Case Update:
On May 12, 2025, the parties announced that they had reached a settlement in the action and Plaintiffs moved for preliminary approval of the settlement. As part of the Settlement, Honda (1) is amending the Repair Procedure in the AIS Service Bulletins to eliminate AIS symptom verification as a condition to receiving the repair available under the AIS Service Bulletins, (2) will provide reimbursement for certain Out-of-Pocket Costs reasonably incurred prior to this Class Notice relating to AIS No-Restart, as well as certain Out-of-Pocket Costs that may be incurred in the future (such as towing), and (3) is implementing an Extended Claim Period after the expiration of the existing 10-year warranty coverage extension for valve adjustment and starter replacement related to AIS No-Restart, by 24 months for 2015 Acura TLX vehicles, and by 18 months for 2016 Acura TLX, Acura MDX, and Honda Pilot vehicles.
For more information, please visit the settlement website: https://www.settlement-claims.com/autoidlestop/
Case Update: On December 15, 2022, the parties agreed to transfer the lawsuit to the Central District of California.
On September 28, 2022, consumers filed a proposed class action lawsuit against American Honda Motor Company claiming the manufacturer sold thousands of vehicles that contain a critical safety flaw putting drivers and others at serious risk of injury.
The suit claims that a wide range of Honda vehicles including the popular Odyssey, Passport and sister-brand Acura models share a flawed ‘auto start/stop’ function (also called “Idle Stop”) intended to save fuel by shutting the engine down at stops. The complaint alleges that the Idle Stop system routinely fails to restart the engine as designed, leaving drivers unable to move their vehicles from intersections and highway entrances, among other locations.
According to the 113-page complaint filed in United States District Court in Chicago, Honda was fully aware of the defect before marketing the vehicles and has been deluged with complaints and reports from drivers who have been put in harm’s way by the defect.
“We intend to demonstrate in court that Honda knew of the defect but chose to ignore the very serious safety implications in the Idle Stop system out of a desire to bring the vehicles to market quickly, at any cost,” said Elizabeth Fegan, managing partner of FeganScott, the consumer-rights law firm filing the case. “What’s more, we have evidence that Honda sent notices to its dealers as early as 2017 warning them of the defect, while keeping news of the defect secret from the driving public.”
According to the complaint, while Honda remained mute about the defect, consumers learned of the problem only after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced it was conducting an investigation regarding the Idle Stop defect in June 2022.
“All the drivers we’ve spoken to have very similar experiences; panic when they try to move their cars from intersections, freeway onramps and other dangerous locations and finding themselves stuck in place,” Fegan added. “One parent reported that she was stranded in a busy intersection with her kids in the car, describing the situation as being ‘dead in the water.’”
“This is more than an inconvenience; this defect puts drivers at very serious peril, and we intend to hold Honda accountable for its actions,” Fegan added.
Drivers of the affected vehicles are encouraged to send their contact information to autosafety@feganscott.com to learn about their rights.
The vehicles listed in the suit include: 2018-2020 Honda Odyssey, 2016-2020 Honda Pilot, 2019-2020 Honda Passport, 2015-2020 Acura TLX, and 2015-2020 Acura MDX that are equipped with the Idle Stop feature.