2021 Honda Civic problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Steering (63) · Service Brakes (12) · Air Bags (9)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Honda Civic model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (4)
Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger 2026-05-21 · campaign 26V332000 · 98,892 vehicles
Defect: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor ma
Risk: Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.
Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger 2024-02-01 · campaign 24V064000 · 750,114 vehicles
Defect: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.
Risk: An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.
Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump 2023-12-18 · campaign 23V858000 · 2,490,460 vehicles
Defect: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Risk: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:master Cylinder 2023-06-29 · campaign 23V458000 · 124,077 vehicles
Defect: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Civic, 2020-2023 Ridgeline, 2021-2023 Passport, 2021-2022 Pilot, and 2020 Acura MDX vehicles. The tie rod fastener that connects the brake booster and the brake master cylinder may have been improperly assembled during manufacturing, which can cause the brake master cylinder to separate from the booster assembly.
Risk: Brake master cylinder separation can cause a loss of brake function and increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and repair the brake booster assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 7, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are VEU, AEV, and ZET.
Service bulletins (78)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Engine 2026-09-25 · A26-009 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin - under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, and/or misfire. in some cases, dtcs p0300 through p0304 may also be stored (dtcs are not required for repair).
Engine 2026-09-25 · A26-008 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin - under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, and/or misfire. in some cases, dtcs p0300 through p0304 may also be stored (dtcs are not required for repair).
Engine 2026-08-26 · AEBM08262026901 · Other
dealer message - under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, misfire, and/or dtcs p0300 through p0304 stored.
Engine 2026-08-26 · A26-009 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin - under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, misfire and/or dtcs p0300 thru p0304 stored.
Engine 2026-08-26 · A26-008 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin - under certain conditions, the cylinder head gasket effectiveness may be reduced which may cause vehicles to experience overheating, coolant loss, misfire and/or dtcs p0300 thru p0304 stored.
Engine 2025-07-29 · A25-076 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin - oil leak at timing chain tensioner inspection cover due to possible insufficient sealant adhesion on inspection cover.
Showing the 6 most recent of 78 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-18 · Unknown Or Other“the infotainment and connectivity system in this 2021 honda civic ex suffers from critical, persistent hardware and software defects regarding android auto. the system continuously and unpredictably disconnects during active operation when wired, and fails to establish or maintain any reliable wireless connection. due to a personal medical conditi…”
2026-10-17 · Steering“sticky/notch feeling when going straight i over correct because of it stiffness of it it’s very dangerous …”
2026-09-28 · Steering“when it is warm and humid, at highway speeds and slight turns, the steering sticks and the wheel does not recenter on its own. all driver assist features are off when this occurs. it takes additional force to unstick and causes overcorrection in the steering. symptoms are consistent with the 11th gen civic recalls, yet mine is a 2021 and no recall …”
2026-09-20 · Steering“on september 17, 2026 at approximately 8:00 a.m. i was driving my 2021 honda civic lx with my children in the vehicle when multiple warning lights and system malfunction messages suddenly appeared on the dash board. the vehicle appeared to experience an electrical malfunction/ reset while still driving and i suddenly lost normal power- steering ass…”
2026-09-04 · Steering“while i am driving there is a stickiness in my steering wheel and it causes me to overcorrect my steering and becomes an issue. feels dangerous to me. this has gotten worse over time. …”
2026-09-01 · Air Bags“driving down street after pulling out of parking lot and driver’s side air bag employed for unknown reason. …”
2026-08-25 · Steering · 58,000 mi“the contact owns a 2021 honda civic. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact experienced an intermittent failure, and the steering wheel became very firm and became difficult to turn. during the failure, the power steering became inoperable, causing several malfunctions, and several warning lights were simultaneou…”
2026-08-05 · Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings“while driving last week with my family, doing some grocery shopping, we got on the highway which is 75mph in our 2021 honda civic and it had a catastrophic failure on its adas system out of nowhere it stopped and made my car swerve off the road and applied the breaks like it detected a car in front of us, it took us from 75 to 0 pretty darn fast fo…”
2026-08-05 · Steering“sticky steering, especially when it’s hot or humid. the issue has been going on since the car was at 60k miles, taken in multiple times and they don’t see and issue. it’s at 117k now issue still present. same issue as the 2022-25 that got a recall …”
2026-07-29 · Steering“steering locks up at highway speeds. this vehicle has only 36,526 miles on the odometer. this is a serious safety issue and could easily cause a high speed crash. the dealer has road tested and confirms the problem. the dealer states the electric steering box is at fault. we are having the electric steering box replaced by the dealer.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.