Honda nearly recalled 304,000 Accords and HR-Vs due to missing and defective seatbelts. Recently, Honda released its safety report to the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration).
According to the report, the pretensioners in the seatbelts do not consist of rivets. These will make the seatbelts loose, which will fail to keep occupants in place during a crash or a hard brake. Pretensioners are those materials in seatbelts that keep them tight.
The report said,
“Front seat belt pretensioners were assembled without a rivet securing the quick connector and wire plate […] Seat belt pretensioners missing a rivet will not properly restrain the occupant in the event of a collision, increasing the risk of injury.” The report described the cause – “The installation of the rivet was skipped during assembly.” (source)
The automaker also reported that as of November 16, there were no reports or deaths based on the problem. However, there were a few warranty claims against the issue.
Honda recalled those vehicles that they had manufactured between October 4, 2022, and October 14, 2023. These consist of 2023 and 2024 models of Honda Accords and HR-Vs. As per claims from Honda, only 1% of the recalled vehicles will require repairs.
The owners need to take the recalled cars to the nearest authorized Honda dealership. The dealership will then inspect whether there is a need to replace pretensioners or not. To know whether your vehicle faced a recall or not, you can enter your Vehicle Identification Number on Honda’s Recall Webpage. You can also check by calling (888) 234-2138. Honda’s plans also include notifying individual owners by mail by January 8, 2024. You can also enter your VIN on the website of NHTSA, to check whether your vehicle will be recalled or not.
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