The loudest Pilot year — buyable only with the engine recall confirmed and the transmission road-tested.

2016 launched the ZF 9-speed automatic (higher trims, push-button shifter) alongside the carryover 6-speed (lower trims, lever shifter), and both have known weaknesses. Owners of the 9-speed report clanging, refusal to accelerate, and internal failure; one independent shop diagnosed a 6-speed at 104,000 miles with a cracked valve body stuck in limp mode (code P0746) after three replacement valve bodies failed to fix it — the conclusion was a full transmission. A mechanic who owns a 2016 himself puts the repair at $5,000–$10,000. On the 6-speed a separate lockup judder appears between 20 and 60 mph; Honda's own bulletin found the cause was not a bad torque converter but transmission fluid that deteriorates faster than expected under heat. Test-drive through all gears and check the fluid and service history.

A distinct 2016–17 defect: some 9-speed automatic-transmission-fluid (ATF) warmers were built wrong and let engine coolant and transmission fluid mix. If the fluids mix, Honda's bulletin warns the engine and transmission can be permanently damaged and need replacement; symptoms are overheating, poor shifting, and shift noise. Honda ran a product update and a warranty extension for it (announced August 2017). Ask whether the warmer update was done and whether the transmission was ever replaced — a prior warmer-related replacement is documented history, not a red flag.

After the auto idle-stop feature shuts the engine at a stop, it may fail to restart automatically because of excessive cylinder pressure or low cranking torque; the driver usually restarts by selecting Park and pressing the engine start/stop button. Honda issued a PGM-FI (the engine's fuel-injection control) software update and then extended the warranty for the related valve-adjustment and starter repair to 10 years with no mileage limit for 2016–2022 Pilots. Separately, the engine start/stop switch itself got a 9-year/125,000-mile extension on 2016–17 cars. Confirm the idle-stop software update was applied; the extension is real coverage worth checking by VIN.

2016 carries a stack of free recalls beyond the engine: two fuel-tank campaigns (16V-417 insufficient welds, and 17V-219 tank leak, both risking fire), a third-row-seatbelt-trap campaign (15V-424), a gauge-cluster software non-compliance that could hide warning lights and overstate the odometer (15V-668), and the hood-latch-striker campaign (21V-932, 2016–19). All are free by VIN. A newer salt-belt recall (26V-365) covers rear-subframe corrosion in 22 northern states — VINs became searchable June 10, 2026.