(February 23, 2012) TORRANCE, Calif. — Honda will voluntarily recall approximately 45,800 model-year 2008 and early-2009 Odyssey EX-L and Touring vehicles in the United States to replace the two power tailgate struts.

The gas-filled struts that help to raise and support the tailgate of vehicles equipped with a power tailgate system may be prone to early life failures. A strut failure may result in the tailgate closing under its own power, possibly unexpectedly, with the potential risk of injury and inconvenience to users. Two injuries have been reported related to this issue.

Honda is announcing this recall to encourage owners of all affected vehicles to take their vehicles to an authorized dealer as soon as they receive notification of this recall from Honda.

Mailed notification to customers will begin in mid-March. In addition to contacting customers by mail, in mid-March, owners of these vehicles will be able to determine if their vehicles require repair by going on-line to www.recalls.honda.com or by calling (800) 999-1009, and selecting option 4.