Honda is recalling almost 1.7 million vehicles due to a steering defect. An improperly made part can cause certain cars' steering to become "sticky"—never an attribute one wants in a moving vehicle.
The problem affects a range of newer Hondas and an Acura; the earliest the defective parts were used on any vehicle was February 2021. But it applies to the following:
Honda says that a combination of environmental heat, moisture, and "an insufficient annealing process and high load single unit break-in during production of the worm wheel" means there's too much pressure and not enough grease between the worm wheel and worm gear. On top of that, the worm gear spring isn't quite right, "resulting in higher friction and increased torque fluctuation when steering.
