Honda Civic problems by model year
NHTSA data checked October 31, 2026
Summary
Across model years 2010–2020, NHTSA's public databases list 4,876 owner complaints and 28 distinct recall campaigns for the Honda Civic.
The year with the most complaints is 2016 (1,082; owners name steering most). The year with the fewest is 2011 (169). The median year has 381.
These are raw counts. They are not adjusted for how many of each year were sold, and older years have had longer to collect complaints.
Every model year
| Model year | Complaints | Recalls | Crash | Fire | Most-named component |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 397 | 8 | 31 | 5 | Air Bags (24%) |
| 2011 | 169 | 9 | 22 | 5 | Air Bags (30%) |
| 2012 | 456 | 3 | 55 | 5 | Air Bags (33%) |
| 2013 | 319 | 0 | 29 | 1 | Air Bags (36%) |
| 2014 | 293 | 2 | 30 | 4 | Power Train (33%) |
| 2015 | 381 | 1 | 37 | 2 | Power Train (46%) |
| 2016 | 1,082 | 5 | 36 | 4 | Steering (41%) |
| 2017 | 604 | 6 | 23 | 6 | Steering (29%) |
| 2018 | 596 | 6 | 25 | 4 | Steering (38%) |
| 2019 | 345 | 4 | 22 | 0 | Steering (23%) |
| 2020 | 234 | 5 | 15 | 1 | Electrical System (16%) |
Linked years have a full page with every component and recall. Other years get pages over time; the counts above are already live.
Quick answers
What is the worst year for the Honda Civic?
By NHTSA owner complaints, 2016 (1,082 complaints; top component steering). That is a raw count, not adjusted for sales or age.
Which Honda Civic year has the fewest complaints?
2011, with 169 complaints in NHTSA's data, among model years 2010–2020.
Which Honda Civic year has the most recalls?
2011, with 9 recall campaigns in NHTSA's recall database.
Sources
Each count comes from NHTSA's Complaints API (complaintsByVehicle) and Recalls API (recallsByVehicle) for make HONDA, model CIVIC, one request per model year, for example https://api.nhtsa.gov/complaints/complaintsByVehicle?make=HONDA&model=CIVIC&modelYear=2016. Checked 2026-10-31. See method.