2019 Honda HR-V Electrical System
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
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Vehicle experienced critical ignition system failure while parked - the engine would not turn off despite repeated attempts over 20 minutes. The vehicle has a communication failure between the ignition switch and the Body Control Module/Keyless Access Unit, creating a stuck electronic latch circuit (B12D3 latch error). This is consistent with Honda TSB 20-116. The keyless start system warning appeared on the dashboard. Unable to shut down the vehicle through normal means, I was forced to manually pull the fuel pump fuse from the fuse box and then disconnect the battery while the engine was still running. This created an extremely dangerous situation requiring me to work in the engine compartment with live electrical systems. The vehicle lacks proper failsafe shutdown mechanisms. This communication failure and stuck ignition circuit poses serious safety risks including fire hazard, carbon monoxide poisoning if in enclosed space, and electrical system damage. No officially stated emergency stop solutions had worked for this vehicle included the triple press and long press.
On random occasions (usually in damp or humid weather) the odometer and fuel gauge will black out. This has happened several times. It will revert to normal operation later
The electrical component on the dash that shows the gas gauge does not work during cold weather or rain mostly. I have looked this up online and many people have the same complaint.
I’m writing to express my concern regarding a recurring issue with the instrument cluster on my 2019 Honda HR-V. Specifically, the far-right section of the cluster — which includes the odometer and fuel gauge — frequently flickers or fails to display entirely. This makes it extremely difficult to monitor fuel levels or mileage, and I’m particularly concerned that the odometer may not be accurately recording the vehicle’s true mileage. After researching this issue, I’ve found that this is a well-documented problem among HR-V owners, with many attributing the failure to cracked solder joints on the instrument cluster circuit board. These cracks are believed to result from thermal expansion and contraction, exacerbated by the use of lead-free solder, which is more brittle than traditional alternatives. Given that this issue stems from a design and manufacturing decision — not from any misuse or neglect on my part — I feel strongly that this should be addressed as a manufacturer defect.
The entire odometer and fuel display on the right flickers with random characters and goes dark for long periods of time. Not knowing how much fuel seems to be a problem? Took it to the dealer and they indicated this is a common problem but have no remedies.
The odometer display/gas gauge goes blank for long periods of time while driving. When I took it to the dealer, they said, “Oh yes that is an HRV thing,” so they have seen this before clearly. It is a safety concern to not be able to see the odometer and gas gauge to know when fuel needs to be replaced in the vehicle.
The contact owns a 2019 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the instrument cluster malfunctioned and displayed a blank screen. During the failure, the driver was unable to view the fuel gauge and speedometer. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent and had occurred immediately after starting the vehicle and while driving. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were not contacted regarding the failure. The failure mileage was 45,000.
Gas gauge and mileage odometer lighted area blink Amon and off and sometimes go out completely for any length of time. Seems more so in colder temperatures
Electrical component that controls that stereo and dashboard are going out, almost $2000 to replace this. It controls what indicates the quantity of gas and any safety related information, such as the check engine light, to me as the driver. Without this, I could put people at risk by completely losing gas, since I can’t even track my milage either, as well as possibly causing a safety risk to myself and my family if the car has any safety issues going on, as I wouldn’t know until I took it to the shop.
Odometer display malfunction. Periodically, the display will go blank or display incorrectly. It also blinks on and off a lot.
The gauge cluster display will go in and out. There is apparently a faulty solder joint that gets affected in cold weather and until the car is warmed up the gauge cluster stays blank. I was informed that I need a new one at the cost of $1800+ for a 2019 HRV with 24000 miles. It seems very wrong that this part has failed.
Dash guage cluster randomly stops working or appears as scrabble. Includes fuel level, odometer, Trip meter, and all extraneous vehicle info. Could result in running out of gas at speed since no info is available. This is very unsafe and I am traveling to Florida as I type this.
The multi-information display screen in the instrument cluster continues to malfunction constantly. The screen will either flicker and go in and out or not display entirely. The screen outage can last long periods of time, sometimes weeks before displaying properly again. The following important information can not be retrieved including the odometer, fuel gauge, Engine oil life, and clock among others. The issue began in 2022 (two years into the vehicle's life) and has been a constant issue to the present time. The dealership admitted this was a common problem in certain Honda vehicles but didn't offer a fix other than replacing the entire instrument cluster with no guarantee that the problem would return.
The dial where the gas milage, temperature and other information is displayed does not come on at all times. The car is started, the display is blank or the radio screen does not work. I sometimes restart the car-up to 3 times to have the dial come on. This has happened a half a dozen times in the last 5 months. the car is parked overnight and this happens when the car is started the next day. the weather has been very cold (30s/40s) or warm temperatures (62/70). I have spoken with two different Honda dealer employees about this issue. They both said that unless this is happening in real time, any Honda dealer could not help me because their testing would not be accurate if they check the car after it happens. I do not know if it is a loose wire, a battery issue or if the digital panel needs to be replaced. I can not get an answer without a paid service call.
The odometer/fuel gauge (trip/fuel/mpg/time/temp/oil life display) is blank when the car starts. It occasionally goes out while driving. I originally thought it was just in cold weather but it has happened in summer too during extreme heat. The majority of times is when the temperatures are below 40. After a few miles it with flicker and eventually come back on when I reach my destination but if it's in the low 30s it doesnt come on at all. I have had it completely out for 3 days in a row when we had a cold spell. I even park in a garage with the hopes it would help but it does not. I feel not knowing how much fuel I have is a safety concern. I constantly have to top off my tank in cold weather not knowing if it will be out for days at a time. I have done research online into this issue, there are many other 2019 Honda HR-V owners that are having the same issue. In March of 2023 I showed my dealer pictures and videos of the gauge blank and flickering and they were able to get Honda to agree to replace the Meter Assembly at no cost to me when the part came in even though it was out of the warranty period. It has been a year and they still tell me the part has been backordered every time I call. They also told me they believe it stops keeping track of mileage when the gauge goes out.
Dash guage cluster randomly stops working. Includes fuel level, odometer, Trip meter, and all extraneous vehicle info. Could result in running out of gas at speed since no info is available
The odometer and other information on that gauge are blank upon starting the car. That includes the fuel gauge, clock, and thermometer. Some fiddling around with the knob eventually brings it back but the total mileage and Trip A mileage are lost (I need them for tax purposes). Today it says "range" where the total mileage should be. The second time it happened, nine months later (today), while driving, the numbers and bars/lines became incomplete. They were moving around a bit. After awhile, they came back. I understand that many other HRV drivers have the same problem and that the fix is expensive. I have had the car for two years and drive 1,000+ miles a year.
The car hesitates to start. Its a push to start and the start is slow and takes a minute to actually start. Just wondering if this is an issue w this vehicle itself.
Odometer (trip/fuel/mpg/time display) works intermittently and often has garbled readouts. When it is not working, distance traveled and fuel level is unknown, creating a safety concern. When the display is completely nonfunctional it is unknown when (or if) it will return to functioning.
There has been an issue with the Odometer (trip/fuel/mpg/time display) for my car. There was a factory recall for it and the software had been updated at the end of March or at the beginning of April, 23. However, the same issue has been restarted since last week (around 10/11/23). The odometer (trip/fuel/mpg/time display) is dark when I start my car. After I tapped several times, it was displayed but did not work properly. Also, you can see there is a time display difference between the odometer and the radio. Please see the pictures. Now, the Honda service department wants to charge for the diagnostic fee because the warranty has run out. This is unfair because of the same issue.
The contact owns a 2019 Honda HR-V The contact stated that the instrument cluster failed to show the fuel mileage or the mileage on the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the instrument cluster needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
The odometer/fuel gauge keeps going out when I’m driving and it’s so scary to not know how much gas I have or how many miles I’ve gone. This has been happening for over a year now.
The dashboard digital display of the mileage, fuel amount, date and temperature will intermittently go either completely blank or will glitch to the point of being unable to clearly read it. As I have done research online into this issue, there are many other 2019 Honda HR-V owners that are reporting/having the same issue. This is a safety issue due to not being able to rely on being able to consistently read the amount of fuel in the tank.
I'm reporting two issues: 1) The gas gauge (the 3rd circle on instrument panel) keeps going out. Over the 18 months, when starting the car on cold mornings, the gas gauge would show blank, I can't see how much gas I have in the car. After about 10 minutes, the gas gauge information would show up. I initially associated the issue with starting the car in cold weather, but in the last couple of months, the gas gauge will start flickering in & out as I'm driving. These have been on warm days I have been driving at least 30 minutes or more before the issue starts. Nothing unusual happens before the issue starts. The risk part is that you could run out of gas and not know it because you can't see the dial. I asked the dealer to look at the issue when the car was inspected this year and last year and they aren't seeing any error code related to it. 2) The drivers side door lock has on a few occasions been hard to lock from the inside. When I try to push down the lock switch, it is very hard to push and the click sound is very loud with an associated metal grinding sound. It's becomes a risk if I'm not able to lock by car to protect my safety or my possessions.
The gas gauge/mileage reader does not turn on in colder weather. There is no ability to tell how much gas is left in the tank or how many total miles are on the car. We ran out of gas on the middle of the highway because the gauge was not displaying how much was left in the tank. There are numerous reports of the same issue on this forum https://www.hrvforum.com/threads/fuel-gauge-goes-in-and-out.41212/
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The 2019 Honda HR-V has 28 Electrical System complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.