Diagsheet

2018 Honda Odyssey · symptom sheet

Transmission hesitates when accelerating

  • 36owner reports
  • 51,400median miles
  • 1involved a crash

Newest report Jun 1, 2026 · checked Sep 19, 2026

36 of the 68 reports of transmission shudder on the 2018 Odyssey describe hesitation when accelerating.

Part of Transmission shudders, slips or shifts hard (68 reports) · also: jerking or hard shifts

Tick what matches of 36 reports

33
7
18
2
6

What got replaced

Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the transmission (27 reports).

Recalls and investigations

One recall on the transmission and drivetrain covers the 2018 model year. A recall on the same system isn't always the same failure, so read the defect text.

19V-299Apr 12, 2019
Power Train:Automatic Transmission

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Loose battery terminal connections or a degraded battery may cause the Transmission Control Unit (TCU) to unexpectedly reboot. Upon rebooting, the TCU may shift the transmission to the "Park" position, possibly damaging the parking rod.

Risk and remedy
Risk: A damaged parking rod can allow the vehicle to roll when parked, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will ensure the battery terminal connections are secure and will update the TCU software, free of charge. Additionally, the parking rod effectiveness will be checked. The recall began May 31, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are Z4J, Y4K.

When it happens

The middle half of failures fell between 29,500 and 80,000 miles, from the 19 reports that gave a mileage.

218
119
321
422
1023
924
325
426

What owners wrote

“When driving at speed, the car will lose power, and you cannot go anywhere until the transmission reengages Also when starting out there is a hesitation sometimes very dangerous at intersections”

Filed May 14, 2026

“Transmission failure. We had issues with acceleration and hesitation. When brought to the dealership they didn’t find anything wrong, but then the transmission ended up failing completely.”

Filed Jun 3, 2025

“At around 25 miles per hour the vehicle has a transmission issue where the vehicle seems to hesitate, then downshift causing the vehicle to lurch forward. This happens regularly and started sometime before I acquired the vehicle with 48k miles. Honda dealer had no fix to the problem.”

Filed May 23, 2024 · 48,000 miles

Should you keep driving it?

This page can't tell you that. 1 of 36 reports involved a crash. 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.

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