Honda CR-V Reliability by Year
Based on 2M+ real complaints filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
20,393 NHTSA complaints (1997–2026).Complaint rate: 32.0 per 10,000 vehicles sold in the US.
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Should I buy a Honda CR-V?
Quick answer from 20,393 NHTSA complaints · 1997–2026
Honda CR-V reliability depends heavily on the model year. Several years show complaint spikes well above the model's own average, while others are meaningfully cleaner. The most commonly reported issue across all years is airbags. Pick the right year and this CR-V can be a reasonable used buy; pick the wrong one and you're inheriting known problems.
- 2022 Honda CR-V· 10.4/10K sold
- 2021 Honda CR-V· 10.7/10K sold
- 2020 Honda CR-V· 12.3/10K sold
- 2018 Honda CR-V· 74.4/10K sold
Keep scrolling for year-by-year complaint trends, recall campaigns, and component breakdowns — or click any year above for a full report.
Why these years are worse
The most common issues driving the complaint spikes:
- airbags — 2,263 complaints (13.3% involved a crash)
- electrical faults — 2,228 complaints (1.9% involved a crash)
- engine problems — 2,144 complaints (2.4% involved a crash)
- steering defects — 1,463 complaints (3.1% involved a crash)
- fuel system — 1,092 complaints (2.0% involved a crash)
Honda CR-V Generations
Manufacturer redesigns the car every few years (a “generation”). Each generation has different engineering and common issues. Click a generation to see year-by-year breakdown.
| Generation | Years | Complaints | Crashes | US Sold | Volume | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gen 1 | 1997–2001 | 734 | 77 | — | Show years | |||
| Gen 2 | 2002–2006 | 2,965 | 255 | 320,247 | Show years | |||
| Gen 3 | 2007–2011 | 4,048 | 246 | 1,047,545 | Show years | |||
| Gen 4 | 2012–2016 | 3,289 | 262 | 1,666,497 | Show years | |||
| Gen 5 | 2017–2022 | 7,852 | 253 | 2,064,717 | Hide years | |||
| 2017 | 2,550 | 73 | 378,600 | View 2017View→ | ||||
| 2018 | 2,819 | 66 | 379,021 | View 2018View→ | ||||
| 2019 | 1,449 | 53 | 384,168 | View 2019View→ | ||||
| 2020 | 399 | 34 | 323,502 | View 2020View→ | ||||
| 2021 | 388 | 18 | 361,271 | View 2021View→ | ||||
| 2022 | 247 | 9 | 238,155 | View 2022View→ | ||||
| Gen 6 | 2023–present | 1,505 | 122 | 1,267,453 | Show years |
Which Years to Buy & Avoid
Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.
Rankings based on complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold — normalized for production volume so low-sales years aren't falsely rated "good".
Bottom line: Avoid the 1997–2004 Honda CR-V (242 crash-related complaints). The 2020–2022 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: Airbags.
Avoid These Years
Average
Better Years
Too New
Need 3+ years on the road for reliable complaint data.
A model's reputation is just the start.
Even within the “good” years, individual cars can have hidden accidents, title issues, or odometer rollbacks. Check the actual VIN before you buy — full history report for $4.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
Complaint Rate per 10,000 Vehicles Sold
Normalized by US annual sales volume — higher = more complaints relative to sales
Show raw complaint counts
Common Honda CR-V Problems
Most reported component complaints to NHTSA. Bar length = volume; color = crash-involvement rate.
