Problems · NHTSA complaints
2005 Honda Civic problems
Owners filed 316 complaints about the 2005 Honda Civic with NHTSA between Jan 2005 and Oct 2026. The most-cited component is air bags (129).
Complaints
316
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
74
Reported by owners
Fires
9
Reported by owners
Injuries
71
People reported injured
Deaths
3
Reported to NHTSA
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
- Air bags129
- Power train36
- Electrical system26
- Structure25
- Vehicle speed control25
- Seat belts21
- Engine and engine cooling19
- Engine14
- Service brakes, hydraulic13
- Tires8
- Equipment8
- Suspension8
- Steering7
- 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 6, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
29
22
8
27
10
32
22
15
8
27
36
9
16
21
6
6
8
7
3
1
1
2
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 29 |
| 2006 | 22 |
| 2007 | 8 |
| 2008 | 27 |
| 2009 | 10 |
| 2010 | 32 |
| 2011 | 22 |
| 2012 | 15 |
| 2013 | 8 |
| 2014 | 27 |
| 2015 | 36 |
| 2016 | 9 |
| 2017 | 16 |
| 2018 | 21 |
| 2019 | 6 |
| 2020 | 6 |
| 2021 | 8 |
| 2022 | 7 |
| 2023 | 3 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2025 | 1 |
| 2026 | 2 |
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
129 reports53 crashes1 fire8 related recalls
“Description of Incident and Safety Complaint 2004 Honda Civic Airbag Recall I am filing this complaint regarding a safety concern involving my daughter's 2004 Honda Civic and a recalled airbag. Weeks before the accident, we contacted Honda regarding the airbag recall affecting the vehicle. Despite our efforts to address this safety concern, we never received a follow-up call or instructions on when to bring the vehicle in to have the recalled airbag repaired. On Saturday, [XXX], my daughter was involved in a serious accident in Mobile, Alabama. According to her account, another driver swerved, causing her to leave the roadway and strike trees. The vehicles did not make contact with each other. During the crash, the airbag in her Honda Civic did not deploy, and my daughter sustained injuries. The vehicle was severely damaged and is believed to be a total loss. I am deeply concerned that we attempted to address the airbag recall before this accident but never received the follow-up needed to schedule the repair. I want this incident documented and investigated to determine whether the recalled airbag or any related defect contributed to the airbag's failure to…”
Power train
36 reports3 crashes2 fires
“I purchased this car from a Honda dealership used for over 7 thousand dollars in 2021 it's a 2005 car with known issues. I drove it for less than 2 months before it overheated without an indication by the gauge that it was overheating and blew a head gasket. It was acting funny before it happened I brought it back to the dealership a couple times they charged me several hundred dollars to do nothing besides diagnosed it and told me nothing was wrong with it. Obviously there's plenty wrong with a car I'm just finding out that the battery is probably going to die really soon and I had to pay a mechanic to put another engine in it and paid another 2 thousand dollars. Now the transmission is completely gone and I have to figure out how to come up with more money to fix it while I'm out of work because of this I should have done better research before I bought this car but why aren't there any lemon laws for used cars just purchased from dealerships in a lot of states Florida only has one if it's a brand new car very unhelpful and unfortunate for me right now that a multi billion dollar company can do this to me and leave me broke without a car and out of work…”
Electrical system
26 reports1 crash3 fires
“Hagerstown Honda is 80 plus miles away from my house. My ignition failed which is a very common problem in that generation of all Honda vehicles. My ignition failed and I had it replaced by a local mechanic with genuine Honda parts. All dealerships including Honda run a monopoly on reprogramming ignition. The local mechanic taped the old key under the dash to get the car started. Not long after my hybrid battery failed and I had it replaced at Hagerstown Honda. I told them to reprogram the ignition. They said they would do it and never did it. Not long after the car refused to start and I found out from the local mechanic that Hagerstown Honda never reprogrammed the ignition. Car has sat in my driveway for years with me renewing tags. Honda started calling me and sending me letters via USPS about thd airbag. I told them to not call me anymore. My father had the same problem with his 2004 Honda Accord. Honda stalked and harassed us for years, supposedly on behalf of your agency. Honda has violated FCC regulations. I wrote a letter to Maryland state and they forwarded it to Honda serving as a cease and disist. They haven't complied. I sent a copy a complaint to…”
Structure
25 reports6 crashes
“Hood safety latches both failed, causing hood to slam into windshield breaking windshield & denting hood. Various electrical issue, battery issue. Alternator issues that haven been tested to be working but don't work in car. Coolant system loses pressure & over heats, no leaks, no blown head gaskets. Battery, starter & alternator all good but car will not start. Everything has power but will not turn over. Over 3,000 dollars I have spent fixing numerous factory issues that have broken or simply failed. 400$ for need windshield & dent removal from defective locking device. Soon as I fix something on my car, something else breaks. 2005 civic 1.7l automatic 126,700 miles. I have roughly 50K miles less on original engine than most & I've been having issue since I bought it at 121,100 miles. Nothing but pouring money into a car that should run with zero problems.”
Vehicle speed control
25 reports8 crashes
“The contact owns a 2005 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 50 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed and ceased with the RPM level rising. The vehicle then loss motive power. The contact was awaiting a tow to the dealer. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 73,361.”
Seat belts
21 reports5 crashes1 related recall
“This product at issue is a used 2005 Honda Civic (Vin; [XXX]) purchased at Left Coast Auto Sales LLC XXX .from [XXX]. The primary issues are that the dealership sold an unroadworthy vehicle with severe, hidden mechanical defects and critical safety violations, and subsequently refused a formal demand for contract rescission and a full refund. The vehicle was advertised on Facebook Marketplace as a safe, reliable vehicle in good working condition. The contract was signed XXX. The vehicle was delivered with multiple severe safety violations that make it completly illegal and hazardous to drive, which we have independent documentation too prove from Big O tires. This readout confirms critical safety failures including an active airbag system (SRS) defect. That was hidden prior to sale by recent code clearance. It also includes illegal safety restraint violations, including completely missing rear seatbelt buckles and a cut, unsecured passenger side seatbelt. Official mileage tracking proves I only put 44 miles on the vehicle before this inspection, proving these severe hazards existed at the time of sale. This certified mechanic documentation is fully preserved…”
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.