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2006 Honda Ridgeline Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 242 complaints with NHTSA about the 2006 Honda Ridgeline, most often about the air bags (26% of complaints, typically around 115,000 miles). It is the 2nd most complained-about Ridgeline model year since 2000 and has 12 recalls.
Most common 2006 Honda Ridgeline problems
Air bags
63 complaints · 26%Half of these problems showed up before 115,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal, side/window.
Takata recall - when I called the Honda dealership in ames they said they could not find my information in their data base. After I gave them my phone number, name, and VIN number. It was not a pleasant experience. I would also like to complain about the brakes on my truck. I took it to the local mechanic and he could…
The contact owned a 2006 Honda Ridgeline. While driving approximately 25 MPH, another vehicle crashed into the contact's vehicle. The driver's side of the contact's vehicle was damaged; however, the side curtain air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was destroyed and towed. A police report was filed. The driver…
Electrical
43 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 73,000 miles. Parts named most often: wiring, instrument cluster/panel, instrument panel.
Leading event - I've driven my 2006 Honda Ridgeline without incident since I bought it in august 2005. Last week, one day my AC worked the next day my AC stopped blowing. The failure - I just had exactly the same problem others have had with my 2006 Honda Ridgeline rtl my AC went out on the 29th of july, 2009. The…
When I first bought this vehicle I had a problem with it at 41,000 miles. The fan motor dial would not turn on correctly. I could be driving then if I hit a bump in the road the fan motor would turn on. Now you have to play with it until it turns on to it won't work at all. I think it may have something to do with the…
Body and structure
30 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 70,000 miles. Parts named most often: body.
The contact owns a 2006 Honda Ridgeline. The contact stated there was a gap on the front of the instrument panel causing water to seep into the instrument panel making the entire air bag system inoperable. The air bag lights continued to illuminate continuously. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who replaced the…
The contact owns a 2006 Honda Ridgeline truck. The contact stated the rear tailgate latch failed to release in an open position. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the malfunction. The approximate failure mileage was 72,000.
Engine
25 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 92,000 miles. Parts named most often: engine, cooling system, exhaust system.
The cooling line for the transmission where it enters the bottom of the radiator failed due to galvanic corrosion. This cause a large immediate loss of transmission fluid.
On or about january 9th, 2010, I started my 2006 Ridgeline to and turned the heat on high to warm it up before leaving my home. When I returned to the vehicle to leave, the entire cab was filled with smoke. My husband located the source of the smoke, coming from under the dash on the passenger side. He found wires…
Other or unspecified
17 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 74,000 miles.
As I pulled into a parking space I took my foot of the accelerator and depressed the brake pedal. The truck stopped and then suddenly the engine revved up and the truck took off at high speed for 15 feet slamming into a building. The passenger side front airbag deployed, but not the driver side airbag. The police…
When I first bought this vehicle I had a problem with it at 41,000 miles. The fan motor dial would not turn on correctly. I could be driving then if I hit a bump in the road the fan motor would turn on. Now you have to play with it until it turns on to it won't work at all. I think it may have something to do with the…
Transmission
16 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 95,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission.
Transmission fluid oil cooler line ejects from radiator as a result of dissimilar metal corrosion...a steel washer is used that becomes the catalyst for the failure. Transmission fluid loss occurs that leads to loss of acceleration of vehicle, putting vehicle occupants in danger.
The cooling line for the transmission where it enters the bottom of the radiator failed due to galvanic corrosion. This cause a large immediate loss of transmission fluid.
Visibility and wipers
16 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 38,000 miles. Parts named most often: glass, side/rear, windshield wiper/washer, defroster/defogger/hvac system, power window devices and controls.
Windshield stress crack. Starting point was upper passenger corner and propagated to center of wind screen. Dealer says it was a stone that caused the crack, there is no divot from a stone.
Ac/heat fan motor overheating and causing power cable to melt...occurred to my 2006 at 35,000 and 72,000...check www.ridgelineownersclub.com and www.carcompliants.com for more incidents...possible fire damage?
