Car Issues Tracker
Vehicle complaints, recalls & safety data — sourced from NHTSA

2009 Honda Civic: Complaints, Recalls, and Known Problems

Owners have filed 395 safety complaints about the 2009 Honda Civic with U.S. regulators. Here's what the federal data shows, system by system.

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · Retrieved September 7, 2026 · Counts change as new reports are filed

395
Complaints
8
Recalls

Complaints for this vehicle report 42 crashes, 6 fires, 39 injuries, 1 death.

Key findings
  1. Airbags & restraints leads the complaint list, cited in 96 of 395 complaints, followed by Body & structure.

What owners report

Complaints filed with NHTSA name the vehicle system involved. For the 2009 Honda Civic, here is how reports break down by system.

Complaints by vehicle system
System mentions in 395 complaints · a complaint can cite more than one system
Airbags & restraints
96
Body & structure
55
Brakes & stability
52
Other / unspecified
42
Visibility & lighting
39
Engine & cooling
39
Electrical
35
Wheels & tires
32

"No codes on the dash, police said the airbags malfunctioned. Car hit an embankment on the front right side then the car flipped over. The steering wheel did not deploy. All of the side airbags, both bottom and top side airbags came out still folded and did not inflate. Car is currently with State Farm insurance at their garage."

Owner complaint filed March 2023 · Air Bags · NHTSA ODI 11514335

"My husband made a left turn from a center lane and didn't see a vehicle coming at us because of the blind spot. We hit the other vehicle on the front right side. The airbags deployed and the side airbag exploded and burned my right arm badly. I now have injury scars from the passenger seat airbag exploding. I was taken by ambulance to the hospital."

Owner complaint filed January 2023 · Air Bags · NHTSA ODI 11501286

When complaints were filed

Complaint filings for the 2009 Honda Civic over time:

Complaints filed per year — 2009 Honda Civic
Year the complaint was filed, not the incident year
2
34
63
40
26
23
23
21
52
42
16
18
10
2
7
6
3
5
2
08091011121314151617181920212223242526
2026 is a partial year (through September 7, 2026).

How the 2009 compares with other model years

Across the Honda Civic model years we track, the 2006 has the most complaints on file (1,402); the 2009 ranks 9 of 9.

Total complaints by model year — Honda Civic
All complaints on file per model year, as of September 7, 2026
1,402
1,204
916
2009
395
396
454
1,078
591
598
Older model years have had more time on the road to accumulate complaints — compare adjacent years, not endpoints.

Recall history: 8 recalls

8 recalls apply to some or all 2009 Honda Civic vehicles. Recall repairs are free at any dealer, with no time limit.

Oct 200808V-535
Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Hoses, Lines/Piping, And Fittings

HONDA IS RECALLING 128 MY 2008-2009 CIVIC SEDANS. A BRACKET THAT COVERS THE FUEL HOSE CONNECTOR IS SECURED WITH A BOLT AND NUT, BUT DURING ASSEMBLY THE NUT WAS NOT INSTALLED.

May 201616V-346
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2009-2011 Acura TSX, 2011 TSX Wagon, 2010-2011 Acura ZDX, 2008-2011 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic, Civic Hybrid, and Civic GX, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2010-2011 FCX Clarity and Insight, and 2009-2011 Fit, and Pilot …

Jan 201717V-030
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2012 Acura TSX, 2011-2012 Acura TSX Wagon, 2010-2012 Acura ZDX, 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2012 Honda Accord Crosstour and Honda Insight, 2009-2012 Honda Fit, 2009-2012 Pilot, 2007-2011 Honda CR-V, 2012 Honda FCX Clarity and 2006-2011 Hond…

Aug 201717V-545
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2008-2012 Accord, 2010-2012 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2012 Fit and Pilot, 2010-2012 Insight, and 2009-2012 Acura TSX vehicles that received replacement passenger frontal air bag inflators. One dealership may have inc…

Jan 201818V-042
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Acura TSX, ZDX, Honda Accord Crosstour, Fit, Insight and Pilot vehicles, 2011-13 Acura TSX Sportswagon, 2010-2012 Honda Accord,, 2010-2011 Honda Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles and 2013 Honda FCX Clarity and Fit EV vehi…

Apr 201818V-268
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2003-2012 Honda Accord and Pilot, 2010 Accord Crosstour, 2001-2011 Civic, 2002-2011 CR-V, 2003-2004, 2006-2008 and 2011 Element, 2007 and 2009-2013 Fit, 2010-2012 Insight, 2002-2004 Odyssey, and 2012 Ridgeline vehicles. The front passenger air ba…

May 201919V-378
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX, 2011-2013 TSX Sport Wagon, and 2010-2012 ZDX and 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic, Civic Hybrid and Civic NGV, 2012-2014 Crosstour, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2013 Fit, 2010-2013 Insight, and 2009…

Jun 201919V-502
Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX, 2011-2014 TSX Sport Wagon, 2010-2013 ZDX, 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic and Civic Hybrid, 2008-2010 Civic GX NGV, 2012-2015 Crosstour, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2013 Fit, 2014 Fit EV, 2010-201…

Does your car have an open recall?

Recall repairs are free at any dealer, with no time limit. Look up your 17-character VIN on the official NHTSA site to see open recalls for your specific vehicle. Check your VIN at NHTSA.gov →

Frequently asked questions

How many complaints does the 2009 Honda Civic have?

As of September 7, 2026, owners have filed 395 complaints about the 2009 Honda Civic with NHTSA. The most-reported system is airbags & restraints.

How many recalls does the 2009 Honda Civic have?

The 2009 Honda Civic has 8 NHTSA recalls on file. Recall repairs are free at any dealer.

Methodology & source

All figures come from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) public APIs: the Office of Defects Investigation complaint database, the recalls database, and NCAP safety ratings, retrieved September 7, 2026.

Complaints are self-reported by consumers and are not verified by NHTSA or by this site. A single complaint may cite multiple vehicle systems, so system mentions can sum to more than the complaint total. Complaint volume is influenced by fleet size, media attention, and recall notices, and is not by itself a measure of defect rates.

This site is not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer. Nothing here is repair, purchase, or legal advice. For your specific vehicle, use the official NHTSA VIN lookup and consult a qualified technician.