2016 Honda Civic
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Steering is the leading concern among 1,081 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 4th highest complaint count among 26 Civic model years with reports.
Of the 2016 reports, 36 involved a crash and 4 involved a fire. 16 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Air bags, sensor, occupant classification, front passengerMay 21, 2026
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.
Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.
Campaign 26V332000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpDec 18, 2023
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.
Campaign 23V858000 on NHTSA.gov
Parking brakeOct 11, 2016
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2016 Honda Civic two door and four door 1.5L turbo and 2.0L vehicles. The electric parking brake (EPB) may not engage if it is applied immediately after turning the ignition off.
If the EPB is not applied, the vehicle may roll away, increasing the risk of a crash.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the vehicle's software to allow the EPB to engage immediately after the ignition is turned off, free of charge. The recall began on November 8, 2016. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KC6.
Campaign 16V725000 on NHTSA.gov
Exterior lightingJul 11, 2016
American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) is recalling certain model year 2016 Civic 2-Door vehicles manufactured February 23, 2016, through May 20, 2016. The affected vehicles may have a damaged LED side marker light circuit board inside the taillight assembly, making the marker light inoperable. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Assoc. Equipment."
If a side marker light does not function, vehicle visibility can be decreased to other drivers, increasing the risk of a crash.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect both the taillight assemblies, replacing them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on August 31, 2016. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is KB8.
Campaign 16V526000 on NHTSA.gov
Engine and engine cooling, engineFeb 9, 2016
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2016 Civic vehicles manufactured September 22, 2015, to February 3, 2016 and equipped with 2.0L engines. The affected vehicles have engines with piston assemblies that may have been manufactured without a piston wrist pin circlip or with an incorrectly installed piston wrist pin circlip.
If a circlip is missing or incorrectly installed, the piston wrist pin may not be secure and may drift and damage the engine cylinder causing the engine to seize, and increasing the risk of a crash or a fire.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the piston assemblies and damaged engine components, as necessary, free of charge. Parts are expected to be available in the Summer of 2016. Owners were mailed an interim notification beginning March 31, 2016, and will be mailed a second notice when parts are available. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JX9.
Campaign 16V074000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: steering
445 reports, newest first. Show all
Steering, Sep 27, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH while remaining in a straight line, the contact noticed that the steering had seized, caused the contact to manually put more pressure to steer the vehicle in a straight line to avoid the vehicle going into the other lane. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer who inspected the vehicle and diagnosed the failure as a steering rack failure that needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 33,532.
Steering, Sep 2, 2021
I purchased a 2016 honda Civic brand new in 2016. This car has had multiple issues including AC problems and more recently a problem that causes the steering wheel to be sticking to a position after driving for a long distance (apparently worse on hot weather). I have brought this car multiple times to the dealership. Last year I was informed the issue was caused by something regarding the brake calipers, which were then replaced under warranty. As I'm working from home I have barely driven long distances until last month when I drove longer. Then I noticed the steering issue persists. I brought the car back to the Honda dealership (Serramonte Honda) and was then informed the issue NOW was due to a bad battery (my car never had battery issues) and the car also needed to do an alignment. I told Darren that it did not make any sense because if the issue was battery I would see it as soon as I start driving, and not after driving for awhile. Still, I said that I would take care of the 2 things and then check again. So I did, i installed a new battery (even after testing my battery with my multimeter at home and seeing it was ok) and did the alignment. I spent a little over $300 and took the car for a long drive and indeed the issue persisted. Then I drove right back to the dealership and talked with a service advisor again showing him the video of my car with the steering wheel stuck and changing lanes until I would run out of the road unless I intervene (I have it on video). I was hoping to get a technician to get into the car and witness first hand. That was not possible. So after showing the video to the service advisor I left the car to be tested again. A day later I received the call saying they can not reproduce the problem. I had called Honda, and my case number is 12390725. I've seen multiple cases of people describing the exact same issue, fo all the cases the fix has been replacing the power steering rack assembly ( part # 53560-TBA-A01)
Steering, Aug 26, 2021
At highway speeds, the steering "sticks" when attempting minor steering adjustments. There is a resistance in the steering wheel that causes additional pressure to be applied to the direction of the turn. When the steering "unsticks" is causes an overcorrection. Both right and left directions are affected.
Steering, Aug 13, 2021
After driving the car for 30-45 minutes, the steering wheel begins to "stick" and "jerk." I've noticed this issue in the last month.
Steering, Aug 13, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at highway speeds, the power steering started to fail. The steering wheel started to drift to the left or right and the steering wheel seized in that direction. The contact stated that excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle. The power steering function returned; however, the failure recurred intermittently. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer who was unable to identify the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 67,000.
Steering, Aug 10, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 70 mph, the steering wheel was making abnormal clicking sounds. Additionally, the steering wheel was stiff, and the vehicle was pull to the left while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The contact was referred to an authorized dealer for assistance. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was still awaiting the diagnostic report. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.
Steering, Aug 8, 2021
As has been noted by numerous complaints, the steering "sticks" requiring extra effort to control the vehicle. At times, and at least in my experience, it happens most often, as it did today, when entering, exiting or in a broad, sweeping curve to either the left or right. This isn't to say it doesn't also happen in other circumstances, but in the situation mentioned it happens most often. At times, it has been very difficult to correct the vehicle trajectory so as to prevent either running off the road in the direction of the curve or straying into another lane due to the corrective action needed. Empirical evidence seems to suggest it occurs more frequently at higher ambient temperatures. A dealer has inspected the vehicle, but the result was inconclusive. There are no warning indicators or messages of any kind when this occurs. Please do not ignore this problem. It is potentially very dangerous and an investigation needs to be undertaken and hopefully recall issued to resolve it.
Steering, Aug 4, 2021
When the car begins to drift and attempting to correct, the steering wheel "sticks" (resists). It doesn't lock up or not turn at all, but "sticks" until I apply a bit more pressure, after which it suddenly releases, corrects (usually over steers). This does not cause issues with any turning once the steering wheel is unstuck. This happens in both directions. End result is I begin drifting slightly back and forth down the highway repeatedly (due to the over steer when the steering wheel releases), all the while fighting with a steering wheel. I was able to get this to recreate for the dealer. They made adjustments to the electronic steering module which helped slightly, but this issue still exists. I was told I have to replace the power steering rack.
Steering, Jul 30, 2021
The steering wheel “catches” increasingly often. When minor course corrections are attempted while driving straight or on moderate curves, there is resistance to the correction until I apply enough force to break the resistance, causing the car to jerk to one side. The same thing happens when course-correcting to the other side. It is a repeated process of making small swerves from one side of the lane to the other. It is getting increasingly worse and poses a safety issue. The problem has been reproduced by an independent dealer and the EPS is available for inspection. There are no warning lamps or messages that appeared prior to the failure.
Steering, Jul 26, 2021
After driving for over 20-30 minutes at highway speeds, the steering wheel sticks and causes me to have to jerk the wheel. Honda failed to produce vehicles that are meant to be safe on the highway and on several occasions this flaw has caused me to nearly drive into another vehicles lane because the steering wheel was stuck in one position. This issue was not addressed by Honda in the past with any recall after several other owners of the same make and model have complained of very similar experiences happening to their car. The vehicle has been inspected by the dealer and they offered little insight to the issue and only assumed of what could be the issue that needs to be repaired but they were not completely certain. This vehicle has not been inspected by any police or insurance representatives. No lamps or messages appear when this issue occurs the issue continues mostly at highway speeds or when the vehicle has been driven for 20-30 minutes.
Steering, Jul 7, 2021
This car has steering that I describe as stiff and jerky. Mostly noticed at speeds above 50mph. I’ve only owned the car for 2wks but I would say 60% of the time I’m driving, it’s like this. Very hard to maintain lane and easy to over correct. When turning sharper corners, must slow car way down because sometimes steering will stick and stay in the turn versus the steering wheel straightening up. Very scary and dangerous!
