Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - COOLING SYSTEM | |||||
| SB-09-029 | 07/19/2011 | 10039531 | Ready | 08/02/2011 | |
| SB-09-029 | 07/19/2011 | 10039531 | Honda: malfunction light is on with trouble codes stored due to a software problem. 2006-2008 civic hybrid. *rm | 08/02/2011 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||
| 04/22/2012 | |||
| I purchased the car new in december 2007 and was initially pleased. unfortunately, the performance of the vehicle has decreased significantly, apparently due to a software update installed by honda on august 2010 (see service bulletin 10-034). honda states that the software update was intended to extend the life of the hybrid battery but is silent about the obvious adverse impact on gas mileage, power, and emissions. the hybrid integrated motor assist (ima) assist is operating erratically such that when trying to accelerate (e.g., when merging onto an interstate or passing on a highway) the car may have the expected response or a very limited response from the unassisted 1.3 liter engine. just last week when i was merging onto an interstate one time the ima did not provide any assist and i was concerned due to the fast approaching traffic. i never know whether the car will have the expected acceleration. the ima behavior can vary from minute to minute while driving even under the same conditions. has dot and nhtsa studied a 2007 civic hybrid after the software update was applied? | |||
| 03/08/2012 | |||
| The honda civic hybrid 2007 is suddenly unable to accelerate appropriately. this fault is most dangerous when accelerating to start going after red lights and stop signs, especially on hills. it is also noticeable when accelerating to merge into traffic, the acceleration performance of the honda civic hybrid declined precipitously and dangerously immediately after honda required replacement of the ima battery and concurrent new software (at the honda dealer) in march. | |||
| 02/03/2009 | 33282 | ||
| This vehicle is not safe for highway or city driving. it decelerates when you need power, making it very dangerous to merge in high speed or heavy traffic conditions. in the summer when the a/c is running, acceleration is extremely unreliable. the driver's side has severe blind spots. i have also experienced long delays in the engine restarting after pulling out into traffic from a dead stop at lights or stop signs. i have nearly been hit by oncoming traffic -- planning for adequate gaps in traffic is a challenge and very different from the other vehicles i drive. i am an experienced driver with over 37 years behind the wheel and an excellent driving record. i have owned 4 hondas and this so-called hybrid has been an engineering disaster. | |||
| 03/08/2012 | |||
| The honda civic hybrid 2007 is suddenly unable to accelerate appropriately. this fault is most dangerous when accelerating to start going after red lights and stop signs, especially on hills. it is also noticeable when accelerating to merge into traffic, the acceleration performance of the honda civic hybrid declined precipitously and dangerously immediately after honda required replacement of the ima battery and concurrent new software (at the honda dealer) in march. | |||
| 02/03/2009 | 33282 | ||
| This vehicle is not safe for highway or city driving. it decelerates when you need power, making it very dangerous to merge in high speed or heavy traffic conditions. in the summer when the a/c is running, acceleration is extremely unreliable. the driver's side has severe blind spots. i have also experienced long delays in the engine restarting after pulling out into traffic from a dead stop at lights or stop signs. i have nearly been hit by oncoming traffic -- planning for adequate gaps in traffic is a challenge and very different from the other vehicles i drive. i am an experienced driver with over 37 years behind the wheel and an excellent driving record. i have owned 4 hondas and this so-called hybrid has been an engineering disaster. | |||
| 03/08/2012 | |||
| The honda civic hybrid 2007 is suddenly unable to accelerate appropriately. this fault is most dangerous when accelerating to start going after red lights and stop signs, especially on hills. it is also noticeable when accelerating to merge into traffic, the acceleration performance of the honda civic hybrid declined precipitously and dangerously immediately after honda required replacement of the ima battery and concurrent new software (at the honda dealer) in march. | |||
| 02/03/2009 | 33282 | ||
| This vehicle is not safe for highway or city driving. it decelerates when you need power, making it very dangerous to merge in high speed or heavy traffic conditions. in the summer when the a/c is running, acceleration is extremely unreliable. the driver's side has severe blind spots. i have also experienced long delays in the engine restarting after pulling out into traffic from a dead stop at lights or stop signs. i have nearly been hit by oncoming traffic -- planning for adequate gaps in traffic is a challenge and very different from the other vehicles i drive. i am an experienced driver with over 37 years behind the wheel and an excellent driving record. i have owned 4 hondas and this so-called hybrid has been an engineering disaster. | |||
| 12/31/2007 | |||
