Honda Recalls 635,808 Pilots, MDXs and TLXs That Can Lose Power Steering

• Honda is recalling 383,110 Pilots from model years 2023 to 2025, 177,100 Acura MDXs from 2022 to 2024 and 75,598 Acura TLXs from 2021 to 2025, a total of 635,808 vehicles.
• A software error in the electric power steering can shut off the assist, leaving a heavier wheel and warning lights, and Honda’s filing counts 146 warranty claims and one report of an injury.
• Dealers will reprogram the steering control unit for free, owner letters are due around December 14, and the VIN lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls opens on November 11.

A Software Error Can Switch Off Your Steering Assist on a Straight Road

Honda filed the recall with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on October 29, 2026, under NHTSA campaign number 26V721. Honda’s own recall numbers are KQB and TQA. The company estimates that 100 percent of the vehicles in the recall carry the faulty software, so an owner whose vehicle has never misbehaved is still on the list.

The fault sits in the electric power steering system, known as EPS. Honda’s filing describes the defect this way: “An improper electronic power steering (EPS) software configuration may cause the EPS system to enter failsafe mode under certain operating conditions.” It then describes what a driver sees: “If the EPS system enters failsafe mode, power steering assist is disabled, and the EPS warning indicators illuminate in the instrument cluster. Without power assist, steering effort increases, which may reduce vehicle controllability, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.”

The fix is a software update at a dealer, free of charge. Honda plans to mail owner letters on or about December 14, 2026, but NHTSA’s VIN lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls begins listing affected vehicles on November 11, so owners can check their own vehicle from that date without waiting for the mail.

Three Models, Three Different Piles of Vehicles

The Pilot carries the bulk of the recall. NHTSA’s records show 383,110 Pilots, about 60 percent of the total, built from September 13, 2022 to December 23, 2025. The Acura MDX adds 177,100 SUVs, about 28 percent, built from December 10, 2020 to July 10, 2024. The Acura TLX sedan makes up the remaining 75,598 vehicles, about 12 percent, built from August 11, 2020 to August 18, 2025.

The model years decide who is in and who is out. NHTSA lists the TLX for 2021 through 2025, the MDX for 2022 through 2024 and the Pilot for 2023 through 2025. A 2025 Acura MDX does not appear in the recall, and neither does a 2026 Honda Pilot. Honda built the list from manufacturing records, and the filing says the production range covers every vehicle that could experience the problem.

The filing states: “The affected models are no longer in production.” It does not say what software later model years carry, and NHTSA’s list stops at the 2025 Pilot. Owners of a newer vehicle who want certainty can run the VIN and ask a dealer. A 2026 Pilot sits outside this recall and has its own, much smaller one: 3,933 model year 2026 Pilots and Passports were recalled over loose subframe bolts on new Pilots, a separate campaign with a different fault.

What the Filing Says Went Wrong

The software came from a supplier, Robert Bosch Automotive Steering LLC, a Tier 1 company based in Florence, Kentucky. Across the three models, Honda lists 42 different power steering rack part numbers.

Honda’s filing gives the cause: “The supplier developed incorrect EPS software containing an error in the Driver Attention Monitor road-condition compensation calculation and an improperly configured response to the resulting internal error. Under specific operating conditions, the software may perform a floating-point division with a zero denominator, triggering an internal error. The EPS software was incorrectly configured to respond to this error by disabling power steering assist.”

The filing describes software that can divide by zero, a calculation with no answer, which sets off an internal error, and the setup then cuts the assist. NHTSA’s recall record sums up the consequence in one line: “A loss of power steering assist can increase the risk of a crash or injury.” The filing’s chronology also says when it happens. For February 2026 it reads: “Honda confirmed that the issue only occurs under certain operating conditions when the vehicle is driving straight.” The repair reprograms the control unit, and on the part itself the filing states: “The remedy component contains the correct EPS software.”

Stellantis recalled 265,512 Ram ProMaster vans over water in the power steering wiring harness, a different cause with a similar result, and the Ram ProMaster power steering recall explains how that one works.

Nearly Five Years From the First Report to a Recall

The timeline in the filing runs longer than most owners would expect. On November 29, 2021 the filing records the first report: “Honda received the first report of the issue.” The entry for August 2023 to August 2025 reads: “Honda received additional reports on the issue and continued to investigate with the supplier. However, due to the deletion of error codes by the dealer or supplier, no issues were found with returned parts.”

A steering rack that fails on the road and then tests clean on the bench gives an engineer nothing to fix. The filing records that on August 22, 2025 “The supplier identified the failure through market-return analysis.” For December 2025 the filing reads: “Honda was able to recreate the issue by analyzing dashcam footage and analysis results.” In February 2026 Honda narrowed down the driving conditions. Honda kept investigating on April 17, ran additional market research on June 17 and kept studying the symptoms through September and October. It decided on October 22, 2026 that a safety defect existed, and it filed with NHTSA seven days later.

From the first report to the recall decision, the gap comes to 4 years, 10 months and 23 days. The filing’s claims count reads: “As of October 22, 2026, Honda has had 146 warranty claims, one report of an injury, and no reports of a death related to this issue from May 22, 2022, to October 22, 2026.” The filing does not describe the injury.

That history carries a practical point for owners. By the filing’s account, the trace of earlier events was sometimes erased before anyone could study it. If a dealer has looked at a steering complaint on one of these vehicles, the recall repair is the real fix, and the old repair order is worth keeping.

What Honda Will Do and When

The filing lists the remedy type as a repair. Registered owners get a letter and are asked to take the vehicle to an authorized Honda or Acura dealer, and the filing’s description of the remedy program reads: “Registered owners of all affected vehicles will be contacted by mail and asked to take their vehicle to an authorized Honda or Acura dealer. The dealer will reprogram the EPS control unit with improved software.” NHTSA’s recall record adds: “Dealers will reprogram the EPS control unit, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed December 14, 2026. Owners may contact Honda’s customer service at 1-866-784-1870. Honda’s numbers for this recall are KQB and TQA. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning November 11, 2026.”

The schedule is phased. Honda planned to brief dealers around October 30, 2026 and to mail owners around December 14, 46 days after the filing and 53 days after the October 22 decision. NHTSA’s own page sets a 60 day limit: a maker has that long after telling the agency about a recall decision to send first class mail to registered owners. The December 14 date sits inside that limit.

The filing also points to the general reimbursement plan Honda has on file but does not reproduce its terms. An owner who has already paid for a steering repair on one of these vehicles can ask Honda customer service whether the plan applies.

What to Do Now

Start with the VIN. The 17 character number sits at the lower left of the windshield and also appears on the registration card and sometimes on the insurance card. Enter it at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup shows unrepaired recalls only, so a vehicle with nothing outstanding returns the message “0 unrepaired recalls associated with this VIN.” NHTSA warns that VINs for recently announced recalls are added continuously, so an empty result this week is worth checking again before the December mailing. The page accepts up to 100 VINs at once, which helps anyone with several family cars, and the free SaferCar app sends a phone alert if a recall appears later.

Next, call Honda customer service or a local Honda or Acura dealer, quote recall numbers KQB and TQA, and ask about software availability and the first open appointment. Owners do not have to wait for the December letter to ask about the repair. NHTSA’s Contact Us page (nhtsa.gov/contact-us) lists the Vehicle Safety Hotline, toll-free at 888-327-4236.

One point needs care. The printed Part 573 form carries the field “Consumer Advisories: Do Not Drive Park Outside”. NHTSA’s database sets both its park it and park outside flags to false, and the remedy text names no instruction to stop driving. The filing and the record disagree on that field, so call Honda or a dealer for guidance on a specific vehicle. Anyone who sees an EPS warning light or feels the steering turn heavy should call a dealer the same day, describe it, and file a complaint with NHTSA through its Report a Safety Problem page if the dealer finds nothing.

Recalls only protect vehicles that are repaired. NHTSA is asking for public comments by December 5 on the recalled vehicles that stay unrepaired. Run the VIN, book the appointment, and keep the receipt.

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Sources

• NHTSA: Part 573 Safety Recall Report 26V721
• NHTSA: Recall campaign 26V721000, Honda EPS software
• NHTSA: Check for Recalls
• Fox Business: Honda recalls more than 635,000 vehicles over steering defect that increases crash risk

Reviewed by Preetam Gadekar