2023 Honda CR-V: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2023 Honda CR-V
On the 2023 Honda CR-V, the failure owners report most often is other steering problem, and the reports cluster around 10,000 miles. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 7,500 miles. Overall it scores 78 out of 100, severe risk for a 2023.
Severe risk for a 2023 — 51st riskiest of the 227 2023 vehicles we can rate. 658 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
The failures owners actually file about
Owners have reported 58 named failure modes on the 2023 Honda CR-V, and the three most-reported carry 52% of everything filed.
Other steering problem leads with 236 reports, about 3.9 per 1,000 vehicles and with the middle half of reports between 7k to 10,000 miles.
Lane keep or steering assist fault follows with 69 reports, median 5,000 miles.
Steering rack, gear or tie rod failure follows with 40 reports, median 10,000 miles.
By system, the reports fall mostly into steering (283), adas (137) and electrical (33).
The mileage the reports cluster at
45 of the reports on the 2023 Honda CR-V came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 7,500 miles.
Cumulatively, 87% by 50,000 miles, 93% by 100,000 miles and 98% by 150,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed.
The busiest stretch is between 0 and 10,000 miles, which alone holds 53% of the dated reports.
87% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles, which is early enough that a fair number of these cars were still under a factory warranty when the owner complained.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
Showing the 12 most-reported failure modes of 58. The full list is in the table below.
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
- Dashed the median reported mileage
How bad it is when it goes
Across the named modes, 33 mention a crash, 3 a fire and 23 an injury. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 4.31, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: other steering problem at $350–$2,400, lane keep or steering assist fault at $200–$1,600, steering rack, gear or tie rod failure at $700–$2,600 and cruise control failure at $200–$1,400. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
7% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other steering problem | steering | 236 | 10 | 7k | 8k | 10k | 3.9 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Lane keep or steering assist fault | adas | 69 | 2 | — | 6k | — | 1.1 | $200–$1,600 | High |
| Steering rack, gear or tie rod failure | steering | 40 | 5 | — | 12k | — | 0.7 | $700–$2,600 | High |
| Cruise control failure | adas | 30 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.5 | $200–$1,400 | High |
| Other driver assistance problem | adas | 24 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.4 | $250–$1,800 | High |
| Other visibility problem | glass | 21 | 1 | — | 20 | — | 0.3 | $150–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 20 | 1 | — | 59k | — | 0.3 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other electrical problem | electrical | 19 | 6 | — | 3k | — | 0.3 | $250–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 16 | 2 | — | 3k | — | 0.3 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Fuel pump failure | fuel | 14 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.2 | $600–$2,600 | High |
| Other engine problem | engine | 14 | 2 | — | 8k | — | 0.2 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| Other fuel system problem | fuel | 14 | 1 | — | 8k | — | 0.2 | $300–$2,200 | High |
| Other powertrain problem | transmission | 12 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.2 | $400–$4,500 | High |
| Other speed control problem | adas | 9 | 3 | — | 5k | — | 0.1 | $250–$2,000 | Critical |
| Parking brake failure | brakes | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $250–$1,300 | Moderate |
| Steering column or shaft failure | steering | 6 | 1 | — | 22k | — | 0.1 | $600–$2,500 | Critical |
| Infotainment screen failure | infotainment | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $400–$2,600 | Low |
| Backup camera failure | infotainment | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $250–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Overheating | cooling | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $400–$3,500 | High |
| Alternator or charging system failure | electrical | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $450–$1,600 | High |
| Ignition switch, key fob or immobilizer failure | electrical | 4 | 1 | — | 4k | — | 0.1 | $250–$1,500 | High |
| Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | airbag | 4 | 4 | — | 13k | — | 0.1 | $1,000–$5,000 | Critical |
| Seat belt or retractor failure | airbag | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $200–$900 | High |
| Automatic braking for no reason | adas | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $0–$1,500 | Critical |
| Parasitic battery drain | electrical | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $200–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Air conditioning failure | hvac | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $400–$2,800 | Moderate |
| Other lighting problem | lighting | 3 | 1 | — | 60k | — | 0.1 | $120–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Stalling while driving | engine | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,500 | Critical |
| Misfire or rough idle | engine | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,600 | Moderate |
| Complete transmission failure | transmission | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $2,800–$8,000 | Critical |
| Differential or transfer case failure | drivetrain | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $900–$4,200 | High |
| Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure | electrical | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $700–$3,000 | High |
| Master cylinder or brake booster failure | brakes | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,200 | Critical |
| Tire pressure monitor failure | wheels | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $80–$600 | Low |
| Headlight failure or clouding | lighting | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $150–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Wiper or washer failure | glass | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $120–$800 | Moderate |
| Other wheel or tire problem | wheels | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,500 | High |
| Complete engine failure or seizure | engine | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $4,500–$12,000 | Critical |
| Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure | engine | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $1,200–$4,500 | Critical |
| Head gasket failure | engine | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $1,400–$4,000 | Critical |
| Oil leak | engine | 1 | 1 | — | 4k | — | 0.0 | $250–$2,200 | Moderate |
| Lifter, cam or cylinder-deactivation failure | engine | 1 | 1 | — | 61k | — | 0.0 | $1,800–$7,000 | High |
| Torque converter failure | transmission | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $1,100–$3,200 | High |
| Fuel injector failure | fuel | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,800 | Moderate |
| Fuel leak or fuel odor | fuel | 1 | 1 | — | 21k | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,500 | Critical |
| Fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure | fuel | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Wiring harness or short circuit | electrical | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $400–$3,500 | High |
| Audio or connectivity failure | infotainment | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $150–$900 | Low |
| Instrument cluster or gauge failure | infotainment | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $350–$1,400 | Moderate |
| ABS module or sensor failure | brakes | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $500–$2,400 | High |
| Premature brake pad or rotor wear | brakes | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Brake line, hose or caliper failure | brakes | 1 | 1 | — | 109k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,600 | Critical |
| Blind spot monitor failure | adas | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,300 | Moderate |
| Loss of power steering | steering | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $600–$2,800 | Critical |
| Rust or structural corrosion | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $500–$6,000 | High |
| Sunroof failure or glass breakage | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $700–$4,500 | High |
| Liftgate, tailgate or trunk failure | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,500 | Moderate |
| Tail light, brake light or signal failure | lighting | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $100–$900 | Moderate |
| Unclassified problem | other | 23 | 1 | — | 600 | — | 0.4 | — | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2023 Honda CR-V draws about 11 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 90th percentile of complaint rates among 2023 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 60,471 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2023 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
Recalls on the 2023 model year
NHTSA has issued 3 recall campaigns covering the 2023 Honda CR-V, affecting an estimated 83,844 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover steering, fuel system, gasoline:delivery:fuel pump and seats:front assembly:recliner. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
One caution about reading these together: a recall usually raises the complaint count for the same part, because owners who read about it go and file. The mileages stay informative; the counts get noisy.
STEERING
1,693,199 vehicles 2024-10-03- Defect
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2023-2025 Acura Integra, Civic Type R, CR-V Hybrid, CR-V, HR-V, 2022-2025 Civic, Civic Hatchback, 2024-2025 Acura Integra Type S, 2025 CR-V Fuel Cell EV, Civic Hybrid, and Civic Hatchback Hybrid vehicles. The steering gearbox assembly may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can cause excessive internal friction and lead to difficulty steering the vehicle.
- Consequence
- Difficulty steering can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the worm gear spring and redistribute or add grease as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 18, 2024. Owners may contact Honda Customer Service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are SJS, MJU, QJT and VJV.
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP
2,490,460 vehicles 2023-12-18- Defect
- 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.
- Consequence
- Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
- 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.
SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:RECLINER
98 vehicles 2023-02-16- Defect
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2023 CR-V vehicles. The front passenger seat back frame may not have been welded properly, which can cause the seat back position to fail in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard numbers 207, "Seating Systems" and 201, "Occupant Protection in Interior Impact."
- Consequence
- A seat back position that fails may not adequately restrain the occupant during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the front passenger seat back frame assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 27, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is 6PK.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 2023 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
How 2023 compares with the other years
Severe risk for a 2023 — 51st riskiest of the 227 2023 vehicles we can rate. The comparison is always within the same model year, so an older car is never penalised for having had longer to break.
Across the 30 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 2001 comes out best at 59 and 2015 worst at 84, with 2023 itself at 78.
If the model year is negotiable, 2001, 1997, 1998, 2000, 1999, 2002, 2007, 2004, 2003, 2006, 2005, 2026, 2008, 2009, 2025, 2012, 2011 and 2010 score lower than 2023 by a margin worth acting on. Same body, same engines, different luck — usually a supplier change or a mid-cycle fix, which the complaint data can show but never explain.
Within the 2019–2026 generation specifically, 2026 is the strongest year at 68 and 2020 the weakest at 81.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Within the 2019-2026 generation, 2026 Honda CR-V scores best at 68 and 2020 Honda CR-V worst at 81.
What the numbers say to check
The mileages below are where the first quarter of reports for each mode had already been filed, which makes them the point at which a fault is worth looking for rather than the point at which it happens: other steering problem from about 7k.
On a 2023 Honda CR-V with more miles than that on it, the useful question to put to a seller or a mechanic is whether other steering problem has been dealt with, and if so with what parts and at whose expense. A car that has already had the repair is in a different position from one that has not.
Treat it as where to point the inspection, not as a prediction. A well-maintained example can sail past every mileage on this page, and a neglected one can fail well before the first of them.
The limits of complaint data
658 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 658 reports, 45 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 7% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
The failure modes are assigned by software reading the owner's own words, which is accurate in bulk and wrong in individual cases. A mode with a handful of reports may contain a misfiled one.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 2023 Honda CR-V?
The most-reported failures are other steering problem (236 reports, median 10,000 miles), lane keep or steering assist fault (69 reports, median 5,000 miles) and steering rack, gear or tie rod failure (40 reports, median 10,000 miles). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
At what mileage do 2023 Honda CR-V problems start?
Other steering problem is the earliest failure mode to show up, with a median reported mileage of 10,000 miles and a quarter of reports before 5,000 miles. Across all failure modes on this year, the median report sits at 7,500 miles.
Is the 2023 Honda CR-V reliable?
It scores 78 out of 100 on our risk index, which is severe — 51st riskiest of the 227 2023 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2023 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Which year of the Honda CR-V is best?
Within the 2019–2026 generation, 2026 scores best at 68 out of 100 and 2020 worst at 81. Same body, same engines, different luck.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed