1986 HONDA CIVIC — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 35 complaints · 3 recalls
Most-reported system: SEAT BELTS (11 complaints · 31.4%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 3
  • Fires 2
  • Injuries 2
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1985 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution SEAT BELTS appears in 11 of 35 owner complaints (31.4%) in this vehicle snapshot. SEAT BELTS: 11 complaints, 31.4% of reports SEAT BELTS 11 · 31.4% · 2 crash reports STRUCTURE: 5 complaints, 14.3% of reports STRUCTURE 5 · 14.3% POWER TRAIN: 4 complaints, 11.4% of reports POWER TRAIN 4 · 11.4% · 1 fire reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 3 complaints, 8.6% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 3 · 8.6% ENGINE: 3 complaints, 8.6% of reports ENGINE 3 · 8.6% EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 3 complaints, 8.6% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 3 · 8.6% FUEL SYSTEM: 3 complaints, 8.6% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 3 · 8.6% · 1 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 1 complaints, 2.9% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 2.9% · 1 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 31 complaints, 88.6% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 31 · 88.6% · 3 crash reports 2 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
SEAT BELTS 11 31.4% 2 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 5 14.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 4 11.4% 0 crashes · 1 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 3 8.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 3 8.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 3 8.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 3 8.6% 0 crashes · 1 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 1 2.9% 1 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 31 88.6% 3 crashes · 2 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 1995; the first recall shown was reported in Mar 1986. 1995-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 1995-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1995-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 1995-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 1997-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1997-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1997-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2005-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Mar 1986 Jan 2025 Recall campaign 86V045000 ◆ Recall campaign 86V045000 Recall campaign 88V180000 ◆ Recall campaign 88V180000 Recall campaign 95V103001 ◆ Recall campaign 95V103001 Investigation EA89005 ● Investigation EA89005 Investigation PE94052 ● Investigation PE94052 Investigation EA94035 ● Investigation EA94035
  • Campaign 95V103001 was reported 78 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1995-Q1 Owner reports 4
1995-Q2 Owner reports 3
1995-Q3 Owner reports 3
1995-Q4 Owner reports 1
1996-Q1 Owner reports 1
1996-Q3 Owner reports 1
1996-Q4 Owner reports 6
1997-Q1 Owner reports 2
1997-Q2 Owner reports 3
1997-Q3 Owner reports 2
1998-Q1 Owner reports 1
1999-Q1 Owner reports 1
2001-Q1 Owner reports 2
2001-Q2 Owner reports 1
2001-Q3 Owner reports 1
2003-Q3 Owner reports 1
2005-Q3 Owner reports 1
2025-Q1 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 86V045000
Recall campaign 1 88V180000
Recall campaign 1 95V103001
Defect investigation 1 EA89005
Defect investigation 1 PE94052
Defect investigation 1 EA94035
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (3)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 86V045000

    Report date
    Component:
    POWER TRAIN
    Consequence:
    CONSEQUENCE OF DEFECT: DURING HIGH STRESS SITUATIONS, SUCH AS RAPID ACCELERATION OR DECELERATION, THE DRIVE SHAFT COULD BREAK WITHOUT WARNING AND CAUSE A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AND A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    REPLACE LEFT DRIVE SHAFT WITH A PROPERLY MANUFACTURED PART.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 88V180000

    Report date
    Component:
    VISIBILITY
    Consequence:
    THIS COULD RESULT IN WINDSHIELD WIPER FAILURE AND WOULDAFFECT DRIVER VISIBILITY.
    Remedy:
    INSTALL A CONTACT UNIT HOLDER THAT WOULD PREVENT LOOSENING.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 95V103001

    Report date
    Component:
    SEAT BELTS
    Consequence:
    THE SAFETY BELTS WOULD NOT PROVIDE ADEQUATE PROTECTION TO AN OCCUPANT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    OWNERS SHOULD PROMPTLY CHECK THE CONDITION AND OPERATION OF BOTH FRONT SAFETY BELT BUCKLES. CAREFULLY INSPECT THE RED RELEASE BUTTON FOR ANY BREAKS OR CRACKS. CHECK THAT BOTH BUCKLES ARE OPERATING PROPERLY BY INSERTING EACH LATCH PLATE INTO ITS BUCKLE, TUG ON THE BELT TO MAKE SURE THE LATCH IS SECURELY LOCKED, THEN PRESS THE RELEASE BUTTON. THE LATCH PLATE SHOULD POP OUT OF THE BUCKLE WHEN THE BUTTON IS PRESSED. IF EITHER RELEASE BUTTON SHOWS ANY SIGN OF BREAKAGE OR CRACKING, OR IF EITHER BUCKLE FAILS TO OPERATE PROPERLY, PROMPTLY CONTACT YOUR AUTHORIZED HONDA/ACURA DEALER TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT TO HAVE THE BUCKLE REPLACED OR REPAIRED, FREE OF CHARGE. THE MANUFACTURER IS DEVELOPING A REMEDY DESIGNED TO PREVENT THE FAILURE OF THE BUTTONS THAT ARE NOT CURRENTLY BROKEN.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 35 complaints · page 1 of 2

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources