2018 Honda Civic

The contact's son owns a 2018 Honda Civic equipped with Hankook tires, Tire Line: Unknown, Tire Size: 215/55/R16, and DOT Number: 7R11BH3620. The contact stated while his son was driving at 50-55 MPH, the rear passenger's side tire blew up on its side. The contact's son veered to the side of the road. The contact's son was able to replace the tire with a spare tire with the assistance of AAA. The vehicle was then taken to the local dealer who replaced the spare tire with a new tire. The tire manufacturer was not notified of the failure. Additionally, the contact stated while his son was reversing in the driveway, the steering wheel locked inadvertently. The steering, the traction control, and the brake warning lights illuminated. The contact's son then parked the vehicle. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The tire failure mileage was approximately 17,000. The vehicle failure mileage was approximately 37,000.

The steering wheel has become very glitchy. The driver must over compensate while shifting lanes and going around turns. It’s like the steering wheel gets stuck. Very unsafe! I noticed a recall that was for 2018 Honda civics in regards to the malfunction of the EPS gear box; however when I contact Honda dealership and the corporate office both say they vin number/vehicle isn’t part of the recall. But seems that it has the same problem.

After the vehicle has warmed up or been driven at least 20 minutes there is a dead spot in the steering where it becomes "sticky" to turn the wheel hard enough to get outside of the dead spot. Driving around a city at low speeds it is hardly noticeable, driving on a highway it is very noticeable and you're constantly overcorrecting the steering to try and get it to go straight. Once you break over the sticky part in the steering you're turning further than you need to for minor course corrections on a highway. It is dangerous and difficult to manage.

The contact owns a 2018 Honda Civic. The contact stated while his daughter was driving 60-70 MPH, the lost power steering functionality. The contact stated that the steering wheel was sticky. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact’s daughter was able to continue driving the vehicle. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that he would be responsible for the cost of the cost of the repair because the VIN was not included in a recall associated to the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring while driving. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V663000 (Steering). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist as the vehicle was out of warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The steering function failed. It is available for inspection upon request. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? The steering wheel is very heavy to turn. I can turn it at most 10 degrees to the left and right. Basically, I couldn't make a left turn or right turn and could only go straight. The vehicle is not drivable. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes. The problem persists and confirmed by my repair shop. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? The vehicle has been inspected by the repair shop and a Statefarm representative. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? Not prior but a lot of warning light simultaneously turned on when the problem appeared (off-road light, electronic power steering, to name a few) I'm aware there is a recall for Honda Civic in 2018 related to steering gearbox but my car is not among the recalled. I'd like to have the manufacturer examine this situation and determine whether my car should be recalled as the issue is related to the steering part. The insurance representative believes this should be part of the recall.

Under acceleration from a stop, a strong smell of gasoline enters the cabin of the vehicle, causing the occupants watery eyes, headaches and dizziness at times. The smell comes an goes intermittently. Oil from the engine has a strong smell of gasoline, and oil level increases with driving. No engine codes are shown and no visible fuel leaks on engine bay. Honda dealership drove vehicle for 5 minutes and problem smell was not noticed then. Honda dealership stated oil dilution problems with this engine only occur in cold weather states.

When driving at highway speeds, the steering appears to be sticky. Trying to keep the car centered in the lane is difficult as there is increased resistance in steering. When applying more pressure, there seems to be a break-over point in which the steering grabs. This causes an over correction of steering. Problem occurs in both directions. Very difficult to maintain the center of the lane.