| I purchased a new 07 honda civ hybrid and from the start never got close to the mpg as advertised.i had the car looked at by honda dealer multiple times and they very found anything wrong and would comment that car was within spec. 21/2 years later and in the summer i experienced when the i was in heavy traffic and high temperature with all electrical options on ac,nav,radio, etc. the hybrid battery would drain and not keep charge and the car would operate sluggish, no power, no acceleration and basically unsafe to drive. th car drove that it had run out of gas.i experienced this 3x in 2 weeks as i was exploring and documenting the symptoms.i took it back to the dealer and it was the time of the software update.they updated the software and they would not replace the batteries even though we indirectly agreed (dealer mechanic did but not honda corporate..since they declined to replace battery) over time that the battery had degraded due to design flaw.after the software update the car driving characteristics changes.engine idles at higher rmp (higher keeps the battery better charged), the power to pass a vehicle on the highway (my wife would press on the accelerator to pass a car on the highway and the car did not respond almost causing accidents).considers it unsafe and refuses to drive it and put kids in it.i had dealer look a it for a few days working with the honda technical team.final assessment was did not find anything wrong and it is driving within spec.how can that be?the car no longer has power, cannot dependently pass or overcome a car on the highway in normal driving speeds and when you stress it traffic on a hot day and run the normal equipment ac the car feels like it is running out of gas and the hybrid batteries are not charging and are not operating the car as you would expect a car to operate.the software update made the car worst.the car is unsafe! | |||
| 07/31/2007 | 7539 | ||
| The honda civic hybrid ima system has been inconsistent and a worry since i bought the car. the charge level varies wildly within minutes, releasing the braking charge mode unexpectedly while traveling downhill, resulting in rapid acceleration. while going uphill the ima system suddenly shows no charge and the engine is unable to keep the car's speed constant, resulting in rapid deceleration. the software update that was said to fix these problems resulting in no change to the problems but a considerable reduction in mpg. the engine refuses to stop at red lights and instead remains at idle - wasting gas. i have service records covering the entire history of this car which documents my concerns and complaints. the honda service department was never able to find any problems with the ima. i continue to drive this car but am concerned for my safety and the car's reliability. anything you can do to help identify and remedy the ima problem will be greatly appreciated. | |||
| 12/31/2007 | |||
| I purchased a new 07 honda civ hybrid and from the start never got close to the mpg as advertised.i had the car looked at by honda dealer multiple times and they very found anything wrong and would comment that car was within spec. 21/2 years later and in the summer i experienced when the i was in heavy traffic and high temperature with all electrical options on ac,nav,radio, etc. the hybrid battery would drain and not keep charge and the car would operate sluggish, no power, no acceleration and basically unsafe to drive. th car drove that it had run out of gas.i experienced this 3x in 2 weeks as i was exploring and documenting the symptoms.i took it back to the dealer and it was the time of the software update.they updated the software and they would not replace the batteries even though we indirectly agreed (dealer mechanic did but not honda corporate..since they declined to replace battery) over time that the battery had degraded due to design flaw.after the software update the car driving characteristics changes.engine idles at higher rmp (higher keeps the battery better charged), the power to pass a vehicle on the highway (my wife would press on the accelerator to pass a car on the highway and the car did not respond almost causing accidents).considers it unsafe and refuses to drive it and put kids in it.i had dealer look a it for a few days working with the honda technical team.final assessment was did not find anything wrong and it is driving within spec.how can that be?the car no longer has power, cannot dependently pass or overcome a car on the highway in normal driving speeds and when you stress it traffic on a hot day and run the normal equipment ac the car feels like it is running out of gas and the hybrid batteries are not charging and are not operating the car as you would expect a car to operate.the software update made the car worst.the car is unsafe! | |||
| 07/31/2007 | 7539 | ||
| The honda civic hybrid ima system has been inconsistent and a worry since i bought the car. the charge level varies wildly within minutes, releasing the braking charge mode unexpectedly while traveling downhill, resulting in rapid acceleration. while going uphill the ima system suddenly shows no charge and the engine is unable to keep the car's speed constant, resulting in rapid deceleration. the software update that was said to fix these problems resulting in no change to the problems but a considerable reduction in mpg. the engine refuses to stop at red lights and instead remains at idle - wasting gas. i have service records covering the entire history of this car which documents my concerns and complaints. the honda service department was never able to find any problems with the ima. i continue to drive this car but am concerned for my safety and the car's reliability. anything you can do to help identify and remedy the ima problem will be greatly appreciated. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 52000 | ||
