Reliable Auto DB

2018 Honda HR-V reliability

Is it reliable?

The 2018 Honda HR-V has 156 complaints with NHTSA after 9 years, or 11 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most HR-V years here — under the median of the other years, which is 13. NHTSA has 3 recalls on file, including Fuel pump and Caliper.

Honda HR-V LX, 2016–2022 body
Photo by MercurySable99, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

156

Per year

11

Recalls

3

Years on the road

9

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (47 of 156), then Fuel system, gasoline (27) and Powertrain (15). Complaints that include an odometer have a median of 24,000 miles, and the middle half falls between 5,000 and 55,000 miles. Those filings include 11 that report a crash and 5 that report an injury.

Next to 2017 and 2019

The 2017 HR-V has 122 complaints, 13 per year, and the 2019 has 234 complaints, 12 per year. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2017. The 2018 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2019.

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 2018 Honda HR-V. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (3)

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 Fuel pump 2020-05-28 · NHTSA campaign 20V314000
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.
Remedy 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.
Vehicles affected 135,995
Recall hydraulic brakes, foundation components, disc, caliper 2018-11-01 · NHTSA campaign 18V777000
Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Acura MDX, 2017-2018 Acura MDX Sport Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda HR-V and Honda Odyssey, and 2016 Honda HR-V vehicles. The rear brake caliper pistons may have an insufficient coating, causing gas pockets to form, reducing brake performance. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 135, "Light Vehicle Brake Systems."
Remedy Owners will be notified, and Honda or Acura dealers will bleed the brakes, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are C31 and L30.
Vehicles affected 64,785

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

Complaints by component (156 total)

Electrical system
47
Fuel system, gasoline
27
Powertrain
15
Service brakes
15
Engine
13
Fuel and propulsion system
13
Structure
11
Speed control
10
Air bags
7
Visibility and wipers
7
Electronic stability control (ESC)
3
Exterior lighting
3
Steering
3
Tires
2
Visibility
2
Seat belts
1
Seats
1
Suspension
1
Show 10 more Show less
Crash-flagged

11

Fire-flagged

0

Injury reports

5

Death reports

0

Of the 49 complaints that include an odometer reading, the median is 24,000 miles. The middle half fall between 5,000 and 55,000 miles.

Complaints filed per year

1020181320191120208202172022132023372024342025232026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "The white paint on this vehicle is peeling off. It may come off in a large amount driving down the highway which could cause a safety issue for any vehicle nearby. Honda is aware of this defective paint and should be…"
    Structure · filed 2026-08-30
  • "Far right gauge in cluster, namely fuel level, mileage, warning icons etc only is visible when the vehicle is extremely warmed up. Otherwise, this gauge is totally black. Has been this way since 2019."
    Electrical system · filed 2026-08-22
  • "Car paint is White Orchid Pearl and had been issued NHTSA complaint about it. The manufacturer lately issued warranty for the paint limited to 7 years (Mar/2025). Car paint started to chip off firstly on the driver side…"
    Structure · filed 2026-08-17
  • "SRS / airbag light permanently remain on which indicates a fault with the system. Technician said it’s most likely due to a faulty sensor in the passenger seat."
    Air bags · filed 2026-08-14
  • "The rear glass/rear windshield of my parked car unexpectedly broke after using the rear defrost on XXX I am concerned about a possible defect involving the rear glass and/or rear defroster. Curry Honda, a…"
    Visibility and wipers · filed 2026-08-10

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2018 Honda HR-V SUV AWD 5 stars 4 stars 5 stars 4 stars
2018 Honda HR-V SUV FWD 5 stars 4 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
HR-V all-wheel drive 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (AV-S7) All-wheel drive 27 31 29 MPG $2250
HR-V all-wheel drive 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) All-wheel drive 27 31 29 MPG $2250
HR-V front-wheel drive 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (AV-S7) Front-wheel drive 28 34 31 MPG $2100
HR-V front-wheel drive 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) Front-wheel drive 28 34 31 MPG $2100
HR-V front-wheel drive 1.8L, 4-cyl Manual 6-speed Front-wheel drive 25 33 28 MPG $2300

Specs and fitment

1st generation (U.S. market), 2016–2022
Body styles SUV
Oil 0W-20 , 3.9 qt capacity
Tire size 215/55R17

Known issues for this generation

NHTSA recall 23V-046 covers 2019-2022 HR-V vehicles together with the 2018-2020 Fit, which share the same display audio unit; the 114,686-vehicle figure is the total for that whole campaign across both models, not the HR-V alone. A design error in the audio display power circuit can keep the rearview camera image from appearing when the engine is started with a key, which fails Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 111 for rear visibility and reduces the driver's rear view while backing up. Dealers update the display audio unit software free of charge, and owner letters went out March 13, 2023. That recall was later superseded by NHTSA recall 24V-384, so a vehicle already repaired under 23V-046 still needs the newer remedy; those owner letters were mailed July 8, 2024. Separately, Honda issued a technical service bulletin for 2016-2017 HR-V LX models whose Bluetooth HandsFreeLink system froze after a phone call and lost stored voice tags, fixed with an audio-unit software update.

Compare

Previous year 2017 Honda HR-V Next year 2019 Honda HR-V See every Honda HR-V model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2018 Honda HR-V reliable?

The 2018 Honda HR-V has 156 complaints with NHTSA after 9 years, or 11 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most HR-V years here — under the median of the other years, which is 13. NHTSA has 3 recalls on file, including Fuel pump and Caliper.

What are common problems with a 2018 Honda HR-V?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (47 of 156), then Fuel system, gasoline (27) and Powertrain (15). Complaints that include an odometer have a median of 24,000 miles, and the middle half falls between 5,000 and 55,000 miles. Those filings include 11 that report a crash and 5 that report an injury.

Is the 2018 Honda HR-V more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2017 HR-V has 122 complaints, 13 per year, and the 2019 has 234 complaints, 12 per year. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2017. The 2018 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2019.

Has the 2018 Honda HR-V been recalled?

The 2018 Honda HR-V has 3 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 2018 Honda HR-V?

Owners have filed 156 complaints about the 2018 Honda HR-V with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2018 Honda HR-V get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2018 Honda HR-V is 29.6 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What oil does a Honda HR-V take?

US HR-V generations tracked here use 0W-20 (about 3.9 qt on 1st gen; about 4.4 qt on 2nd gen with filter).

Does recall 24V-744 cover the Honda HR-V?

Certain 2023-2025 HR-V vehicles are part of campaign 24V-744 (with Civic, CR-V, and Acura Integra): the steering gearbox may have excessive friction; dealers replace the worm-gear spring and add grease. The published unit count covers the whole multi-model campaign.

What generation is my Honda HR-V?

US 1st generation: 2016-2022. US 2nd generation: 2023 onward.