Problems · NHTSA complaints
2013 Honda Civic Hybrid problems
Owners filed 310 complaints about the 2013 Honda Civic Hybrid with NHTSA between Feb 2013 and May 2026. The most-cited component is air bags (106).
Complaints
310
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
28
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
29
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
- Air bags106
- Steering38
- Electrical system35
- Service brakes34
- Structure23
- Power train22
- Engine21
- Vehicle speed control20
- Seats16
- Fuel/propulsion system14
- Tires11
- Visibility/wiper9
- Electronic stability control (esc)9
- Wheels7
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 9, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
22
47
35
21
33
37
22
19
19
13
22
14
5
1
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 22 |
| 2014 | 47 |
| 2015 | 35 |
| 2016 | 21 |
| 2017 | 33 |
| 2018 | 37 |
| 2019 | 22 |
| 2020 | 19 |
| 2021 | 19 |
| 2022 | 13 |
| 2023 | 22 |
| 2024 | 14 |
| 2025 | 5 |
| 2026 | 1 |
Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.
Top problems in owners’ words
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
Air bags
106 reports18 crashes1 fire
“The contact owns a 2013 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at 20 MPH, the contact was rear-ended by another vehicle, which caused the contact to crash forward into another vehicle. The contact and their spouse were taken to a local emergency room to be evaluated. The contact and their spouse sustained multiple injuries, such as whiplash and back injuries. In addition, the contact's spouse sustained an arm injury. A Police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.”
Steering
38 reports4 crashes
“Purchased November 2023 not even 1 week warning lamps, messages / adaptive cruise control, road departure mitigation, brake systems, failure lights alarming at the same time. Took to dealer cleared sensors. A matter of days alarms going off again. Call dealer they want to keep vehicle for diagnostic. When they did diagnostic it was another problem. They repair guy also mentioned not to apply E-brake. He said their is a possibility that it may completely lock. I will be taking vehicle to another dealership for 2nd opinion.”
Electrical system
35 reports1 crash
“The airbag light comes on sporadically - almost all of the time when it's cold, and then on/off when it is warmer. Throws the code B0001-13 - Open or Increased Resistance in Driver's Airbag Inflator. Brought it to the dealership and they told me that I needed to get the whole driver's side airbag replaced (to the tune of $1300 dollars). With the plethora of recalls surrounding 2000s to 2010s Civics, I have a hard time believing this shouldn't be covered under some sort of recall, especially with the amount of other people online who have experienced the same issue.”
Service brakes
34 reports2 crashes
“The ABS module is defective. I was told by the auto repair shop that he has been getting a lot of Honda vehicles that have defective ABS modules and that it should have a recall on this vehicle. This is dangerous for my vehicle to be on the road. The auto place is having a hard time finding a replacement part for my car. If this is happening to many other cars this should be a recall.”
Structure
23 reports3 crashes
“The assembly of the 2013 Honda civic ex was missing the rear bumper impact absorber. The component was not noticed until a collision removed the rear bumper from the car, exposing the interior of the assembly. The omission of the impact absorber in the bumper assembly from the manufacturer directly puts my safety at risk because this part is designed to absorb energy in a collision, and without the part I am more likely to be in a more serious accident. This problem was first noticed by the service shop who had confirmed that the part was missing from the assembly, and that it was a safety feature of the vehicle. The component had only been inspected by the independent service shop. There was no indication of the missing component before the accident”
Power train
22 reports
“The contact owns a 2013 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the vehicle failed to respond. The check emission system and check transmission system warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to exceed 65 MPH, the vehicle was losing motive power, jerking, and was slow to respond. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who removed and replaced the speed sensor. The vehicle was then taken to another independent mechanic who sprayed the wires and thought it would repair the vehicle; however, the warning light illuminated again. The vehicle was taken to a dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,156.”
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 9, 2026
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.