2021 Honda Accord problems & reliability
231 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2021 Honda Accord, alongside 4 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Sep 23, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several components.
5 complaints report injuries (8 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2021 Honda Accord vehicles were involved in 76 fatal crashes with 42 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical System → | 61 | 26% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance → | 61 | 26% |
| Unknown / Other | 53 | 23% |
| Engine → | 35 | 15% |
| Service Brakes → | 28 | 12% |
| Lane Departure → | 15 | 6% |
| Air Bags → | 14 | 6% |
| Fuel/propulsion System → | 13 | 6% |
| Power Train → | 13 | 6% |
| Steering | 8 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 25 reported components →Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Among the 23 complaints that included a usable odometer reading, the median reported incident mileage was 71,080 miles (middle 50% between 19,000 and 99,000 miles).
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Sudden braking; car comes to a complete stop and brakes so Hard. Most likely fault from Collision Mitigation Brakking system”
Forward Collision Avoidance · filed Sep 19, 2026
“COMPONENT: Visibility--Exterior Rearview Mirror, Passenger Side. While driving normally, the passenger-side exterior rearview mirror glass/holder assembly suddenly shattered and completely detached from the mirror housing. There had been no known collision or contact with another vehicle or object. The passenger…”
Unknown / Other · filed Sep 15, 2026
“The car's infotainment system constantly glitches out and changes channels,outputs,texts,videos while car is being driven. It's very distracting and dangerous. It will literally do it 100's of times within a short period. It's much worse than any text messaging distraction, which is against the law. Several people…”
Electrical System · filed Sep 15, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking
Engineering Analysis EA24002 · opened Apr 15, 2024 · open
Technical service bulletins
139 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2021 Honda Accord. The 10 most recent:
Tech Line Summary - Customers may report that the center display unit changes screens on its own, registers unintended inputs, or operates erratically without user interaction. The condition may be more noticeable when…
AATS31549 · Other · issued Aug 31, 2026
Dealer Message - Under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, misfire, and/or DTCs P0300 through P0304 stored.
AEBM08262026901 · Other · issued Aug 26, 2026
Service Bulletin - Under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, misfire and/or DTCs P0300 thru P0304 stored.
A26-003 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 26, 2026
Service Bulletin - On certain 2018-2022 Accord and 2018-22 Accord Hybrid vehicles equipped with the Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto software upgrade, a programming issue within the Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto…
A26-068 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 21, 2026
Dealer Message - Due to a software programming issue within the Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto system, an invalid "License Authentication Error" message may appear on the Display Audio screen after approximately…
AEBM08212026901 · Other · issued Aug 21, 2026
Service Bulletin - There is a dull creaking, rubbing, popping, or clicking noise coming from the front of the vehicle while turning at low speeds potentially due to the bump stop contacting the top of the front damper…
A23-094 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 22, 2026
Tech Line Summary - Customers who have purchased the Accessory CarPlay /Android Auto upgrade are complaining that a pop-up message appears on the audio unit display stating, “Please insert USB drive containing valid…
ATS30025 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 19, 2025
Dealer Message - Some customers have reported a pop-up message on the audio unit display stating: “Please insert USB drive containing valid software license file and press OK button.” When this message appears, the…
APS&12192025902 · Other · issued Dec 19, 2025
Dealer Message - Some customers have reported a pop-up message on the audio unit display stating: “Please insert USB drive containing valid software license file and press OK button.” When this message appears, the…
AAR12192025901 · Other · issued Dec 19, 2025
Service Bulletin - Oil leak at timing chain tensioner inspection cover due to possible insufficient sealant adhesion on inspection cover.
A25-074 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 29, 2025
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2021 Honda Accord has 4 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2021 Honda Accord?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Among complaints with usable mileage, the median reported incident mileage was 71,080 miles. This does not predict when a particular vehicle will develop a problem.