2007 HONDA CIVIC Complaints

THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR THE VOLTAGE CONVERTER THAT RELAYS POWER FROM THE INTEGRATED MOTOR ASSIST (IMA) SYSTEM TO THE VEHICLE'S ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS TO FAIL. .A CVT DOESN'T ACTUALLY HAVE GEARS, SO THE SYSTEM USES ELECTRONICS TO DIRECT THE TRANSMISSION TO UP- OR DOWNSHIFT IN SPECIFIC WAYS WHEN A DRIVER HITS A PADDLE.BATTERY LOSES CHARGE SUDDENLY AND POWER IS SIGNIFICANTLY LOST TO THE POINT WHERE ACCELERATION IS NOT POSSIBLE. THIS HAS CREATED SEVERAL UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITION IN HIGHWAY AND EXPRESSWAY ENTRANCES, AS I CAN NOT GET IN SAFELY OR MAINTAIN SAFE SPEED DURING DRIVING. THIS INCIDENT HAS REPEATED MANY TIMES IN THE PAST THREE YEARS. BATTERY INDICATOR DROPS TO ZERO BAR OR ONE BAR AND POWER IS LOST SIGNIFICANTLY. SLUGGISH TO POOR ACCELERATION, ESPECIALLY IN HIGHWAY MERGE SITUATIONS PLACING OWNER IS DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. WHEN BATTERY CHARGED AT LEAST 50%, ACCELERATION IS ACCEPTABLE AS THE IMA ASSIST IN ACCELERATION.THE VEHICLE'S HYBRID IMA SYSTEM (INTEGRATED MOTOR ASSIST) HAS BEEN STEADILY DETERIORATING THE HYBRID BATTERY SYSTEM MUST RECHARGE SO FREQUENTLY THAT BATTERY ASSIST IS AVAILABLE LESS THAN HALF THE TIME. WHEN ASSIST IS UNAVAILABLE, ACCELERATION IS DANGEROUSLY LOW, MAKING COMMON DRIVING SITUATIONS SUCH AS LEFT TURNS, FREEWAY ONRAMPS, AND MERGING INTO TRAFFIC UNPREDICTABLE AND QUITE HAZARDOUS. HONDA'S ONLY RESPONSE HAS BEEN A SERIES OF INEFFECTIVE SOFTWARE UPDATES. HONDA WILL NOT REPLACE THE BATTERY UNDER WARRANTY UNLESS A WARNING LIGHT APPEARS. YET EVEN THE CURRENT SEVERELY DEGRADED PERFORMANCE OF THE BATTERY DOES NOT TRIGGER THAT WARNING LIGHT. I HAVE BEEN IN SEVERAL NEAR MISS SITUATIONS WHEN ACCELERATION WAS SO SLUGGISH THAT I WAS NEARLY UNABLE TO EVADE A DANGEROUS TRAFFIC SITUATION. *TR

WE OWN A 2007 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. WE STRONGLY BELIEVE THIS CAR IS UNSAFE. IN 2010 WE BROUGHT THE CAR INTO A HONDA DEALER AFTER THE IMA LIGHT CAME ON. INSTEAD OF REPLACING A BAD HYBRID BATTERY, THE DEALER INSTEAD "UPGRADED" THE IMA SOFTWARE. AS A RESULT, THE CAR HAS LOST MILEAGE. BUT FAR MORE IMPORTANTLY, IT HAS LOST ANY ACCELERATION. THE SOFTWARE DOESN'T USE THE IMA (ELECTRIC BOOSTER MOTOR) IN A MANNER THAT PROVIDES ANY ACCELERATION TO THE CAR. IN FACT, AS BEST AS WE CAN TELL, THE IMA (INTEGRATED MOTOR ASSIST) IS MOSTLY TURNED OFF. SO WE HAVE A SMALLER COMBUSTION ENGINE THAN THE CONVENTIONAL HONDA CIVIC DOING THE WORK OF WHAT SHOULD BE TWO ENGINES. THE PRIMARY AND BOOSTER. WE CONSTANTLY HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME IN GAINING FREEWAY SPEED TO PROPERLY MERGE ONTO THE HIGHWAY. THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE IF THE ON RAMP IS ON A HILL OR INCLINE. WE HAVE HAD SEVERAL CLOSE CALLS AND NEAR ACCIDENTS. AS A RESULT WE FIRMLY BELIEVE THIS CAR IS UN-SAFE. WE URGE YOU TO OPEN UP A SAFETY INVESTIGATION INTO THE 2007 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. IF THESE HYBRID BATTERIES WERE REPLACED, AS THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN UNDER WARRANTY, THIS CAR WOULD NOT HAVE A SAFETY ACCELERATION PROBLEM. HONDA REFUSES TO DO SO. WE NEED YOUR HELP. SINCERELY, *TR

MY WIFE OWNS A 2007 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. I HAD THE SOFTWARE UPDATE DONE ON MY CAR IN 2010. SINCE THE UPDATE, THE CAR HAS NOT IDLED WHEN I BRING THE CAR TO A STOP, INSTEAD IT MOVES LITTLE FURTHER, AND THERE IS THAT DANGER OF HITTING THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. ALSO, ONCE THE VEHICLE COMES TO A STOP, AND I START MOVING AGAIN, THE CAR GOES BACKWARDS A LITTLE. IF THE CAR BEHIND ME IS VERY CLOSE TO MY REAR BUMPER, THIS HONDA CIVIC HYBRID CAR WOULD ACTUALLY HIT THE CAR IN THE BACK. *TR

I HAVE A 2007 HONDA CIVIC LX WITH 36,000 MILES. I WAS TURNING LEFT INTO A PARKING SPACE GOING VERY SLOWLY (<5 MPH) WHEN MY VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. MY FOOT WAS NOT ON THE GAS PEDAL. I SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES AND THE CAR CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE AND I HIT A CURB WHICH THEN CAUSED THE CAR TO STOP ITS ACCELERATION. THE BRAKES DID NOT MAKE TOO MUCH DIFFERENCE AS THE CAR WAS CONTINUING TO MOVE FORWARD AND RPMS CONTINUED TO INCREASE AS I TRIED TO BRAKE. PREVIOUSLY, I HAD A PROBLEM WITH HIGH RPM'S AND INCREASED ACCELERATION AND ROUGH IDLING AT 34000 MILES. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER WHO REPLACED THE ENGINE MOUNT WHICH I FOUND OUT WAS UNDER MY POWERTRAIN WARRANTY. I HAVE ALSO HAD THE BATTERY REPLACED. OTHER THAN THAT, THOSE ARE THE ONLY ISSUES I HAVE EXPERIENCED UNTIL TODAY. I CALLED THE DEALER AND THEY SAID IT MUST BE OPERATOR ERROR, BUT WHY WOULD THE CAR CONTINUE TO ACCELERATE WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKES? I CHECKED THE MAT AS WELL AND IT HAD NOT BECOME ENTANGLED WITH THE GAS PEDAL AS THE DEALER SUGGESTED. THE CAR MOVING FORWARD AT HIGH RPMS BY ITSELF IS A CONCERN. I AM HAPPY THAT I DID NOT HAVE AN ACCIDENT OR HIT A PEDESTRIAN. I AM FILING THIS COMPLAINT BECAUSE I BELIEVE THAT THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE WITH MY VEHICLE AND AS I RESEARCHED, I AM FINDING THAT OTHERS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE AS I AM UNDER SOME OF THE SAME CIRCUMSTANCES. I AM AFRAID TO DRIVE MY CAR! *TR

REAR TIRES ARE CUPPING AND THEY'VE BECOME VERY NOISY AFTER 5,000 MILES. PROBLEM FIRST NOTICED: NOVEMBER 2011. THE REAR TIRES WERE ALWAYS SLIPPERY IN TIGHT CURVES AT NORMAL SPEED. WENT TO ROUTE 23 HONDA, NJ FOR A CHECK UP ON 02/16/12. THEY BLAMED MY NEW TIRES (10000 MILES OLD). CHARGED ME $96.25 FOR A 4 WHEEL ALIGNMENT, NO PROBLEM FOUND WITH THE REAR WHEELS. I HAVE ASKED THEM ABOUT SERVICE BULLETIN 08-001 (UNEVEN OR RAPID REAR TIRE WEAR) BUT THEY DID NOT ADMIT ANY FAULT. THEY'VE SAID MY CAR DOES NOT NEED A REPAIR AS PER SB 08-001 MENTIONED ABOVE. I HAVE CONTACTED (OPENED ACCOUNT WITH) AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO. THEY DID NOT CALL BACK. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 HONDA CIVIC. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE REAR WHEEL BEARING FAILED PREMATURELY, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO MOVE FROM SIDE TO SIDE WHILE DRIVING. HE ALSO NOTICED A GRINDING NOISE COMING FROM THE REAR END. THE DEALER HAD NOT BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED WHO PROVIDED NO ASSISTANCE. THE CONTACT REPLACED THE REAR BEARINGS AND THE O RING. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 49,000 AND THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 45,000.

CONTACT OWNS A 2007 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING UP A HILL, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO HESITATE AND THE RPMS INCREASED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 60,000. THE CONSUMER STATED THE ISSUE INVOLVES LACK OF POWER AND ACCELERATION. WHICH WAS CAUSED BY A SOFTWARE UPDATE ISSUED BY HONDA. HONDA IS HAVING AN ISSUE WITH THE BATTERIES DYING PREMATURELY. THE UPDATE THAT WAS INSTALLED TURNED OFF THE ASSISTING ELECTRIC MOTOR TO SAVE THE BATTERY. THUS, RESULTING IN LOWER MILES PER GALLON AND THE LACK OF POWER AND ACCELERATION. *TR

WHEN PULLING OUT ONTO A BUSY 55 MPH HIGHWAY FROM A SIDE STREET, MY CAR UNEXPECTEDLY WAS UNABLE TO PROVIDE ANY ELECTRICAL PROPULSION FROM THE HYBRID MOTOR. THE HYBRID BATTERY STATE OF CHARGE INDICATOR WAS AT 6 OUT OF 8 BARS OF BATTERY LEVEL WHILE WAITING AT THE STOP SIGN, BUT WHEN THE DEMAND FOR ELECTRICAL ASSIST WAS GIVEN, THE BATTERY LEVEL IMMEDIATELY DROPPED TO 2 OUT OF 8 BARS AND PROVIDED LITTLE OR NO HYBRID MOTOR ASSIST. MY VEHICLE STRUGGLED TO ACCELERATE UP TO SPEED OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC, EVEN WITH THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL DEPRESSED ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR (WIDE OPEN THROTTLE). LUCKILY, THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC WAS ABLE TO REACT QUICKLY ENOUGH TO AVOID A COLLISION, BUT I DO NOT FEEL SAFE PUTTING MYSELF AND OTHER MOTORISTS AT RISK LIKE THIS. THIS VEHICLE WAS NEVER DESIGNED TO OPERATE SOLELY ON THE GASOLINE ENGINE, AS IT IS UNDER-POWERED BY DESIGN AND DEPENDENT ON ASSISTANCE FROM THE ELECTRIC MOTOR. THE CAR HAS SINCE HAD SEVERAL OCCASIONS WHERE THE BATTERY LEVEL HAS UNPREDICTABLY DROPPED AND LACKED HYBRID ELECTRIC ASSIST. MY MAIN SAFETY CONCERN ARISES NOT ONLY FROM THIS LACK OF PROPULSION FROM THE DESIGNED MANUFACTURER'S SPECIFICATIONS, BUT IN THE UNPREDICTABILITY OF TO WHAT MAGNITUDE THE ACCELERATION IS AFFECTED. USUALLY THE VEHICLE OPERATES CORRECTLY AND IS ABLE TO PROVIDE AT LEAST SOME ELECTRIC ASSIST, AS PREDICTED AND INTENDED. HOWEVER, IT IS THE RARE AND UNPREDICTABLE OCCASION THAT IT DOES NOT THAT COULD LEAD TO A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. *TR

