Fuel Pump Recall - Long Wait for New Parts

[MrFixit]

My question to the group is "Has anyone experienced a gas smell outside and around their Clarity after the fuel pump recall repair?"

I was well aware of the potential for gas smell, but all I detected was a [fairly strong] odor which reminded me of glue or gasket cement. This could have been what you felt was a 'cleaner' smell. This smell dissipated within a few days. My tank was very low when I took it in (less than 1 bar, with around 40 miles of HV range remaining). But in my experience, I never detected the odor of gas (inside or outside of the vehicle). Mine is also in an attached garage.

 

[Amris]

Update my car’s fuel pump was replaced. No gas smell in the car I noticed there were some conversation about this

 

[bpratt]

I had no smell of gas in or around the car. The only problem I saw was they left out 2 of the 3 plastic retainer that hold the front of the carpet down in the front of the trunk.

 

[Robert_Alabama]

I'm weighing whether I believe the probability of failure outweighs the pain of doing this. I've only got about 25k miles on the gas engine in 6 years, and expect to put even fewer on it for the duration of my ownership (at most another 5-6 years). It just doesn't seem like any significant number of these pumps have failed, so I don't think the risk is really any greater than anything else breaking... The wait at the dealership is bad enough, the gasoline fumes and cleaner fumes after replacement don't sound like a lot of fun, and generally it seems like the probability that you get your car back in less than the condition you left it in is not negligible. Does the recall last the life of the car, or is there only a certain window of time that Honda would replace the pump at no charge?

 

[MrFixit]

I'm weighing whether I believe the probability of failure outweighs the pain of doing this.

I think the 'pain' of doing this is minimal (beyond the aggravating indeterminate year-long wait for the part to be available).

My feeling is that if you don't get it done, your car will have a black mark on it's official record affecting resale if you ever wanted to sell, and you will continue to be nagged by notifications, emails, or letters that the recall is due.

 

[Landshark]

Does the recall last the life of the car, or is there only a certain window of time that Honda would replace the pump at no charge?

Most likely the part will carry a 1yr/12K mile warranty. It isn’t listed on the Fed Emissions Warranty.

As far as having the repair done, it appears to be a 1 hour job, with a possibility of some lingering odors. In my experience, I’ve found it to be more preferable to drop the car off in the morning and pick it up at the end of the day, rather than wait in the customer lounge.

It is possible that your fuel pump will never fail during your ownership. It is also possible that it will fail, and that situation could be more inconvenient that having the pump replaced prior to failure.

 

[Clarity_Newbie]

For those with inquiring minds...the picture below is of the access panel under the rear seat of the 2018 Clarity. No real mystery.

Took literally 7 minutes to remove the seat including figuring out where the clips were etc. I remove the seat myself so I can limit consternation in the shop and to speed up the process. It also affords me the ability to inspect the project and pretty much ensures the area will be thoroughly cleaned.

I probably should have just replaced the fuel pump myself as I normally would but since this is a recall...

Have a great day!

 

[insightman]

For those with inquiring minds...the picture below is of the access panel under the rear seat of the 2018 Clarity. No real mystery.

Took literally 7 minutes to remove the seat including figuring out where the clips were etc. I remove the seat myself so I can limit consternation in the shop and to speed up the process. It also affords me the ability to inspect the project and pretty much ensures the area will be thoroughly cleaned.

I probably should have just replaced the fuel pump myself as I normally would but since this is a recall...

Have a great day!

Thanks for showing us that access panel. I didn't expect it to be so beautiful!

@Clarity_Newbie, as you continue imparting valuable knowledge about the Clarity, your "@Clarity_Newbie" handle increasingly fails to represent your stature in this forum. (That, from a forum member stuck with a handle based on a completely different hybrid car he bought 26 years ago.)