| 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, | |||
| 07/31/2007 | 7539 | ||
| The honda civic hybrid ima system has been inconsistent and a worry since i bought the car. the charge level varies wildly within minutes, releasing the braking charge mode unexpectedly while traveling downhill, resulting in rapid acceleration. while going uphill the ima system suddenly shows no charge and the engine is unable to keep the car's speed constant, resulting in rapid deceleration. the software update that was said to fix these problems resulting in no change to the problems but a considerable reduction in mpg. the engine refuses to stop at red lights and instead remains at idle - wasting gas. i have service records covering the entire history of this car which documents my concerns and complaints. the honda service department was never able to find any problems with the ima. i continue to drive this car but am concerned for my safety and the car's reliability. anything you can do to help identify and remedy the ima problem will be greatly appreciated. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 52000 | ||
| 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, | |||
| 07/31/2007 | 7539 | ||
| The honda civic hybrid ima system has been inconsistent and a worry since i bought the car. the charge level varies wildly within minutes, releasing the braking charge mode unexpectedly while traveling downhill, resulting in rapid acceleration. while going uphill the ima system suddenly shows no charge and the engine is unable to keep the car's speed constant, resulting in rapid deceleration. the software update that was said to fix these problems resulting in no change to the problems but a considerable reduction in mpg. the engine refuses to stop at red lights and instead remains at idle - wasting gas. i have service records covering the entire history of this car which documents my concerns and complaints. the honda service department was never able to find any problems with the ima. i continue to drive this car but am concerned for my safety and the car's reliability. anything you can do to help identify and remedy the ima problem will be greatly appreciated. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 52000 | ||
| 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, | |||
| 08/10/2011 | 52000 | ||
| Ever since honda did a software update on my car's engine to extend the life of the battery, my car has had intermittent accelerations issues. for example, last summer, i was at a stop light and when it turned green, my car didn't seem to want to go. i had to press on the gas pedal about 3 times to get it to engage and actually move. many times the car is sluggish to start from a stop, or accelerate, but it does go, just not as promptly and quickly as it should. the most recent incidents occurred last month and has prompted this complaint. both involved merging onto a freeway. in the first instance, i was in the right lane, which i knew would turn exit only a mile or so down the road. there was a truck on my left, followed by a long line of slow moving cars. so i thought, since the truck was right next to me, i would speed up a little bit and bit and get in front of it. to speed up only fast enough to pass this truck, my car revved to over 6000 rpm. it just didn't want to accelerate normally. i did safely make the lane change in front of the truck; the worst thing that would have happened in this case was getting off at an exit i did not intend to get off at. however, the next day, i was merging onto freeway traffic with a typical lane length to allow merging. my car didn't want to accelerate enough to safely accomplish the merge. i had to rev the engine up to over 5000 rpm just to get up to barely 45 mph to accomplish the merge. i feel it is only a matter of time before i get into an accident because of this acceleration issue. | |||
| 05/08/2008 | 22000 | ||
| 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. | |||
| 08/08/2010 | 99500 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. the contact stated that a software update was done by the manufacturer. the contact stated that the update decreased acceleration and shortened the battery life of the vehicle. the contact believed the failure was a manufacturing defect. the failure mileage was 99,500. | |||
| 08/08/2010 | 99500 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. the contact stated that a software update was done by the manufacturer. the contact stated that the update decreased acceleration and shortened the battery life of the vehicle. the contact believed the failure was a manufacturing defect. the failure mileage was 99,500. kmj | |||
| 08/08/2010 | 99500 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. the contact stated a software update done by the manufacturer was supposed to increase the gas, but had the opposite affect. the vehicle was getting 42 miles per gallon and now get 36. the contact also stated the update decreased acceleration and shortened the battery life of the vehicle. the contact feels this is a manufacturers defect. the current mileage was 99,500.rl | |||
