2024 Honda Odyssey Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often write about the engine shutting off and failing to restart promptly after the Auto Idle Stop feature engages, usually at stoplights and intersections. Complaints also cover infotainment and battery/starting glitches, unexpected automatic braking, and occasional body-seal and door problems. Most vans in the reports are low-mileage, so the pattern reflects early ownership rather than long-term wear.

1. 1
   Engine

   Auto Idle Stop fails to restart engine

   • 62 complaints (50%)
   • median 15,500 mi at 1.8 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2024–2026

   Owners describe the engine shutting off at a stoplight or stop sign as designed, then not restarting when the brake is released. In many cases the van shifts itself into park, warning lights come on, and the driver has to shut the ignition off and restart manually, sometimes after several tries. Dealers have replaced batteries or been unable to duplicate the condition, and some owners say they now switch the feature off each time they drive. Reported across a wide mileage range, from a few thousand miles up to around 41,000, typically during stop-and-go traffic and warm-weather driving.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the van has shown delayed or failed restarts after an idle-stop event, and whether any dealer software or battery work was done. During a test drive, stop with the feature enabled and confirm the engine restarts promptly.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The Auto Idle Stop mode has caused my car to stall out at least 10 times since I bought the vehicle in August 2024. Each time it has occurred, it has taken me several minutes to restart the car. I’ve bought my vehicle to Hilton Head Honda in Bluffton, SC two times to have them inspect the vehicle. The only thing they have done is replaced the battery which has not solved the problem.”

   NHTSA complaint #11758238, filed 2026-08

   “I am writing to formally report and complain about a serious safety issue I am experiencing with my Honda Odyssey related to the Auto Idle Stop feature. While the vehicle is stopped and Auto Idle Stop is engaged, the engine unexpectedly shuts down and, in some cases, does not restart properly when I attempt to accelerate. This has occurred after normal driving and also immediately after refueling. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11708863, filed 2026-01
2. 2
   Electrical system

   Hard starting, battery drain and screen faults

   • 43 complaints (35%)
   • median 31,500 mi at 2.3 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2025–2026

   Some owners report extended cranking, slow or failed starts, and repeated battery issues, with batteries and in one case an alternator replaced without solving it. Others describe the center display going dim or black, the rear camera image becoming unusable, and intermittent infotainment faults. A few describe water entering the driver footwell from a clogged sunroof drain and reaching wiring and the fuse box. Mostly reported in the first two years of ownership, from roughly 8,000 to 41,000 miles, and often noted as intermittent.

   What to check: Check for slow cranking on a cold start, confirm battery age and any replacement history, and test the center screen, backup camera and audio for dropouts. Look for damp carpet or odors in the front footwells.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My car is experiencing the starting issue that is listed as auto start/stop feature. However, since I almost always have the AC on or start/stop disabled because the car will not start when hot after a few stops and was scared it would do it in traffic. So far I can get it started again but need to completely turn car off and try again, sometimes more than once. Had been going on for a year and the dealer has replaced battery then the next services said nothing wrong. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11730007, filed 2026-04

   “I purchased a used 2024 Honda Odyssey in September 2026 with approximately 12,000 miles. The vehicle intermittently experiences delayed starting and extended cranking when attempting to start the engine. CarMax was aware of the starting concern at the time of purchase. After purchase, CarMax replaced the battery, but the problem persisted. The vehicle was subsequently kept for approximately eight days for further diagnosis, and I was informed that technicians could not reproduce or identify the issue. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11771004, filed 2026-10
3. 3
   Body and structure

   Sliding door injuries and water leaks

   • 8 complaints (6%)
   • median 10,350 mi at 2.2 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2026

   Owners report the power sliding door closing on a child's foot or leg while they were still exiting, and doors that lock or behave unexpectedly around the key fob. Others describe water collecting in the cargo area from a tailgate seam and rain entering through the sliding door area, with dealers inspecting the vehicles under warranty. Reported on low-mileage vans, from a few hundred miles up to about 24,000, and often noticed after rain or while loading passengers.

   Recall 25V877000

   What to check: Open and close both sliding doors several times and watch how the reversal feature responds to an obstruction. Inspect the cargo area, door seals and footwells for dampness or a musty smell after rain.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “2024 Honda Odyssey with only 24K miles has a leak in the tailgate from bad welding in the body that is gathering water in the trunk. Safety isn’t at risk but I would say that the corrosion to any electrical items are at risk which will put me and my family and others at risk of something failing. Yes the problem has been reproduced and it’s a common thread on the internet. We will be taking it to the dealership to inspect since it’s still under warranty. No messaging of this from the car except the fowl odor.”

   NHTSA complaint #11752536, filed 2026-07

   “The contact owns a 2024 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the air bag warning light remained illuminated. While driving in a rainstorm, rainwater leaked into the vehicle from the driver’s side sliding door. Additionally, the passenger’s side sliding door was misaligned. The contact stated that the vehicle was a converted mobility vehicle and that the failure might be related to the conversions made to the vehicle. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11712863, filed 2026-01, 700 miles
4. 4
   Forward collision avoidance

   Automatic braking with nothing ahead

   • 5 complaints (4%)
   • typically at 1.5 yrs old
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2025–2026

   Owners describe the collision mitigation system applying the brakes with no obstacle ahead, sometimes while accelerating or merging, with a BRAKE alert appearing on the dash. Others report a radar obstructed message that disables adaptive cruise, forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking until the van is restarted. Complaints note these events as unexpected and hard to reproduce for a dealer. Reported at various mileages with no clear pattern; several describe it happening on highways and during merges.

   What to check: During a test drive, confirm adaptive cruise and forward collision warning behave normally and that no radar-obstructed message appears. Ask whether the front emblem or grille area has been damaged or replaced, since sensor calibration can depend on it.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving my vehicle and accelerating. My vehicle suddenly braked with no warning while I was driving. I hit my left side of my head as I was not expecting this to happen. I was nearly rear-ended/nearly caused a multi car accident. It was incredibly scary to have the CMBS go off for absolutely no reason. There was no car ahead of me or other reason for it to happen.”

   NHTSA complaint #11653992, filed 2025-04

   “When driving with or without the cruise the word BRAKE appears and the van taps it breaks automatically even when there is no reason to do so. There is no vehicle in front or anything on the road to be detected. It occasionally happens when there is a vehicle in the oncoming lane, but happens more often when there are no other vehicles close enough to be detected or cause me to need to slow down. It has been happening for some time now, but I did not know how to report it.”

   NHTSA complaint #11741199, filed 2026-06

Buying note. This model year is recent enough that most reports come from early ownership, so a careful test drive matters more than the odometer. Try the idle-stop feature at a stop, exercise both sliding doors, test the screen and cameras, and ask for any service history on batteries, starting complaints and water leaks.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.