1993 Honda Civic Electrical System
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
CHECK ENGINE LIGHT,THEN ROUGH IDLE,THEN TOTAL DEATH OF IGNITION,STALLED. REPAIR STATION DIAGNOSED IT TO BE A DISTRIBUTOR FAILURE. REPLACED WITH NEW ONE,6 MONTHS LATER IT FAILED AND WAS REPLACED WITH REBUILT UNIT. NOW ABOUT 6 MONTHS AGAIN,SAME PROBLEM WITH THE REBUILT DISTRIBUTOR APPARENTLY. HAVEN'T TAKEN IT TO A REPAIR SHOP YET. *JB
VEHICLE BURNEDD UP. UPON STARTING THE VEHICLE THE CONSUMER HEARD A FAINT POP, FOLLOWED BY SMOKE COMING FROM THE DIMMER. THE CONSUMER IMMEDIATELY TURN THE VEHICLE OFF AND GOT OUT. THEY LET THE VEHICLE STAND FOR A FEW SECONDS, WENT INTO THE CHURCH TO CALL 911. BY THE TIME THEY RETURN TO THE VEHICLE ,THE LEFT SIDE OF THE DASHBOARD WAS IN FLAMES. THE FIRE ORIGINATED FROM UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD. THE FIRE WAS ELECTRICAL. A FIRE REPORT WAS FILED. *NM......*AK
I HAVE A 1993 HONDA CIVIC LX. COUPLE OF DAYS BACK WHEN I WAS DRIVING BACK FROM WORK, MY CAR SUDDENLY STALLED AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT. IT WOULD NOT START. WITH THE HELP OF A PASSER BY I GOT MY CAR PUSHED IN A PARKING LOT. LATER I HAD IT TOWED TO MY GARAGE. MY MECHANIC TOLD ME THAT THE IGNITER HAD FAILED. HE CHARGED ME $700 TO REPLACE THE IGNITER AND DO A TUNE UP. *AK
DISTRIBUTO AND RELATED PARTS FAILED. *AK
DISTRIBUTOR AND RELATED PARTS FAILURE. SINCE 2000, I HAVE HAD TO HAVE 3 REPLACEMENTS.THIS IS HIGHLY UNUSUAL FOR CARS IN GENERAL. I WILL REPORT THE MOST RECENT INCIDENT SINCE I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THIS REPORTING SERVICE TODAY.*AK
DISTRIBUTOR AND RELATED PARS FAILED. *AK
WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED THERE WAS A STRONG SMELL OF BURNING PLASTIC INSIDE THE VEHICLE. SMOKE WAS COMING FROM THE REAR WINDSHIELD WIPERS AND THE WIRES MELTED. WIRES UNDER THE DASHBOARD AND WIRES NEAR THE DOOR SPEAKERS WERE WARM TO THE TOUCH.*AK
CAR ON 3RD DISTRIBUTOR BEARING AND INGNITOR FAILURES
DISTRIBUTOR FAILED AND CAUSED THE VEHICLE STOP ON THE FREEWAY. WHEN I HAD THE CAR FIXED, THE MECHANIC SAID ALL THE HONDAS DURING THIS PERIOD HAVE THE SAME FAILURE. ONE YEAR LATER MY 1990 HONDA CIVIC HAD THE DISTRIBUTOR FAIL ALSO. I AM CONCERNED THAT ACCIDENTS ARE OCCURRING BECAUSE THE DISTRIBUTOR FAILS IN HEAVT TRAFFIC. IT IS A MANUFACTURE DEFECT. I WAS TOLD THE BEARINGS ARE LOW QUALITY AND FREEZE UP.
DISTRIBUTOR CAP BEARING FAILURE RESULTED IN DISTRIBUTOR CAP / ROTOR WELDED TOGETHER, ENGINE STALLED WHILE DRIVING. *NLM
WHILE DRIVING ON NYS THRUWAY, CAR BATTERY EXPLODED. PER INS. CO. " DETERMINED THAT A DIODE ON THE COMPUTERS CIRCUIT BOARD CAME UNSOLDERED CAUSING THE VEHICLE BATTERY TO EXPLODE. THIS ELECTRICAL BREAKDOWN IS A MANUFACTURERS DEFECT"
THIS IS MY 2ND HONDA I PURCHASED NEW. I TAKE VERY GOOD CARE OF MY CAR AND FOLLOW ALL RECOMMENDED MAINTENANCE PROCEDURES. THE DISTRIBUTOR HAS FAILED ON BOTH MY CARS ABOUT THE SAME TIME-MILEAGE WISE. I SEE FROM MANY WEB-SITES THAT THIS APPEARS TO BE A CONSISTENT PROBLEM WITH HONDA OWNERS. FEEL RECALL MAY BE WARRANTED.*AK
I THINK THE AIR/HEAT CONTROLS HAVE A SHORT IN THEM - THE DEALERSHIP LOOKED AT THIS IN MARCH OF 98 AND THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO PINPOINT THE PROBLEM. THE LIGHTS COME ON DAILY IN THE AIR/HEAT SECTION AND THEN ONCE I MOVE THE LEVER TO MAKE THE AIR LESS COLD - THE LIGHTS IN THE AIR/HEAT AREA WILL DIM OR COMPLETELY CUT OFF. IS THERE A DEFECT IN THIS PART?*AK
THE DISTRIBUTOR ASSEMBLY FAILED 24 DAYS AFTER WARRANTY EXTENSION. NLM
DISTRIBUTER LOCKED UP, CAUSING VEHICLE TO STALL COMPLETELY OUT. DEALER HAS NOT SEEN VEHICLE. *AK
WHEN THE DISTRIBUTOR BEARING FAILED THE IGNITION ROTOR MELTED FROM THE HEAT. FROM A FEW SEARCHES ON THIS SITE, IT APPEARS TO BE A COMMON HONDA FAMILY OF ENGINES PROBLEM. SOME RELIEF IN THE COST OF THE DISTRIBUTOR WOULD BE A NICE GESTURE. $336USD FOR THE DIST. BASE IS HIGH. THIS IS A D16Z6 VTEC ENGINE. THE FAILED BEARING APPEARS TO BE DRY OF ANY OIL FOR LUBRICATION, ALTHOUGH THE DISTRIBUTOR/CAM GEAR MATING AREA IS WET WITH ENG. OIL AS WOULD BE EXPECTED. THANKS, JIM
NO SUMMARY
CAR CAUGHT ON FIRE. CALLED FIRE DEPARTMENT. ELECTRICAL FIRE DUE TO A SHORT IN WIRING HARNESS. CONSUMER CONTACTED DEALER. *AK
NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR THAT VEHICLE. *AK
NO SUMMARY
THE BEARINGS IN THE IGNITION DISTRIBUTOR FAILED.
AFTER MARKET PART FAILURE OF THE ALTERNATOR OVERCHARGING, CAUSING THE BATTERY TO FAIL. *AK
Trend Over Time
Complaints by year
Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 1993 Honda Civic has 22 Electrical System complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.