2012 Honda Accord Air Bags Problems

Source: NHTSA · Updated Aug 13, 2026 · 56 complaints analyzed

Owners have filed 56 complaints with NHTSA about air bags problems on the 2012 Honda Accord, 15% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 60,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “air bag” (36% of reports).

What owners describe

Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.

  • Air bag: mentioned in 20 of 56 complaints (36%)
  • Rear ended: mentioned in 7 of 56 complaints (13%)
  • Medical attention: mentioned in 6 of 56 complaints (11%)
  • Failed deploy: mentioned in 5 of 56 complaints (9%)

At what mileage do air bags problems happen?

Based on 38 complaints that reported the odometer reading.

Under 10k miles6 · 16%
10k–25k miles3 · 8%
25k–50k miles7 · 18%
50k–75k miles6 · 16%
75k–100k miles8 · 21%
100k–150k miles6 · 16%
150k+ miles2 · 5%

How serious are the reports?

Of 56 complaints, 27 mention a crash, 13 an injury.

Honda Accord air bags complaints by model year

Peak: 2000, with 454 complaints
1995: 21119951996: 1091997: 1131998: 7919981999: 742000: 4544542001: 40720012002: 2732003: 3182004: 25120042005: 2092006: 1302007: 16020072008: 3792009: 1432010: 13420102011: 1152012: 562013: 5120132014: 372015: 232016: 1620162017: 232018: 602019: 3120192020: 362021: 152022: 220222023: 22024: 22025: 22025

n = 3,915 complaints · Source: NHTSA

Model yearAir Bags complaintsShare of that yearMedian miles
2025 Accord22%14,000
2024 Accord21%—
2023 Accord22%—
2022 Accord21%73,000
2021 Accord156%—
2020 Accord3610%71,000
2019 Accord314%45,000
2018 Accord603%70,000
2017 Accord234%29,600
2016 Accord163%20,140
2015 Accord234%15,000
2014 Accord374%36,000
2013 Accord514%50,000
2012 Accord5615%60,000
2011 Accord11539%70,500
2010 Accord13423%63,000
2009 Accord14320%89,500
2008 Accord37925%80,000
2007 Accord16031%78,000
2006 Accord13030%106,000
2005 Accord20932%82,500
2004 Accord25125%88,750
2003 Accord31816%90,000
2002 Accord27326%85,500
2001 Accord40744%85,500
2000 Accord45438%80,000
1999 Accord747%106,500
1998 Accord797%103,281
1997 Accord11325%75,500
1996 Accord10923%111,504
1995 Accord21139%112,500

When owners reported it

Peak: 2018, with 12 complaints
2012: 2201222013: 3201332014: 2201422015: 6201562016: 4201642017: 8201782018: 122018122019: 6201962020: 5202052021: 3202132022: 1202212023: 3202332024: 120241

n = 56 complaints · Source: NHTSA

Related recalls (8)

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleJun 27, 2019 · NHTSA campaign 19V502000 · 9,555 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX, 2011-2014 TSX Sport Wagon, 2010-2013 ZDX, 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic and Civic Hybrid, 2008-2010 Civic GX NGV, 2012-2015 Crosstour, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2013 Fit, 2014 Fit EV, 2010-2014 Insight, and 2009-2015 Pilot vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with passenger frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 12, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are F5F and Q5E.

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleMay 16, 2019 · NHTSA campaign 19V378000 · 19,138 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX, 2011-2013 TSX Sport Wagon, and 2010-2012 ZDX and 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic, Civic Hybrid and Civic NGV, 2012-2014 Crosstour, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2013 Fit, 2010-2013 Insight, and 2009-2015 Pilot vehicles. The front passenger air bag inflator may have been installed incorrectly during replacement.

Risk: An incorrectly installed air bag inflator may not properly deploy the passenger frontal air bag in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the inflator installation and, if necessary, replace the passenger frontal air bag module assembly, free of charge. The recall began July 5, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are M4O, P4R, T4Q, and W4P.

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleSep 27, 2018 · NHTSA campaign 18V661000 · 1,355,406 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2014 Honda Insight and Acura TSX and TSX Wagon, 2014-2015 Honda Crosstour and Pilot vehicles nationwide, as well as certain 2014 Honda FCX Clarity and Fit EV vehicles in Florida, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, California, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan) and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Honda is also recalling certain 2011-2013 Acura TSX, TSX Wagon and ZDX, Honda Crosstour, Insight, Fit and Pilot vehicles, 2011-2012 Honda Accord and 2011 Honda Civic NGV, Civic, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. Lastly, Honda is recalling certain 2010-2013 Acura TSX and ZDX, Honda Crosstour, Fit, Insight and Pilot, 2011-2013 TSX Wagon, 2010-2012 Honda Accord and 2010-2011 Honda Civic NGV, Civic, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag air bag inflators assembled as part of the frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to higher absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began November 6, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are M2J and S2K.

