NHTSA vehicle safety data

2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell Recalls & Complaints

The 2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns and 2 owner complaints on file as of November 3, 2026. Recall repairs are usually free at an authorized Honda dealer.

NHTSA recall and complaint data for the 2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell owner complaints

Owners have filed 2 complaints with NHTSA about the 2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell, describing incidents dated December 11, 2019 to April 5, 2020.

Most-cited components

Fuel/Propulsion System 1 complaint
Vehicle Speed Control 1 complaint

Newest complaints

ODI #11325815 · Filed May 21, 2020
2018 HONDA CLARITY. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE NOT ACCELERATING OVER 30 MPH. *LD *JS THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE SAT IN PARK FOR 30 MINUTES, AFTER WHICH IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 30MPH AND THE RPMS ESCALATED TO RPMS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO 3 DIFFERENT REPAIR SHOPS NONE WERE ABLE…
ODI #11322892 · Filed April 30, 2020
2018 HONDA CLARITY FUEL CELL EXPERIENCED A SUDDEN REDUCTION IN POWER DUE TO A FAILURE OF THE FUEL CELL POWER GENERATION. THE CAR DISPLAYED AN ERROR MESSAGE "POWER SYSTEM PROBLEM. STOP DRIVING WHEN SAFE" WHILE DRIVING AT FREEWAY SPEEDS ON THE FREEWAY. THE CAR THEN HAD LOW POWER AND WAS RUNNING OFF…

Read all 2 complaints

Electric Water Pump May Corrode And Fail

NHTSA #19V315000 · Equipment — Electrical · NHTSA notice

Reported April 18, 2019 · Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)

Potentially affected: 1,082 vehicles

Repair completion: 62.37% (latest rate the manufacturer reported to NHTSA; dataset updated November 3, 2026)

Honda campaign N5H · Owners notified June 10, 2019 · Vehicles built December 29, 2017 – February 28, 2018 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Clarity Fuel Cell vehicles. Internal components may corrode and cause the water pump to fail.

Safety consequence

A failure of the water pump can cause the vehicle to stall, increasing the risk of crash.

Manufacturer remedy

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the water pump, free of charge. The recall began June 10, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is L4N.

Notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Vehicle May Lose Power

NHTSA #18V921000 · Electrical System — Software · NHTSA notice

Reported December 20, 2018 · Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)

Potentially affected: 1,082 vehicles

Repair completion: 98.33% (latest rate the manufacturer reported to NHTSA; dataset updated November 3, 2026)

Honda campaign A3O · Owners notified February 14, 2019 · Vehicles built December 29, 2017 – February 28, 2018 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Clarity Fuel Cell vehicles previously repaired under recall 18V-068. The previous software remedy may have been incomplete. As a result, the fuel cell control unit (FC-ECU) may misinterpret a small cell voltage drop, causing the vehicle to have a partial or complete loss of power.

Safety consequence

A loss of power can increase the risk of a crash.

Manufacturer remedy

Honda has notified owners, and dealers will update the FC-ECU software, free of charge. The recall began February 14, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is A3O.

Notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell 4 DR FWD

—

out of 5

Overall Safety Rating

Not Rated

Frontal Crash

Not Rated

Driver: Not Rated, Passenger: Not Rated

Side Crash

Not Rated

Driver: Not Rated, Passenger: Not Rated

Side Pole

Not Rated

Rollover

Not Rated

Safety Technology

Electronic Stability Control Forward Collision Warning Lane Departure Warning

2 owner complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell.

Vehicle Speed Control

ODI #11325815

Incident: December 11, 2019 · Filed: May 21, 2020

2018 HONDA CLARITY. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE NOT ACCELERATING OVER 30 MPH. *LD *JS THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE SAT IN PARK FOR 30 MINUTES, AFTER WHICH IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 30MPH AND THE RPMS ESCALATED TO RPMS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO 3 DIFFERENT REPAIR SHOPS NONE WERE ABLE TO MAKE THE REPAIRS. THE CONSUMER STATED THE MPG DROPPED FROM 44 TO 24.7.*JS

Fuel/Propulsion System

ODI #11322892

Incident: April 5, 2020 · Filed: April 30, 2020

2018 HONDA CLARITY FUEL CELL EXPERIENCED A SUDDEN REDUCTION IN POWER DUE TO A FAILURE OF THE FUEL CELL POWER GENERATION. THE CAR DISPLAYED AN ERROR MESSAGE "POWER SYSTEM PROBLEM. STOP DRIVING WHEN SAFE" WHILE DRIVING AT FREEWAY SPEEDS ON THE FREEWAY. THE CAR THEN HAD LOW POWER AND WAS RUNNING OFF THE BATTERY. AFTER PULLING OVER AND TURNING OFF THE CAR AND RESTARTING, IT HAD THE SAME ERROR WITH LOW BATTERY ONLY. THEN WE TURNED OFF, WAITED ABOUT TEN MINUTES, RESTARTED THE CAR, AND THE FUEL CELL SYSTEM SEEMED FINE. THE BATTERY BEGAN TO CHARGE. WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM SINCE THEN. THIS CAR HAS PREVIOUSLY ALREADY HAD ALL RECALLS COMPLETED, INCLUDING THE SOFTWARE UPDATE TO ADDRESS POWER SYSTEM FAILURES LAST YEAR.

Other Honda Clarity Fuel Cell model years

Check your 2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell VIN

Not every recall applies to every VIN in a given year. Enter the 17-character VIN from your Honda Clarity Fuel Cell at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether your specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.

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