Fuel system
15 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 190,000 miles. Parts named most often: storage, delivery.
My truck keeps skipping and stalling I've had everything done with my truck that can be done except ive never had the fuel pump relay inspected so please is there any way that I could have this checked at no cost and I do believe this is a safety issue since my truck could just stall out and cut off at any time and I…
The contact owns a 2006 Honda Ridgeline. The contact stated while driving at various speeds the accelerator pedal had become stuck causing the engine to stall. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the fuel relay was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Also, the key…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2006 Honda Ridgeline recalls
Body and structure: frame and members
Risk: A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and repair the rear frame, as necessary, free of charge. Depending on the extent of any corrosion damage, honda may offer to repurchase the vehicle. Owner notification letters were mailed august 9, 2022. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is lcd.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2006-2014 ridgeline vehicles that were sold, or ever registered in connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virginia, washington d.c., and wisconsin. An accumulation of road salt may cause the frame mounting surface, where the fuel tank mounting bands are attached, to corrode and possibly detach the fuel tank, which can result in a fuel leak.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began august 12, 2019. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are q5a and y58.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2002-2003 3.2tl, 2003-2006 mdx, 2001-2007 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot and 2006 ridgeline vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with driver frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal airbag inflator, free of charge. The recall began august 12, 2019. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are e5d and x5c.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2012 rl, 2003-2007 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, and 2006-2014 ridgeline vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with passenger frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An explosion of an inflator within the driver frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver, front seat passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began april 10, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is o41. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is u40.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling specific 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2013-2016 ilx, 2013-2014 ilx hybrid, 2003-2006 mdx, 2007-2016 rdx, 2002-2003 3.2tl, 2004-2006, and 2009-2014 tl, 2010-2013 zdx and 2001-2007 and 2009 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2007 and 2010-2011 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007 fit, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, and 2006-2014 ridgeline vehicles. The affected vehicles received a replacement driver air bag inflator as part of a previous takata inflator recall remedy or a replacement driver air bag module containing the same inflator type as a service part. Due to a manufacturing error, in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver frontal air bag, these inflators may explode.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall bagan march 2017. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are kd9 and ke0.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2005-2006 acura mdx and honda cr-v vehicles, 2005-2011 honda element vehicles, 2005-2012 acura rl vehicles, 2006-2012 honda ridgeline vehicles, 2007-2008 honda fit vehicles and 2005-2008 honda pilot vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in alabama, california, florida, georgia, hawaii, louisiana, mississippi, south carolina, texas, puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands (saipan), and the u.s. Virgin islands, or "zone a." additionally, if not included in "zone a" above, honda is recalling certain 2005-2006 acura mdx and honda cr-v vehicles, 2005-2009 acura rl and honda element vehicles, 2007-2008 honda fit vehicles, 2005-2008 honda pilot vehicles and 2006-2009 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, ke
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began june 27, 2016. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are ka0, ka1, ka2, and ka3.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2011 acura rl, 2005-2006 honda cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2003-2008 pilot, 2002-2004 odyssey, and 2006-2011 ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or that have ever been registered, in alabama, california, florida, georgia, hawaii, louisiana, mississippi, south carolina, texas, puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands (saipan), and the u.s. Virgin islands, or "zone a." additionally, unless included in "zone a" above, honda is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2008 acura rl, 2005-2006 honda cr-v, 2003-2008 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2003-2008 pilot, 2002-2004 odyssey, and 2006-2008 ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or that have ever been registered, in arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, maryland
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on july 1, 2015. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Owners may contact acura customer service at 1-800-382-2238, select option 4. Note: vehicles that have had their driver frontal air bag replaced previously as part of a recall remedy prior to september 12, 2014 need to have their air bag replaced under this recall as well. Vehicles that, on or after september 12, 2014, received a remedy for a prior driver frontal air bag inflator recall already rec
