1997 Honda Civic Powertrain & Transmission Problems

DRIVING AT A SPEED OF 40 MPH, THEN THE CAR WENT INTO LIMP MODE AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON WITH CODES PO700 AND PO715, TOOK TO TRANSMISSION BUSINESS, COULD NOT FIND THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM. THIS PROBLEM IS STILL PRESENT. RECENTLY FOUND A SERVICE BULLETIN FROM HONDA ABOUT THIS DEFECT ON THE TRANSMISSION. *JS

THE VTEC-E ON MY 1997 HONDA CIVIC HX IS NOT ENGAGING AT THE PROPER TIMES WHICH IS NOT ONLY AN ANNOYANCE WHEN DRIVING, BUT ALSO A SAFETY HAZARD WHEN IT ENGAGES AT LOW SPEEDS (WHICH IT SHOULD NOT DO) IN TRAFFIC LAUNCHING YOU FORWARD INTO THE BACK ENDS OF OTHER VEHICLES. HAS CAUSED (2) REARENDERS. *TR

I OWN A 1997 CIVIC HX. I DID RESEARCH AND THERE ARE SO MANY DEFECTIVE CVT TRANSMISSIONS. THE TRANSMISSION WAS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR THIS MODEL. PEOPLE JUST DON'T PUT THE COMPLAINTS ON THIS SITE. I WAS TOLD TO DO SO BY HONDA. 90% OF THIS MODEL ON THE ROAD HAVE ALL HAD THEIR TRANSMISSIONS REBUILT AND FAIL IN THE EARLY STAGES OF THE CARS LIFE. WHY HASN'T HONDA RESOLVED THIS ISSUE? IT FAILS TO GO INTO REVERSE AND FAILS TO SOMETIMES GO INTO DRIVE. IF THE PERCENTAGE WERE LOW, THEN I'D UNDERSTAND THAT IT ISN'T A WIDE SPREAD ISSUE. BUT THE NUMBER OF CARS IS STAGGERING WHEN I GO ONTO FORUMS AND EVEN GOOGLE THE PROBLEM. AND THE ONES THAT HAVE BEEN REBUILT SOMETIMES HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE SPEED SENSOR IN THE TRANSMISSION AND THE SPEEDOMETER FAILS TO READ THE SPEED OF THE CAR. IF I'M THE ONLY PERSON WHO'S GOING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT THIS, I'LL MAKE SURE TO POST THE LINK IN FORUMS. *TR

I HAVE A 1997 HONDA CIVIC EX COUPE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WITH 95,900 MILES WHEN THE TRANSMISSION PROBLEM STARTED. ONE DAY I NOTICED MY CAR WAS HESITATING WHEN I PRESSED THE ACCELERATOR BUT DID NOT PUT A LOT OF ATTENTION TO IT. THEN SOON AFTER I NOTICED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURN ON. SO I DECIDED TO TAKE MY CAR TO MY LOCAL HONDA DEALER (ROCK HONDA). THEY RESET THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, THEN TOLD ME THAT THE PROBLEM WAS THE TRANSMISSION AND IF IT TURNS ON AGAIN THAT I WOULD NEED TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION. THE LIGHT TURNED ON WENT BACK TO ROCK HONDA , THEY RECOMMENDED ME REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION AND MENTIONED TO ME THERE IS NO RECALL ON THE A/T OR WARRANTY , THE ESTIMATE WAS $2900 FOR THE REPAIR. SO I DECIDED TO GET A SECOND OPINION, AND THEY TOLD ME THE SAME THING THE A/T NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED! I ENDED UP REPAIRING IT COSTING ME $2608.11 OUCH. I BELIEVE HONDA SHOULD HAVE TAKEN RESPONSIBILITY AND NOTIFY THE MILLIONS OF CUSTOMERS THAT OWN HONDA CIVICS AND TELL THEM ABOUT THIS MAJOR REPAIR BY ISSUING A RECALL. I FEEL HONDA SHOULD REIMBURSE ALL THEIR CUSTOMERS WHO UNKNOWINGLY HAVE HAD TO FIX THEIR AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION JUST LIKE I HAVE. NOW I'M WONDERING IF I SHOULD EVER BUY A HONDA AGAIN! PLEASE HELP. THANK YOU. *LA

