2023 Honda Ridgeline

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

Fuel economy
21 mpgcombined; city 18, highway 24; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$15,470U.S. average; Ohio $13,820 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
5over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
128filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2023 Ridgeline. 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 128 complaints with NHTSA about the 2023 Ridgeline. 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
Exterior lighting39000
Engine21010
Unknown or other19100
Electrical system18010
Forward collision avoidance11000
Power train11000
Back over prevention8000
Steering7100
Fuel/propulsion system6010
Service brakes4000
Structure4000
Lane departure3000
9 more parts
Suspension3000
Vehicle speed control3000
Air bags2010
Engine and engine cooling2000
Visibility/wiper2000
Equipment1000
Service brakes, hydraulic1100
Visibility1000
Wheels1010

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. 2006242
  2. 2007160
  3. 2008143
  4. 200935
  5. 201042
  6. 201139
  7. 201224
  8. 201345
  9. 201434
  10. 2017344
  11. 2018162
  12. 2019237
  13. 2020169
  14. 2021102
  15. 2022117
  16. 2023128
  17. 202464
  18. 202598
  19. 202610

Every Ridgeline year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 5 recall campaigns for the 2023 Ridgeline 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.

Structure: frame and members; Suspension: rear

NHTSA campaign 26V365000 · reported Jun 4, 2026 · 965,561 vehicles potentially affected

American Honda Motor Company (Honda) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Honda Pilot, 2017-2023 Ridgeline, 2019-2023 Passport, and 2014-2020 Acura MDX vehicles that were sold in Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, or Wisconsin. The rear subframe may corrode at the suspension mounting points, which can result in rear suspension component failure.

Risk: Failure of rear suspension components, such as the rear control arm, can cause a loss of vehicle handling and control, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect the rear subframe and install a rear subframe reinforcement kit and, as necessary, repair or replace the rear subframe components, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed July 27, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available, anticipated in the fall of 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are AOU and AOT. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning June 10, 2026.

NHTSA's record and documents

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

Back over prevention: sensing system

NHTSA campaign 24V321000 · reported May 9, 2024 · 187,290 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (America Honda Motor Co) is recalling certain 2020-2024 Ridgeline vehicles. The rearview camera (RVC) tailgate wire harness may fatigue and break, which can prevent the rearview camera image from displaying.

Risk: A rearview camera that does not display an image can reduce the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the RVC tailgate wire harness, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed November 8, 2024. Owners may contact Honda service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is YI7.

NHTSA's record and documents

Steering: rack and pinion

NHTSA campaign 24V184000 · reported Mar 7, 2024 · 245 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2023 Passport and Ridgeline vehicles. The inner ball joint housing in the steering gearbox assembly may loosen and detach from the steering rack and result in a loss of steering control.

Risk: A loss of steering control increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the steering gearbox as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 11, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is LHY.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components

NHTSA campaign 23V458000 · reported Jun 29, 2023 · 124,077 vehicles potentially affected

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Civic, 2020-2023 Ridgeline, 2021-2023 Passport, 2021-2022 Pilot, and 2020 Acura MDX vehicles. The tie rod fastener that connects the brake booster and the brake master cylinder may have been improperly assembled during manufacturing, which can cause the brake master cylinder to separate from the booster assembly.

Risk: Brake master cylinder separation can cause a loss of brake function and increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and repair the brake booster assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 7, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are VEU, AEV, and ZET.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 64 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2023 Ridgeline, the latest on Nov 7, 2025. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: visibility (18), electrical system (12), latches/locks/linkages (12), engine and engine cooling (10), structure (8).

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 EA25004
No Restart After Auto Start/Stop Engages · covers 2 makes
Engine and engine coolingMar 26, 2025Open
NHTSA's record and documents
Preliminary evaluation PE24004
Rear-View Camera Failure
Back over preventionFeb 13, 2024Closed Aug 5, 2024
NHTSA's summary names recall 24V321000
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 2023 Ridgeline.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Used ones for sale

See used 2023 Honda Ridgelines 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: standard pickup trucks. EPA greenhouse gas score: 4 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Ridgeline
All-Wheel Drive
3.5 L, 6 cylAutomatic (S9)Regular Gasoline18 / 24 / 21

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