that Honda issued.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 05/17/2025

Consistent failure of A/C Evaporator and Condensor, which causes failure of entire A/C system and requires expensive replacement parts/repairs. Recall issued on Condensor but not on Evaporator, which makes no sense. Both are needed for A/C to run. The leaks from condensor and evaporator impact function of the engine by making it skip on acceleration. It also impacts the filter systems. Dangerous for health and safety.

SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 03/12/2025

Driving normally about to enter a clear intersections when the brakes automatically fully engaged bringing the vehicle to a complete stop. There was nothing in front of me, and no cars about to cross in front of me. Lucky there was no accident and I was able to continue on. There have been no issues, inspections, or changes leading up to this incident.

SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 08/09/2023

I drove into my friends driveway with my foot on the brake to drop her off. All of a sudden my car lurched forward damaging my friends garage door and the foundation of her house. I had zero control of the car at that point. I plan on notifying Honda. There were no warning lights, or messages prior to this disaster.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 07/02/2023

i was going home from work in my Honda insight 2019 and all of a sudden my car started showing all kings of warnings every single indicator was on and my car started to spin and hit the side railing of the highway i almost died that day no airbags deployed that is also an other safety function did work that day. Honda refuse to take any kind of responsibility for the car malfunction i called and ask for help they said go ahead buy a new car we can't help you with anything. my request to the department is take a action against HONDA so no other family or any other driver go through this. and no one lose love ones.

SERVICE BRAKES — Filed 07/08/2023

The brakes failed and the yellow light that comes on as you are approaching another vehicle failed to come on along with the car not slowing down. The drivers foot was on the brake but the car wasn’t stopping. This caused the driver to rear end another vehicle causing a car crash. The dealer was asked about reading the computer to confirm brake failure but was advised they do not have the equipment to read the computer in the vehicle. There was no warning prior to the failure of the brakes not working.

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 07/19/2021

The contact who is an attorney, called regarding the crash of a 2019 Honda Insight and another vehicle. The contact stated that while the Honda Insight driver was driving approximately 65 MPH with the Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control activated, the vehicle crashed into the rear of another vehicle. The contact stated that the Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking feature malfunctioned, and failed to prevent the crash. The contact stated that the air bags in the Honda Insight deployed. Unfortunately, the driver of the other vehicle died in the crash. The driver of the Honda Insight was arrested; however, there was no information regarding injuries being sustained. The contact stated that the driver was found to not be intoxicated and was not distracted while driving during the crash. The contact stated that the driver might have fallen asleep from exhaustion during the crash. The contact stated that both vehicles were towed away from the scene and the Honda Insight was deemed a total loss. A Police report was filed. The contact was unaware if medical attention was sought by the driver of the Honda Insight. The manufacturer was not contacted or notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000.

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE — Filed 06/02/2022

I was driving down the street and a car slowed down way in front of me. While I was braking my automatic braking system turned on and brought me to a complete stop. This caused my car to get hit from the back. The automatic braking does not slow down the car, it brings the car to a complete stop. Another incident, I was driving on the highway with nothing was in front of me and the brake signal started flashing and slowing the car down.

AIR BAGS — Filed 12/31/2021

I was driving on the freeway driving approx 70 mph when i was involved in a near head on collision from another car that had lost control and spun around into me. And the air bags did not deploy causing my head to hit the driver side pillar and i have shoulder and lower back pain and right knee pain

AIR BAGS — Filed 06/09/2021

I was involved in an accident on 6/9/2021, where I was rear ended which caused tremendous damage. No air bags deployed. I have a fractured nose, large bump on head, whiplash, very badly hurt left arm and also have problems with my right motor skills.

AIR BAGS — Filed 09/18/2019

WAS IN A CAR ACCIDENT COSTING $7,000 IDAMAGE AND THE AIRBAGS DIDN'T DEPLOY. HIT MY HEAD ON DRIVER DOOR WINDOW. DEALER SAID THEY REPLACED THE SRS HARNESS. THE STRUCTURE WAS DAMAGED SO THE AIRBAGS SHOULD HAVE DEPLOYED.

AIR BAGS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES — Filed 08/26/2019

MI VOLSAS DE AHIRE NO FUNCIONARON Y ESTAN COBRANDOME POR UN DEFECTO DE FABRICA NECESITO QUE BEAN MI SOLICITUD YA QUE POR ESE DEFECTO DE FABRICA ME GOLPIE MI CUERPO

SERVICE BRAKES — Filed 07/22/2019

TL* THE CONTACT RENTED A 2019 HONDA INSIGHT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE REVERSING AT 3 MPH AND MAKING A 180 DEGREE TURN, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS APPLIED HOWEVER, FAILED TO RESPOND. THE CONTACT CONTINUED TO PUMP THE BRAKE PEDAL BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP AND CRASHED INTO A POST TO A STORE. THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO REVERSE AGAIN BUT THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO NOT RESPOND WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO A PARKED FORD SUV. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED WITH YORK MAINE POLICE DEPARTMENT UNDER FILED 9YRK-200-AC. THERE WERE NO REPORTED INJURIES OR MEDICAL ATTENTION PROVIDED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE AN INDEPENDENT LOT AND THEN TOWED TO DOVER HONDA (1 DOVER POINT RD, DOVER, NH 03820 (603) 742-1676) WHO STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS UNABLE TO BE DUPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED HOWEVER, NO FURTHER ASSISTANCE WAS PROVIDED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 3,668. *TT *AS