2021 Honda Civic reliability

Is it reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2021 Honda Civic holds 144 complaints after 6 years, a rate of 14 per year. That is the fewest complaints per year among the 13 Civic years on this site. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Front passenger seat weight sensor, Fuel pump, and Brake master cylinder.

Honda Civic sedan, 2016–2021 body — Photo by Dinkun Chen, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

Complaints

144

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Steering (64 of 144), then Forward collision avoidance (33) and Electrical system (18). Complaints that include an odometer have a median of 30,000 miles, and the middle half falls between 15,036 and 56,000 miles. Those filings include 5 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 1 that reports an injury.

Next to 2020 and 2022

The 2020 Civic has 224 complaints, 24 per year, and the 2022 has 881 complaints, 268 per year. The 2021 has fewer complaints per year than the 2020. The 2021 has fewer complaints per year than the 2022.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2021 Honda Civic. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (4)

Recall Front passenger seat weight sensor 2026-05-21 · NHTSA campaign 26V332000

Summary 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.

Remedy 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.

Vehicles affected 98,892

Recall Front passenger seat weight sensor 2024-02-01 · NHTSA campaign 24V064000

Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.

Remedy Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.

Vehicles affected 750,114

Recall Fuel pump 2023-12-18 · NHTSA campaign 23V858000

Summary 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.

Remedy 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.

Vehicles affected 2,490,460

Recall Brake master cylinder 2023-06-29 · NHTSA campaign 23V458000

Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Civic, 2020-2023 Ridgeline, 2021-2023 Passport, 2021-2022 Pilot, and 2020 Acura MDX vehicles. The tie rod fastener that connects the brake booster and the brake master cylinder may have been improperly assembled during manufacturing, which can cause the brake master cylinder to separate from the booster assembly.

Remedy Dealers will inspect and repair the brake booster assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 7, 2023. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are VEU, AEV, and ZET.

Vehicles affected 124,077

NHTSA's count is every vehicle in that campaign. A campaign can cover other model years and other models.

Complaints by component (144 total)

Steering

Forward collision avoidance

Electrical system

Service brakes

Lane departure

Air bags

Speed control

Engine

Fuel and propulsion system

Seats

Suspension

Back-over prevention

Exterior lighting

Powertrain

Tires

Visibility and wipers

Engine and engine cooling

Hydraulic brakes

Seat belts

Visibility

Wheels

Show 13 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Of the 15 complaints that include an odometer reading, the median is 30,000 miles. The middle half fall between 15,036 and 56,000 miles.

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"On September 17, 2026 at approximately 8:00 a.m. I was driving my 2021 Honda civic Lx with my children in the vehicle when multiple warning lights and system malfunction messages suddenly appeared on the dash board. The…"
Steering, Electrical system · filed 2026-09-20
"While I am driving there is a stickiness in my steering wheel and it causes me to overcorrect my steering and becomes an issue. Feels dangerous to me. This has gotten worse over time."
Steering · filed 2026-09-04
"Driving down street after pulling out of parking lot and driver’s side air bag employed for unknown reason."
Air bags · filed 2026-09-01
"Struts good bad really quick"
Suspension · filed 2026-08-28
"The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact experienced an intermittent failure, and the steering wheel became very firm and became difficult to turn.…"
Steering · filed 2026-08-25

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2021 Honda CIVIC 4 DR FWD	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars
2021 Honda CIVIC HATCH 5 HB FWD	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars	5 stars
2021 Honda CIVIC HATCH Type-R 5 HB FWD	Not rated	Not rated	5 stars	5 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
Civic 4-door	1.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	Front-wheel drive	32	42	36 MPG	$1800
Civic 4-door	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (AV-S7)	Front-wheel drive	29	37	32 MPG	$2050
Civic 4-door	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	Front-wheel drive	30	38	33 MPG	$1950
Civic 4-door	1.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (AV-S7)	Front-wheel drive	30	38	33 MPG	$1950
Civic 5-door	2L, 4-cyl	Manual 6-speed	Front-wheel drive	22	28	25 MPG	$3200
Civic 5-door	1.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	Front-wheel drive	31	40	34 MPG	$1900
Civic 5-door	1.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (AV-S7)	Front-wheel drive	29	35	32 MPG	$2500
Civic 5-door	1.5L, 4-cyl	Manual 6-speed	Front-wheel drive	29	37	32 MPG	$2500

Specs and fitment

10th generation, 2016–2021

Body styles Sedan, Coupe, Hatchback

Oil 0W-20 , 3.7 qt capacity

Tire size 215/55R16 (LX), 215/50R17 (EX/EX-L), 235/40R18 (Sport/Touring)

Known issues for this generation

The 1.5L turbocharged engine used in 2016-2018 Civics is affected by a well-documented oil dilution issue: unburned fuel from cold-start direct injection washes down the cylinder walls into the crankcase and mixes with the engine oil, most often on short trips in cold weather. Honda responded with engine control software updates (transmission and fuel injection modifications to warm the engine faster), a drain plug washer replacement, and extended the powertrain warranty to six years from original purchase with no mileage limit. Honda Canada issued the campaign as Service Campaign N60 in November 2018, and American Honda extended the update and the six-year warranty coverage nationwide in the US in May 2019.

Compare

Previous year 2020 Honda Civic Next year 2022 Honda Civic See every Honda Civic model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2021 Honda Civic reliable?

What are common problems with a 2021 Honda Civic?

Is the 2021 Honda Civic more reliable than the years next to it?

Has the 2021 Honda Civic been recalled?

The 2021 Honda Civic has 4 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2021 Honda Civic?

Owners have filed 144 complaints about the 2021 Honda Civic with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2021 Honda Civic get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2021 Honda Civic is 32.1 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2020 Honda Civic?

10th generation (2016-2021).

Does the Honda Civic have oil dilution problems?

1.5L turbo engines in 2016-2018 Civics were affected; Honda issued a software fix and extended the powertrain warranty to six years.