NOT EVEN THIRTY DAYS AGO I PURCHASED A NEW/USED VEHICLE FROM A USED CAR DEALERSHIP IN BRATTLEBORO, VT. MY 30 DAY/1,000 MILE WARRANTY JUST ENDED A FEW DAYS AGO, AND I AM NOW HAVING TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS WITH MY AUTOMATIC HONDA CIVIC EX. I HAVE READ SEVERAL OTHER COMPLAINTS ON THIS SAME ITEM IN THE 97 CIVICS. MY WHOLE FAMILY OWNS HONDAS AND THEY ARE USUALLY RELIABLE CARS. THIS PROBLEM SHOULD NOT BE OCCURRING WITH ONLY 62,000 MILES ON THIS CAR. THIS IS REDICULOUS AND I AM VERY UPSET. I HAVE JUST STARTED TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM, BUT ASSUME I WILL END UP PAYING FOR IT MYSELF. HONDA REALLY NEEDS TO TAKE CARE OF THIS ISSUE WITH THIS TYPE OF CAR. SINCE IT HOLDS IT'S VALUE I PAID A GOOD AMOUNT FOR THIS CAR AND IT'S TRADE IN IS PRETTY HIGH, TOO. THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED! *AK

TRANSMISSION FAILURE AT LESS THAN 50,000 MI. HONDA SAYS TOO BAD, THE CONSUMER WAS OFFERED A NEW TRANSMISSION FOR 4,000 DOLLARS BY DEALERSHIP. THE TRANSMISSION WAS REBUILT, HOWEVER THE CONSUMER WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE BILL. *AK *SCC *JB

TRANSMISSION HAS A SHUTTER WHEN CAR IS WARMED UP. CAR IS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD WITH 70K IN MILES AND DEALERSHIP HAS SAID IT NEEDS A NEW TRANSMISSION. *NLM

WHILE EXITING THE FREEWAY THE CONSUMER STOPPED AT A LIGHT. WHEN THE CONSUMER DEPRESSED THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL TO PROCEED THE VEHICLE JERKED FORWARD. *NLM THE PROBLEM CONTINUED TO OCCUR UNTIL THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED WITH A RE-MANUFACTURED TRANSMISSION. *SCC

THIS VEHICLE IS A LEMON -- DEFECTIVE THROUGHOUT. MAJOR PROBLEM IS A TRANSMISSION THAT HAS FAILED TWICE -- ONCE BEING REPLACED BY THE MANUFACTURER ONLY AFTER TWO YEARS OF COMPLAINING ABOUT THE PROBLEM, BEING UNABLE TO DRIVE ANY DISTANCES, AND AFTER NUMEROUS TIMES I PAID TO HAVE THE PROBLEM UNRESOLVED. SINCE IT WAS REPLACED IN JULY 2001, I BEGAN COMPLAINING AGAIN ABOUT PROBLEMS IN MAY OF 2002, ONLY TO GET THE SAME RUN AROUND AGAIN. COSTING ME MONEY OUT OF MY POCKET FOR THEIR DEFECTIVE CVT TRANSMISSION FOR WHICH THEY REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR DEFECT. FINALLY GOT IT FIXED AND THE WARRANTY EXTENDED FOR THE SECOND TIME, BUT IN THE MEANTIME, CHECK OUT THE VIN NUMBERS ON THE NHTSA WEBSITE AND YOU'LL MANY OTHER HONDA OWNERS WITH TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS AND VERY SIMILAR VIN NUMBERS. LATE FALL 2002 TO WINTER 2003 DRIVER SIDE DOOR LOCK FAILED AND ALMOST IMMEDIATELY AFTER THAT WAS FIXED THE DRIVER SIDE WINDOW FAILED. I HAD TO DRIVE DOWN THE FREEWAY IN THE RAIN TO GET HOME WITH A WINDOW I COULD ONLY PULL UP HALF WAY. BUT TO TOP THINGS OFF, I HAVE TO REPLACE THE ALTERNATOR THIS MONTH. WORSE OF ALL, MY CAR WAS EXPERIENCE SYMPTOMS THAT WERE APPARENTLY ATTRIBUTED TO THE ALTERNATOR BACK IN MARCH 31, 1999 SERVICE BULLETIN 98-029. HOWEVER, HONDA NEVER NOTIFIED THE VEHICLE OWNERS. THEY JUST PLAYED THE ODDS THAT THE MAJORITY WOULD FAIL OUTSIDE OF WARRANTY AND THEY WOULDN'T HAVE TO PAY A DIME. IT AMAZES ME THAT OUR GOVERNMENT ALLOWS AUTO MANUFACTURERS TO GET AWAY WITH THIS TYPE OF BUSINESS PRACTICE. JUST BECAUSE A PART FAILURE MAY NOT CAUSE AN ACCIDENT DOESN'T MEAN IT'S NOT DANGEROUS. IF I'M COMMUTING 100 MILES A DAY, AS I HAVE BEEN FOR THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS, AND MY CAR BROKE DOWN WHO KNOWS WHERE, I COULD VERY WELL BE IN DANGER AS A SINGLE WOMEN TRAVELING A LONE. I NEED TO BE ABLE TO COUNT ON MY VEHICLE, WHICH I HAVE GONE OUT OF MY WAY TO INSURE WAS ALWAYS PROPERLY SERVICED. I CAN NOT TRUST HONDA AND WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER ONE.

WHEN PRESSING ON THE GAS PETAL, IT FEELS ROUGH AND NOTCHY. IT'S HARD TO ACCELERATE SMOOTHLY. STARTED TO NOTICE THE PROBLEM AT ABOUT 85,000 MILES. THEN, WHEN I WAS ON THE FREEWAY THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I TOOK IT TO SCOTT ROBINSON HONDA IN TORRANCE AND THEY SAID THE PROBLEM WAS PROBABLY MY DIAGNOSTICS SYSTEM. THEY INFORMED ME THAT IS WAS COVERED BY HONDA EXTENDED WARRANTY. AFTER MY CAR WAS IN THE SHOP ALL DAY, THE TECHNICIAN INFORMED ME THAT IT WASN'T MY DIAGNOSTICS SYSTEM, BUT MY TRANSMISSION. HE SAID THAT THE COMPUTER'S DIAGNOSED CODE WAS(PO715), WHICH MEANS THAT THE MAINSHAFT SPEED SENSOR FAILED. HE SAID THAT SINCE THAT PART IS INSIDE THE TRANSMISSION, THEY FELT I SHOULD HAVE IT REPLACED. THEY WANTED ME TO SPEND $3,500.00 ON A REBUILT ONE TO REPLACE MINE. I ASKED HIM IF MY CAR WOULD BE OK TO DRIVE AROUND WITHOUT REPLACING IT, HE SAID HE DIDN'T KNOW. IT COULD DIE ON ME IN A WEEK, OR IN A YEAR. SO FAR, MY CAR IS STILL RUNNING. I HAVE NEVER MISSED A REQUIRED SERVICE DATE. MY ENGINE LIGHT STILL OCCASIONALLY COMES ON, AND I HAVE TO DISCONNECT THE BATTERY EACH TIME TO RESET THE COMPUTER SO IT WILL GO OFF. THE GAS PETAL STILL FEELS ROUGH WHEN I PRESS ON IT FROM A COMPLETE STOP. I TOLD HONDA ABOUT THE RECALL #99I002000 (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) AND ASKED THEM IF THEY WOULD REPLACE MY THROTTLE CABLE. HONDA INFORMED ME THAT THERE IS NO SUCH RECALL ON A 1997 HONDA CIVIC. I PRINTED OUT THE INFO FROM YOUR WEBSITE AND FAXED IT TO THEM. I AM STILL WAITING TO HEAR BACK. *NLM

I PURCHASED AN AUTOMATIC 1997 HONDA CIVIC EX FROM COSTA MESA HONDA IN COSTA MESA, CA ON MARCH 11, 2000. I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE WITH 27,000 MILES ON IT. TODAY (2/6/03) THE CAR HAS A TOTAL OF 50,734 MILES ON IT. I HAVE PERSONALLY ONLY DRIVEN 24,000 MILES IN A TOTAL OF 3 YEARS. THE TRANSMISSION IS TOAST AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THERE HAVE BEEN TRANSMISSION RECALLS/ WARRANTY EXTENSIONS ON OTHER HONDA MAKES AND MODELS. THE '97 CIVIC UNFORTUNATELY IS NOT ONE OF THEM. I HAVE TAKEN MY CAR TO A MECHANIC NOT AFFILIATED WITH HONDA FOR A "SECOND" OPINION AND THE MECHANIC HAS STATED THAT THIS SHOULD NOT BE HAPPENING TO SUCH A "YOUNG" CAR WITH ONLY 50,000 MILES. HE SAID THAT MOST VEHICLES DON'T EXPERIENCE TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS UNTIL THEY HAVE REACHED AN EXCESS OF 90- 100,000 MILES. BASED ON THE INFORMATION HE HAS GATHERED FROM MY SERVICE RECORDS AS WELL AS THE INFORMATION PROVIDED FROM OTHER SOURCES, HE BELIEVES THAT THIS IS NOT A PROBLEM WHICH I HAVE CAUSED. I FEEL THAT HONDA SHOULD REPLACE/FIX THE TRANSMISSION FREE OF CHARGE OR FOR MINIMAL COST TO ME. THEY ARE STATING THAT BECAUSE I DID NOT PURCHASE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY (WHEN I PURCHASED MY VEHICLE IT STILL HAD THE NORMAL FACTORY 3 YEAR... 36,000 MILE WARRANTY IN PLACE). I FEEL THAT HONDA IS RIPPING ME OFF BY NOT WORKING WITH ME ON THIS ISSUE. PLEASE NOTE THAT I WILL NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHER HONDA AND I WILL BE SURE THAT NO ONE IN MY FAMILY OR ANY OF MY CLOSE FRIENDS EVER PURCHASE A HONDA. I WOULD HATE FOR OTHER PEOPLE TO GO THROUGH THE SAME THING I AM.

CONSUMER STATES THAT GAS PEDAL SOMETIMES STICKS WHEN COMPRESSED. CONSUMER FEELS UNSAFE. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER INFORMATION. *MR

TRANSMISSION PROBLEM DETECTED AND CONFIRMED BY GRESHAM HONDA. SEEMS TO BE A MAJOR PROBLEM FOR 1997 HONDA CIVIC OWNERS. HONDA ACKNOWLEGED PREMATURE TRANNY FAILURE AND OFFERED TO PAY HALF FOR REPLACEMENT. CAR WAS GIVEN BACK TO ME WHILE PART IS BEING ORDERED AND WHILE DRIVING TODAY FROM A STOP LIGHT ON A HILL CAR WOULD NOT GO INTO GEAR AND STARTED TO SLIP BACKWARDS. LUCKILY BY FLOORING IT I WAS ABLE TO PREVENT BACKWARDS SLIDE INTO VEHILCE BEHIND ME BUT FEEL SOMEONE NEEDS TO CONTACT HONDA AND START A RECALL ON THIS MODEL FOR A COMPLETE TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT. IN MY CASE THEY HAVE AGREED TO COVER HALF OF THE REPAIR COST TO INSTALL A REMANUFACTURED TRANSMISSION BUT I AM NOT SATISFIED WITH THIS OFFER AND FEEL YOU COULD BE LOOKING AT MANY MORE ACCIDENTS AND POSSIBLE INJURIES BY THE SUDDEN JERKING FROM STOP WHILE CAR TRIES TO GO INTO GEAR. PLEASE RESEARCH THIS IMMEDIATELY AND PREVENT THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE FROM BEING INJURED BY THIS KNOWN DEFECT THAT IS NOT BEING ADDRESSED CORRECTLY.*AK

TOOK CAR IN FOR 60000 SERVICE AT DEALERSHIP AND WITHIN TWO WEEKS MY V-TECH TRANSMISSION BROKE DOWN ON THE FREEWAY. HONDA DOES NOT WANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT THIS SPECIFIC PART IS DEFECTIVE. THESE V-TECH TRANSMISSIONS NEED TO BE RECALLED AND REPLACED AT NO CHARGE. THERE ARE MANY MORE HONDA CIVIC OWNERS THAT KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT! JUSTICE WILL PREVAIL!*AK

TRANSMISSION STARTS SLIPPING AT APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH. VEHICLE HAS A CLEAN HISTORY AND HASNT BEEN DRIVEN HARD. I HAVE BEEN CONTACTED BY OTHER PEOPLE WITH THE SAME CAR AND IDENTICAL PPROBLEMS. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY FAR TO FEW MILES ON THE CAR FOR A PROBLEM OF THIS NATURE SINCE IT CANNOT BE REPAIRED AND REPLACEMENT COSTS ARE IN EXCESS OF $5000. HONDA REFUSES TO ASSIST ME WITH THIS AND I THINK IT WARRANTS A RECALL OR AT LEAST SOME KIND OF INVESTIGATION INTO THEIR PRODUCT. *AK