Steering, Jun 26, 2021
At speeds above 45mph the car tracks left or right. When correcting, the steering wheel becomes stiff and has to be forced , almost snapping back into position causing the driver to over compensate.
Steering, Jun 13, 2021
My steering feels “sticky” at times. This seems to happen mostly when I’m going straight or on a long sweeping curve and I attempt to make minor steering adjustments. The wheel will slightly “stick” in response to those small inputs and then break loose resulting in over steering. I have not yet lost control of the vehicle due to this problem but it is starting to feel sketchy and dangerous. I do not notice this issue when driving at slow speeds.
Steering, Jun 12, 2021
Steering column sticks at all speeds requiring extra force to pull the wheel free. This causes the car to over steer in the opposite direction.
Steering, Jun 11, 2021
Steering gets stiff and requires extreme force to make minor corrections. This causes over correction. I have had it to the dealer in the past and since they could not reproduce the problem they just dismissed me. When it began it was only at highway speeds. It is now happening as low as 45 MPH. This has happened multiple times since I purchased the car new in 2016.
Steering, Jun 3, 2021
Steering wheel locked while driving. Has happened at different speeds including 70 MPH on Interstate 75 in Southern Florida. Took vehicle to dealer which was able to recreate the problem and stated a replacement of the steering rack system ($3800) was required. Opened a case with Honda since the vehicle (2016 model year) fell outside of the recall for 2017-2018 Civics for a similar steering problem.
Steering, May 26, 2021
My car’s steering has a problem since 3+ years. The steering veers on its own and moves to the other lane even when I am going straight. I have to bring it back to lane. I am driving since 20+ years and can simply say that is dangerous. At first I thought it was wheel alignment issue and took them to dealership. I had spent some money for that repair, but to my surprise the problem was still there the moment I drove out of the dealership after that repair. I was kind of shocked and upset that the problem still remained. I took them to local mechanics couple of times and did the wheel alignment but the problem still remained. I saw in the news about the Honda recall for the steering issue and when I checked if my car was in the recall list and again to my shock it is not there. This is big cover up for reputation but I think 2016 civic model is in that list of recall. Please look into this matter and take the necessary steps.
Steering, May 10, 2021
TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WITH THE VEHICLE HEADING IN A FAIRLY STRAIGHT TRAJECTORY, ATTEMPTS TO ADJUST THE STEERING SLIGHTLY IN EITHER DIRECTION (TO CORRECT FOR ANY DRIFTING) ARE MET WITH RESISTANCE IN THE FORM OF THE STEERING "STICKING" TO ITS' CURRENT POSITION. ABNORMAL EFFORT IS REQUIRED TO "UNSTICK" THE STEERING, AT WHICH POINT THERE IS A JERKING RESULT THAT CAUSES AN OVERSTEER IN THE DIRECTION OF THE ATTEMPTED CORRECTION.
Steering, May 6, 2021
AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS (50 MPH OR MORE), THE CAR STRUGGLES TO STAY STRAIGHT. THIS RESULTS IN HAVING TO CONSTANTLY ADJUST THE STEERING WHEEL, WHICH FEELS VERY TIGHT, ALMOST AS IF IT'S STUCK. THIS REQUIRES USING MORE FORCE WHICH CAN LEAD TO AN OVERCORRECTION AS THE WHEEL LOOSENS UP.
Steering, May 2, 2021
STEERING STICKS AT 40 PLUS MPH. OVERCOMPENSATION IS SOMETIMES REQUIRED AND MAKES IT HARD TO STERER STRAIGHT. I'VE NOTICED THAT 2017 AND NEWER HONDA CIVICES ARE BEING RECALLED BUT NOT THE 2016'S. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS AND NEEDS TO BE RECALLED . LOTS OF COMPLAINMTS WITH THE SAME ISSUE.
Steering, Apr 28, 2021
I BOUGHT MY CIVIC NEW ON 2016. THE CAR STARTS TO HAVE STEERING BECOME JERKY AND TENDS TO STICK IN THE CENTER POSITION AFTER DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY MORE THAN 20 MINUTES ON 03/15/2020. WHEN THAT HAPPENS THE CAR DRIFTS TO THE LEFT SIDE AND I HAVE TO USE A EXTRA FORCE TO PULL IT OUT OF THAT STICKING POINT BACK TO THE CENTER STEERING . I DID RESEARCHED THIS PROBLEM ON CARCOMPLAINTS.COM AND FOUND 107 COMPLAINTS ON HONDA CIVIC 2016 EPS JERKY PROBLEMS. I ALSO FOUND HONDA RECALL 18V663000 ( POWER STEERING ASSIST FAILS ) ON CIVIC AND CRV 2017-2018 BUT NOT INCLUDED 2016 WHILE CIVIC 2016-2018 USE SAME EPS ASSEMBLY PART NO.53650-TBA-A01 THAT FIX THE EPS FAILS. I BROUGHT MY CAR TO HONDA DEALER TO DIAGNOSTICS THE PROBLEM ON 05/2020 WAS 52K MILES BUT THEY CAN'T CONFIRMED IT BECAUSE IT APPEARS AFTER AT LEAST 20MIN DRIVES SO THEY DON'T WANT TO SPEND THAT MUCH TIME TO DRIVE ON HIGHWAY! I NOTICED THE PROBLEM INTERMITTENTLY RELATIVE TO THE WEATHER TEMPERATURES AND THE PROBLEM APPEARS FEW MONTH AFTER I BROUGHT MY CAR TO DEALER FOR HONDA RECALL VSA AND PARKING BRAKE SOFTWARE UPDATED. IT'S CHALLENGING TO DRIVE A STRAIGHT LINE WHEN THE PROBLEM APPEARS . TODAY 04/28/2021 MY CAR HAS 57K MILES AND STILL HAVE SAME PROBLEM BUT CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY OVER $2500 TO REPLACE THE EPS ASSEMBLY DUE TO OUT OF MANUFACTURE WARRANTY. I AM DEEPLY DISAPPOINTED TO OWN A CAR HAS LESS THAN 60K MILES WITH MAJOR SAFETY ISSUES ON EPS UNPLEASURE TO DRIVE.
Steering, Apr 26, 2021
STEERING IS VERY UNCONTROLLABLE AT 40 PLUS MPH. OVERCOMPENSATION IS REQUIRED AND MAKES IT HARD TO STEER CAR. APPEARS THAT 2017 AND NEWER HONDA CIVICS ARE BEING RECALLED BUT NOT 2016'S. THIS IS DANGEROUS AND NEEDS TO BE RECALLED, TONS OF COMPLAINTS ON 2016.
Steering, Apr 20, 2021
AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AFTER DRIVING A LONG DISTANCE (WHEN ENGINE IS HOT), POWER STEERING STICKS, MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO DRIVE STRAIGHT AND STAY WITHIN THE LANE. SMOOTH STEERING IS NOT POSSIBLE. MORE LIKELY TO OCCUR WHEN AMBIENT TEMPERATURES ARE HIGH, AND NOT LIKELY TO OCCUR WHEN THE WEATHER IS COLD. THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING FOR YEARS.
Steering, Apr 16, 2021
THIS ISSUE SEEMS TO OCCUR AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. THE STEERING SYSTEM SEEMS TO HAVE A SLIGHT 'STICKING' POINT THAT REQUIRES A SLIGHT, ADDITIONAL PRESSURE TO CORRECT. TYPE OF ROAD SURFACE (ASPHALT, CONCRETE, ETC.) SEEMS TO HAVE SOME AFFECT ON THIS ISSUE. IT IS SOMEWHAT DISCONCERTING TO HAVE THIS OCCUR WHILE DRIVING...NOT A GOOD FEELING!!!
Steering, Apr 15, 2021
AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS VEHICLE STEERING STICKS CAUSING DRIVER TO APPLY EXCESSIVE FORCE TO TURN THE STEERING WHEEL CAUSING OVER CORRECTION