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleApr 26, 2018 · NHTSA campaign 18V268000 · 1,335 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2003-2012 Honda Accord and Pilot, 2010 Accord Crosstour, 2001-2011 Civic, 2002-2011 CR-V, 2003-2004, 2006-2008 and 2011 Element, 2007 and 2009-2013 Fit, 2010-2012 Insight, 2002-2004 Odyssey, and 2012 Ridgeline vehicles. The front passenger air bag may have been installed incorrectly during replacement.

Risk: An incorrectly installed air bag may deploy improperly in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the passenger frontal air bag module assembly, free of charge. The recall began June 22, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are K1P, and M1O.

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleJan 9, 2018 · NHTSA campaign 18V042000 · 691,726 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Acura TSX, ZDX, Honda Accord Crosstour, Fit, Insight and Pilot vehicles, 2011-13 Acura TSX Sportswagon, 2010-2012 Honda Accord,, 2010-2011 Honda Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles and 2013 Honda FCX Clarity and Fit EV vehicles ever registered in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Honda is recalling certain 2010-2012 Acura TSX, Honda Accord, Accord Crosstour, Fit and Pilot, 2010-2011 Honda Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid and CR-V, and 2010 Acura ZDX and Honda Insight vehicles ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Unless included in Zones A or B above, Honda is recalling certain 2009 Acura TSX, Honda Accord, Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid, CR-V, Fit, and Pilot vehicles ever registered in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to higher absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began February 16, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are B0K and L0J.

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleAug 31, 2017 · NHTSA campaign 17V545000 · 3,257 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2008-2012 Accord, 2010-2012 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2012 Fit and Pilot, 2010-2012 Insight, and 2009-2012 Acura TSX vehicles that received replacement passenger frontal air bag inflators. One dealership may have incorrectly installed the replacement air bag inflators.

Risk: In the event of a crash, an incorrectly installed passenger frontal air bag inflator may deploy the air bag improperly, increasing the risk of injury.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag module assembly, free of charge. The recall began October 30, 2017. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are O07, Y0A, N06, G05, M04, Y01, and O09.

Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleJan 10, 2017 · NHTSA campaign 17V030000 · 977,708 vehicles

Problem: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2012 Acura TSX, 2011-2012 Acura TSX Wagon, 2010-2012 Acura ZDX, 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2012 Honda Accord Crosstour and Honda Insight, 2009-2012 Honda Fit, 2009-2012 Pilot, 2007-2011 Honda CR-V, 2012 Honda FCX Clarity and 2006-2011 Honda Civic, Civic Hybrid, Civic NGV vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, if not included in "Zone A" above, Honda is recalling certain 2009 Acura TSX, Honda Fit and Pilot, 2008-2009 Honda Accord, 2006-2009 Civic, Civic Hybrid and Civic NGV, and 2007-2009 Honda CR-V vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Additionally, if not included in "Zone B" above, Honda is recalling certain 2008 Honda Accord, 2006-2008 Honda Civic, Civic Hybrid and Civic NGV and 2007-2008 Honda CR-V vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger side air bag inflator, free of charge. The manufacturer has mailed an interim notification, and will send a second notification when parts are available. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KE1 and KE2.

Air bags:side/windowFeb 1, 2012 · NHTSA campaign 12V030000 · 347 vehicles

Problem: Honda is recalling certain model year 2012 accord and crosstour vehicles. The driver-side or passenger-side side curtain airbag inflator may not have been manufactured according to correct specifications.

Risk: In the event of a crash, the side curtain airbag may fail to deploy, increasing the risk of injury.

Fix: Honda will replace the driver's side or passenger's side side curtain airbag as needed free of charge. The safety recall began on february 24, 2012. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.

What owners report

Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.

Air bags failed. It is available. Lukily i'm safe. I don'nt know. No one inspected the vehicle, except the police at the incident location. No warning lamps observed prior to the incident.

Received Feb 29, 2024 · NHTSA complaint 11574798

I have attempted to notify multiple people numerous times that I no longer own the VIN attached and yet I continue to receive recall notices. A simple check of any standard vehicle history report will show where the vehicle was last known to have been serviced. Please discontinue sending these…

Received Oct 27, 2023 · NHTSA complaint 11552250

At around 7:25am this morning I was driving to work in traffic and I was needing to stop, but my brakes were not working properly. They went all the way to the floor, no pressure, and I rear ended another person going 35mph. My entire front-end of my vehicle is totalled and my airbags did not even…

Received Aug 24, 2023 · NHTSA complaint 11540525
Honda Accord
Urban Gray Pearl Honda Accord Hybrid Touring CY2 sedan at Honda Ilsan Dealership.. Representative photo; appearance varies by model year. Photo: Damian B Oh, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Frequently asked questions

Do all 2012 Honda Accords have air bags problems?

No. NHTSA has 56 owner complaints about air bags for the 2012 Honda Accord (15% of the 373 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.

Was there a recall on the 2012 Honda Accord air bags?

Yes: 8 safety recalls list air bags. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.

At what mileage do air bags problems start?

The median reported mileage is 60,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.

What do owners say about air bags problems on the 2012 Honda Accord?

The most frequent phrase is “air bag”, in 20 of 56 complaints, followed by “rear ended” (7).

Other 2012 Honda Accord problems

See all 2012 Honda Accord problems or air bags problems across all Accord years.