1988 Honda Civic: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 1988 Honda Civic. The newest campaign is 95V103001. NHTSA received the report on 24 May 1995. The NHTSA record gives the component Seat Belts / Front / Buckle Assembly. NHTSA has 46 complaints on file for this model year. 3 NHTSA investigations name this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 95V103001, in the NHTSA record

Owners should promptly check the condition and operation of both front safety belt buckles. Carefully inspect the red release button for any breaks or cracks. Check that both buckles are operating properly by inserting each latch plate into its buckle, tug on the belt to make sure the latch is securely locked, then press the release button. The latch plate should pop out of the buckle when the button is pressed. If either release button shows any sign of breakage or cracking, or if either buckle fails to operate properly, promptly contact your authorized honda/acura dealer to schedule an appointment to have the buckle replaced or repaired, free of charge. The manufacturer is developing a remedy designed to prevent the failure of the buttons that are not currently broken.

NHTSA VIN lookup

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on 1 Oct 2026. Complaint file through 30 Sep 2026. Recall file through 30 Sep 2026.

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

3 campaigns, newest first. 3,803,602 units in total.

95V103001Received 24 May 1995. 3,700,000 units.
Seat Belts / Front / Buckle Assembly
Defect, in the NHTSA record
The front safety belt buckle release buttons can break. These red plastic release buttons are marked "press." if a button breaks, pieces can fall into the buckle assembly causing the buckle to operate improperly.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
The safety belts would not provide adequate protection to an occupant in a vehicle crash.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Owners should promptly check the condition and operation of both front safety belt buckles. Carefully inspect the red release button for any breaks or cracks. Check that both buckles are operating properly by inserting each latch plate into its buckle, tug on the belt to make sure the latch is securely locked, then press the release button. The latch plate should pop out of the buckle when the button is pressed. If either release button shows any sign of breakage or cracking, or if either buckle fails to operate properly, promptly contact your authorized honda/acura dealer to schedule an appointment to have the buckle replaced or repaired, free of charge. The manufacturer is developing a remedy designed to prevent the failure of the buttons that are not currently broken.
Report filed by AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO..
87V173000Received 13 Nov 1987. 4,514 units.
Vehicle Speed Control / Cruise Control
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Electronic fuel injection control unit may cause idle speed to increase by about 550 RPM while car is stopped in gear.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Higher than normal idle could create potential for lossof vehicle control.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Replace electronic fuel injection control unit.
Report filed by AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO..
87V171000Received 29 Oct 1987. 99,088 units.
Equipment / Other / Owners/Service/Other Manual
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Owners manual information required by FMVSS 210, sections 6a and 6b was omitted from the manual.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Vehicles manual information does not comply with fmvss210.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Upgrade existing manuals by inserting adhesive backed correction pages.
Report filed by AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 19 Nov 1987.

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

46 complaints, 51 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.

1988 Honda Civic
All 1988 vehicles

1988 Honda Civic: complaints by component, per 1,000 component mentions
Component	1988 Civic	All 1988 vehicles	Civic, all years	Mentions
Vehicle Speed Control	274.5	46.2	32.3	14
Seat Belts	196.1	117.9	25.3	10
Fuel System, Gasoline	137.3	67.1	17.5	7
Electrical System	137.3	158.7	77.1	7
Engine and Engine Cooling	78.4	118.1	38.3	4
Seats	58.8	22.3	11	3
Structure	39.2	51.8	41.1	2
Latches/Locks/Linkages	19.6	17.6	4.5	1
Suspension	19.6	29	43.7	1
Unknown or Other	19.6	12	66.7	1

The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 11.

Complaints that report a crash: 4
Complaints that report a fire: 1
Injuries in the complaints: 9
Deaths in the complaints: 0
Date of the newest complaint: 13 Jun 2009

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 1988 Honda Civic, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 1995, with 12 complaints.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 1988 Honda Civic
Number	Type	Subject	Component	Opened	Closed	Campaign
EA94035	Engineering analysis	SEAT BELT BUCKLE FAILURE	Seat Belts / Front / Buckle Assembly	27 Oct 1994	31 Jul 1995	95V103001
PE94052	Preliminary evaluation	SEAT BELT BUCKLE FAILS	Seat Belts / Front / Buckle Assembly	11 Jul 1994	27 Oct 1994
PE93082	Preliminary evaluation	STALLING	Electrical System	23 Sep 1993	31 Jan 1994

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.

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Official channels

NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
NHTSA page of the 1988 Honda CivicThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.

Cite this page

Recall Register. 1988 Honda Civic: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/honda/civic/1988/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through 30 Sep 2026.

Sources

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence: US government work, public domain
Recall file through: 30 Sep 2026
Complaint file through: 30 Sep 2026
First complaint in the file: 1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file: AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO.

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 1988 Honda Civic?: 3,803,602 units in 3 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Honda Civic have for all model years?: NHTSA lists 79 recall campaigns for the Honda Civic, model years 1973 to 2026. 3 of them name the 1988 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 1988 Honda Civic name most often?: Vehicle Speed Control: 14 of 51 component mentions, or 274.5 per 1,000. For all 1988 vehicles the figure is 46.2 per 1,000.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 1988 Honda Civic open?: No. Each of the 3 investigations that name this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.