IllustrationTHIS IS MY 2ND HONDA I PURCHASED NEW. I TAKE VERY GOOD CARE OF MY CAR AND FOLLOW ALL RECOMMENDED MAINTENANCE PROCEDURES. THE DISTRIBUTOR HAS FAILED ON BOTH MY CARS ABOUT THE SAME TIME-MILEAGE WISE. I SEE FROM MANY WEB-SITES THAT THIS APPEARS TO BE A CONSISTENT PROBLEM WITH HONDA OWNERS. FEEL RECALL MAY BE WARRANTED.*AK
1993 Honda Civic
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1993 Honda Civic do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 183.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Civic years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 17 of 146 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 15 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
40 crash reports4 fire reports23 injury reports
What owners actually said
146 reportsWHEN HIT A POOL OF WATER (~ 1" DEEP), ENGINE STALLED AND THE POWER BRAKE SYSTEM DIED. I WAS UNABLE TO RESTART THE CAR FOR ~5 MTS AND CHANGING THE GEAR F/R AND STEERING DO NOT HAVE ANY EFFECT. FORTUNATELY HAND BRAKE HELPED TO SLOW DOWN. IT LOOKS LIKE I HAD A SHORT CIRCUIT PROBLEM. NEED MORE EXPLANATION FROM THE MANUFACTURER ON W…
Read full complaint
WHEN HIT A POOL OF WATER (~ 1" DEEP), ENGINE STALLED AND THE POWER BRAKE SYSTEM DIED. I WAS UNABLE TO RESTART THE CAR FOR ~5 MTS AND CHANGING THE GEAR F/R AND STEERING DO NOT HAVE ANY EFFECT. FORTUNATELY HAND BRAKE HELPED TO SLOW DOWN. IT LOOKS LIKE I HAD A SHORT CIRCUIT PROBLEM. NEED MORE EXPLANATION FROM THE MANUFACTURER ON WHAT COULD HAVE CAUSED IT. *AK
ENGINE MOUNTS VIBRATE AT ENGINE REVS ABOVE 3K RPM AT ALL TIMES SINCE I PURCHASED THE CAR REPLACEMENT WITH HONDA O.E. PART HAS NOT SOLVED PROBLEM. *AK
CONSUMER STATED WHILE DRIVING THE HOOD RELEASED AND CRASHED AGAINST WINDSHILED. *JB
THE FENDER LINER TORE INTO STRIPS AND WRAPPED AROUND THE TIRES, CAUSED A RUBBING NOISE AND PREVENTED VEHICLE FROM DRIVING SMOOTHLY. OWNER CUT THE STRIPS FROM THE FENDER LINER AWAY FROM THE TIRE TO FREE IT. *ML
WHILE DRIVING ABOUT 60 MPH ENGINE STARTED OVERHEATING. THEN DROVE TO A GARAGE WHERE A TECHNICIAN TOLD HIM THAT WAS A RESULT OF THE PISTON RINGS WARPED THE PISTON SIDE WALLS , THE PISTON RIGE METAL IS TOO HARD. *AK
A FRIEND WAS DRIVING CONSUMER'S CAR ON A CITY STREET APPROACHING AN INTERSECTION WITH FLASHING RED LIGHTS, HAD TO STOP BEFORE MAKING A LEFT HANDED TURN. ANOTHER VEHICLE WAS TRAVELLING ABOUT 20MPH, HIT CONSUMER'S VEHICLE ON RIGHT FRONT BUMPER, AND DRIVER'S SIDE AIRBAG DIDN'T DEPLOY. DIDN'T CONTACT DEALER OR MANUFACTURER. *AK
I AM EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH MY AIR CONDITIONER, I AM BURNING 3 QUARTS OF OIL EVERY SEVEN DAYS, MY CAR IS OVERHEATING AFTER I HAVE REPLACED THE THERMOSTAT, TOP AND BOTTOM HOSES
NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR ABOVE VEHICLE. *AK
DRAIN HOLE FOR THE OIL PAN WAS DAMAGED. YH
Official recalls
194V063000 · Power Train:automatic Transmission
Apr 10, 1994
A RETAINING CLIP THAT CONNECTS THE TRANSMISSION SHIFT CABLE TO THE SHIFT LEVER ACTUATING ROD CAN HAVE INSUFFICIENT RETENTION PRESSURE AND MAY EVENTUALLY COME OFF AFTER REPEATED SHIFT LEVER OPERATION. IF THIS HAPPENS, THE POSITION OF THE SHIFT LEVER MAY NOT MATCH THE ACTUAL TRANSMISSION GEAR POSITION.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THIS COULD RESULT IN UNANTICIPATED VEHICLE MOVEMENT AND ACCIDENT.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN IMPROVED RETAINING CLIP.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1PE94055 · Alleged Steering Lockup
Opened Jul 20, 1994 · Closed Dec 30, 1994
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Steering
There is no summary currently available