2019 Honda Civic Steering
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
I just purchased my used 2019 Honda Civic LX a few weeks ago. Online forums warned me of a "sticking" steering wheel and I've noticed they're right. It occurs most often (or is most noticeable) when traveling straight at highway speeds. It seems that the steering wheel "sticks" when no turning input is given for a short time. Eventually, when a steering correction to the left or right is needed by the driver, it is met with a wheel that doesn't want to turn and requires a little extra effort to move the steering wheel off center. The result of the sticking causes the car to over-respond slightly to the left or right input and needs to be re-corrected. This appears to be a known issue for the 10th generation (2016-2021) Civics according to online user forums. I could see where a vehicle having a more severe case of this than my vehicle could pose a serious safety concern. My wife noticed it and it took her by surprise. Recently I saw a similar issue getting attention for the 11th generation (2022-present) Civics and wanted to report mine as having similar symptoms, but in the previous generation body style. Thank you! [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Steering wheel sticks during minor corrections to keep on center when going straight on highway causing over correction. Problem starts after car has been running about 20-30 mins.
The contact owns a 2019 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH and exiting a highway, the steering wheel became firm without warning. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to an independent mechanic who stated that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed at the dealer. The failure mileage was 75,000.
Sticky steering at 60+ mph, more frequent after car has been running for 25 minutes. If driver isn’t expecting sticky steering, over correction of problem could cause an accident, especially at high speeds. Complaints have been filed for 2020+ model years, statements of issue are the same as I am experiencing. My car has 53k miles.
Potential steering issues. Steering will randomly "stick", at around 60+ mph if not prepared driver could over react and thus be in an accident or cause one. The "stick" is very subtle and slight. As I am aware of it I easily corrected by bringing it back in alignment. Mechanic has performed diagnostic scan and nothing was revealed w/ the power steering. I do see that NHTSA is investigating similar issues w/ 2022 and 2023 Honda Civics. All statements are exactly as I am experiencing only my vehicle is a 2019 Honda Civic. This has been occurring for the passed couple of months. I have about 53k miles on my vehicle.
The steering sticks and it’s not smooth at speeds ranging from 35 to 75 mph. It tends to become worse as the car gets warmed up. The steering wheel stick so bad that if you remove your hands from the steering wheel, it will stay in the turn, until you physically turn the wheel the opposite way. it is a very dangerous condition. This has been brought to the attention of our local Honda dealer many times. They continually say they cannot find anything wrong with the car.
The steering sticks in a spot while driving. You have to really pull on steering wheel which causes it to oversteer and is very dangerous especially in curves. This happens everytime the car is driven. Can be available to be inspected anytime.
Once the car gets above 50MPH the steering feels sticky or notchy, like the wheels are stuck in a rut, and it stays that way at any speed until shut off. It's impossible to keep the car centered in the lane as the slightest turn of the wheel in either direction is too much, and so you turn the wheel in the other direction to compensate and then that's too much. The car feels entirely unsafe, especially on the highway. It was especially nerve racking with a semi in the next lane. There were no warning lights or codes. The car was taken to the local Honda dealership and the technician confirmed the steering problem, searched the tech line forums and found multiple cases with similar complaints. Replacement of the steering rack was recommended.
The rack and pinion was failing. It caused problems with the steering causing unsafe driving conditions. I took the car to Honda and they said the rack and pinion was bad. I did contact Honda headquarters and they claimed there was nothing they could do about it since the car was out of warranty. I had this part replaced by an independent auto mechanic. They said the auto part store said they have been receiving orders for the rack and pinion at a rate of 5 per month. Considering how many parts store there are, this seem to be an unusual amount of a part failing. I have seen many complaints online about this part failing on Honda cars. This part should not fail especially at low milage. My car does have 65,000 miles on it, but the conditions started about 30,000 miles ago. I was unaware of what was happening back at the beginning, I knew something was wrong, but I didn't realize what, and it just got worse as time went on.
The power steering didn't work. There were warning messages displayed for Tire Pressure Monitor Problem, Adaptive Cruise Control Problem, Lane Keeping Assist Problem, Brake System Problem, Brake Hold System Problem, Power Steering System (EPS) Problem, Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) Problem, Hill Start Assist Problem, Collision Mitigation System Problem, Road Departure Mitigation System Problem when turning the car on. This condition was verified by the dealer on both occurrences. First occurrence was 6/8/21. It was towed to Spreen Honda dealer in Corona, CA. According to the the first invoice dated 6/8/21 for the repair there was "Confirmed fault code for C1420 main torque sensor and sub torque sensor, C1421-14 malfunction to steering angle, confirmed multiple fault codes due to rodent damage to the steering system sub harness chewed thru replaced the steering torque sensor sub harness and calibrated the steering angle sensor, cleared fault code now OK." Same problem occurred 7/8/2021. Taken to Spreen Honda again on 7/9/21. Wire harness again replaced, steering angle sensor replaced and power steering calibration performed. I have the wire harness that was replaced. Service advisor stated this is a problem with Honda wire harnesses because the insulation on the wires is soy based. He has seen it many times, including one customer at Riverside dealer who had rodents eat his wire harness four times while he was working there. Not having operational power steering makes driving the vehicle very difficult and potentially dangerous.
Steering wheel locked while driving vehicle and was unable to turn wheel. Dealer confirmed steering failure caused by faulty electronic power steering motor. Dealer corrected issue by replacing the electronic power steering rack.
Steering wheel is not centered. Even though alignment is good
THE STEERING WHEEL REEL ASSEMBLY MAKES A CLICK SOUND WHICH IS AN IN DICTATION OF INADEQUATE LUBRICATION. THE ASSEMBLY ITSELF CAN NOT BE RELUBRICATED AS THE ENTIRE ASSEMBLY IS SEALED. HONDA WOULD NEED TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE PASTY THE INCORPORATES THE ASSEMBLY. HOWEVER, TECHNICIANS ARE STATING THAT THIS IS UNNEEDED AND NORMAL PART OF THE CAR. THIS IS IN ACTUALITY, UNTRUE AND CAN BE ULTIMATELY DANGEROUS FOR THE DRIVER.
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Quick Summary
The 2019 Honda Civic has 63 Steering complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.