What he posted seems to be proof that Honda is aware that something was amiss with the brake simulator for the cars manufactured in the periods mentioned:
July 2, 2018 - March 1, 2020
(Total 525,568 units)
※This case was reported for improvement measures at the notification number "661" dated March 31, 2020, but since a new cause has been found, the improvement content will be changed and notified again.
※Part of the scope includes vehicles that are not subject to renovation.
Half a million cars with this kind of fault is nothing to sneeze at!
I agree.
I have had no problems with my car so far and maybe i am being a bit sanguine as a result.
Honda have a big presence in the USA where consumers are notoriously inclined to litigation for compensation. Honda may have decided they dare not risk Billions of Dollars in claims by any suggestion they may be attempting to suppress information or minimalize the seriousness of something they were aware of. Revealing the number of vehicles affected, or potentially affected, is no doubt very damaging to their reputation.
But should a company that 'comes clean' be given some credit? I do wonder how many other manufacturers are aware of similar ,or worse , problems in their vehicles but have chosen to keep it secret as much as possible and been quite successful in doing so. Deceiving European consumers and recall safety regulators may be easier. Even the most basic of new cars now come with complex braking systems ,electronic driver aids etc. And sometimes the component parts are made by independent OE equipment manufacturers who also supply components to other car manufacturers.
There have been many recent revelations of quite respected manufacturers having cheated on emissions and crash testing etc, and its always been the case that some businesses use very dubious morals when it comes to protecting their profits and reputations, with their employees being complicit in this to protect their job.
Honda, Toyota and one or two Korean brands tend to dominate the top places in reliability surveys. I'm not sure that changing to a lower placed make would necessarily improve its reliability prospects. Especially if I have not read as many forum posts etc from owners of that car which can tend to highlight any problems but not necessarily the likelihood of such problems.
But i accept i may take a complete different view if faced with major expense and delay. Thats something Honda should do something about. There is no excuse for parts delays if at the same time they are using the same part to build a new car. Airfreight that part so a recently sold car can be promptly repaired. But Honda are not alone in this. A bit of delay and confusion in diagnosing a fault is a bit more acceptable. That suggests the fault is not that common.
