Those owners who used the NHTSA process seem to have gotten the first results that have been made public. At least they are the first results we have seen here. Obviously, this is a good thing. Thanks for posting this.

 

Just got word from dealership the new steering rack is in for our 2023 Sport Touring CRV hybrid. We were having steering issues where it would feel like it was stuck or catching. Not as fluid steering as it it was new . So probably Monday it will be fixed , hoping that’s the only issue we have . At least we have had a loaner for a couple of weeks. Love the ride and drive of ourCRV compared to the Passport Trailsport loaner we have as a loaner.

 

How did you go about getting them to believe that the rack was bad. Did the shop foreman take a ride or drive the car. I am almost sure I have the same issue its a 2023 CRV Hybrid Sport.

Thanks,

Jeff

 

Cool. We just set the temp controls each time we leave the vehicle then just remote start to have it toasty when we get in. Except heated steering wheel has to be turned on after we get in the vehicle of course.

My 2023 Sport Touring's steering wheel will be on when I get in the car after remote start.
The odd part is that the on/off button on the steering wheel will not be on when I get in the car and start up. It will eventually turn off after a few minutes of driving.
Its a nice feature.
Temps have been in the mid 40’s in the morning don’t know if it has to be at a certain temp before the steering wheel will heat on its own.

 

From the NHTSA report.

"... Honda released Service Bulletin 23-037 in July of 2023 which accurately describes the condition. To address this issue, Honda directs dealerships to remove the electronic power steering (EPS) gearbox and replace with a new gearbox."

Note that the Honda's service bulletin was issued July 2023. Honda has been aware of the problem for several months.

 

Yeah, I have to wait for almost 2 month to get mine replaced (out of stock nationwide) and the new one is silky smooth.

 

I had my 23 EX at the dealer the other day asking about some issues and brought up the sticking steering. He inserted my vin into some database and it came up clean . Whats interesting about my car is I had the issue at about 1k miles. I switched the OEM tires out (always do) and it still existed. Rotated tires and the issue went away never to return. I'm at 5500 miles and its seems fine to me. It's not as fluid as my new Accord but it's not a SUV. He pointed out if your not in the supposed vin range and still feel you have a issues they have some sort of testing procedure they go through to determine if its bad. I would bet my issue will return at some point. Hopefully not!

 

Is there any danger in continuing to drive with this issue? From this thread, it sounds like this is not normal and should be addressed by the dealer. However it also sounds like I will need to wait for a formal recall and availability of the replacement parts for a permanent fix.

I am at 9k miles and just noticed this issue when I was driving on a straight highway with LKAS off. I would describe it as a “bump” which the wheel must get pass before smoothing out. It is definitely there at highway speeds, but will go away or is less prevalent on slower speeds. It can be easily duplicated by gently rocking the wheel left and right at highway speeds. There is also a bit of play in the wheel after passing the bump point.

It was much less noticeable with LKAS on, which was why I was not aware of it before this recent experience.

 

We bought our 2023 EX-L in Dec. 2022. It had the first dealer service at 8700 miles, 2 weeks ago. They rotated the tires and adjusted the air pressure to 33 psi on all tires per the service report. Odd, as my CRV doorplate says 35 psi front, 32 rear. Maybe a coincidence, but right after this noticed the sticky steering problem. It's repeatable driving the car cold at 35-40 mph. So now I'll be off to the dealer after the holidays. Can someone confirm proper tires pressures to use?

The root cause described in the NHTSA EA23003 report says this is caused by strain release on the worm wheel causing wear, and possibly "too little grease" used there in manufacturing. Anyone know where these steering assemblies are made?

 

If you‘re running the original tires, pressure is whatever it says in the B pillar label.

They probably just got confused, 33 psi all around is the correct pressure on my Touring model with 19” wheels.

 

2024 CRV 2400 miles and sticking steering developed (LKA Off). Took to dealer and they confirmed "intermittent failure of EPS gearbox" and ordered part but backordered to April 2024. Reported to NHTSA and filed NCDS claim as this violates my state Lemon Law 30 day max out of service for new vehicle.

 

Hello all.. adding my two cents to the "Sticky Steering" issue. I'm the owner of a 3 months old 2024 CRV Hybrid Sport and I've already experienced the issue, and I kinda have a clue of where the root cause might be. Let me explain:

My CRV was perfect in terms of steering since we got it off the dealer, however a couple of weeks ago I had the "brilliant idea" of taking it into one of those touchless automatic pressure carwash that has the option for "undercarriage wash", and even though I'd usually never go for the top-tier wash that has undercarriage cleaning, this time I stupidly decided to use it. After I finished the wash I didn't notice anything unusual, so I came back home and since this is actually my wife's car I didn't drove the CRV for a couple of days.

