KnownCarProblems2020 Honda Insight Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 31 complaints with NHTSA about the 2020 Honda Insight, most often about the driver assistance (39% of complaints). It is 7th of 16 Insight model years by number of complaints and has 6 recalls.
Most common 2020 Honda Insight problems
Driver assistance
12 complaints · 39%Parts named most often: automatic emergency braking, warnings.
Driving alone on road doing 30 MPH the car slammed on the brakes and slowed to about 20 MPH while flashing "brake" in instrument cluster. No other cars on this road at the time. There were shadows across the road from sun and trees. Since I always drive the speed limit, if there is someone following me, they are…
Very occasionally the car collision avoidance systems kicks in erratically. The car brakes automatically to reduce speed substantially. This can be very dangerous because someone might hit from the back. This has happened to me on city streets as well as the highway. I think it might be due to the collison sensor…
Electrical
7 complaints · 23%The contact owns a 2020 Honda Insight. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 20v771000 (electrical system, back over prevention, visibility/wiper, visibility, exterior lighting). The contact stated while approaching the vehicle on 3/1/2021, she noticed someone sleeping inside the vehicle. The…
While driving on the interstate where speed limit is 70 miles per hour, I looked in my rear view mirror and saw smoke coming out of the back of my car. I then saw warnings flashing from my dash board saying: AC malfunction, lkas malfunction,and then another warning flashed saying - low oil fluid, stop car do not…
Transmission
5 complaints · 16%While driving on the interstate where speed limit is 70 miles per hour, I looked in my rear view mirror and saw smoke coming out of the back of my car. I then saw warnings flashing from my dash board saying: AC malfunction, lkas malfunction,and then another warning flashed saying - low oil fluid, stop car do not…
Engine
4 complaints · 13%While driving on the interstate where speed limit is 70 miles per hour, I looked in my rear view mirror and saw smoke coming out of the back of my car. I then saw warnings flashing from my dash board saying: AC malfunction, lkas malfunction,and then another warning flashed saying - low oil fluid, stop car do not…
Brakes
4 complaints · 13%The contact owns a 2020 Honda Insight. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the brake engaged erroneously. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The contact stated that there was no object or vehicle nearby during the failure. The vehicle was driven to the dealer to be diagnosed…
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Insight. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, several unknown warning lights illuminated. During the failure, the brakes failed to function as intended, and the lane departure, cruise control, and forward collision avoidance features failed to function as intended. The…
Body and structure
3 complaints · 10%Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
Other or unspecified
3 complaints · 10%When putting the car in reverse, the car is making very loud 'dong dong dong' noise. This issue also occurs when the car is in idle (stop for the traffic light). I am not sure if the noise is from the hybrid system, but the noise make one's ears very uncomfortable.
Damage to the power steering linkage cable and oxygen sensor caused all ADAS systems to be offline including power steering. If this unit were to be damaged just enough and fail while driving this will likely result in a crash/collision as the car becomes completely undrivable. Luckily so far, this has happened when…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2020 Honda Insight recalls
Air bags: front passenger
Risk: Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed july 7, 2026. Owners may contact honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are bol, wo9, ooa, wom, xoh, noc, pod, boe, uof, pob, eog, aoi, qo8, toj, do7, and sok. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24v064. Vehicle identification numbers (vins) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning may 29, 2026.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 acura tlx, 2019-2024 rdx, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 mdx, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 honda ridgeline, 2017-2022 pilot, 2019-2021 passport, 2018-2026 odyssey, 2019-2022 insight, 2019-2021 hr-v, 2018-2020 fit, 2020-2022 cr-v hybrid, 2017-2022 cr-v, 2017-2018, 2021 civic type r, 2017-2021 civic hatchback, 2016-2020 civic coupe, 2016-2022 civic, 2017-2022 accord hybrid, and 2016-2022 accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.
Fuel system: fuel pump
Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: 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.
Full defect summary
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.
Fuel system: fuel pump
Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed may 18, 2021. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Note: this recall is an expansion of recall 20v-314.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2019-2020 acura mdx, mdx sport hybrid, rdx, tlx, honda accord, civic hatchback, insight, 2019 acura ilx, honda accord hybrid, civic coupe, civic coupe si, civic sedan, civic sedan si, civic type r, fit, hr-v, odyssey, passport, pilot and ridgeline, and 2018-2019 cr-v vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Electrical: software
Risk: A loss of drive power can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the power converter unit (pcu) software, free of charge. The recall began february 12, 2021. Owners can contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is k9e.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2020 cr-v hybrid, accord hybrid, and 2020-2021 insight vehicles. The dc-dc converter may shut down and prevent the 12-volt battery from recharging, possibly resulting in a loss of drive power.
Electrical: software
Risk: Various system malfunctions such as inoperative windshield wipers, defroster, rearview camera, or exterior lighting can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the BCM software, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin february 22, 2021. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is x95.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2018-2020 accord sedan, accord hybrid, and 2019-2020 insight vehicles. A software error may cause intermittent or continuous disruptions in communication between the body control module (BCM) and other components. This may result in malfunctions of various systems such as the windshield wipers and defroster, rearview camera, exterior lights, audible warning of a stopped vehicle, and power window operation. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) number 103, "windshield defrosting and defogging systems" and number 111, "rear visibility" as well as fmvss numbers 104, 108, 114, 118, and 305.
Fuel system: fuel pump
Risk: If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Honda will notify owners and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly, free of charge. The recall began july 22, 2020. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2018-2019 acura nsx, 2019 acura rdx, rlx and rlx sport hybrid, 2018-2019 honda accord, civic hatchback, civic type r and hr-v, 2019-2020 insight and 2019 fit vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Inadvertent automatic emergency braking
Summary
On march 7, 2024, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation (pe24008) to assess reports of inadvertent activation of the automatic emergency braking (aeb) system in model year 2019-2022 honda insight and 2019-2022 honda passport vehicles. The complainants allege activation of the aeb system with no apparent obstruction in the vehicle's path, resulting in rapid vehicle deceleration. Honda indicated that it is aware of a total of 412 reports that may relate to the alleged defect. Honda provided analysis of the alleged defect and stated that some customers possibly had an inadequate understanding of the aeb system and its limitations. However, many consumer compl
Inadvertent automatic emergency braking
Summary
On march 7, 2024, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation (pe24008) to assess reports of inadvertent activation of the automatic emergency braking (aeb) system in model year 2019-2022 honda insight and 2019-2022 honda passport vehicles. The complainants allege activation of the aeb system with no apparent obstruction in the vehicle's path, resulting in rapid vehicle deceleration. Honda indicated that it is aware of a total of 412 reports that may relate to the alleged defect. Honda provided analysis of the alleged defect and stated that some customers possibly had an inadequate understanding of the aeb system and its limitations. However, many consumer compl
Pedestrian alert sounds
Summary
Nhtsa received a petition on or about july 18, 2022, requesting that federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the united states. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under odi number 11486072. Fmvss 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 kg or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after march 1, 2021.on january 27, 2023, NHTSA opened defect petition (dp) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt
Questions about the 2020 Honda Insight
- What are the most common problems with the 2020 Honda Insight?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: driver assistance (12 complaints); electrical (7 complaints); transmission (5 complaints).
- How many recalls does the 2020 Honda Insight have?
- 6 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from May 21, 2026 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2020 a bad year for the Honda Insight?
- It is 7th of 16 Insight model years by number of complaints, with 31 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.