2021 Honda CR-V reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 330 complaints with NHTSA about the 2021 Honda CR-V over 6 years — 27 per year. That is the fewest complaints per year among the 13 CR-V years on this site. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Front passenger seat weight sensor, Fuel pump, and Retractor.

Honda CR-V, 2020–2022 body — Photo by Sebsoare2511, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC0

Complaints

330

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Steering (111 of 330), then Forward collision avoidance (87) and Electrical system (34). Complaints that include an odometer have a median of 30,000 miles, and the middle half falls between 9,000 and 45,000 miles. Those filings include 14 that report a crash, 1 that reports a fire, and 12 that report an injury.

Next to 2020 and 2022

The 2020 CR-V has 355 complaints, 33 per year, and the 2022 has 256 complaints, 36 per year. The 2021 has fewer complaints per year than the 2020. The 2021 has fewer complaints per year than the 2022.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2021 Honda CR-V. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (4)

Recall Front passenger seat weight sensor 2026-05-21 · NHTSA campaign 26V332000

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.

Remedy 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.

Vehicles affected 98,892

Recall Front passenger seat weight sensor 2024-02-01 · NHTSA campaign 24V064000

Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.

Remedy Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.

Vehicles affected 750,114

Recall Fuel pump 2023-12-18 · NHTSA campaign 23V858000

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.

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.

Vehicles affected 2,490,460

Recall seat belts, rear or other, retractor 2021-11-18 · NHTSA campaign 21V900000

Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2021 Accord Sedan, Accord Hybrid, CR-V, Ridgeline, 2022 Insight and CR-V Hybrid vehicles. The automatic locking retractor on the second-row center seat belt assembly may deactivate improperly, which can result in an unsecured child restraint system. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."

Remedy Dealers will replace the second-row center seat belt assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 14, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138.

Vehicles affected 4,346

NHTSA's count is every vehicle in that campaign. A campaign can cover other model years and other models.

Complaints by component (330 total)

Steering

111

Forward collision avoidance

Electrical system

Engine

Service brakes

Fuel and propulsion system

Lane departure

Air bags

Powertrain

Visibility and wipers

Speed control

Wheels

Exterior lighting

Seat belts

Structure

Engine and engine cooling

Fuel system, gasoline

Suspension

Back-over prevention

Seats

Air brakes

Fire-related

Hydraulic brakes

Tires

Show 16 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Of the 53 complaints that include an odometer reading, the median is 30,000 miles. The middle half fall between 9,000 and 45,000 miles.

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"NHTSA SAFETY COMPLAINT SUMMARY Vehicle Identification: 2021 Honda CR-V Touring (1.5L Turbo) Current Mileage: 91,259 miles Failed Component: High-Pressure Fuel Pump (HPFP) & Associated High-Pressure Fuel System…"
Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2026-09-20
"I was driving on a clear mid-day with very little traffic. There were no cars in front of or beside me. There were no people or animals anywhere in sight. I was traveling west at 45MPR when suddenly the car slammed on…"
Forward collision avoidance · filed 2026-09-15
"June 22nd- Merging car onto NJ turnpike near Manasquan, NJ...accelerated to merge onto highway. Engine light started to blink and then car lost power as pushing the gas pedal no longer powered car. Pulled off the road.…"
Powertrain · filed 2026-09-09
"There are steering problems with our 2021 Honda CRV. My wife & I notice two issues: 1. When driving on the interstate, we notice the steering wheel seems to grab or stick when we try to slightly turn it. It causes the…"
Steering · filed 2026-09-06
"All the warning lights on the dash board started to randomly light up like a Christmas tree while driving to get something to eat. The car began to shake and the steering stiffened up while the brakes were not working…"
Unknown or other, Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2026-09-04

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2021 Honda CR-V HYBRID SUV AWD	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars	4 stars
2021 Honda CR-V SUV AWD	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars	4 stars
2021 Honda CR-V SUV FWD	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars	4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
CR-V all-wheel drive	1.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	All-wheel drive	27	32	29 MPG	$2250
CR-V front-wheel drive	1.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	Front-wheel drive	28	34	30 MPG	$2150
CR-V hybrid all-wheel drive	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	All-wheel drive	40	35	38 MPG	$1700

Specs and fitment

5th generation, 2017–2022

Body styles SUV

Oil 0W-20 , 3.7 qt capacity

Tire size 235/65R17 (LX) to 235/55R19 (Touring)

Towing capacity 1,500 lbs

Known issues for this generation

Certain 2017-2018 CR-Vs with the 1.5L turbocharged engine can develop engine oil dilution on short, cold-weather trips, which can trigger a rough idle or a misfire (diagnostic codes P0300-P0304) or a too-rich fuel-system code (P0172). Honda's fix, described in Service Bulletins 18-114 and 18-124, is a PGM-FI and TCU software update together with an oil change and a driveability relearn procedure; the bulletins name Maine, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin as the cold-weather states covered.

Compare

Previous year 2020 Honda CR-V Next year 2022 Honda CR-V See every Honda CR-V model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2021 Honda CR-V reliable?

What are common problems with a 2021 Honda CR-V?

Is the 2021 Honda CR-V more reliable than the years next to it?

Has the 2021 Honda CR-V been recalled?

The 2021 Honda CR-V has 4 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2021 Honda CR-V?

Owners have filed 330 complaints about the 2021 Honda CR-V with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2021 Honda CR-V get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2021 Honda CR-V is 32.3 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2020 Honda CR-V?

5th generation (2017-2022).

Does the Honda CR-V have oil dilution problems?

The 1.5L turbo engine in 2017-2018 CR-Vs is affected by a documented fuel-dilution issue on short, cold trips; Honda issued a software and oil-change fix but did not issue a recall.