| 08/09/2011 | 30000 | ||
| Re: jhmfa36257s000929 before description let me say that this vehicle is my third honda hybrid car. the first, an early insight was entirely satisfactory. i wish i still owned it. it is true that it did go through the ima battery reconditioning cycle occasionally, but not very often the second, a civic hybrid, was also quite satisfactory. the third, a 2007 civic hybrid, is the problem. i wish i had never traded up (down?) to it. ag an early point the computer indicated an ima problem, and the service people told me that the computer indicated that the ima battery was malfunctioning. your experts required that the computer be reprogrammed so that the computer no longer reported the ima problem. i continue to be told that since the computer says there is nothing wrong there is noting that the dealer can do to fix the problem. at present about five or six times each day the indicator for ima charge drops to 2 and the ima stops providing assist waiting for the battery to recharge. after a while the charge indicator jumps up to full, usually with do partial full steps, and then the boost resumes work. however if i climb any reasonable hill on the highway the charge indicator drops to the point where there is no boost. it is quite clear that the battery will not hold a proper charge. it is increasingly becoming a safety problem since when starting up in traffic i cannot rely on the ima boost to be there when needed. quite honestly, i think it is long past time for you to honor the warrantee and replace the ima battery. if there is some other cause for the problem, then it needs fixing. | |||
| 01/10/2011 | 112000 | ||
| On my 2007 honda civic hybrid the ima battery will suddenly drop from a charge to no charge. when this happens the car loses almost all acceleration power because the gasoline engine is forced to charge the battery up. this has happened to me during acceleration onto major highways during rush hour which is extremely dangerous without acceleration power. i would like honda motor to address this issue instead of issuing software recalls that do nothing to the car. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | |||
| I am the original owner, a conservative driver, rarely exceeding 60 mph to increase mileage, and drive for work in an area east of dallas, texas. i had great mileage and no problems to speak of until this past june. i first had noticed a deterioration in the gas mileage. then i experienced for the first time a drastic drop in responsiveness. i was entering a hwy from a country road and found myself with no power. this has remained so despite the software update. the number of bars showing on the gauge was significantly fewer, and there would be wild fluctuations of bars. there has been no warning light. i've had several conversations with the dealer. mailed american honda a complaint, resulting in a call from honda that seemed to me simply a way to mollify. honda apparently does not consider this problem a safety issue. i beg to differ. now i must always be aware that i don't have power (the cooler weather has generally seen a higher number of bars), and mileage has definitely suffered. one clear example is that since the software update, the gas engine does not shut off as much as it used to, especially during hot weather. if the engine shuts off at a stop, it also can abruptly engage again without warning (nothing changed such as brake pedal pressure, etc that would cause the engine to come on). i bought the car to be a 10 year, 300,000 mile product, with no concern for resale value at the end. now i'm paralyzed with the prospect of poor resale value, perhaps unable to sell privately - restricted to only the dealership. this was the first time to buy a honda - based on a reputation for durability. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | |||
| I am the original owner, a conservative driver, rarely exceeding 60 mph to increase mileage, and drive for work in an area east of dallas, texas. i had great mileage and no problems to speak of until this past june. i first had noticed a deterioration in the gas mileage. then i experienced for the first time a drastic drop in responsiveness. i was entering a hwy from a country road and found myself with no power. this has remained so despite the software update. the number of bars showing on the gauge was significantly fewer, and there would be wild fluctuations of bars. there has been no warning light. i've had several conversations with the dealer. mailed american honda a complaint, resulting in a call from honda that seemed to me simply a way to mollify. honda apparently does not consider this problem a safety issue. i beg to differ. now i must always be aware that i don't have power (the cooler weather has generally seen a higher number of bars), and mileage has definitely suffered. one clear example is that since the software update, the gas engine does not shut off as much as it used to, especially during hot weather. i bought the car to be a 10 year, 300,000 mile product, with no concern for resale value at the end. now i'm paralyzed with the prospect of poor resale value, perhaps unable to sell privately - restricted to only the dealership. this was the first time to buy a honed - based on a reputation for durability. | |||
| 09/19/2010 | 70400 | ||
