NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE25-018: Inadvertent Deployment of Side Air Bags
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE25-018 on October 28, 2025 and closed it on June 25, 2026. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2018–2022 Honda Odyssey for it and links recall 26V-227 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE25-018 (also written PE25018)
- Investigation type
- Preliminary Evaluation The first stage of most defect investigations: NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation gathers basic information about a possible safety defect, including from the manufacturer.
- Status
- Closed June 25, 2026
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)
- Components
- Air Bags; Air Bags — Sensor — Side Impact; Air Bags — Side/Window
- Recall linked by NHTSA
- 26V-227: Air Bags May Deploy Unexpectedly, reported
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2018–2022 Honda Odyssey
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE25-018.
try.vin does not copy NHTSA's investigation documents; NHTSA's investigation record lists the ones NHTSA has published.
On October 28, 2025, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE25018 to investigate complaints of inadvertent deployment of the side curtain and/or side thorax air bags. These complaints concern model year (MY) 2018-2022 Honda Odyssey vehicles manufactured by American Honda Motor Co. (Honda). Honda issued recall 26V227 on April 9, 2026, to address concerns of inadvertent side air bag deployment. In the recall filing, the company stated that “[a]s of April 2, 2026, Honda has had 130 warranty claims, 25 reports of an injury, and no reports of death related to this issue from January 24, 2017 – April 2, 2026.” Honda states that the Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) contains incorrect deployment parameters for the side thorax and side curtain air bags, which may cause inadvertent deployment when the vehicle encounters strong road impacts, such as driving over potholes, speed bumps, or road debris. Honda stated that the SRS control logic for the second and third rows of seating contained an insufficient deployment threshold margin, allowing signal inputs to be misinterpreted as side impacts and causing inadvertent deployment of the side thorax and side curtain air bags. Recall 26V227 states that dealers will reprogram or replace the SRS ECU with improved air bag deployment parameters. Consumers received notice of this recall in late May 2026. In view of the recall being conducted by Honda, ODI is closing this Preliminary Evaluation (PE). The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the ODI reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE25-018. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
What an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Honda VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE25-018
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.