Complaint volume
129 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2021 Honda Civic Complaints
129 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Honda Civic, grouped by component category.
129 Total complaints
5 Crash reports
2 Fire reports
1 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are steering, forward collision avoidance, air bags. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 5 crash reports, 2 fire reports, 1 injury report, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 12 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 37,704 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to steering, forward collision avoidance, air bags?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2021 Honda Civic?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2021 Honda Civic
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Honda Civic complaints?
5 Crash
2 Fire
1 Injury
0 Fatality
3 Towed
1 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Honda Civic complaint categories?
STEERING 46
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 12
AIR BAGS 8
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 6
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 4
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2
ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE 2
SEATS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2
129 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2025 | STEERING | The component that has failed is my electric power steering motor. Yes, it is available for inspection upon request. While driving, the steering wheel should turn in a fluid motion, without requiring much force to turn the wheel. When i turn my wheel, it sometimes will get stuck mid turning. Another time when this happens is when i am driving in a straight line. Making the micro adjustments to stay straight in between the lines. The steering wheel will catch, and i will have to exert additional force to get the wheel unstuck. Obviously, this has caused safety issues, as sometimes the strength to overcome the wheel being stuck will cause me to oversteer. This has also been found to be a problem on some 2022 and 2023 year Civics. There is already a recall for this problem, but not for my year civic. It does greatly lower my safety while driving, when i should never be uncomfortable in my own car. The problem has been confirmed by my own mechanic, and by Honda. It has been inspected by my own mechanic as well. There were no indications on the dash to warn me the motor was going to fault. I do not remember the exact date it happened, but sometime last week when i took my car in to have the CV joints replaced. The problem has steadily gotten worse since then. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | With my steering wheel, when turning, the wheel will sometimes get “sticky”. Making it so I have to use extra force to get he wheel “unstuck”. Took it to my mechanic, they found a recall for the ‘22-‘23 year model civics for this same problem. The electric steering motor can sometimes fault and cause the wheel to get stuck while turning.This was not for the ‘21 year. I called my dealership, they said there was nothing I could do as there is no recall for my vin, although I’m having the exact same problem as the ‘22-‘23 models. He recommended I can the Honda 1-800 number. Pretty much got told the same thing. I was looking to get a goodwill extension, he said that would not apply due to Honda warranties. Next best thing was for me to be here filing a complaint. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | TIRES | 23540 r Tire sidewall separated and burned up while traveling on the highway. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | STEERING | Steering has progressively become more "sticky", hitching around 12 o' clock. It gets worse at higher speeds and makes it difficult to drive in straight line, and I end up bouncing back and forth between lane lines when driving on highway. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | SEATS | I was informed of a recall notice for my vehicle in the summer months of 2024 (approximately). I took my vehicle to the Culver City Honda dealership in Los Angeles to address this, however they informed me that the issue was not critical and that they did not have the parts. Hence, the recall notice has still not been addressed. I recently (June 2025) imported this vehicle to Canada and I am unable to proceed with the import procedure because of this outstanding recall notice. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Our battery died in April 2025. We've had this car since October 2021 with only 8 miles on it. We've replaced: The PCV valve The PCV valve tube The MAF sensor The sparks plugs 3 times which was $90 each time Replaced our battery 2 times since April 2025 3 oil changes And finally replacing our entire fuel injector system with the hard fuel line. And replacing the battery the first time is what revealed all these issues because we kept getting codes on our obd-ii scanner of P0172, U0038 and U0100. Honda told us once the fuel injectors were replaced then our car would be fixed but that is not the case. The car can't travel further then 5 minutes before the spark plus burn. We replaced the spark plugs on Sunday morning and we went to the store and they were charred after that drive same day. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | STEERING | Steering of the car at highway speeds is impaired. The steering becomes sticky and hard to control, both hands need to be tightly gripping the steering wheel in order to keep the car under control as it comes and goes and one cannot anticipate the reaction of the car. Steering should be smooth and not jerky, this creates an exhausting and unsafe occurrence. I have taken the car to two different Honda dealers, the one where I purchased the vehicle and a larger well known dealer an hour and a half from my home. Attached is the most recent inspection report and cost breakdown. Roush Honda offered to contact Honda directly regarding this inspection, issue and recommendation. There were no warning lamps or messages. This issue started a little over 30 days ago. It has taken some time to get it into the two different Honda locations to get an inspection. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | STEERING | STICKY STEERING LIKE THE 2022 RECALLS | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | STEERING | steering sticks and requires extra effort to start movement but then moves with normal effort. there is a recall for this on ‘22 cars but not my ‘21, sadly | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | STEERING | The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the electronic power steering assist was not functioning properly, requiring an increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. The VIN was not available. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | AIR BAGS | While driving my 2021 Honda Civic Sport, both front airbags deployed without warning and without any accident or impact. There were no warning lights beforehand, and no collision occurred. The deployment also caused my windshield to crack. After the airbags went off, the dashboard displayed a ‘SRS airbag system problem’ message. This is a serious safety concern as the vehicle was operating normally at the time. I’m requesting that this be investigated as a potential manufacturer defect | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | STEERING,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE | Steering wheel sticks once at highway speed, wheel turns but with a glitch | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | STEERING | My steering wheel sticks while driving. It is difficult to keep the car on the highway. I feel that eventually, I will have a wreck due to this issue. It is very scary driving the vehicle. The steering wheel is sticking constantly in the center position. The car is hard to control and keep on the highway. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2025 | STEERING | See attached document for complaint. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2025 | STEERING | The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the steering wheel was sticking while turning. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on several occasions. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V744000 (Steering); however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, and it was confirmed that the vehicle was not included in the recall. There dealer was unable to replicate the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 30,000 |
| May 2025 | AIR BAGS | Unknown | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2025 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Unknown | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | My 2021 Honda civic ex’ forward collision sensor light flashed mid intersection my brakes locked up causing me to be a victim of a hit and run. As I was in between policies with my insurance therefore I wasn’t covered for the accident and I am now suffering financial hardships.. dealership didn’t want to hear what I had to say because it was a new car & no recalls were announced at the time. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Towed | Unknown |
| Apr 2025 | STEERING | Steering Rack Needs Replaced As Per Moses Honda In West Virginia Where I Purchased It New In 2021. 3,ooo repair. It is out of warranty by 10 Months and it has only 28,500mi. Moses honda is trying to help in this matter with American Honda. No Recall on this year. the steering is becoming more difficult as i keep driving it.......... | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2025 | AIR BAGS | Dealer can not complete recall as they have no parts - I tried 2 times in the last 6 months | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2025 | STEERING | At highway speeds, the steering has a hitch in it when making slight lane adjustments. This becomes more noticeable over 60mph and after driving for 20-30 minutes. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2025 | STEERING | The contact owned a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH and attempting to make a right turn, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the failure only occurred while making a right turn. No warning light was illuminated. An unknown dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V704000 (STEERING); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 88,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 88,000 |
| Mar 2025 | AIR BAGS | The contact owned a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated that his wife was driving at 30-35 MPH, when another vehicle suddenly merged in front of the vehicle causing a T-bone collision. The vehicle was pushed into the middle of the road from the impact where it came to a stop. All air bags deployed. However, the front passenger-side air bag deployed backward onto the front windshield instead of deploying forward. The contact was unsure whether there was a warning light illuminated. A police report was not filed. EMS was called however, refused to take the contact and his wife to the hospital. The contact's wife sustained unknown injuries and was pending an MRI. The contact sustained whiplash and no medical attention was sought. The insurance company towed the vehicle to a storage location and deemed the vehicle a total loss. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 78,000. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 2 Towed Medical attention | 78,000 |
| Mar 2025 | STEERING | Sticky steering due to faulty eps gearbox. Recall is for 2022-2025 but many 2021 are affected. Steering is stiff and difficult, constant corrections being made just trying to steer straight, steering wheel does not want to return to zero position after taking a curve. Steering gets worse when it's cold out or after some rain due to the moisture. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2025 | STEERING | The steering system in my 2021 Honda Civic appears to be malfunctioning, causing the steering wheel to feel "sticky" when making small adjustments while driving on the highway. This issue is most noticeable at speeds between 45-70 mph, where the steering momentarily resists movement before suddenly adjusting, making it difficult to maintain smooth lane control. The steering system appears to be the affected component. The Issue seems to be with the EPS not having enough grease which there is a recall for 2022-2025 models. This problem puts my safety and the safety of others at risk because it reduces my ability to make precise steering corrections, especially at highway speeds. The delayed response in the steering makes the vehicle feel unstable, increasing the potential for unintended lane deviations or overcorrections. There were no warning lights, messages, or prior symptoms before this issue began occurring. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |