There are 32 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 2005 Honda Civicin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The car runs good but will not stay in 2nd gear this is the 2nd manual transmission the factory did the same then tran#2 did the same now had replaced for 3rd time and this one's doing the same thing.
I purchased this car from a Honda dealership used for over 7 thousand dollars in 2021 it's a 2005 car with known issues. I drove it for less than 2 months before it overheated without an indication by the gauge that it was overheating and blew a head gasket. It was acting funny before it happened I brought it back to the dealership a couple times they charged me several hundred dollars to do nothing besides diagnosed it and told me nothing was wrong with it. Obviously there's plenty wrong with a car I'm just finding out that the battery is probably going to die really soon and I had to pay a mechanic to put another engine in it and paid another 2 thousand dollars. Now the transmission is completely gone and I have to figure out how to come up with more money to fix it while I'm out of work because of this I should have done better research before I bought this car but why aren't there any lemon laws for used cars just purchased from dealerships in a lot of states Florida only has one if it's a brand new car very unhelpful and unfortunate for me right now that a multi billion dollar company can do this to me and leave me broke without a car and out of work knowing they sold me a car that was going to have multiple failures really soon luckily I wasn't on the highway when my engine died or after I replaced the engine and the transmission died or it could have been dangerous my advice is don't trust anyone and good luck in this country with transportation gas is $4 a gallon only reason I bought this car and it was a bad idea to say the least I thought buying from a dealership wouldn't leave me completely broke and broken down . Oh and the cruise control malfunctioned once scared me to death on the highway almost caused me to crash into the car ahead of me.
THIS CAR HAS A DEFECTIVE TRANSMISSION. UNKNOWN TO ME, IT CAME THAT WAY FROM THE DEALER. A COUPLE HONDA DEALERSHIPS ACKNOWLEDGED THE PROBLEM. IT FIRST STARTED SLIPPING AROUND 40,000 MILES. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND THE PROBLEM WENT AWAY. THIS WAS WHEN THEY TOLD ME OF THE CLASS ACTION LAW SUIT AND THE RECOMMENDED FIXES. THE TRANSMISSION INITIALLY FAILED AT 54,300 MILES. STEVENS CREEK HONDA CLEANED THE TRANSMISSION WITH A SPECIAL DETERGENT AND REPLACED THE FLUID. THEY SAID IF THE PROBLEM CAME UP AGAIN BEFORE 109,000 MILES THEY WOULD HAVE TO 'BURNISH' THE TRANSMISSION. WHAT I DIDN'T REALIZE IS THAT THE DETERGENT CLEANING WAS A 'BAND-AID' FIX SO THAT THE DEALERSHIP COULD AVOID THE MORE COSTLY FIXES THEY WERE OBLIGATED TO PERFORM UNDER THE TERMS OF THE LAWSUIT. THE CAR PERFORMED NORMALLY AGAIN. I WOULD HAVE THE FLUID REPLACED MORE THAT NORMAL DURING SERVICE VISITS. THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AGAIN AT 124,700 MILES. NOW THEY DON'T WANT TO COVER THE COST BECAUSE IT IS NOW LONGER UNDER WARRANTY, OR COVERED BY THE TERMS OF THE CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT. THIS IS ESSENTIALLY FRAUD. THEY DID A CHEAP INEFFECTIVE CLEANING IN ORDER TO AVOID AND EXPENSIVE REPAIR THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO DO. ALSO, WHEN THE TRANSMISSION FAILS, I HAVE ALMOST GOTTEN IN A SERIOUS ACCIDENT ON THE FREEWAY. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM. I WILL NEVER BUY A HONDA AGAIN *TR
THE CAR HAS BEGUN MAKING A LOUD NOISE, WHEN IN GEAR, THIS IS A MANUAL TRANSMISSION CAR, BUT WHENEVER I AM IN DRIVE IT MAKES THIS LOUD GRINDING NOISE. IF I AM IN NEUTRAL NO NOISE AT ALL. AND SOMETIMES EVEN IN DRIVE IS INTERMITTENT. *TR
THERE WAS A RATTLING NOISE COMING FROM TRANSMISSION, TOOK TO HONDA CERTIFIED MECHANIC AND WAS TOLD IT WAS THE THROWOUT BEARING AND TO REPLACE THE CLUTCH AS PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE, GET A CALL WHEN THEY HAVE CLUTCH OFF AND TOLD ME ITS THE BEARINGS IN THE TRANSMISSION. THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM IN THIS MAKE AND MODEL, THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS, AND VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE OF THE SAME PROBLEM ON HONDA CIVICS AROUND THE SAME MILEAGE. *TR
HORRIBLE NOISE COMING FROM MY '05 CIVIC LX'S MANUAL TRANSMISSION. NOISE HAS BEEN GETTING WORSE; STARTED AT 115K MILES. I HAVE SPOKE WITH A FEW MECHANICS AND THEY TOLD ME MOST HONDAS HAVE A RECALL FOR THIS PROBLEM. I CALLED HONDA CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1800 999 1009 AND THEY DIDN'T WANTED TO FIX IT FREE OF CHARGE. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 HONDA CIVIC. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH WHEN THE VEHICLE EXHIBITED AN ABNORMALLY LOUD NOISE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE THEY ADVISED THE CONTACT THAT THE FAILURE WAS CAUSED BY THE INPUT SHAFT BEARING, WHICH WOULD NEED REPLACING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED FOR THE INPUT SHAFT BEARING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND THEY OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 120,000. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE.
MY TRANSMISSION LOCKED WHILE I WAS DRIVING. I'M NOT SURE WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED. I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. THE TRANSMISSION/ENGINE WAS RUNNING BUT THE CAR WOULDN'T MOVE. WHEN I TRIED TO MOVE THE GEAR TO PARK IT MADE AN AWFUL WHINING NOISE. IT WOULDN'T ALLOW ME TO. HAD TO CALL THE POLICE, WHO STOOD BY MOVING TRAFFIC UNTIL A TOW TRUCK CAME. *TR
COMPONENT 1 IMA (HYBRID) BATTERY ASSEMBLY FAILURE, NOT CHARGING PROPERLY COMPONENT 2 CVT TRANSMISSION, 'START CLUTCH' SLIPPING & GRINDING WHEN STARTING UP FROM A STOP
2005 HONDA CIVIC DX MANUAL TRANSMISSION: MY CAR START HAVING A RATTLING NOISE FROM TRANSMISSION WHEN I RELEASE THE CLUTCH.I TOOK THE CAR TO GET IT FIXED AND THEY TOLD ME IS THE TRANSMISSION'S INPUT SHAFT BEARING(COMMON PROBLEM FOR THIS MODEL)AND IT WILL COST ME $1000 TO GET IT FIXED. I HEARD THIS A HONDA RECALL ISSUE. *TR
THIS CAR HAS A DEFECTIVE TRANSMISSION. UNKNOWN TO ME, IT CAME THAT WAY FROM THE DEALER. A COUPLE HONDA DEALERSHIPS ACKNOWLEDGED THE PROBLEM. IT FIRST STARTED SLIPPING AROUND 40,000 MILES. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND THE PROBLEM WENT AWAY. THIS WAS WHEN THEY TOLD ME OF THE CLASS ACTION LAW SUIT AND THE RECOMMENDED FIXES. THE TRANSMISSION INITIALLY FAILED AT 54,300 MILES. STEVENS CREEK HONDA CLEANED THE TRANSMISSION WITH A SPECIAL DETERGENT AND REPLACED THE FLUID. THEY SAID IF THE PROBLEM CAME UP AGAIN BEFORE 109,000 MILES THEY WOULD HAVE TO ?BURNISH? THE TRANSMISSION. WHAT I DIDN?T REALIZE IS THAT THE DETERGENT CLEANING WAS A ?BAND-AID? FIX SO THAT THE DEALERSHIP COULD AVOID THE MORE COSTLY FIXES THEY WERE OBLIGATED TO PERFORM UNDER THE TERMS OF THE LAWSUIT. THE CAR PERFORMED NORMALLY AGAIN. I WOULD HAVE THE FLUID REPLACED MORE THAT NORMAL DURING SERVICE VISITS. THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AGAIN AT 124,700 MILES. NOW THEY DON?T WANT TO COVER THE COST BECAUSE IT IS NOW LONGER UNDER WARRANTY, OR COVERED BY THE TERMS OF THE CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT. THIS IS ESSENTIALLY FRAUD. THEY DID A CHEAP INEFFECTIVE CLEANING IN ORDER TO AVOID AND EXPENSIVE REPAIR THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO DO. ALSO, WHEN THE TRANSMISSION FAILS, I HAVE ALMOST GOTTEN IN A SERIOUS ACCIDENT ON THE FREEWAY. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM. I WILL NEVER BUY A HONDA AGAIN?? *TR
