The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating reports of failing connecting rod bearings in certain models of Honda and Acura vehicles.
The faulty rod bearings could lead to complete engine failure, according to the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) document. The rods link the pistons to the crankshaft to convert vertical motion to move the wheels, according to Associated Press.
The NHTSA initiated the investigation after receiving 173 complaints from Honda and Acura owners, one of whom reported a crash with no injuries. All of the complaints were consistent with issues addressed in an earlier recall, 23V-751, in November 2023, but the vehicles were not within the scope of the previous recall.
“ODI is opening this Recall Query (RQ) to assess the severity of the alleged defect in vehicles not included in recall 23V-751. ODI will also assess the scope of recall 23V-751,” the NHTSA summary states.
The vehicles under investigation have 3.5 liter V6 engines and include the 2016-2020 Honda Pilot and Acura MDX, the 2018-2020 Honda Odyssey and Acura TLX, and the 2017-2019 Honda Ridgeline. This issue could affect as many as 1.4 million Honda and Acura vehicles.
Last month, Honda recalled nearly 1.7 million vehicles due to a manufacturing issue with the steering gearbox that could make steering the vehicle difficult and lead to crashes and recalled another 700,000 vehicles because the fuel pump may crack and leak fuel.
A recall involving a fuel pump module that was issued in December 2023 for certain model-year Honda Pilots is still incomplete due to a limited supply of replacement parts.