Problems · by component

2019 Honda Civic forward collision avoidance problems

34 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2019 Honda Civic cite forward collision avoidance, 7% of all 460 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
34
7% of all complaints
Crashes
4
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
3
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the forward collision avoidance

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“While pulling into a parking lot at approximately 10–15 mph around sunset, the vehicle suddenly and unexpectedly engaged the brakes without any input from me. The abrupt braking caused all of my personal belongings inside the vehicle to be thrown forward. After pausing briefly to assess the situation, I cautiously applied light pressure to the accelerator. The vehicle responded, allowing me to slowly proceed and safely pull into a nearby parking space.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 2, 2026Forward collision avoidanceODI 11754242
“The Honda Sensing automated system suffered a phantom activation. It threw a visual brake warning, violently applied the brakes, and jerked the steering wheel causing a collision impact to other vehicles. This collision led to a major accident with an 18 wheeler and 6 additional cars. The car automated system has done this prior when there were no objects in front of the vehicle.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 17, 2026Lane departure, Forward collision avoidanceCrash reportedODI 11750975
“On June 17, 2026, at approximately 4:30PM, while driving to work for an event, my vehicle suddenly applied the emergency brakes right after a message appeared on my dash warning me to brake. There was no vehicle Infront of me that should have caused my car to brake so hard and suddenly. I have contacted the dealership and American Honda about the situation. I have read online reports of similar issues happening and i wanted to report it so i can make as many people as possible aware of the issue.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 18, 2026Service brakes, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11744991
“Since April of 2024, my steering has been sticking when making the slightest of turns. It has progressively gotten worse. I initially thought that I needed power steering fluid but that did not correct the issue. This sticky causes my vehicle to veer to the left and right abruptly into other lanes. I am fighting to keep the vehicle straight. I can hear the sticking noise constantly due to the lack of lubrication in the steering gearbox. I am fearful that I may cause an accident and injure myself or others when driving and I would like assistance in having the dealership correct this issue. This issue also causes the sensors for my ABS, Adaptive Cruise control, lane departure etc to malfunction and alarm.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled May 20, 2025Steering, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11662228
“Sometimes whenI go to brake the brake pedal goes all the way up and I can’t press it down to stop the vehicle. This only lasts a few seconds then the brakes return to normal. I believe this may be due to a previous recall. “A common brake issue reported with the 2019 Honda Civic is a potential problem with the brake system due to a faulty tie rod fastener connecting the brake master cylinder and brake booster, which could result in improper braking and is currently subject to a recall by Honda” Not sure why my vehicle is showing 0 recalls under the VIN.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 18, 2025Service brakes, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11643479
“I was driving straight going 35mph on a 2 lane rd when my steering wheel starting making a weird noise & almost was shaking. The steering wheel then locked up to the left & wouldn’t move. This caused my driver side tire to go into the curb, & at this point my steering wheel was spinning in circles & all I could do was brake. After bumping off the curb I then was thrusted back over to the right lane (due to having no steering control) where I came to a stop grazing another vehicle. My insurance performed diagnostics on the vehicle & determined the steering rack housing assembly part failed, causing the accident. There was no damage at all to the vehicle that would indicate this part was damaged as result of the incident, therefore they are calling it “pre existing damage” even though Honda did a multipoint inspection on my car 08/03/2024 (not even a whole 3 months prior) that did not mention a single steering problem. It was ultimately determined this failure is what caused the incident. Upon further research I have found millions of Civics are recalled for this issue but not my year of the vehicle. However, I have found countless stories exactly like mine with…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 25, 2024Steering, Forward collision avoidance, Lane departureCrash reportedODI 11627171

Showing 6 of 34 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

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