TRANSMISSION FAILURE. TRANSMISSION SLIPPED/JERKED WHEN TAKING OFF FROM A STOP. AUTO HAD MAJOR SERVICE AT APPROX 64,402 MI. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AT 71,911 MILES. ST CHECKED AND STATED COMPUTER NEEDED TO BE CHANGED. ST CHANGED COMPUTER. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN AT 80,241 MILES, ST STATES TRANSMISSION FAILED AND MUST BE REPLACED. *AK

EACH TIME I AM STOPPED AND THE CAR IS IN DRIVE THE IDLE FLUCTUATES RAPIDLY BETWEEN 0 AND 1000 RPM. WHEN THE GAS IS PRESSED THE CAR WILL JERK INTO DRIVE AND WHILE DRIVING THE TRANSMISSION WILL SLIP. *AK

I FOUGHT FOR 2 YEARS ABOUT A BAD CTV TRANSMISSION IN A 1997 HONDA CIVIC HX WHICH I PURCHASED NEW. I WAS IN AND OUT OF THE DEALERSHIP AT MY EXPENSE ON A CONTINUAL BASIS. THEY FINALLY AGREED TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION AFTER MANY VISITS AND MUCH MONEY OUT OF MY POCKET FOR RENTAL CARS AND UNNECESSARY SERVICES THAT NEVER CORRECTED THE PROBLEM. HONDA DID AGREE TO GIVE ME AN EXTENDED WARRANTY OF 7 YEARS OR 75,000 MILES. THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED WITH A REMANUFACTURED TRANSMISSION IN JULY 2001. I DID NOT WANT A REMANUFACTURED TRANSMISSION OR A CTV TRANSMISSION. I BELIEVE THE DESIGN OF THE TRANSMISSION IS DEFECTIVE, BUT I WAS GIVEN NO CHOICE. IN MAY 2002 I STARTED REPORTING PROBLEMS WITH THIS REPLACEMENT TRANSMISSION -- LESS THEN A YEAR AFTER IT WAS INSTALLED. LIKE THE FIRST TRANSMISSION, THE PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT, THE DEALERS COULD NOT REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM. I JUST HAD TO DRIVE THE CAR UNTIL IT GOT SO BAD THERE WAS NO WAY THEY COULD MISS THE PROBLEM -- JUST LIKE WITH THE FIRST TRANSMISSION. WELL, FINALLY AS OF AUGUST 1, 2003, THEY CONFIRMED THE TRANSMISSION WAS THE PROBLEM AND THAT SEVERAL PARTS HAVE TO BE REPLACED. IN THE MEANTIME, WHILE WAITING FOR THE PARTS, I'M STUCK DRIVING A CAR OVER 100 MILES A DAY TO COMMUTE TO WORK. ULTIMATELY THE PROBLEM I HAVE IS THE TRANSMISSION IS BAD. PERIOD! IT'S A BAD DESIGN OR I WOULD NOT HAVE HAD TWO OF THE SAME TRANSMISSION TYPE FAILING IN THE SAME CAR. WHEN I WAS LOOKING AT THIS CAR TO PURCHASE THE SALESMAN TOLD ME THIS CTV TRANSMISSION WAS SO GREAT THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE IN ALL OF THE HONDA ACCORDS STARTING THE NEXT MODEL YEAR. THAT NEVER HAPPENED, I WONDER WHY! I FEEL VERY STRONGLY AFTER READING MANY SIMILAR COMPLAINTS FILED WITH THE NHTSA THIS MODEL YEAR TRANSMISSION SHOULD BE UNDER DEFECT INVESTIGATION. IT WON'T TAKE MUCH TO SHOW THAT THE DESIGN ITSELF IS DEFECTIVE AND HONDA HAS HUNG OWNERS OUT TO DRY AND REFUSES TO ADMIT THEIR ERROR.

TRANSMISSION FAILED.

WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN LOW SPEED AND UPON ACCELERATING VEHICLE JERKS. VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN RECALL 99I002000 DUE TO VIN. *AK *ML