Thank goodness the drive during a suburban morning in Alpharetta, Georgia, was without his kids. One second the minivan felt calm and predictable. Then the cabin erupted. The side airbags burst from the roofline of a 2018 Honda Odyssey with the force of a small explosion.

The owner later explained that the blast came without a collision, a pothole, or even a sharp turn. It stunned him so badly he almost lost control.

Pavan Nanduri pulled over, tried to steady himself, and checked on the empty seats where his kids usually sit. The curtain airbags had deployed along the entire passenger side. There was no damage outside. No impact data. Nothing in the moment that made sense.

Naduri reported the incident to Honda

The company responded that its review found no defect in the Odyssey’s materials or workmanship. He didn’t accept that answer.

So he hired a specialist to pull the minivan’s event data recorder. The black box showed no crash. With no collision on the record, his insurance company rejected the claim.

The Odyssey owner was left with a repair bill in the neighborhood of $9,000

He then turned to federal regulators. Before long, his case reached the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and that’s where things changed.

After a local investigative team filed a Freedom of Information Act request, NHTSA opened a formal probe into unintended side-airbag deployments in 2018 to 2022 Odysseys.

Regulators published the investigation summary on their site, which details what they hope to learn about the sensor systems and wiring that control Odyssey airbags.

NHTSA has collected at least 20 complaints describing similar incidents

Some Honda owners reported airbags firing while driving on smooth city roads. Others said the deployment happened as they pulled up to daycare. One driver reported that a child in the minivan suffered injuries serious enough to require a hospital visit.

Safety advocates say the pattern fits what happens when owners hit a wall of denials while automakers wait for regulators to compel deeper review. That’s why investigations like this matter. They give NHTSA access to internal engineering data that consumers might never see otherwise.

Honda says it will continue to cooperate

Regulators will now work to determine whether a defect exists, how widespread it might be, and whether a recall becomes necessary.

For Odyssey owners in those model years: Monitor your airbags and SRS warnings. Keep records. And if something unexpected happens, report it to NHTSA right away.