Sell your Honda Pilot in Tulsa

Honda Pilot engine problems, year by year

NHTSA, the federal safety agency, files owner complaints by model year and by the part named. Our counts, taken in September 2026, cover the 2012 to 2025 Pilot. A complaint is one owner's account, not proof of a defect, and a year that sold more Pilots collects more. The years that stand out:

• 2012 to 2015: misfires and oil use. The engine leads each year: 35 of 171 complaints for 2012, 79 of 271 for 2013, 31 of 116 for 2014 and 22 of 109 for 2015. Owners describe misfires with the check engine and VTM-4 or stability lights on, oil gone between changes, and spark plugs replaced again and again. Some 2014 and 2015 owners report peeling paint.
• 2016: the heaviest file. 1,703 complaints, the most of any Pilot year here, with the engine named on 769 and the electrical system on 579. Owners describe a sudden knock, lost power under a row of warning lights, and engines that failed outright.
• 2017: still engine first. 923 complaints, 466 of them naming the engine. One owner reports a knock that follows engine speed at 170,000 miles; another, a 9-speed automatic that shudders and hesitates.
• 2018 to 2022: Auto Idle Stop. A repeated report: the engine shuts off at a light, as Auto Idle Stop intends, then won't restart, sometimes with the dash full of warnings or the transmission dropping into neutral.
• 2019 to 2022: the front camera. Forward collision avoidance ranks in the top four each year and leads 2022 with 41 of 156. Owners describe the camera failing and switching off adaptive cruise, lane keeping and collision braking at once. The 2019 file, at 904 complaints, also has reports of failed fuel injectors.
• 2023 to 2025: belts and brakes. Seat belts top the 2023 and 2024 files, 32 of 142 and 24 of 113; owners describe a second-row right seat chiming that a latched belt is unbuckled. The 2025 file is led by forward collision avoidance, 55 of 201, and some owners say the brakes slammed on with nothing ahead.

Source: NHTSA complaints, 2012 Pilot; 2013; 2014; 2015; 2016; 2017; 2018; 2019; 2020; 2021; 2022; 2023; 2024; 2025.

Pilot recalls to clear before you sell

Each recall covers certain VINs, not whole model years, so type yours into NHTSA's recall lookup. The ones to know:

• 2012 to 2015, passenger air bag. Several campaigns replace an inflator that can explode and throw metal fragments. One, 18V661, names Oklahoma among the states for 2011 to 2013 Pilots.
• 2013, pistons. Campaign 13V382: pistons that may be too soft and wear early. The remedy is a new engine short block.
• 2016, 2018 and 2019, the engine. Campaign 23V751: "Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine." Dealers inspect, then repair or replace the engine. The 2017 Pilot is not on NHTSA's list.
• 2015 to 2021, fuel pump. Campaign 23V858 swaps a pump in the tank that can fail and stall the engine.
• 2019 and 2020, body welds. Campaign 19V784 checks for front frame members not fully welded. Where welds are missing, "the dealer will offer to repurchase the vehicle or provide a similar replacement vehicle."
• 2016 to 2022, rear subframe. Campaign 26V365, filed in June 2026, covers rust at the rear suspension mounts on Pilots sold in listed states. Missouri is one and Oklahoma is not, so it matters for a Pilot bought out of state. Its final remedy is expected in fall 2026.
• 2023 and 2024, steering. Campaign 23V735: a loose ball bearing in the gearbox can cause lost steering or lock-up, and dealers replace the power steering rack.

Under 49 U.S.C. 30120, the maker must remedy a recall defect at no charge, except on a vehicle its first buyer bought more than 15 calendar years before the recall notice. Every campaign above was issued inside that window, even for a 2012, but a new recall on the oldest Pilots may not be.

Source: NHTSA recalls, 2012 Pilot; 2013; 2015; 2016; 2017; 2019; 2021; 2022; 2023; 49 U.S.C. 30120 (Cornell LII).

When the costly problem has no recall

Clear any open recall first and keep the dealer's paperwork for the buyer. The harder call is a fault you would pay to fix, and the Pilot's file has several: a 2017 that knocks, oil burning and misfires on a 2012, 2014 or 2015, Auto Idle Stop restart failures, and a front camera that keeps shutting off the driver aids. None has a recall behind it.

Get a written diagnosis and a quote, then an offer on the Pilot as it sits. If the quote eats most of what the repair adds to the price, fixing it gains you little; the repair-or-sell worksheet runs the numbers. A knock or misfire is covered in engine problems, a shuddering 9-speed in bad transmission, and a battery that drains overnight in small problems.

What moves a used Pilot's price

Nobody can price a Pilot unseen, so this page prints no figures. What moves an offer:

• The engine's history. On a 2016, 2018 or 2019, whether campaign 23V751 has been done. On any year, whether it knocks, misfires or uses oil.
• Seats and belts. Buckle every belt first; on a 2023 or 2024, a second-row belt that chimes when latched is the known complaint.
• The dashboard. Driver-assist or stability warnings raise questions; a shop's scan tells you what's behind them first.
• Body and title. Hail dents, peeling paint and worn tires count, and a salvage brand or a loan on record changes who can buy it. See hail and flood and salvage title.

Selling your Pilot in Tulsa: us or the partner

Sell it to us. Call (539) 271-2021 or use the sell-it-to-us form with the year, the miles and what's wrong. We buy some Pilots ourselves, anywhere in Tulsa, and pay by check. No title or no keys? We look at those too, though we can't buy every one, and we say so when we can't.

The partner offer. If we can't buy it, Peddle's online offer is the other way. Asking is free and commits you to nothing, and the tow is Peddle's to arrange and pay for. The check comes at pickup: "Peddle issues payment immediately by check." Keep the title, registration and a valid driver's license or ID together for that day. A sale through Peddle earns this site a referral fee. For both routes side by side, see cash for cars.

Oklahoma's side. Service Oklahoma's transfer checklist wants a paper title properly signed over and notarized, or Form 718 for an electronic one, plus a release for any active lien. Oklahoma is a title-holding state, so on a Pilot with an open loan the lender holds the title, not you; car with a loan sets out the steps, and the paperwork guide covers the signing. Honda and its dealers have no part in this site or its offers.

Source: Peddle: offer, pickup and payment; Service Oklahoma: title transfers and liens.

Next step: a call or the partner offer

Have the VIN, the odometer reading and your recall results ready. Then call (539) 271-2021 or send the details through the sell-it-to-us form. When it's one we can buy, the offer comes from us and the payment is a check. When it isn't, we tell you, and the partner's offer is free to request and free to refuse.