2016 Honda HR-V Power Train Problems
Owners have filed 75 complaints with NHTSA about power train problems on the 2016 Honda HR-V, 31% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 78,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “cvt transmission” (19% of reports).
- 75power train complaints
- 78,000median miles at failure
- 0mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- $8,450typical repair cost reported by owners
- 56%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- CVT transmission: mentioned in 14 of 75 complaints (19%)
- Limp mode: mentioned in 8 of 75 complaints (11%)
- Tow truck: mentioned in 5 of 75 complaints (7%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical power train repair on the 2016 Honda HR-V at $8,450, and half of them between $7,950 and $9,700.
Based on 11 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2019–2026), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do power train problems happen?
Based on 35 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
None of the 75 complaints report a crash, fire or injury.
Honda HR-V power train complaints by model year
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists power train for the 2016 Honda HR-V. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
Vehicle: 2016 Honda HR-V Approximate Mileage: 114,400 miles Incident Description: While driving at highway speeds on the freeway, the vehicle suffered a sudden, catastrophic loss of motive power and dropped into an emergency "limp mode." The vehicle suddenly refused to accelerate and could not…
CVT has gone into safety/limp mode. June 7 2026 First sign was the EPB not releasing. Became drivable after warm up period. Replaced EPB switch and vehicle drove normally. There was still a parking brake caution light. On July 12, 2026 the issue repeated. This time the check engine light and…
Car went into limp mode far from home. Lots of lights on the dash lit up. I scanned the OBD and it came back with code P271E to replace the automatic transmission assembly. This was confirmed by a transmission repair shop. This is a known issue by Honda and they have issued service bulletins 21-046…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2016 Honda HR-Vs have power train problems?
No. NHTSA has 75 owner complaints about power train for the 2016 Honda HR-V (31% of the 241 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 2016 Honda HR-V power train?
No recall currently lists power train for this vehicle.
At what mileage do power train problems start?
The median reported mileage is 78,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
How much does it cost to fix power train problems on the 2016 Honda HR-V?
Owners report a typical cost of $8,450 (half paid between $7,950 and $9,700), from 11 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about power train problems on the 2016 Honda HR-V?
The most frequent phrase is “cvt transmission”, in 14 of 75 complaints, followed by “limp mode” (8).
Other 2016 Honda HR-V problems
See all 2016 Honda HR-V problems or power train problems across all HR-V years.