THIS CAR HAS A DEFECTIVE TRANSMISSION. UNKNOWN TO ME, IT CAME THAT WAY FROM THE DEALER. A COUPLE HONDA DEALERSHIPS ACKNOWLEDGED THE PROBLEM. IT FIRST STARTED SLIPPING AROUND 40,000 MILES. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND THE PROBLEM WENT AWAY. THIS WAS WHEN THEY TOLD ME OF THE CLASS ACTION LAW SUIT AND THE RECOMMENDED FIXES. THE TRANSMISSION INITIALLY FAILED AT 54,300 MILES. STEVENS CREEK HONDA CLEANED THE TRANSMISSION WITH A SPECIAL DETERGENT AND REPLACED THE FLUID. THEY SAID IF THE PROBLEM CAME UP AGAIN BEFORE 109,000 MILES THEY WOULD HAVE TO ?BURNISH? THE TRANSMISSION. WHAT I DIDN'T REALIZE IS THAT THE DETERGENT CLEANING WAS A ?BAND-AID? FIX SO THAT THE DEALERSHIP COULD AVOID THE MORE COSTLY FIXES THEY WERE OBLIGATED TO PERFORM UNDER THE TERMS OF THE LAWSUIT. THE CAR PERFORMED NORMALLY AGAIN. I WOULD HAVE THE FLUID REPLACED MORE THAT NORMAL DURING SERVICE VISITS. THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AGAIN AT 154,600 MILES. NOW THEY DON?T WANT TO COVER THE COST BECAUSE IT IS NOW LONGER UNDER WARRANTY, OR COVERED BY THE TERMS OF THE CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT. THIS IS ESSENTIALLY FRAUD. THEY DID A CHEAP INEFFECTIVE CLEANING IN ORDER TO AVOID AND EXPENSIVE REPAIR THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO DO. I WILL NEVER BUY A HONDA AGAIN?? *TR
WHILE ACCELERATING MODERATELY, OFTEN WHILE TRYING TO PASS ANOTHER VEHICLE ON THE FREEWAY OR EVEN WHILE TRYING TO MAINTAIN SPEED UP A HILL, OUR 2005 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID WOULD SLIP OUT OF GEAR AND THE ENGINE WOULD SUDDENLY REV UP TO REDLINE RPM (IT IS AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION). THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN COULD NOT REPRODUCE THIS EVENT. AFTER A FEW MONTHS, THIS STARTED HAPPENING QUITE OFTEN -- EVERY DAY IN PREDICTABLE LOCATIONS ON OUR DRIVING ROUTE. IN ADDITION, A JUDDER DEVELOPED WHEN STARTING FROM A STOP. THIS LATTER ISSUE WAS IDENTIFIED BY HONDA AND A TECHNICAL BULLETIN WAS PUT OUT. THE JUDDER MADE THE CAR NEARLY UNDRIVABLE, SO WE AGAIN TOOK THE CAR IN. THE TRANSMISSION FLUID WAS REPLACED AND THE CLUTCH PLATES WERE BURNISHED. THE TRANMISSION SLIPPAGE AND ENGINE REVVING DISAPPEARED. NOW, 5 MONTHS LATER, THE TRANSMISSION SLIP WITH ENGINE REVVING HAS RETURNED AS WELL AS THE JUDDER STARTING AGAIN. WE PURCHASED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY, SO THE COST HAS NOT BEEN AN ISSUE SO FAR, HOWEVER OUR WARRANTY EXPIRES IN JUNE 2010. WE ARE MAINLY CONCERNED WITH THE REPEATED APPEARANCE OF THE PROBLEMS, ESPECIALLY THAT THE TRANSMISSION SLIP/ENGINE REVVING CAN BE A SAFETY ISSUE WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE ON AN ON-RAMP OR PASS A CAR ON A TWO-LANE ROAD. IF THE ENGINE SLIPS OUT OF GEAR WHILE PASSING A CAR, IT MAY HAVE TRAGIC RESULTS.