 

[Kestrel]

I had mine replaced at the dealer today. I managed to get the gas tank down to just above a gallon and I cleared out the trunk/back seat (based on the helpful posts here since they had not advised me to do either). They estimated it would take about two hours when I made the appointment but they were backed up so it ended up taking three. No odor of gasoline or anything else when I picked it up another hour after that. They gave me a handwritten form titled "Vehicle Emission Recall - Proof of Correction" which says it must be returned to the (California) DMV when I register the car this year.

 

[NorCalPete]

My dealer is still waiting (for two months now) to get a replacement fuel pump for my car.

Interestingly, the second 2018 Clarity I purchased last week has no record in Carfax of getting the replacement, and Honda doesn't list any open recalls for it's serial number. Perhaps it was done and Carfax missed it? Are their any 2018 Clarity's that aren't subject to the recall?

 

[MrFixit]

Are their any 2018 Clarity's that aren't subject to the recall?

I have not heard of any Clarity's not subject to the recall. I would not trust Carfax as an authority. Even though the VIN does not indicate any open recalls, it seems like a dealer should be able to identify specifically what recalls were done and when.

 

[jray19]

My Clarity goes in tomorrow. The suggestion from the dealer was to have less than a quarter tank of fuel. I have mine down to two bars of fuel showing about 19 miles of HV range. I'll let you all know how it works out. I am also having them check the battery capacity. I have printed out the article from this site "Honda Clarity Battery Capacity" as on the phone they were not quite sure how to do it. My Clarity has 97,522 miles on it.

 

[jray19]

Fuel Pump recall was completed. No issues with smell when the vehicle was returned. I had only 19 miles of HV range when I dropped the vehicle off,

 

[AHolbro1]

I've not read through all nine pages thus far, so don't know if anyone else has experienced this: My son has a 2018 and upon return from the dealership after they accomplished his fuel pump recall, the remote fuel door release was inoperative. Fortunately, there is a manual release lanyard in the boot.

I had an appointment to accomplish it on my 2019, but we had an ice storm the day of so I canceled. Have not yet bothered to re-schedule. They advised to be below half tank in fuel load. Sounds like I should take it down further, and probably also remove the rear seat cushion.

 

[Frank B]

Hello all, I bought a 2018 Clarity Touring last year and we love it. If the national website indicates that there are no open recalls, does that guarantee that the fuel pump has been replaced?

 

[rodeknyt]

Hello all, I bought a 2018 Clarity Touring last year and we love it. If the national website indicates that there are no open recalls, does that guarantee that the fuel pump has been replaced?

It would be best to check with a dealer who can look directly into the Honda service system.

 

[MrFixit]

Hello all, I bought a 2018 Clarity Touring last year and we love it. If the national website indicates that there are no open recalls, does that guarantee that the fuel pump has been replaced?

I wouldn't necessarily trust the national website, and agree that maybe a dealer should be able to identify a specific repair action on a vehicle...

If you bought it "last year" fuel pumps were not widely available for most of the year. Did you have a CarMax report? Sometimes there are specific maintenance actions identified by CarMax, but not always true...

 

[tonythebest]

My clarity has been with the dealer in their parking lot for 3 months and still waiting for the fuel tank/pump and no ETA. I want to drive my clarity. What can I do?

 

[insightman]

My clarity has been with the dealer in their parking lot for 3 months and still waiting for the fuel tank/pump and no ETA. I want to drive my clarity. What can I do?

Check out this post earlier in this thread, which suggests calling Honda America. The post following the one I linked indicates the suggestion worked for the forum member who followed that advice.

 

[Landshark]

My clarity has been with the dealer in their parking lot for 3 months and still waiting for the fuel tank/pump and no ETA. I want to drive my clarity. What can I do?

Did your fuel pump actually fail? If not, go get the car from the dealer and drive it until the part arrives. There has been some indication that Honda will prioritize a replacement when a failure has occurred. The car has not been deemed unsafe to drive because of the recall. Failures are rare. Worst case, you’ll be stranded and have to call a tow truck. If you’re able to drive exclusively in EV, it’s pretty much a non-issue.