Honda has officially issued a recall on 1.2 million Accords due to an issue with potentially dangerous battery sensors. Sensors in some of the sedans have short circuited and caused fires because they were not properly sealed from moisture, the company says.
The four reported fires occurred in states that use salt to melt ice on the roads during winter. Officials from Honda determined the salt caused corrosion in the batteries, which caused them to catch fire.
Accords potentially affected by this issue include all models manufactured between 2013 and 2016. Owners are asked to take their cars to a Honda dealer for inspection. Faulty battery sensors will be replaced. Those deemed safe should still apply adhesive sealant and replace the sensors when possible.
According to a January report from Busines Insider, the Honda Accord is the ninth best-selling car in the United States, with 345,225 Accords sold to Americans in 2016 alone. A Birmingham Business Journal report from late 2016 reveals that the Accord is also the fifth most popular used car in Alabama with over 4,100 sold as of December.
Honda has a large manufacturing presence in Alabama, and its Lincoln plant is the company’s largest light truck production facility in the world. The Alabama facility is the only manufacturer of the Odyssey minivan, Pilot sport utility vehicle, Ridgeline pickup truck, the Acura MDX and the V-6 engines that power them. It does not manufacture the Accord.
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