| I took my 2007 civic hybrid for a service at buena park honda on 9/16/10 and they told me that there is a recall to my car about the ima battery. they said they will fix the problem. after 2 days of driving, i noticed that i was not getting the battery assist that i used to get. there were still 4 bars on my battery meter and i was not getting the power that i needed to pass a car or during merging lanes on the freeway. i also noticed the drop of my mpg. i have the same everyday driving since i bought my car. it went from an average of 40 mpg to 31 mpg!!! that takes away the point of me buying a hybrid. i am very unhappy about this situation so i started searching if anyone else have these probelems and it turned out that i am not the only unhappy civic hybrid owner. i really feel unsafe about this. i also noticed that when i have 7 bars left and driving on the freeway, i know its charging when i use the cruise control, all of a sudden it will go to full bars without even filling up the 8, 9. bars. that makes it very suspicious if it is really charged up. all i can say is hopefully honda will fix this problem because this is our 4th honda vehicle and we love it because of the reliability and efficiency that it had given us. please honda, fix this problem. | |||
| 06/07/2010 | 60000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. while the contact was driving approximately 40 mph on the highway entrance ramp, the engine generated a lack of power causing difficulty to increase in the speed rate. the failure was continuous. the manufacturer advised the owners to take the vehicle to the dealer for the replacement of the hybrid battery and reprogramming of the battery software. the contact stated after the repair was performed the failure occurred. also, the mileage had decreased to 10 mpg. the manufacturer and dealer were notified and the contact requested the original software be installed in the vehicle and they were unable to provide assistance. the failure mileage was 60,000. js | |||
| 08/22/2010 | 55000 | ||
| 2007 civic hybrid - now with deteriorating battery, it occassionally has very poor acceleration and has leaded to near miss accidents twice. car was fine until the last few months with deteriorating battery. honda won't replace. | |||
| 06/07/2010 | 60000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. while the contact was driving approximately 40 mph on the highway entrance ramp, the engine generated a lack of power causing difficulty to increase in the speed rate. the failure was continuous. the manufacturer advised the owners to take the vehicle to the dealer for the replacement of the hybrid battery and reprogramming of the battery software. the contact stated after the repair was performed the failure occurred. also, the mileage had decreased to 10 mpg. the manufacturer and dealer were notified and the contact requested the original software be installed in the vehicle and they were unable to provide assistance. the failure mileage was 60,000. js | |||
| 08/22/2010 | 55000 | ||
| 2007 civic hybrid - now with deteriorating battery, it occassionally has very poor acceleration and has leaded to near miss accidents twice. car was fine until the last few months with deteriorating battery. honda won't replace. | |||
| 06/07/2010 | 60000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. while the contact was driving approximately 40 mph on the highway entrance ramp, the engine generated a lack of power causing difficulty to increase in the speed rate. the failure was continuous. the manufacturer advised the owners to take the vehicle to the dealer for the replacement of the hybrid battery and reprogramming of the battery software. the contact stated after the repair was performed the failure occurred. also, the mileage had decreased to 10 mpg. the manufacturer and dealer were notified and the contact requested the original software be installed in the vehicle and they were unable to provide assistance. the failure mileage was 60,000. js | |||
| 08/22/2010 | 55000 | ||
| 2007 civic hybrid - now with deteriorating battery, it occassionally has very poor acceleration and has leaded to near miss accidents twice. car was fine until the last few months with deteriorating battery. honda won't replace. | |||
| 06/07/2010 | 60000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2007 honda civic hybrid. while the contact was driving approximately 40 mph on the highway entrance ramp, the engine generated a lack of power causing difficulty to increase in the speed rate. the failure was continuous. the manufacturer advised the owners to take the vehicle to the dealer for the replacement of the hybrid battery and reprogramming of the battery software. the contact stated after the repair was performed the failure occurred. also, the mileage had decreased to 10 mpg. the manufacturer and dealer were notified and the contact requested the original software be installed in the vehicle and they were unable to provide assistance. the failure mileage was 60,000. js | |||
| 08/22/2010 | 55000 | ||
| 2007 civic hybrid - now with deteriorating battery, it occassionally has very poor acceleration and has leaded to near miss accidents twice. car was fine until the last few months with deteriorating battery. honda won't replace. | |||
| 08/17/2010 | 41500 | ||