Once I drove it again over the weekend I immediately noticed a sticky feeling on the wheel... I asked my wife if something unusual had happened to her with the car over the last couple of days but she said no. The feeling was like every time you would want to change direction from one side to the other, you would feel this "roughness" on the wheel, like if something on the steering train was not lubricated enough and parts were haver over-friction inside the wheel. That was the point where I started googling and stumbled upon the posts on the forum about the "sticky steering" issue. I must say that I drove the car again the next day just to check and the issue was still there, so I told my wife that we would need to take it into the dealer after the holiday to get this fixed.

What's curious is that after 3-4 days of my wife driving the car after I noticed the issue for the first time, the issue seemed to have disappeared on its own, as I drove the car again yesterday for around 50 miles (both city and highway) and the steering was back to normal.

My take is.... could it be that the steering gearbox of these newer CRVs might have an insulation issue on the rubber boots or gaskets, that may allow water to come through when something like a undercarriage wash pours water at high pressure into the part?

This could explain why a car that's only 3 months old might experience this issue all of a sudden like this. We need to realize that these current cars have been assembled with parts that were manufactured during the pandemic days, where "quality issues" were prevalent due to supply chain problems and lack of manufacturing employees, so it would not be surprising that these current steering gearboxes may have trouble addressing something as simple as keeping water out of the system.

I'm going to be checking the car regularly and if the issue comes up again I'll take it into the dealership... If I would've taken it that day where I noticed the issue I'm pretty positive that they would've taken the approach of replacing the steering gearbox, as the issue was very very noticeable, but If I take it as it is today they are definitely going to say that it's working fine (which is indeed the case).

 

Please read the NHTSA attached PDF on page one @TheAtomic

Appreciate your thoughts, but they are not in line with what the NHTSA findings are.

 

The NHTSA blurb about fixes is very clear and that dealers should be replacing parts - highlighted below with emphasis...

"Some complaints allege Honda dealerships are unable to recreate the condition or state this is a normal vehicle operation. However, Honda released Service Bulletin 23-037 in July of 2023 which accurately describes the condition. To address this issue, Honda directs dealerships to remove the electronic power steering (EPS) gearbox and replace with a new gearbox."

 

2024 CR-V Hybrid Sport Touring AWD

TLDR – I experienced the issue at 3,500 miles and took the car to a dealer at 5,813 miles unable to reliably reproduce the problem except at highway speeds. The dealer returned the car (5,821 miles) and told me that the car did have the issue (no mention of the method of diagnosis) and they had ordered the replacement part which was on backorder with no estimated delivery date. They also had 4 or 5 other cars with the same issue.
-------------------------------------------
We purchased the vehicle new in October 2023 and, other than a few quirks, had no issues with the vehicle until … At about 3,500 miles, we noticed that while in a gradual curve on an interstate, there was a noticeable ‘stick and bump’ when making a minor steering correction. I likened it to pushing a straw through a lid – extra force needed then a sudden release. The force needed to overcome the stick was minor – only an ounce or so – but noticeable and disconcerting. We did not experience the issues at slower speeds nor in park and turning the steering wheel.

After researching the issue (thanks, CR-V Owners Club!), we decided that we had the Sticky Steering Issue and, at 5,813 miles, needed to have a dealer address it.

I was unable to reliably recreate the issue except on an interstate so I expected to have to do a lot of hoop jumping for the dealer. I went to a local Honda dealer (not the dealer from whom we purchased the car) with a copy of the NHSTA report and TSB 23-037 in hand expecting the same responses that a lot of others reported. When I explained the issue to a Service Advisor, they answered with “Oh yeah. We have a Civic with that issue. We’ve ordered a replacement part but it is backordered. We’ll check your car”. I left the car overnight (and requested that the tires be rotated just to eliminate one potential hoop).

When I picked the car up the next day (with 5,821 miles), a different Service Advisor told me “Yes, your car has the issue and we’ve ordered the part – which is on backorder - so we’ll let you know when we have a delivery date. I’d give you a loner, but I can’t until we have a ship date”. Amazed, I thanked them and asked how they diagnosed the issue and if there were many other instances. They replied that they were unsure of the method of diagnosis (only the tech knows), Honda had told them that if there are complaints to replace the part, and that they have 4 or 5 other vehicles with the same issue. So, now, I’m waiting on the part.

The impression that I got was that dealers have a method to identify the issue without a long test drive and are willing to replace the part when a customer complains. We’ll continue to use the CR-V around town but avoid the interstate with it.

 

I just received an update from the dealer that they had an estimated delivery date of last week of March or first week of April (8 - 10 weeks).

 

Honda has its hands full currently with recalls. I personally think this will be a big recall at some point consisting of civic, CR-V and possibly hrv. My CR-V had the issue around 1500 miles. I changed tires and since rotated and the issue went away but not totally. Once in a while I will get a slight binding.

 

Just in case anyone is wondering, here's a link to the Honda TSB 23-07- 2022-23 Civic EPS Gearbox Replacement referenced in the NHTSA report (apologies if this occurs elsewhere). I doesn't reference the CR-V - just Civics - but I believe that everyone is in agreement that it is the same issue. It lists the parts, procedure, and estimates 2 hours for replacement (at least, that's what's billed/reimbursed, I think).

Summary: Steering effort complaint while driving at moderate or highway speeds, with possible complaint of noise at slow speeds, and no MIL illuminated or DTC stored. There is a possible steering gearbox malfunction. Remove the EPS gearbox assembly and replace with a new gearbox. Keep the original EPS motor/control unit with the new gearbox.

 

update to my earlier post - My 2023 CRV EX with 9.1k miles went to the dealer for diagnosis. I told them at check-in - "it happens at 35-50 mph - drive the car straight for 1/4 to 1/2 mile, and then turn the wheel."
For me, the steering does not stick as much at 65-70 mph on the highway.
I reset the trip meter, which told me the dealer drove it about 3 miles. They confirmed the problem, ordered the parts, but no ETA for delivery yet.
I gave the NHTSA report to front counter rep, and requested they "give this report to the service tech", which possibly helped. The write-up person gave me the typical response - "never saw this problem before, etc..."

 

Great- I think at some point in the near future there will be a TSB on 23-24 CRV's like the Civic has currently. A slight binding once in a while is tolerable what I'm afraid of is a total failure which throws into another lane.

 

I agree that there will likely be a TSB or the Civic TSB will be expanded. Personally, I don't think that a total failure is likely (although my wife refuses to drive the car on the interstate) but that the binding may be severe enough that you oversteer and cause an accident (like bumping into the semi on one side or the concrete barrier on the other when driving through a construction zone). Mine only requires a couple of ounces of force to overcome the binding but the NHTSA report says some require as much as 2.4 lbs.

 

I have heard with LKA on it's more noticeable

 

My 2023 CRV ST just developed the issue after 10K. I turned off the lane assist, changing it to warning only, and it appears to have gone away. I wonder if it is a physical problem or a software problem? Maybe Honda is still working on a fix related to how the sensors, steering components and embedded software work together? Complex systems like this require a strict coordination between the software and hardware.

 

For anyone trying to replicate the issue for the dealer. I found the below in a Reddit thread and it works consistently for me.

 

Reddit nonsense removed.

Dealers are well aware of how to diagnose the issue vs some randomite from Reddit.

 

I had this issue for the last 3 weeks. 2023 Hybrid Sport Touring, 8500 miles. Steering was smooth when stopped but at any speed over 20 MPH when moving the steering wheel off center it would catch or stick in either direction. Didn't affect driving but it was really annoying.

So yesterday I am driving on a highway. Annoyed with the sticking happening as I am driving and I had to take a detour due to road construction. It took us on a side road that had what I could describe as a backwards "C" in the road. You had to bear right and then quickly bear back left. I took this with some speed, was kind of fun driving the CRV like a bit of a sports car. I then went to the end of the road, took a left turn and another left turn back onto the highway. Well, lo and behold the sticking is now gone. No sticking whatsover.

So, something I did corrected the issue. I don't believe the two left turns would have done it so I am leaning towards the fast backwards "C" turn. It's truly head scratching why this worked but it did. If I get the sticky sterring wheel again I will try the same sequence of events to see if it corrects.

 

Same sticky steering issue with a 23' CRV Sport Touring. Had it in to the dealer at 8700 miles. They couldn't duplicate the issue. We bought it to the dealer a 2nd time & they drove the car 400 miles. The 2nd time they couldn't duplicate the issue. 3rd time is the charm, I had the service rep drive the car with me & he noticed the issue within 3 miles. They oreded a new rack and replaced it. We had two loaners for a total of 6 weeks out of service. I believe we were one of the first cases with this probem at this dealer. We now have 12k on the crv with no other problems.

 

Wife's 2024 CRV Sport Hybrid is in for 5k service, I don't drive her car much but did on a trip recently and noticed immediately on the highway small corrections to the steering wheel felt like it was stuck. She than told me she has felt it for awhile but didn't want to say anything. They said they didn't feel it yesterday but another tech was going to drive it this morning. Also in because the brakes squeak when she backs out of the garage, they said rotors are rusted, I laughed they have grooves in the back ones, they are changing them. I have a feeling this sticky wheel situation is going to be a sticky mess. This is her 3rd CRV and first one she isn't happy with. Fuel mileage is also about 10 miles below stated combined. Her 1.5L turbo crv she traded in did much better on fuel.

 

My 23 1.5 gets great mileage. The steering is an issue and I would not be surprised there is a recall like the Civic at some point. Right now their avoiding this . Document your case with the NHTSA and Honda