HONDA RECALL FOR JUDDER IN CVT ON 2005 HYBRID. REPAIRED (I BELIEVE BY BURNISHING THE CLUTCH?); HOWEVER, CONDITION IS RECURRING, GRADUALLY GETTING WORSE. I HAVE HEARD MANY OTHER COMPLAINTS OF THE SAME PROBLEM IN OTHER CVTS. MY SONS RECENTLY HAD THE SAME REPAIR DONE TO HIS. *TR
CRUISE CONTROL DROPS OUT UNEXPECTEDLY WHEN TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEED. *TR
2005 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID CVT AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE AT 42,000 MILES. CAR WILL NOT SHIFT IN ANY GEAR. CONTACT HONDA AMERICAN REPRESENTATIVE, AND HONDA WILL NOT COVERED THIS INCIDENT UNDER WARRANTY UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. $4,500 ~ $5,200 REPLACEMENT JOB AT LOCAL HONDA DEALER. MOST HORRIBLE CAR I'D EVER OWN!!! VERY DISAPPOINT WITH HONDA. BUYERS BEWARE WITH HONDA HYBRID MODEL. *TR
I HAVE A 2005 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. IT USUALLY SEEMS TO HAPPEN AT 40 MPH AND ABOVE. THE TRANSMISSION SLIPS (LIKE WHEN YOU'RE COMING OUT OF THE TOLLS). I HAD THE BURNISH PROCEDURE DONE LAST IN THE FALL/WINTER OF LAST YEAR. WITHIN THE LAST MONTH, THE TRANSMISSION HAS SLIPPED A BETTER PART OF 10 TIMES. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP TO GET IT UNDER WARRANTY. THEY SAID THEY CAN NOT DUPLICATE THE INCIDENT. JUST THIS PAST WEEKEND, BETWEEN 40 AND 60 MPH, IT SLIPPED 3 TIMES IN A ROW. THE NEXT DAY, AT ABOUT 68 MPH, THE RPMS STAYED AT 3000. IT'S NORMALLY AROUND 25-2600 RPM. AGAIN, THE MECHANIC COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THEY TOLD ME IF I BRING THE CAR BACK AGAIN, I WILL BE CHARGED $87 PER HOUR, EVEN THOUGH IT IS UNDER WARRANTY. THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPAGE HAS BEEN OCCURRING ABOUT 3-5 TIMES A WEEK. NEVER WHEN I AM AT THE HONDA DEALER. THEY TOLD ME THEY CAN ONLY DO SOMETHING IF THEY CAN SEE WHAT IS HAPPENING AND TOLD ME TO BRING IT BACK WHEN IT IS HAPPENING CONSISTENTLY. *TR
MY 2005 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID STARTED TO EXHIBIT TRANSMISSION JUDDER WHEN I WOULD ACCELERATE FROM A STOP AND SLIPPAGE WHENEVER I ACCELERATED WHILE MOVING WITH APPROXIMATELY 65,000 ON THE ODOMETER (MY CAR WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY AT THIS TIME). I TOOK IT INTO THE DEALER I BOUGHT THE CAR FROM AND THEY CHANGED THE TRANSMISSION FLUID AND PERFORMED NO ADDITIONAL WORK TO THE TRANSMISSION. I STARTED TO HAVE THE SAME ISSUES AT 90,000 MILES AND DID NOT HAVE TIME TO TAKE THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER BUT MADE THEM AWARE OF MY CAR'S PROBLEM. MY WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED SINCE THEN BUT I HAVE LEARNED THERE IS A SERVICE BULLETIN ISSUED FOR MY MODEL AND YEAR CAR. HONDA OFFERED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY FOR THIS PROBLEM UP TO 105,000 MILES. PROBLEM IS THAT I NOW HAVE 114,000 MILES ON MY CAR AND THEY WILL NOT FIX IT. I FEEL THE PROBLEM SHOULD HAVE BEEN CORRECTED WHEN IT FIRST STARTED EXHIBITING SIGNS OF TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS AT 65,000 MILES. THE DEALER HAS TOLD ME THEY CAN CHANGE THE TRANSMISSION FLUID BUT THEY SAID THE PROBLEM IS LIKELY TO OCCUR AGAIN. I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH A CAR COMPANY THAT KNOWS THEIR PRODUCT IS DEFECTIVE AND HAS EVEN ISSUED A SERVICE BULLETIN ADDRESSING THIS PROBLEM BUT WILL NOT FIX MY CAR, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT STARTED HAVING PROBLEMS AND WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY AT 65,000 MILES. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED. THE CONTACT COASTED THE VEHICLE TO THE SHOULDER. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER AND REMAINS THERE TO DATE. THE DEALER STATED THAT DUE TO THE MILEAGE THEY WOULD NOT COVER THE COST OF THE REPAIR. THE CONTACT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COST OF THE NEW TRANSMISSION. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 48,000. UPDATED 06/02/08 *BF THE CONSUMER STATED THE MANUFACTURER REFUSED TO TAKE ANY RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT AND EVEN THOUGH EDMUNDS.COM HAD A RUNNING BLOG APPARENTLY SIMILAR TRANSMISSION FAILURES. UPDATED 06/02/08 *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. THE VEHICLE HAS A SPECIAL TRANSMISSION, WHICH DOES NOT SHIFT INTO GEAR. WHEN THE CONTACT DEPRESSED THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL, THE RPM'S INCREASED TO 5,200. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A LACK OF HORSE POWER AND DECELERATED. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE SHIFTER WAS DESIGNED TO WORK IN THIS MANNER AND THERE WAS NO REMEDY. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 46,000.
Showing 1–20 of 32 complaints
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026