2020 Honda Pilot · symptom sheet
Brakes on its own (automatic emergency braking)
- 41owner reports
- 13,800median miles
- $1,727median quote
- 2involved a crash
Newest report Sep 27, 2026 · checked Oct 2, 2026
118 of the 489 complaints on this car are about collision avoidance. 41 of those describe phantom braking.
Tick what matches of 41 reports
Phantom braking on other Pilot years
Report counts are for each model year on its own, so a newer car has had less time to collect them. Model years with too few reports of it for a sheet: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026.
What this problem usually is
Phantom braking is a car that brakes hard on its own, often at highway speed, with nothing in the road ahead. About one owner in five mentions a near miss with the car behind.
What got replaced
Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the radar or camera sensor (21 reports), the windshield (5 reports) and the software (3 reports).
Recalls and investigations
No recall on collision avoidance covers the 2020 model year as of Oct 2, 2026.
NHTSA investigations into collision avoidance on the Pilot
Vehicle stability assist malfunction. Closed mar 15, 2013.
None of these investigations covers the 2020 model year.
What owners paid
8 of the 41 reports quote a price. Each dot is one quote. The middle half runs $1,284 to $2,000.
When it happens
Too few of these reports state a mileage to give a range.
What owners wrote
“Front facing camera fail. Causing brake system adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist , collision mitigation, road departure mitigation. Auto high beams to not work”
Filed Sep 18, 2026
“The LKAS camera stopped working and it wonât allow any of the connected systems to operate including ACC, emergency brake assist, cruise control, etc.”
Filed Sep 4, 2025
“No incident. Turned my car on and the ACC, LKAS, Collision mitigation and brake system lights all are amber.”
Filed Jun 10, 2025
“Several system failures relates to a faulty multipurpose camera used by the Honda Sensing system from collision avoidance, adaptive cruise control and land keeping assist. Multipurpose camera premature failure leads to loss of several safety features.”
Filed May 9, 2025
Should you keep driving it?
This page can't tell you that. 2 of 41 reports involved a crash and 3 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. How reports land on this sheet.
Guide Taking it to a shop? How to describe this problem so it gets found
Other problems on this car
- Infotainment, screen or backup camera fails 169 reports
- Engine stalls or loses power while driving 93 reports
- Battery dies or the car will not start 46 reports
- Forward collision warning goes off or the camera drops out 46 reports
- Adaptive cruise or lane keeping misbehaves 36 reports
- Brakes grind, pulse or wear early 26 reports