Honda HR-V Years to Avoid and the Best Years

Years to avoid: 2023 At least twice the 36.5 complaints of a typical HR-V year. Most described: a cracked windshield.
Best years: 2021 Under three quarters of the 36.5 complaints of a typical HR-V year, with no open NHTSA investigation or do-not-drive or park-outside recall. The 2020 drew few complaints too, but its first three years fell in the pandemic, when people drove less.

Based on owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, not adjusted for sales. The 2024 to 2026 models are too new to judge. See every year ranked

Data: US EPA and NHTSAUpdated Nov 12, 2026

Every model year since 2016 in one place: EPA fuel economy, NHTSA recalls, owner complaints and crash test ratings. The best fuel economy rating, 31 mpg combined, arrived in 2016.

HR-V problems by year, ranked by owner complaints

How the years are ranked

Model years ranked by owner complaints filed with NHTSA in their first three years (model year Y: filed by the end of Y+2), so every year is measured over the same time on the road. Years without three full years of data, and launch or final years with very few sold, are left out. Counts are not adjusted for how many were sold.

A typical HR-V year drew 36.5 complaints in its first three years: the median of its ranked years. Years to avoid drew at least twice that, and at least 50. Best years are up to three years with the fewest complaints, each under three quarters of a typical year (36.5), with no open NHTSA investigation and no do-not-drive or park-outside recall that covers all versions; the 2020 is never picked, as its first three years fell in the pandemic. How the verdict works.

Model year	First 3 years	All complaints	Recalls
2023 HR-V Avoid Most described: a cracked or shattered windshield	671	689	3
2016 HR-V Most described: transmission failure or replacement	44	244	2
2022 HR-V Most described: transmission failure or replacement	41	90	3
2017 HR-V Most described: transmission failure or replacement	38	124	0
2019 HR-V Most described: gauge cluster or speedometer failures	35	242	7
2018 HR-V Most described: gauge cluster or speedometer failures	34	161	3
2021 HR-V Best Most described: transmission failure or replacement and gauge cluster or speedometer failures	13	66	4
2020 HR-V Most described: gauge cluster or speedometer failures	9	88	5

Compare other models' worst years in the worst model years guide.

Check your HR-V for open recalls

Opens NHTSA's lookup in a new tab; your VIN goes to NHTSA, not to us. The VIN is on the driver's side dashboard, the door jamb and your registration. Safety recall repairs are free at Honda dealers.

How to check a car for recalls, step by step

Get a vehicle history report from EpicVIN (opens in a new tab): a paid report with the car's title, odometer and salvage records, from an approved NMVTIS data provider. Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you buy. If you typed a full VIN above, the link sends it to EpicVIN and opens its checkout page for that VIN. Check the price before you pay: EpicVIN's $1 trial lasts 3 days, then becomes a monthly subscription until you cancel ($49.99 to $99.99 a month on its pages as of Oct 2, 2026). Disclosure

Year by year

Model year	Best rating	Recalls	Complaints
2026 MPG · Recalls and problems	28 mpg Gas	0	21
2025 MPG · Recalls and problems	28 mpg Gas	1	49
2024 MPG · Recalls and problems	28 mpg Gas	4	110
2023 MPG · Recalls and problems	28 mpg Gas	3	689
2022 MPG · Recalls and problems	30 mpg Gas	3	90
2021 MPG · Recalls and problems	30 mpg Gas	4	66
2020 MPG · Recalls and problems	30 mpg Gas	5	88
2019 MPG · Recalls and problems	30 mpg Gas	7	242
2018 MPG · Recalls and problems	31 mpg Gas	3	161
2017 MPG · Recalls and problems	31 mpg Gas	0	124
2016 MPG · Recalls and problems	31 mpg Gas	2	244

Owner complaints by model year

All complaints filed so far. Counts rise with sales volume and with time on the road, so recent years look better than they may turn out. The highlighted bar is the model year with the most complaints in its first three years.

2023: 689 complaints

Show as a table

Owner complaints by model year, Honda HR-V
Model year	Complaints
2016	244
2017	124
2018	161
2019	242
2020	88
2021	66
2022	90
2023	689
2024	110
2025	49
2026	21

Best combined rating by model year

The best-rated version in each model year. Gas: 28 to 31 mpg (every year from 2016 to 2026); highest in 2016.

2026: gas 28 mpg

Show as a table

Honda HR-V best combined mpg by model year
Model year	Best gas version
2016	31
2017	31
2018	31
2019	30
2020	30
2021	30
2022	30
2023	28
2024	28
2025	28
2026	28

Every HR-V year's ratings in one table

Comparisons

Subaru Crosstrek vs Honda HR-VMPG, fuel cost, recalls and crash tests

Questions

Which Honda HR-V years should you avoid?

The 2023 HR-V is the year to avoid: it drew at least twice the 36.5 owner complaints of a typical HR-V year in its first three years. Owners of the 2023 most often describe a cracked windshield. Complaints can't tell you whether a particular car is sound, so whatever the year, check its open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy. Safety recall repairs are free at Honda dealers.

What are the best Honda HR-V years?

The 2021 HR-V is the best year: it drew 13 owner complaints in its first three years, under three quarters of the 36.5 complaints of a typical HR-V year, and it has no open NHTSA investigation or recall telling owners not to drive or to park outside. The 2020 drew few complaints too, but its first three years fell in the pandemic, when people drove less. The 2024, 2025, and 2026 are not ranked yet: they have had fewer than three full years on the road.

Which Honda HR-V years have the most problems?

Counting owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, the 2023 (671) drew the most, then the 2016 (44). Owners of the 2023 most often describe a cracked or shattered windshield.

Which Honda HR-V years have the most recalls?

The 2019 has the most safety recalls in NHTSA's file (7), then the 2020 (5). A recall can cover a problem that affects only a few cars, so open a year's page to see what each one covers. No recall for 2016 to 2026 models tells owners not to drive the car or to park it outside.

What are the most common Honda HR-V problems?

In the 1,884 owner complaints NHTSA lists for 2016 to 2026 models, owners most often describe a cracked or shattered windshield (237 complaints, most of them for the 2023); transmission failure or replacement (109 complaints, most of them for the 2016, 2017, and 2022); and gauge cluster or speedometer failures (84 complaints, most of them for the 2018, 2019, and 2020). One complaint can describe several problems. Each year's recalls and problems page lists what owners describe for that year.

Which Honda HR-V year has the best MPG?

The best EPA fuel economy is 31 mpg combined, first reached by the 2016 gas version.

Sources and method

US EPA fuel economy data (fueleconomy.gov), file dated Nov 4, 2026.
NHTSA recall file dated Nov 12, 2026 and owner complaint file dated Nov 11, 2026; NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings.

Complaint counts are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.