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.
2021 Honda Civic
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2021 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: 15 of 143 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.
- Steering. Review the 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Forward Collision Avoidance. Review the 33 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Steering complaints
63 reportsThe 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 lig…
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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 simultaneously illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, and the technician diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the electronic power steering assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 58,000.
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
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 …
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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.
Vehicle: 2021 Honda Civic Hatchback Current Mileage: ~24,400 miles Component: Steering / Electronic Power Steering (EPS) Gearbox / Steering Rack Summary of Issue: Vehicle is experiencing severe "sticky steering" (mechanical binding) in the Electronic Power Steering (EPS) assembly while driving, most noticeably at highway speeds.…
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Vehicle: 2021 Honda Civic Hatchback Current Mileage: ~24,400 miles Component: Steering / Electronic Power Steering (EPS) Gearbox / Steering Rack Summary of Issue: Vehicle is experiencing severe "sticky steering" (mechanical binding) in the Electronic Power Steering (EPS) assembly while driving, most noticeably at highway speeds. The steering wheel feels stuck when trying to make minor lane adjustments, requiring noticeable extra force to break free, which causes the vehicle to over-correct and weave. This is an active safety hazard that interferes with normal vehicle control. The vehicle has only ~24,400 miles. A Honda dealership diagnosed the issue as a faulty steering rack/gearbox requiring full replacement at a quoted cost of $5,000. This behavior matches the known defect detailed in NHTSA Campaign 24V-744 (gearbox worm gear binding/sticky steering) affecting millions of Honda vehicles sharing this same EPS architecture for 2022-2025 models. Requesting an investigation to expand coverage to 2021 models.
The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the steering wheel became firm and was sticking while driving. The contact used excessive force to turn the steering wheel while driving. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of t…
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The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the steering wheel became firm and was sticking while driving. The contact used excessive force to turn the steering wheel while driving. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.
The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal clicking sound coming from the vehicle, and the steering wheel was sticking. The contact stated that the steering wheel was continuously turned while attempting to prevent it from sticking. No warning lights …
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The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an abnormal clicking sound coming from the vehicle, and the steering wheel was sticking. The contact stated that the steering wheel was continuously turned while attempting to prevent it from sticking. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was a persistent failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a power steering rack assembly failure. The contact was informed that the power steering rack assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced an unknown recall; however, the VIN was not associated with a recall related to the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.
Vehicle: 2021 Honda Civic Mileage: Approximately 58,000 miles Over the past couple of months, I have experienced a steering issue that appears to be worsening. While driving at highway speeds, the steering wheel intermittently feels as though it “sticks” or catches near center, requiring constant small corrections to maintain a…
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Vehicle: 2021 Honda Civic Mileage: Approximately 58,000 miles Over the past couple of months, I have experienced a steering issue that appears to be worsening. While driving at highway speeds, the steering wheel intermittently feels as though it “sticks” or catches near center, requiring constant small corrections to maintain a straight path. The steering does not feel smooth or normal and creates difficulty maintaining lane position comfortably. I have also noticed similar catching/resistance during sharper turns at moderate speeds. To attempt to resolve the issue, I have: * Replaced a flat tire * Had two separate wheel alignments performed *opened case with Honda directly Neither repair corrected the issue. The symptoms appear similar to “sticky steering” complaints and steering investigations reported on newer Honda Civic models. Because this issue affects steering control and highway driving, I believe it may present a potential safety concern. The problem occurs intermittently but repeatedly during normal driving conditions and is most noticeable at higher speeds.
Steering rack binds and requires extra effort to return to center. Specifically for me, when proceeding on a long curve that requires me to turn my steering wheel left more than like 40 degrees the steering will "stick" in place and won't automatically return to center when releasing the wheel requiring me manually start returni…
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Steering rack binds and requires extra effort to return to center. Specifically for me, when proceeding on a long curve that requires me to turn my steering wheel left more than like 40 degrees the steering will "stick" in place and won't automatically return to center when releasing the wheel requiring me manually start returning the wheel to center before it will auto center. It happens after having driven for about 20 or more minutes. It happens at smaller degrees when driving at highway speeds trying to keep the car centered in the lane. (Adjusting the wheel to the left more then 5 degrees will cause the steering wheel to stick left requiring manually effort to return to center.) I informed my dealership (Metro Honda of Jersey City) of the steering feeling sticky but they couldn't replicate it at the time.
At speeds between 40 and 70 my 2021 Honda Civic EX Hatchback steering feels sticky when making small adjustments. There is a slight resistant in steering when a slight correction is needed. Once that resistant is overcome, the steering wheel jerks in the direction of the correction potentially causing an over correction. This is…
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At speeds between 40 and 70 my 2021 Honda Civic EX Hatchback steering feels sticky when making small adjustments. There is a slight resistant in steering when a slight correction is needed. Once that resistant is overcome, the steering wheel jerks in the direction of the correction potentially causing an over correction. This is a safety problem and can cause an accident. I am not seeing any warning lights or warning noises.
Official recalls
426V332000 · 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.
24V064000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger
Feb 1, 2024
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.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
Remedy: 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.
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.
23V458000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:master Cylinder
Jun 29, 2023
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.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Brake master cylinder separation can cause a loss of brake function and increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: 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.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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