Show full table
| Component | Complaints | Crash % |
|---|---|---|
| Airbags | 2,263 | 13.3% |
| Electrical Faults | 2,228 | 1.9% |
| Engine Problems | 2,144 | 2.4% |
| Steering Defects | 1,463 | 3.1% |
| Fuel System | 1,092 | 2.0% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking | 997 | 3.1% |
| Transmission / Drivetrain | 837 | 4.7% |
| Brakes | 803 | 16.1% |
| Latches / Locks | 505 | 0.6% |
| Unintended Acceleration | 496 | 27.6% |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
| Year | Generation | Complaints | Rate | US Sales | Crashes | Fires | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997NO DATA | Gen 1 | 129 | — | — | 15 | 1 | View → |
| 1998NO DATA | Gen 1 | 136 | — | — | 15 | 1 | View → |
| 1999NO DATA | Gen 1 | 158 | — | — | 21 | — | View → |
| 2000NO DATA | Gen 1 | 155 | — | — | 15 | 7 | View → |
| 2001NO DATA | Gen 1 | 156 | — | — | 11 | 3 | View → |
| 2002NO DATA | Gen 2 | 660 | — | — | 64 | 21 | View → |
| 2003NO DATA | Gen 2 | 580 | — | — | 56 | 28 | View → |
| 2004NO DATA | Gen 2 | 603 | — | — | 45 | 42 | View → |
| 2005 | Gen 2 | 600 | 39.9 | 150,219 | 51 | 27 | View → |
| 2006 | Gen 2 | 522 | 30.7 | 170,028 | 39 | 21 | View → |
| 2007AVOID | Gen 3 | 1,158 | 52.8 | 219,160 | 47 | 4 | View → |
| 2008AVOID | Gen 3 | 1,219 | 61.4 | 198,505 | 66 | 3 | View → |
| 2009 | Gen 3 | 446 | 23.3 | 191,214 | 36 | 4 | View → |
| 2010 | Gen 3 | 583 | 27.9 | 208,963 | 56 | 3 | View → |
| 2011 | Gen 3 | 642 | 27.9 | 229,703 | 41 | 3 | View → |
| 2012GOOD | Gen 4 | 502 | 16.1 | 311,069 | 47 | 6 | View → |
| 2013GOOD | Gen 4 | 493 | 16.0 | 308,454 | 36 | — | View → |
| 2014 | Gen 4 | 789 | 23.3 | 338,581 | 59 | 12 | View → |
| 2015 | Gen 4 | 963 | 27.6 | 348,720 | 58 | 6 | View → |
| 2016GOOD | Gen 4 | 542 | 15.1 | 359,673 | 62 | 5 | View → |
| 2017AVOID | Gen 5 | 2,550 | 67.3 | 378,600 | 73 | 5 | View → |
| 2018AVOID | Gen 5 | 2,819 | 74.4 | 379,021 | 66 | 2 | View → |
| 2019 | Gen 5 | 1,449 | 37.7 | 384,168 | 53 | 2 | View → |
| 2020GOOD | Gen 5 | 399 | 12.3 | 323,502 | 34 | 2 | View → |
| 2021GOOD | Gen 5 | 388 | 10.7 | 361,271 | 18 | 1 | View → |
| 2022GOOD | Gen 5 | 247 | 10.4 | 238,155 | 9 | — | View → |
| 2023 | Gen 6 | 623 | 17.2 | 361,457 | 33 | 3 | View → |
| 2024TOO NEW | Gen 6 | 505 | 12.5 | 402,791 | 43 | — | View → |
| 2025TOO NEW | Gen 6 | 287 | 7.1 | 403,768 | 36 | 2 | View → |
| 2026TOO NEW | Gen 6 | 90 | 9.1 | 99,437 | 10 | 4 | View → |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
Tap any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Data Sources & Methodology
Complaints: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation consumer complaint database (20,393 records for this model). Public domain data, updated monthly.
Sales data: US annual vehicle sales from goodcarbadcar. Coverage: 73% of model years have sales data. Total US sales: 6,366,459.
Rate calculation: Complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold = (complaint count / US annual sales) x 10,000. This normalizes for sales volume so high-volume models like Civic or Camry aren't unfairly penalized.
Year classifications: AVOID = 1.5x+ the model's median complaint rate. GOOD = 0.6x or below. Years less than 3 years old are marked TOO NEW (insufficient data).
See also: Honda CR-Vaccident & safety statistics from our vehicle history database.
Buying a Honda CR-V?
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