US Investigating Steering Rack Issue in Honda Civic 11th Gen

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By now, we all know what an automotive recall is. Every car company recalls their cars occasionally for any issues that need a fix. This means that at the time of production, any part of the car could not be built up to the standards and give issues to the end users. Today, we are going to discuss steering rack issue in Honda Civic 11th generation

Sometimes recalls are associated with the electronic module, which needs a software update. Some recalls are minor and do not pose any danger to the car owners immediately, but some truly need immediate action, like in the case of the famous Takata Airbag recall.

In Europe or North America, Federal agencies regulate vehicle safety, and crash testing and keep track of customer feedback about vehicles. In the United States, the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration), part of the Department of Transportation, is responsible for new car assessment programs for safety, developing and enforcing rules and regulations set by federal Motor Vehicle Safety standards as FMVSS.

Federal agency not only works in close connection with car companies but also with consumers. NHTSA, on their website, not only share official details on the crash testing for the vehicle but also allow consumers to share any problems they are facing with the model. Sometimes car companies themselves generate recalls via a federal agency if they find any issue, while sometimes, the federal agency can start an investigation if the majority of consumers report a particular problem.

If the investigation results in an issue, NHTSA not only enforces recall but also collects data if that specific problem resulted in any crash, injuries, or fatalities.

11th Gen Honda Civic & 145 Complaints:

The 11th generation was launched in North America back in April 2021. The model received a 5-star crash test rating from NHTSA while Top Safety Pick + Rating from an independent agency IIHS. The 11th gen model also won the prestigious North American Car of the year award for 2022.

For the last several months, many 11th gen Civic owners in the United States and Canada have started reporting issues with the steering system on social media groups and online forums. Owners also started recording the issue to the federal agency NHTSA via an online reporting system.

Meanwhile, owners also shared that they have been individually contacting their dealerships, and, in some cases, the entire steering rack was replaced to fix the problem. As of March 17th, 145 reports were recorded with NHTSA for a similar steering issue. You can read all 145 complaints here on NHTSA Complaints.

After carefully reviewing all the field reports, NHTSA has opened a Federal investigation into the problem via ODI/ Office of Defects Investigation. Honda America will be supporting the investigation and will be providing all the details related to steering system replacement at their dealerships under warranty and details of all the complaints they have received from customers for a similar issue.

Remember that car dealerships record and document every customer complaint on their system by law when any customer visits the dealership or even if someone calls for a problem. Suppose the NHTSA investigation results in any manufacturing defect or issue with the steering rack. In that case, Honda USA will recall all vehicles regardless of whether a certain car faced any problem.

This means that approximately 238,271 Honda Civics in the USA [ model years 22 and 23 ] are under a cloud of recall for EPS. This number can increase because defective parts might still be there, and those vehicles will go into consumers’ hands until the recall is initiated. NHTSA has not issued a STOP SALE notice and is currently in the investigation stage. Read the document here > NHTSA Investigation.

What Is The Issue With EPS?

As per customers, they are experiencing a “STICKY STEERING,” means an abnormal behavior of electric power steering and the driver feeling a certain level of resistance from steering, making it heavier and harder to maneuver. This means the driver must put extra force into making steering corrections.

It is important to note that this problem is reported to be experienced at highway speeds and even with the Lane Assist safety feature turned off. Additionally, this happens randomly and without any indication of EPS light in the instrument cluster. The sticky steering issue happens randomly and remains momentary and experienced after driving a certain time on the highway.

As per NHTSA, this can be a hazardous safety situation, especially if the driver has to avoid an abrupt road hazard and if the driver makes an overcorrection by applying more than the required steering input when the steering is sticky.

Pakistan Domestic Model Complaints?

The steering issue is not new for Honda Civic owners in Pakistan, and many people experienced it in the 10th generation Civic. Many Civic owners have replaced their steering racks under warranty and in some cases, twice. Besides, many individuals replaced it at their own cost because the vehicle was out of warranty.

Now, it should be noted that many 11th-generation Civic owners in Pakistan are facing the issue of steering similar to what consumers are experiencing in North America. PakWheels Editorial reported the steering issue back in November 2022 when some owners reached out for help.

Some owners already replaced the steering rack of the 11th generation Civic in Pakistan under warranty from Atlas (images of one such steering rack shared below, credit Salman Zahid). However, many individuals are waiting for the steering racks because Honda Atlas don’t have parts in their inventory due to strict import restriction by the government.

The government of Pakistan should clear spare parts because it hurts current product consumers, especially if those parts need immediate replacement due to safety hazards.

What Should Honda Atlas Do?

Honda Atlas must also entertain warranty coverage of this issue even if the vehicle is out of warranty timeline by duration or odometer reading as long as there is no external impact or other damage to the steering rack. The compa must extend the warranty of the steering rack because this part is defective from the factory and is currently being investigated already overseas.

Honda has acknowledged the problem in the United States. A consumer should not pay for a problematic part from the factory. I would also like to report that many owners have also reported a similar issue in Thailand, and Philippines, and Malaysia, and the steering system has been replaced there; as well, reconfirm that the issue is either with the manufacturing at the supplier or the part design and working principle itself. So, this problem is global, and Pakistan is also impacted and obviously for the reason that we import parts.

Lastly, it is highly recommended that if you are facing this issue in your vehicle, please report it to the dealer and make a record of it even if you faced it only once. You must be very careful while driving on highways and avoid making any abrupt steering maneuvers because you never know your steering is sticky at that time.

Any over-correction might result in loss of control and cars flipping over. Currently, there are no global data of any accidents due to this steering issue, but don’t become part of statistics. If you are a Civic XI owner facing or have faced this issue, please share in the comments.

 

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1 Comment
  1. Khurram says

    A very thorough and well supported article.

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