Honda is recalling 448,567 vehicles in the United States and Canada due to a potential issue with the front seat belts.
The Japanese company announced the recall affecting several models on March 15.
According to the complete safety report submitted to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration by Honda, it was discovered that in certain models, the release button on the seat belts might shrink at lower temperatures over time. This could lead to increased friction and prevent the buckle from latching correctly.
If the front seat belts fail to latch properly, both the driver and passengers may not be adequately restrained in the event of a crash. This increases the risk of injury to those inside the vehicle.
While the recall does not affect Honda’s best-selling model, the Civic, it does include other top sellers like the CR-V and Accord.
The recall is in effect for the 2017-2020 CR-V, the 2018-2019 Accord, the 2018-2020 Odyssey, and the 2019 Insight.
The 2019-2020 Acura RDX — fabricated by Honda’s luxury offshoot — is also included.
Honda claimed that there have been no reports of injuries related to the potential seat belt defect.
The full safety report explained that of the 448,613 vehicles included in the recall, it is expected that only 1% have this problem.
It also indicated that Honda first noticed the latching issues in June 2019 and has been conducting tests ever since.
As a means of resolving the issue, Honda has instructed its licensed dealers to replace either the front seat belt’s buckle release buttons or buckle assemblies, depending on the specific circumstances of each vehicle.
Honda will be notifying affected models’ owners of the recall via letter beginning on April 17, per the Chicago Tribune.
The automaker urges anyone who owns one of the recalled models to follow up with their local dealer and schedule a repair, which will be performed at no cost to the vehicle owner.