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2016 Honda Civic

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Civic years

Owner complaints for the 2016 Honda Civic are substantially higher than the model-year median of 183.5.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

494 reports with mileage · 586 unknown

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.

  • Steering. Review the 444 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 119 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 95 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

36 crash reports4 fire reports13 injury reports

Steering complaints

444 reports
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Mileage unknown · Mar 15, 2023
Steering

Steering wheel has become stuck/jerky on the freeway. This causes me to swerve all over the road. The wheel sticks after it's been still for more than a couple seconds. To make a steering correction to stay in my lane I need to apply more force to make a small adjustment. This causes the car to swerve when the steering wheel br…

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Steering wheel has become stuck/jerky on the freeway. This causes me to swerve all over the road. The wheel sticks after it's been still for more than a couple seconds. To make a steering correction to stay in my lane I need to apply more force to make a small adjustment. This causes the car to swerve when the steering wheel breaks free. Then it sticks in the new position, and I end swerving the other way when it breaks free again. Dealer says only fix is to replace entire steering rack and wants $3500 for repair. Car has 55000 miles and is no longer under warranty. Called an independent Honda repair shop to get an estimate. The independent shop told me they have replaced a few. Problem apparently affects many Civics from model year 2016 through 2022. Unfortunately, the replacement rack is the same part number and has failed the same way again in some cars. This should be a safety recall and repaired ant Hondas expense.

NHTSA ODI #11512003

Mileage unknown · Mar 14, 2023
Steering

Slight momentary resistance to turning the wheel, usually only on long interstate drives

NHTSA ODI #11511825

Mileage unknown · Feb 22, 2023
Steering

Every time my 2016 civic is driven for about 30 minutes straight above 60 mph the steering starts to become stiff and jerky. It feels as if the steering wheel locks into place and you must pull on the steering wheel to get it out of position while driving causing serious danger to myself and those driving near me. People who hav…

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Every time my 2016 civic is driven for about 30 minutes straight above 60 mph the steering starts to become stiff and jerky. It feels as if the steering wheel locks into place and you must pull on the steering wheel to get it out of position while driving causing serious danger to myself and those driving near me. People who have driven behind me while the issue has happened have notified me that it looks like a drunk driver is at the wheel due to the jerking that needs to be done to get the steering wheel out of position. Driving speed limit on the expressway after 30 minutes has become a hazard and is very unfortunate due to the car only being about 6 years old. It has been going on for quite some time now and is a frequent issue that is popped up on civic forums for models 2016-2019.

NHTSA ODI #11508648

Mileage unknown · Jan 26, 2023
Steering

Driving on the highway I started to feel the steering stick while keeping the car centered in my lane. To release the steering stick issue a stronger input was needed by me to control the car. It seemed to me the steering sticking issue occurs only at highway speed. This started with about 32,000 miles on the car. Although it ne…

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Driving on the highway I started to feel the steering stick while keeping the car centered in my lane. To release the steering stick issue a stronger input was needed by me to control the car. It seemed to me the steering sticking issue occurs only at highway speed. This started with about 32,000 miles on the car. Although it never became an actual safety issue there was always the fear the steering would lock up and I would not be able to control the steering. At no time was there any visual indication (warning light(s)) for the condition. I have not taken the car to the dealership for inspection. Police nor insurance company were notified over this issue. The auto is available for inspection.

NHTSA ODI #11503859

Mileage unknown · Dec 24, 2022
Steering

Steering wheel has some extra resistance (sticking, stiff and jerky) when making small corrections at any speeds, resulting in extra pressure being applied to break the resistance, resulting in sharp (hard) correction changes. When make small steering adjustments it has resistance, then suddenly becomes easy. This can cause over…

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Steering wheel has some extra resistance (sticking, stiff and jerky) when making small corrections at any speeds, resulting in extra pressure being applied to break the resistance, resulting in sharp (hard) correction changes. When make small steering adjustments it has resistance, then suddenly becomes easy. This can cause oversteering when correcting.

