Problems · NHTSA complaints

2002 Honda Civic problems

Owners filed 717 complaints about the 2002 Honda Civic with NHTSA between Dec 2001 and Apr 2025. The most-cited component is air bags (245).

Complaints
717
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
116
Reported by owners
Fires
14
Reported by owners
Injuries
100
People reported injured
Deaths
4
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Air bags245
  2. Power train190
  3. Exterior lighting53
  4. Seat belts51
  5. Electrical system51
  6. Suspension35
  7. Engine and engine cooling32
  8. Vehicle speed control26
  9. Steering23
  10. Structure21
  11. Tires20
  12. Engine17
  13. Service brakes, hydraulic17
  14. Visibility16

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 6, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
20012
200248
200358
200453
200537
200637
200721
200840
200952
201069
201135
201252
201331
201427
201548
201622
201726
201818
201911
20209
20219
20223
20233
20242
20254

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.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Air bags

245 reports80 crashes3 fires7 related recalls
“The contact owns a 2002 Honda Civic. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V501000(Air Bags) and would like to be removed from the recall distribution list. The local dealer and manufacturer were contacted.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 4, 2025Air bagsODI 11652851

Power train

190 reports1 fire
“I recently purchased the car . I see on several forums , the transmission in this car for this year is prone to leaks and failures and Honda is aware . I’m having that issue .”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 10, 2025Power trainODI 11641805

Exterior lighting

53 reports2 crashes5 fires14 related recalls
“Automatic high beams, etc. Potentially very dangerous to other drivers. Place a limit on the intensity of headlights. Ultra bright lights tend to interfere with me knowing where my own vehicle is on the road.It's getting to be almost a constant anxiety attack driving at night with both on coming and following vehicles with ultra bright lights, including low beams. And if the offending vehicle is a SUV or a pickup it feels like I'm flirting with the distinct possibility of an accident and or injury.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 29, 2023Exterior lightingODI 11514431

Seat belts

51 reports11 crashes
“The contact owns a 2002 Honda Civic. The contact stated while trying to fasten the driver’s side seat belt, the seat belt failed to release, not allowing the contact to fasten the seat belt. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The dealer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The manufacturer was contacted and also stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The failure mileage was 76,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 2, 2023Seat beltsODI 11505138

Electrical system

51 reports1 crash1 fire
“SRS Light on for a while in Honda Civic, Contacted Dealer as this car was messed with by another dealership last year during light swsitch recall, so wanted only other Dealership to diagnose the issue with SRS but diagnosis alone is $157 and since my auto mechanic cannot read the diagnosis Honda has put or installed this restricted setting on the car. Seat belts and seat bekt sensors may be bad and seat belt cant stick on driver;s side, indicating a safety issue, Transmission exhibiting trouble and revs up when shifting, hard to shift gears with automatic gear shift problems. This should not be happening and brand new engine had to be competely installed with new engine blocks, and new radiator and watter pump need due to failing.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 3, 2021Power train, Electrical system, Seat beltsODI 11419572

Suspension

35 reports4 crashes
“DURING LAST YEAR NY STATE INSPECTION, A TECHNICIAN SAID, THE TWO FRONT STRUT WAS LEAKED; LATER ON WHEN I AM DRIVING THE CAR, I CAN HEAR A NOISE AND FEEL IT UNCOMFORTABLE AND UNSAFE. SO THIS YEAR INSPECTION IN PEP BOYS (STORE ID # 1072), I WAS ASKED TO REPLACE THE TWO, BY MONROE PART # 71433/71434, $204.39 PER UNIT.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 8, 2015SuspensionODI 10747158
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 6, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.