1997 Honda Civic: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for the 1997 Honda Civic. The newest campaign is 20V026000. NHTSA received the report on 17 Jan 2020. The NHTSA record gives the component Air Bags / Frontal / Driver Side / Inflator Module. NHTSA has 342 complaints on file for this model year. 1 NHTSA investigation names 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, 20V026000, in the NHTSA record

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver frontal air bag inflator, and replace it if necessary, with an inflator of a different design, free of charge. The recall began October 1, 2020. Owners may contact American Honda's Customer Support & Campaign Center at 1-888-234-2138 or Isuzu customer service at 1-800-255-6727.

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 29 Mar 2018. 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

2 campaigns, newest first. 1,449,399 units in total.

20V026000Received 17 Jan 2020. 1,439,841 units.
Air Bags / Frontal / Driver Side / Inflator Module
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 1998 Acura 2.2CL, 1998-1999 Acura 2.3CL, 1998-1999 Acura 3.0CL, 2001 Acura 3.2CL and Acura MDX, 1998-2000 Honda Accord Coupe, Accord Sedan, Civic Sedan, Odyssey and Acura 3.5RL, 1999-2000 Acura 3.2TL, 1996-2000 Civic Coupe, 1997-2000 CR-V, 1997-1998 EV Plus, and 1998-1999 Isuzu Oasis vehicles. These vehicles were equipped with Non-Azide Driver air bag Inflators (NADI) and do not contain phase stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. Due to a manufacturing issue, the NADI inflators may absorb moisture, causing the inflators to rupture or the air bag cushion to underinflate.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
In the event of a crash necessitating air bag deployment, an inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants. An underinflated air bag cushion may not properly protect the occupant. These scenarios increase the risk of serious injury or death.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver frontal air bag inflator, and replace it if necessary, with an inflator of a different design, free of charge. The recall began October 1, 2020. Owners may contact American Honda's Customer Support & Campaign Center at 1-888-234-2138 or Isuzu customer service at 1-800-255-6727.
Report filed by Honda (American Honda Motor Co.). Manufacturer campaign number D8J, Z8G. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 1 Oct 2020.
97V193000Received 1 Nov 1997. 9,558 units.
Air Bags / Frontal
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The front passenger air bag modules have been improperly assembled. The cloth flaps covering the folded air bag may have been tucked in too far.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
This condition could prevent proper deployment of the air bag. In a crash, an improper air bag deployment could increase the risk of injury to a front seat passenger.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will repair the front passenger's air bag module to prevent this problem from occurring.
Report filed by AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO..

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

342 complaints, 412 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.

1997 Honda Civic
All 1997 vehicles

1997 Honda Civic: complaints by component, per 1,000 component mentions
Component	1997 Civic	All 1997 vehicles	Civic, all years	Mentions
Air Bags	308.3	60.7	159.1	127
Vehicle Speed Control	94.7	44.5	48	39
Visibility	82.5	58.9	80.4	34
Tires	75.2	56.3	49.1	31
Electrical System	70.4	79.7	82.1	29
Service Brakes, Hydraulic	65.5	106.3	55.7	27
Power Train	63.1	90.5	134.4	26
Engine and Engine Cooling	60.7	134.8	89.6	25
Structure	36.4	35.8	34.3	15
Unknown or Other	36.4	20.7	19.7	15

The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 21.

Complaints that report a crash: 62
Complaints that report a fire: 1
Injuries in the complaints: 45
Deaths in the complaints: 0
Date of the newest complaint: 25 Aug 2010

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 1997 Honda Civic, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 2000, with 63 complaints.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 1997 Honda Civic
Number	Type	Subject	Component	Opened	Closed	Campaign
SQ98012	Safety query	CONDENSER FAN MOTOR INOPERATIVE	Equipment / Appliance / Air Conditioner	30 Jun 1998	2 Nov 1998

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 1997 Honda CivicThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.

Cite this page

Recall Register. 1997 Honda Civic: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/honda/civic/1997/. 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: 29 Mar 2018
First complaint in the file: 1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file: Honda (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 1997 Honda Civic?: 1,449,399 units in 2 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 2025. 2 of them name the 1997 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 1997 Honda Civic name most often?: Air Bags: 127 of 412 component mentions, or 308.3 per 1,000. For all 1997 vehicles the figure is 60.7 per 1,000.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 1997 Honda Civic open?: No. The 1 investigation that names this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.