NHTSA ODI #11498748

Mileage unknown · Nov 17, 2022
SteeringUnknown Or Other

1st Steering wheel pops on highway 65+mph, I've taken my vehicle to dealership to get diagnosed supposedly couldn't find anything wrong, I've even taken a service rep for a drive to show them what is happening they noticed but service told him not to do anything! Second issue squealing noise coming from wheel bearings I took my…

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1st Steering wheel pops on highway 65+mph, I've taken my vehicle to dealership to get diagnosed supposedly couldn't find anything wrong, I've even taken a service rep for a drive to show them what is happening they noticed but service told him not to do anything! Second issue squealing noise coming from wheel bearings I took my car to 2 different shops, Honda and wheel shop both places can't determine where noise is coming from!

NHTSA ODI #11493888

Mileage unknown · Nov 12, 2022
Steering

Typically during highway driving, steering becomes extremely sticky and requires significant effort to make even slight adjustments to keep the car on the road and even forces over correction which has occurred on multiple occasions

NHTSA ODI #11493315

Mileage unknown · Oct 24, 2022
SteeringSuspension

The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated while her husband was driving 60 MPH and turning the steering wheel to the right, the vehicle would drift to the left. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The driver was able to continue driving to his destination. The contact took the vehicle to the local …

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The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated while her husband was driving 60 MPH and turning the steering wheel to the right, the vehicle would drift to the left. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The driver was able to continue driving to his destination. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the vehicle needed an alignment. The vehicle was repaired but continued to experience the failure. The contact took the vehicle back to the dealer, but the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI #11490636

47,466 miles · Sep 21, 2022
Steering

The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was drifting and failed to move as needed and continued to jerk. The contact forced the steering wheel into position however, the action would overcorrect the vehicle. The contact stated that while his wife was …

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The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was drifting and failed to move as needed and continued to jerk. The contact forced the steering wheel into position however, the action would overcorrect the vehicle. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was jerking and the vehicle was difficult to turn. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer again where it was diagnosed and determined that the power steering rack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 47,466.

NHTSA ODI #11485683

Mileage unknown · Sep 17, 2022
Power TrainSteering

Steering wheel has some extra resistance (sticking, stiff and jerky) when making small corrections at any speeds, resulting in extra pressure being applied to break the resistance, resulting in sharp (hard) correction changes.

NHTSA ODI #11485003

Official recalls

5

26V332000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger

May 21, 2026

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 may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: 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.

23V858000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump

Dec 18, 2023

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: 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.

16V725000 · Parking Brake

Oct 11, 2016

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2016 Honda Civic two door and four door 1.5L turbo and 2.0L vehicles. The electric parking brake (EPB) may not engage if it is applied immediately after turning the ignition off.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the EPB is not applied, the vehicle may roll away, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the vehicle's software to allow the EPB to engage immediately after the ignition is turned off, free of charge. The recall began on November 8, 2016. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KC6.

16V526000 · Exterior Lighting

Jul 11, 2016

American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) is recalling certain model year 2016 Civic 2-Door vehicles manufactured February 23, 2016, through May 20, 2016. The affected vehicles may have a damaged LED side marker light circuit board inside the taillight assembly, making the marker light inoperable. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Assoc. Equipment."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If a side marker light does not function, vehicle visibility can be decreased to other drivers, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect both the taillight assemblies, replacing them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on August 31, 2016. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KB8.

16V074000 · Engine And Engine Cooling:engine

Feb 9, 2016

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2016 Civic vehicles manufactured September 22, 2015, to February 3, 2016 and equipped with 2.0L engines. The affected vehicles have engines with piston assemblies that may have been manufactured without a piston wrist pin circlip or with an incorrectly installed piston wrist pin circlip.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If a circlip is missing or incorrectly installed, the piston wrist pin may not be secure and may drift and damage the engine cylinder causing the engine to seize, and increasing the risk of a crash or a fire.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the piston assemblies and damaged engine components, as necessary, free of charge. Parts are expected to be available in the Summer of 2016. Owners were mailed an interim notification beginning March 31, 2016, and will be mailed a second notice when parts are available. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JX9.

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.

Go deeper into Honda Civic problems