THIS VEHICLE RECEIVED A SOFTWARE UPDATE TO EXTEND THE LIFE OF THE BATTERIES. THIS UPDATE INCREASED THE DANGER OF THIS VEHICLE MORE THAN IT HAD WHEN IT WAS NEW. THE GREATEST HAZARD IS THAT THIS VEHICLE HAS UNPREDICTABLE AMOUNTS OF POWER. I HAD AN INCIDENT WHILE TRYING TO CROSS A BUSY STREET ON AN INCLINE WITH A LIMITED VIEW OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC. NORMALLY, THE VEHICLE SUPPLIES SUFFICIENT POWER TO CROSS TRAFFIC BUT THIS TIME THE ENGINE REVVED HIGH AND THE CAR SEEMED TO CRAWL WHILE TRAFFIC WAS BEARING DOWN UPON ME. THANKFULLY, THE ALERT ONCOMING DRIVER AVOIDED HITTING ME. AS FOR GAS MILEAGE, THE VEHICLE NEVER CAME CLOSE TO THE EPA MILEAGE OF 51 MPG, THE UPDATE DROPPED THE MILEAGE DOWN TO AROUND 35 MPG. *TR

I HAVE MAJOR CONCERN AND SAFETY ISSUES WITH MY 2007 HCH. IT IS WHEN THE ELECTRIC MOTOR IS NOT AVAILABLE. I HAVE TO LOOK AT THE HYBRID BATTERY INDICATOR TO DETERMINE IF I WILL HAVE THE EXTRA 20 HP NEEDED TO MANEUVER THE CAR AROUND THE TRAFFIC SAFELY. ALSO, THE CAR WILL PERFORM SOME KIND OF HEALTH CHECK FOR HYBRID BATTERY TO RECALIBRATE THE HYBRID BATTERY INDICATOR. WHEN IT DOES THAT, IT WILL STOP USING THE ELECTRIC MOTOR EVEN THOUGH THE HYBRID BATTERY INDICATOR IS MORE THAN HALF FULL CHARGED. THAT AFFECTS MY DECISION ON HOW TO MANEUVER THE CAR AROUND TRAFFIC SAFELY. EXAMPLE 1 I CROSS A LOT OF 4 LANES HIGHWAY WITH HIGH SPEED TRAFFIC WITHOUT STOP LIGHTS. I NEED ALL THE POWER THAT THE CAR CAN PROVIDE WITH ELECTRIC MOTOR TO QUICKLY CROSS THE 4 LANES HIGHWAY WHEN THERE IS AN OPENING. SOMETIME THE CAR WILL NOT USE THE EXTRA 20HP FROM THE ELECTRIC MOTOR AND I WOULD NOT HAVE THE NECESSARY SPEED TO CROSS THE 4 LANES HIGHWAY WITHOUT CLOSE CALLS. TO BE SAFE, I WAIT FOR LARGE GAP IN THE TRAFFIC BEFORE I CAN SAFELY CROSS THE HIGHWAY. EXAMPLE 2 IF IT IS HOT OUTSIDE AND I DRIVE OVER SEVERAL HILLS, THE HYBRID BATTERY WILL BE DEPLETED BY THE TIME I GET TO THE SPECIFIC INTERSECTION. ON THE RIGHT IS A BEND THAT IS HARD TO SEE INCOMING TRAFFIC GOING 55MPH OR OVER. ON THE LEFT IS A LONG UPHILL. WITH THE DEPLETED HYBRID BATTERY, I DO NOT HAVE THE POWER TO QUICKLY PICK UP THE SPEED GOING UP THE HILL AND IF SOMEONE IS COMING AROUND THE BEND AT THE RIGHT TIME, THEY WILL HAVE TO SLOW DOWN. A SEMI WAS NOT ABLE TO SLOW DOWN IN TIME AND HAD TO SWERVE LEFT TO PASS ME. LUCKY, THERE WAS NO INCOMING TRAFFIC BECAUSE THE SEMI CANNOT SEE INCOMING TRAFFIC AS WE BOTH WERE GOING UPHILL. THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT THE AMOUNT OF THE POWER THE CAR HAS IS UNPREDICTABLE AS I MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE 20 EXTRA HP FROM THE ELECTRIC MOTOR. *TR