Honda is recalling more than 300,000 vehicles in the United States because their seat belts could be missing a critical component.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Accords and HR-Vs from the 2023 and 2024 model years may be equipped with front seat belt pretensioners that are missing a rivet which “secures the quick connector and wire plate.” The government says installation of the rivet was skipped during assembly and the resulting components might not properly restrain occupants in the event of a collision.
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This increases the risk of injury and the government noted the vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards involving seat belts and occupant crash protection.
The components were made by Joyson Safety Systems and Honda first became aware of the issue in May. The automaker then received affected parts in September and began an investigation, which eventually lead to the recall. Honda has received seven warranty claims related to the issue, but they’re unaware of any injuries or deaths.
The fix is relatively straightforward as owners will be contacted and told to take their vehicle to a Honda dealer, who will inspect and, if necessary, replace the seat belt pretensioner assembly. Honda estimates that only 1% of the 303,770 vehicles being recalled have the defect, but that’s still roughly 3,038 units.