| My 2007 honda civic hybrid is experiencing an issue where the hybrid battery loses charge overnight, causing the car to accelerate unpredictably while driving. in some cases, the display shows that the hybrid battery has enough charge to assist in acceleration, but the car reacts extremely slow when accelerating from a stop. yesterday when shifting from a lane of stopped traffic to a lane of moving traffic, the car attempted to use battery to assist in acceleration, but was unable to do so because the battery was dead. when i entered the lane, the next car behind me was 30-40 yards back, but i did not have sufficient acceleration to match the speed in a reasonable amount of time. thankfully the driver behind me was paying attention and able to slow down to avoid a collision. due to the extreme lack of acceleration from a stop in these situations, and the unpredictability as to when it will occur, this to me is a major safety concern every time i drive my car now. i took the car to a honda dealer, and they applied the latest software update. after the update, i had them test-drive the car, but they were unwilling or unable to do anything else to fix the issue. | |||
| 11/10/2009 | 74000 | 1 | |
| While driving my 2007 honda civic hybrid, i was stopped in traffic on a busy street. i was waiting to make a left turn into a business. when i went to turn, the car was very sluggish and had what appeared to be significantly less acceleration than normal. this was caused by the car's computer recalibrating the battery. this recalibrating started happening after a software update. it happens every few days and there is no warning. when it happens the computer artificially lower the charge state forcing the car to go into regeneration state to fully charge the batters. even though the batter is not really empty, since the computer set the battery level to be empty, the electric motor is no longer used. there should be a warning tone or something to indicate that there will be a significant loss of power. i believe that honda did this software update to make the batteries seem to last longer, but it's really less safe! it's also caused my mileage to go down by about 10% but i realize that is not a safety issue. *tr | |||
| 08/10/2009 | 32000 | 1 | |
| 2007 honda civic hybrid engine/hybrid system operation has become erratic and unpredictable. adequate power to accelerate, merge and safely operate vehicle can suddenly cut out, leaving vehicle with unacceptable performance and creating safety hazard in normal driving conditions. *tr | |||
| 05/11/2009 | 15000 | 1 | |
| I have owned my 2007 honda civic hybrid for about 21months. i started to have issues with the ima (integrated motor assist, hybrid batteries) last summer (2008) and continue to have issues to date (may 2009). the ima battery that powers the assist motor has been unpredictable and has had degraded performance for the past year causing the car to be underpowered and unsafe to drive on the highway. the ima system routinely fully discharges (especially during the hot summer months in arizona) and leaves the car only to run on the underpowered 1.3 l gas engine. the car is very sluggish, causing safety issues when acceleration is needed in city or interstate driving. my wife drives 3 kids to school (35 miles on way) on a daily basis and is concerned for the kids and her safety on the highway. the batteries also are located under the rear passenger seat. due to the excessive heat the rear passengers (my kids) are always complaining that the seat is warm and that is excessively hot in the back seat since the problem first was observed in last summer 2008, i have taken it to several different honda dealerships. they all state that this is | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 25000 | ||
| Own a 2007 honda civic hybrid. after about one year of ownership, the car started exhibiting troubling characteristics with the power management and available power. the car relies on a gas engine and electric assist to provide full power in all driving situations. during the summer when teperatures rise, the car starts to have difficulty providing power from the electric motor due to the battery crashing to 0. once the battery recalibrates the car provides very little power using only the gas engine. this battery crash happens on a daily basis and means in the real world that when i am pulling out into traffic i may have very little power to get the car up to speed and risk getting hit by oncoming traffic. to say the car becomes sluggish is an overstatement. honda has been unwilling to address this issue and it appears that the ar has a material defect that prevents the batteries from operating as intended in real world situations. when the air conditioner is in operation the battery will crash each time you drive the car. i feel very unsafe in this vehicle and honda is doing nothing to address the complaints. | |||
| 06/21/2010 | 50000 | ||
| I currently own a 2007 honda civic hybrid. the honda civic hybrid relies on the hybrid batteries (ima batteries) to power the vehicle during accelerations and on a normal basis the batteries are recharged during vehicle decelerations. the issue i am having has been going on for over a year with no support to fix the issue from honda. the charge in my ima batteries is always 0-2 bars (i have photos showing this) which causes the vehicle to have very limited acceleration. add the a/c being on now in the summer and the car is basically useless. also, when the system (vehicle computer) sees that the ima batteries are low or empty it forces the engine to recharge the batteries when the vehicle is stopped ,which is not a | |||