Complaints on social media about Honda Accord sedan's engine losing speed prompted Honda Motor Co. to recall 222,674 units of the vehicle.
China's State Administration for Market Regulation said that in some situations, the Honda Accord sedan loses speed to protect the car.
Market regulators confirmed that the recall is because of engine quality.
There have been a surge of demand for a recall. Complaints of owners showing their vehicle losing speed even got posted on Weibo.
Sometimes, the intercooler of the Honda Accord's 1.5 liter turbocharged engine slows down to protect the vehicle.
According to the document from China's State Administration for Market Regulation, there will be devices put in the cars, at the engine intercooler, to optimize the air flow rate to fix the slowing down problem.
Honda clarified that the slowing down happens when the CR-Vs get driven for short distances on extreme cold weather conditions.
This leads to an unburned level of oil dilution that mixes with the engine oil resulting in an increased level making the car lose speed.
The Honda Accord is a midsize car with a reasonable price, has a good amount of standard safety technology coupled with a spacious cabin and excellent cargo space.
It handles twists and turns easily and it gives great fuel economy.
Many people buy a Honda also because of its excellent engineering and comfort.
China's feedback and tastes on cars increasingly dictate models sold globally and there is no certainty how this latest recall will affect the company.
It was only last year that hundreds of thousands of Honda vehicles, including their Civic and CR-V, got recalled because of engine trouble caused by the same reason, a cold climate.
However, it's a fact that every other vehicle develops problems.
Known for its four-sedan variant, the Honda Accord is a series of automobiles manufactured since 1976. Its popularity has the Accord name applied to wagons, crossover, coupes and hatchbacks.
Though Honda didn't arrive in China until 1994, they only started car production in Guangzhou in 1998. Honda replaced Peugeot as the partner of Guangzhou Auto and their production of the Accord was a success.
Honda Motor Company is one of the market leaders in all segments. Notwithstanding Honda's recent troubles, their sales in China had been outstanding.
The increase to 20.5% in the company's sales during the first seven months of 2019 is highly attributed to the company's new car models.