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain model year 2001-2007 accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2001-2004 honda civic gx, 2003-2005 honda civic hybrid, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, 2006 ridgeline, 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2003-2006 acura mdx, and 2002-2003 acura 3.2tl vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion and other factors, including manufacturing variability that, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Air bags
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passengerâs frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger side air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began january 26, 2015. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
American honda motor co. (honda) is recalling certain model year 2001-2005 honda civic, 2003-2004 civic cng and element, 2002-2005 cr-v, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2005 accord, pilot, civic hybrid, and acura mdx, 2005 acura rl and 2006 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in geographic locations associated with high absolute humidity. Specifically, vehicles sold, or ever registered, in alabama, florida, georgia, hawaii, louisiana, mississippi, south carolina, texas, puerto rico, u.s. Virgin islands, saipan, guam, and american samoa are addressed by this recall. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Air bags
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passengerâs frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inflators in all affected vehicles, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin during august 2014. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
American honda motor company, inc.'s (honda) is conducting a limited regional recall for certain model year 2003-2005 accord, civic, cr-v, pilot and acura mdx, model year 2003-2004 odyssey and element, and model year 2005 acura rl, and 2006 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in california, and equipped with takata-brand air bag inflators. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Electrical: instrument cluster/panel
Risk: Should the wiring insulation melt and the exposed wires make contact with each other (short circuit), a fire may occur.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and if the wiring connector is damaged it will be replaced and all vehicles will have the protective cover installed free of charge. The safety recall began on march 15, 2010. Owners may contact honda at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
Honda is recalling certain model year 2006 and 2007 ridgeline vehicles manufactured between january 17, 2005, and june 7, 2006. A wiring harness connector for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) blower motor located under the passenger's side of the instrument panel may be accessible to kicking by the front seat passenger's feet. If this occurs, the connector terminal may overheat, and this may cause the wire insulation to melt or the wiring connector to melt.
Fuel system: fuel pump
Risk: If the fuel pump loses power while driving, the engine could stall without warning, and a crash could occur.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the fuel pump relay free of charge. The recall began on april 2, 2007. Owners may contact honda at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
On certain vehicles, a coil wire inside the fuel pump relay may break, causing the fuel pump to lose power. If the fuel pump becomes inoperative, the engine may not start.
Equipment: owners/service/other manual
Risk: The language in the owner's manuals is not in accordance with the current mandatory requirements.
Fix: Honda will send a postcard to dealers and owners with the correct NHTSA vehicle safety hotline information and with instructions to insert the card into the "reporting safety defects" section of the owner's manual. The recall began on august 2, 2006. Owners may contact honda at 1-800-999-1009, acura at 1-800-382-2238 or honda motorcycles at 1-866-784-1870.
Full defect summary
On certain passenger vehicles and motorcycles, the owner's manuals contain incorrect contact information for the national highway traffic safety administration's (NHTSA) vehicle safety hotline.
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
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Fire
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this investigation based on three vehicle owner questionnaire (voq) reports alleging a fire occurred in the instrument panel.in addition, there were three voq reports alleging a burned, melted, or shorted HVAC fan motor wiring harness.honda reports that during august and september, 2006, it conducted a study regarding melting of the HVAC fan motor harness connector.honda concluded that the damage to the harness connector could result from contact by a passenger's foot or handling of the HVAC unit during vehicle assembly.honda instituted changes to address these issues.all complaint vehicles were manufactured before honda implemented these chan
Questions about the 2006 Honda Ridgeline
- What are the most common problems with the 2006 Honda Ridgeline?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: air bags (63 complaints, typically around 115,000 miles); electrical (43 complaints, typically around 73,000 miles); body and structure (30 complaints, typically around 70,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2006 Honda Ridgeline have?
- 12 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from June 16, 2022 (body and structure). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2006 a bad year for the Honda Ridgeline?
- It is the 2nd most complained-about Ridgeline model year since 2000, with 242 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.