2020 Honda Accord

Showing the 2020 Accord EX. We haven't verified this trim's engine; the numbers below cover every version of this model year. Every version

Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.

About every 2020 Accord

The 2020 Honda Accord drew 403 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, most often about collision warning and automatic braking (111). Its combined fuel economy ranges from 26 to 48 mpg, with a 5-year fuel cost of $6,770 to $12,490 at U.S. average prices. NHTSA gives it 5 overall stars. Recall campaigns may apply to this car, 6 in all, covering air bags, fuel system, electrical system, and others.

Written by AI from public EPA and NHTSA data. Not a review.

Fuel economy
26–48 mpgcombined; city 22–48, highway 32–47; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$6,770–$12,490U.S. average; Ohio $6,050–$11,160 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
5 starslowest across the versions NHTSA tested
Recall campaigns
6over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
403filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2020 Accord. A trim's engine and numbers are shown as its own only where EPA names versions after the trim and no other version could be it; "seen with" means a source shows that engine on the trim, not that it was the only one. Recalls and complaints cover the whole model year: whether a recall applies to a car depends on its VIN, on NHTSA's recall lookup.

Problems owners report

Owners have filed 403 complaints with NHTSA about the 2020 Accord. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.

Complaints by part of the car
PartComplaintsCrashesFiresInjuries
Forward collision avoidance111303
Engine77000
Electrical system64315
Service brakes61403
Unknown or other57311
Fuel/propulsion system54000
Air bags36305
Steering25200
Lane departure19300
Power train19101
Vehicle speed control14201
Fuel system, gasoline12000
16 more parts
Structure10402
Seats8000
Seat belts7000
Suspension6202
Exterior lighting4000
Visibility4000
Tires3000
Visibility/wiper3000
Back over prevention2000
Electronic stability control (ESC)2100
Engine and engine cooling2000
Chest clip, buckle, harness1000
Latches/locks/linkages1000
Parking brake1000
Service brakes, hydraulic1000
Wheels1000

Complaints by model year

Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.

  1. 2006432
  2. 2007525
  3. 20081,520
  4. 2009726
  5. 2010580
  6. 2011296
  7. 2012381
  8. 20131,436
  9. 20141,011
  10. 2015641
  11. 2016610
  12. 2017584
  13. 20182,007
  14. 2019790
  15. 2020403
  16. 2021289
  17. 2022311
  18. 2023229
  19. 2024228
  20. 2025111
  21. 202611

Every Accord year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 6 recall campaigns for the 2020 Accord over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.

Air bags: sensor

NHTSA campaign 26V332000 · reported May 21, 2026 · 98,892 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.

Risk: Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags: sensor

NHTSA campaign 24V064000 · reported Feb 1, 2024 · 750,114 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.

Risk: An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.

NHTSA's record and documents

Fuel system, gasoline: delivery

NHTSA campaign 23V858000 · reported Dec 18, 2023 · 2,490,460 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.

NHTSA's record and documents

Fuel system, gasoline: delivery

NHTSA campaign 21V215000 · reported Mar 25, 2021 · 624,552 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Acura MDX, MDX Sport Hybrid, RDX, TLX, Honda Accord, Civic Hatchback, Insight, 2019 Acura ILX, Honda Accord Hybrid, Civic Coupe, Civic Coupe Si, Civic Sedan, Civic Sedan Si, Civic Type R, Fit, HR-V, Odyssey, Passport, Pilot and Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 CR-V vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed May 18, 2021. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 20V-314.

NHTSA's record and documents

Electrical system: 12v/24v/48v battery; Electrical system: propulsion system; Electrical system: propulsion system

NHTSA campaign 20V798000 · reported Dec 17, 2020 · 27,838 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020 CR-V Hybrid, Accord Hybrid, and 2020-2021 Insight vehicles. The DC-DC converter may shut down and prevent the 12-volt battery from recharging, possibly resulting in a loss of drive power.

Risk: A loss of drive power can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the power converter unit (PCU) software, free of charge. The recall began February 12, 2021. Owners can contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is K9E.

NHTSA's record and documents

Back over prevention: sensing system; Electrical system: body control module; Exterior lighting; Visibility/wiper; Visibility: defroster/defogger/hvac system; Visibility: power window devices and controls

NHTSA campaign 20V771000 · reported Dec 10, 2020 · 737,233 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2020 Accord Sedan, Accord Hybrid, and 2019-2020 Insight vehicles. A software error may cause intermittent or continuous disruptions in communication between the Body Control Module (BCM) and other components. This may result in malfunctions of various systems such as the windshield wipers and defroster, rearview camera, exterior lights, audible warning of a stopped vehicle, and power window operation. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 103, "Windshield Defrosting and Defogging Systems" and number 111, "Rear Visibility" as well as FMVSS numbers 104, 108, 114, 118, and 305.

Risk: Various system malfunctions such as inoperative windshield wipers, defroster, rearview camera, or exterior lighting can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the BCM software, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin February 22, 2021. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is X95.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 294 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2020 Accord, the latest on Oct 1, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: electrical system (80), engine and engine cooling (50), fuel system (49), gasoline (49), service brakes (47).

NHTSA defect investigations

Opening an investigation isn't a finding of a defect. Outcomes are as NHTSA's summary states them. A recall is shown as an investigation's outcome only where NHTSA's summary names it; other recalls NHTSA's file lists with it are marked as listed, not caused.

InvestigationPartOpenedStatus
Engineering analysis EA24002
Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking
Forward collision avoidanceApr 15, 2024Open
NHTSA's record and documents
Defect petition DP22005
Pedestrian alert sounds · covers 43 makes
Electrical systemJan 27, 2023Closed Aug 7, 2023
Petition withdrawn
NHTSA's record and documents

Maintenance

Oil

The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2020 Accord.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Used ones for sale

See used 2020 Honda Accords for sale on: Autotrader · CarMax

These are searches on those sites; we don't copy or check their listings. Your ZIP is used for these links and never kept.

Specs

EPA class: large cars. EPA greenhouse gas score: 5–10 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Accord
Front-Wheel Drive
1.5 L, 4 cyl, turboAutomatic (variable gear ratios)Regular Gasoline30 / 38 / 33
Accord
Front-Wheel Drive
1.5 L, 4 cyl, turboAutomatic (AV-S7)Regular Gasoline29 / 35 / 31
Accord
Front-Wheel Drive
1.5 L, 4 cyl, turboManual 6-spdRegular Gasoline26 / 35 / 30
Accord
Front-Wheel Drive
2.0 L, 4 cyl, turboAutomatic (S10)Regular Gasoline23 / 34 / 27
Accord
Front-Wheel Drive
2.0 L, 4 cyl, turboManual 6-spdRegular Gasoline22 / 32 / 26
Accord 2.0T Sport/Touring
Front-Wheel Drive
2.0 L, 4 cyl, turboAutomatic (S10)Regular Gasoline22 / 32 / 26
Accord Hybrid
Front-Wheel Drive
2.0 L, 4 cylAutomatic (variable gear ratios)Regular Gasoline48 / 47 / 48

Sources and dates

Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data