2018 Honda CR-V · symptom sheet

Burns oil or oil level rises

130owner reports
5,853median miles
0involved a crash

Newest report Aug 11, 2026 · checked Sep 9, 2026

937 of the 2,132 complaints on this car are about the engine. 130 of those describe oil consumption.

Tick what matches of 130 reports

oil smells like gas

the oil level rises

low oil light came on

the dealer called it normal

What got replaced

Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the piston rings (28 reports) and the turbo (16 reports).

Recalls and investigations

2 recalls on the engine cover the 2018 model year. A recall on the same system isn't always the same failure, so read the defect text.

23V-858Dec 18, 2023

Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Risk and remedy

Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.

21V-215Mar 25, 2021

Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Acura MDX, MDX Sport Hybrid, RDX, TLX, Honda Accord, Civic Hatchback, Insight, 2019 Acura ILX, Honda Accord Hybrid, Civic Coupe, Civic Coupe Si, Civic Sedan, Civic Sedan Si, Civic Type R, Fit, HR-V, Odyssey, Passport, Pilot and Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 CR-V vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Risk and remedy

Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed May 18, 2021. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 20V-314.

NHTSA investigations into the engine on the CR-V

EA04-027opened Sep 9, 2004

Engine And Engine Cooling · model years 2003 to 2005

Underhood fires. Closed jan 19, 2005.

NHTSA summary

IN DOCUMENTS PROVIDED DURING EA04-027, HONDA IDENTIFIED A MECHANISM WHICH CAUSES THE RUBBER SEAL (GASKET) OF THE ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT (OE) OIL FILTER TO ADHERE TO THE ENGINE BLOCK OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.IF AN ADHERED SEAL REMAINS WHEN THE OE FILTER IS REMOVED AND A NEW FILTER IS INSTALLED, A DOUBLE GASKET CONDITION RESULTS.A SUBSEQUENT RUPTURE OF THE EXTRANEOUS SEAL CAN RESULT IN OIL CONTACTING NEARBY EXHAUST SYSTEM SURFACES AND A FIRE MAY OCCUR.THROUGHOUT ITS DISCUSSIONS WITH ODI, HONDA HAS MAINTAINED THAT IT IS THE SERVICING TECHNICIAN?S RESPONSIBILITY TO INSPECT FOR AND REMOVE THE SEAL PRIOR TO INSTALLING A NEW FILTER.ODI?S ANALYSIS FOUND THAT SEAL ADHESION, IN CONJUNCTION WITH TECHNICIAN ERROR AND EXHAUST COMPONENT LOCATION, RESULTED IN A HIGH RATE OF SUBJECT VEHICLE OIL FILTER FIRES COMPARED TO EARLIER MODELS AND PEERS.VEHICLES THAT HAVE NOT HAD THE OE FILTER DISTURBED ARE NOT AT RISK.SERVICE REPLACEMENT FILTER SEALS, WHICH ARE MANUFACTURED BY A DIFFERENT SUPPLIER, DO NOT EXHIBIT THE SEAL ADHESION CONDITION.THEREFORE, IF THE INITIAL OIL CHANGE IS DONE PROPERLY, THE ELEVATED FIRE RISK IS ELIMINATED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE VEHICLE?S LIFE.BASED ON AVERAGE MILEAGE ACCUMULATION AND OIL SERVICE INTERVAL, ODI ESTIMATES THAT MORE THAN TWO THIRDS OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES HAVE RECEIVED THEIR INITIAL OIL CHANGE AND ARE NO LONGER AT AN ELEVATED RISK.HONDA CHANGED THE DESIGN OF THE FILTER SEAL TO PREVENT THE ADHESION CONDITION AND INTRODUCED THE NEW SEAL AT BOTH CR-V ASSEMBLY PLANTS I

PE04-018opened Feb 19, 2004

Engine And Engine Cooling · model years 2003

Oil filter fires. Closed jul 1, 2004.

NHTSA summary

THIS INVESTIGATION IDENTIFIED 32 INCIDENTS OF OIL FILTER LEAKAGE IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLE POPULATION, WITH 22 RESULTING IN VEHICLE FIRES.ALL OF THE INCIDENTS OCCURRED FOLLOWING OIL CHANGES.HONDA'S INVESTIGATION OF 14 OF THE FIRE INCIDENTS DETERMINED THAT FIVE OIL FILTERS HAD STACKED SEALS (DOUBLE-GASKETING), AND NINE OIL FILTERS HAD DISTORTED OR PINCHED SEALS.ACCORDING TO HONDA, BOTH CONDITIONS RESULT FROM FAILURE TO FOLLOW NECESSARY REPAIR PROCEDURES. STACKED SEALS RESULT FROM FAILURE OF THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN TO REMOVE THE OLD SEAL PRIOR TO INSTALLING THE NEW FILTER AND SEAL.DISTORTED OR PINCHED SEALS RESULT FROM FAILURE TO PROPERLY LUBRICATE THE NEW SEAL PRIOR TO INSTALLATION. OIL LEAKAGE FROM A STACKED, DISTORTED, OR PINCHED SEAL CAN BE IGNITED BY HEAT FROM THE EXHAUST SYSTEM, WHICH IS LOCATED NEAR THE OIL FILTER IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.HONDA WILL ISSUE COMMUNICATIONS TO ITS DEALERS WARNING OF THE NECESSITY TO FOLLOW CORRECT PROCEDURES WHEN REPLACING OIL FILTERS IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES AND OF THE POTENTIAL FOR VEHICLE FIRES TO RESULT FROM IMPROPER REPAIRS.ODI WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN MY 2003 AND LATER CR-V VEHICLES.THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT NO SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT EXISTS.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

None of these investigations covers the 2018 model year.

When it happens

The middle half of failures fell between 3,000 and 10,500 miles, from the 99 reports that gave a mileage.

5718

5419

720

321

322

123

124

225

226

What owners wrote

“The 1.5L turbo engine in my 2018 Honda CR-V is experiencing oil dilution. Raw fuel mixes with the engine oil, lowering flashpoint and thinning viscosity. This creates a fire risk, loss of lubrication, accelerated engine wear, and potential stalling. Honda issued TSBs, but the problem persists. This is a serious safety defect.”
Filed Sep 5, 2025

“Engine failure while driving on the highway. This is related to the oil dilution issue with the 1.5 turbo engines on our 2018 CRV. Valve got destroyed. Honda dealer replaced the cylinder head under warranty at no cost to us.”
Filed Dec 22, 2023

“Engine oil diluted. 2/8/2022 Engine oil was Diluted by 55mm. This happened within 400 miles of the last oil change. That's a lot of gasoline in the oil and oil viscosity is significantly decreased. All updates/recalls have been completed on the vehicle. The updates that are specific to this issue have been completed. Talking to Honda dealership, this is extremely unnormal and results in premature engine wear.”
Filed Feb 8, 2022

Should you keep driving it?

This page can't tell you that. 0 of 130 reports involved a crash and 1 people were hurt. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.

File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation.