The Lemon Index
The 1.5 L inline-4 turbo in the Honda CR-V and Honda Accord, model years 2017–2022. Owners filed 6,390 complaints about cars with it (matched by VIN); 26% name the engine, #14 of the 39 everyday engines we track (1 = the most).
Known issues, checked against owner complaints
Problems owners of cars with this engine name much more often than owners of the other 38 everyday engines we track (at least 1.5× the median, and 10+ complaints):
- Oil dilution (fuel in the oil). 225 of 6,390 owner complaints (3.5%) mention fuel in the oil (oil dilution), against a median of under 0.1% for the other 38 everyday engines we track.
Engine knock caused by oil dilution which is known manufacturing issues with my model of car.
2018 owner · NHTSA complaint 11699977
What YouTube owners say Tone 0-100, higher = more praise than trouble.
Average owner tone 40/100 across 6 model years, from 124 videos about this engine and its cars (#146 of 165 engines with a YouTube study).
Most-watched videos
- Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Honda CRV 2,423,286 views
- Honda CR-V SUV 2020 in-depth review | carwow Reviews 1,695,024 views
- Honda CR-V SUV 2018 in-depth review | Mat Watson reviews 1,500,525 views
- 2020 Honda CR-V vs. 2019 Honda CR-V | Here's What's Different With Each Trim! 794,237 views
- Honda CRV 1.5L Engine Teardown After 30,000 Miles With No Oil Changes 609,791 views
Counted from video titles and captions: praise words against trouble words, weighted by views. Videos only count when the title names this engine or a car that had only this engine in those years.
Cars with this engine Tap a year for that car's full report.
Model years from NHTSA VIN decoding of owner complaints. Only years we have a car page for.
Owner complaints by model year
Counts of complaints filed so far. Older cars have had longer to collect them, and popular cars draw more because more were sold: no one reports sales by engine, so there's no per-car rate. Compare the shares below instead.
By car
| Car | Model years matched | Complaints | Name the engine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honda CR-V | 2017–22 | 3,763 | 22% |
| Honda Accord | 2018–22 | 2,627 | 31% |
“Name the engine” = the share of that car's VIN-matched complaints that list the engine as a problem area.
What owners complain about
Share of this engine's complaints that name each area (one complaint can name several).
What owners write
| Complaints that | Count | Share | Median, other everyday engines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Say the engine stalled, shut off or lost power | 878 | 14% | 13% |
| Mention a head gasket | 567 | 8.9% | 0.1% |
| Mention the turbo | 342 | 5.4% | under 0.1% |
| Mention a misfire | 307 | 4.8% | 0.6% |
| Mention coolant loss or overheating | 263 | 4.1% | 1.2% |
| Mention fuel in the oil (oil dilution) | 225 | 3.5% | under 0.1% |
| Mention a spark plug | 205 | 3.2% | 0.5% |
| Say the engine knocked, seized or failed | 119 | 1.9% | 2.9% |
| Mention fire, flames or smoke | 112 | 1.8% | 3.2% |
| Mention an oil leak | 17 | 0.3% | 0.6% |
Counted from the owner's own words in each complaint (all of the car, not only the engine). A share, not a failure rate.
When problems show up
Half of the owners who gave a mileage reported the problem between 5,850 and 45,300 miles; the middle report was at 18,000 miles (2,134 complaints with a mileage).
Recalls that name this engine 0
No NHTSA recall on these cars and years names this engine.
NHTSA recalls on these cars and model years whose text names this engine (its size or name). The rest (brakes, air bags, wiring ...) are on each car year's page.
In owners' words
When driving at 40 - 60 MPH the steering wheel "sticks" in the center position. Applying extra force frees it up, but it seems dangerous on binding. The dealership has said this is "normal". It seems to me to be dangerous.
2017 owner · NHTSA complaint 11777037
Radio/Infotainment system glitching or flickering. Replaced with a new unit by Honda dealership on 08/18/2026 and radio/infotainment system still doing the same.
2022 owner · NHTSA complaint 11775473
On September 25,2026, I took the car for a product recall update, multiple updates were performed on the car. A few days later, the car lost power, the dealership performed a diagnostic check, I was informed the bcm and under dash fuse box needed to be replaced.
2017 owner · NHTSA complaint 11775308
Against the other everyday engines
| Engine | Years | Complaints | Name the engine | Stalled or lost power | Burning oil | Recalls naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5 EcoBoost | 2014–25 | 5,622 | 66% | 15% | 0.2% | 2 |
| 6.2 V8 (Gen V) | 2014–25 | 7,219 | 65% | 24% | 2.2% | 2 |
| 2.4 Theta II | 2010–22 | 21,551 | 51% | 20% | 8.1% | 8 |
| 2.4 Ecotec | 2010–17 | 6,096 | 51% | 21% | 18% | 0 |
| 3.0 EcoDiesel | 2014–23 | 2,871 | 50% | 24% | 0.2% | 7 |
| 3.3 Lambda II | 2013–21 | 3,254 | 50% | 17% | 5.9% | 2 |
| 2.0 EcoBoost | 2012–25 | 9,735 | 48% | 12% | 0.1% | 0 |
| 2.0T Theta II | 2011–22 | 3,325 | 44% | 18% | 4.8% | 2 |
| 1.4 Turbo | 2011–22 | 3,926 | 39% | 17% | 0.9% | 2 |
| 2.4 Tigershark | 2014–22 | 9,631 | 35% | 34% | 4.5% | 5 |
| 1.5 Turbo | 2016–25 | 4,471 | 33% | 27% | 0.3% | 1 |
| EA888 2.0T | 2009–25 | 7,443 | 29% | 16% | 3.7% | 5 |
| A25A | 2018–25 | 2,979 | 26% | 12% | under 0.1% | 1 |
| 1.5 Turbo | 2017–22 | 6,390 | 26% | 14% | 0.2% | 0 |
| J35 V6 | 2003–25 | 24,038 | 24% | 14% | 0.9% | 4 |
| Skyactiv-G 2.5 | 2014–25 | 2,631 | 22% | 11% | 2.7% | 1 |
| 2.7 Turbo | 2019–25 | 1,090 | 22% | 12% | 0.5% | 0 |
| 2AZ-FE | 2001–09 | 7,176 | 22% | 3.7% | 8.6% | 0 |
| 5.4 Triton | 2005–14 | 3,952 | 21% | 15% | 0.1% | 3 |
| 5.7 HEMI | 2003–24 | 23,895 | 19% | 23% | 0.1% | 6 |
| QR25DE | 2002–20 | 16,161 | 19% | 14% | 1.5% | 4 |
| 5.3 V8 (Gen V) | 2014–25 | 13,191 | 18% | 13% | 0.5% | 3 |
| 3.6 Pentastar | 2011–25 | 34,634 | 18% | 16% | 0.4% | 9 |
| 2.3 EcoBoost | 2015–25 | 3,975 | 16% | 9.9% | 0.1% | 12 |
| 3.8 Lambda II | 2020–25 | 4,423 | 16% | 8.0% | 5.6% | 0 |
| FB20 | 2012–25 | 2,336 | 15% | 8.2% | 1.7% | 0 |
| 3.6 V6 | 2009–23 | 14,214 | 14% | 14% | 0.1% | 1 |
| K24 | 2002–19 | 15,062 | 14% | 5.1% | 1.6% | 0 |
| 2GR-FKS | 2016–24 | 3,758 | 12% | 11% | 0.2% | 2 |
| 3.5 Cyclone V6 | 2007–19 | 21,313 | 12% | 11% | 0.1% | 0 |
| VQ35 V6 | 2002–25 | 12,613 | 12% | 11% | 0.2% | 1 |
| 3UR-FE | 2007–21 | 1,377 | 12% | 8.8% | 0.4% | 0 |
| FB25 | 2011–25 | 9,853 | 11% | 6.2% | 1.5% | 0 |
| 2AR-FE | 2009–18 | 4,673 | 11% | 6.6% | 1.3% | 1 |
| 2GR-FE | 2005–18 | 8,680 | 10% | 3.5% | 0.3% | 0 |
| 3.8 V6 | 2007–11 | 7,877 | 9% | 17% | 0.5% | 0 |
| 5.3 V8 (Gen IV) | 2007–14 | 9,241 | 8% | 4.5% | 1.3% | 0 |
| 1GR-FE | 2003–24 | 5,757 | 7% | 4.0% | under 0.1% | 0 |
| 4.8 V8 | 2007–13 | 726 | 6% | 4.8% | 0.1% | 0 |
Shares of each engine's own complaints, matched by VIN. They show what owners complain about, not how often engines break.
Quick answers
Is the Honda 1.5 Turbo (L15B7) reliable?
No one reports sales by engine, so there's no per-car score. Of the 6,390 complaints owners filed about cars with it, 26% name the engine, #14 of the 39 everyday engines we track (1 = the most). 225 (3.5%) mention fuel in the oil (oil dilution), against under 0.1% for the other engines.
What cars have the Honda 1.5 Turbo (L15B7)?
In our data: the Honda CR-V and Honda Accord, model years 2017–2022, matched by the VIN in each owner complaint.
What are the most common 1.5 Turbo problems?
In owner complaints to the government: engine, fuel system, automatic emergency braking.
How many recalls name the 1.5 Turbo?
0 NHTSA recalls on these cars name it.
Complaints: NHTSA owner complaints filed under each car's own NHTSA names (the same ones its car pages count), all years filed, one per complaint number. Engine: decoded from the complaint's VIN with NHTSA's vPIC decoder (displacement, cylinders, engine model, turbo, hybrid) and the engine maker's model years; a VIN that doesn't decode to exactly one engine is left out. Older cars have had more years to collect complaints, and popular cars draw more because more were sold. Source: NHTSA owner complaints (FLAT_CMPL + COMPLAINTS_RECEIVED_2025-2026), received through 20261111; engines: NHTSA vPIC VIN decoder (batch); NHTSA recalls API. Engine names and model years: Honda.