U.S. public vehicle records

2004 Honda CIVIC HYBRID problems and owner complaints

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

35 owner complaints analyzed

6 distinct recall campaigns

123,000 mi median reported failure mileage

Scope: 2004 model year. Data snapshot: 2026-09-12 (September 12, 2026). 31 complaints include usable failure mileage.

Owner-reported patterns

Most common problems

Power Train is the most frequently named component, appearing in 18 of 35 complaints (51.4%). A complaint can name multiple components.

Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic	Matching reports	Share of complaints
Transmission and shifting	17	48.6%
Electrical and battery issues	7	20.0%
Braking behavior	2	5.7%
Engine operation	1	2.9%

Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.

Component breakdown

Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.

Power Train

Air Bags

Engine

Fuel/Propulsion System

Vehicle Speed Control

Electrical System

Engine And Engine Cooling

Fuel System, Other

Power Train: 18; Air Bags: 9; Engine: 8; Fuel/Propulsion System: 6; Vehicle Speed Control: 4; Electrical System: 3; Engine And Engine Cooling: 1; Fuel System, Other: 1

Reported problems by failure mileage

Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.

Under 25,000

25,000 to 49,999

50,000 to 74,999

75,000 to 99,999

100,000 to 149,999

150,000 and above

Under 25,000: 1; 25,000 to 49,999: 2; 50,000 to 74,999: 2; 75,000 to 99,999: 8; 100,000 to 149,999: 13; 150,000 and above: 5

100,000 to 149,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (13). 4 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.

Complaints over time

Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2012: 5; 2013: 4; 2014: 8; 2015: 6; 2016: 4; 2017: 5; 2018: 3

Pattern summary

Power Train leads the component reports. Transmission and shifting appears in 17 complaint narratives. Electrical and battery issues appears in 7 complaint narratives. Braking behavior appears in 2 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.

Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.

Complaint evidence

Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.

Owner report 10472472 · 2012-08-25 (August 25, 2012)

FROM MY DRIVEWAY, I SHIFTED FROM PARK INTO DRIVE, AND HEARD A LOUD WHIRRING SIMILAR TO A METAL BELT FALLING APART. IT HAS CONTINUED TO GET WORSE OF THE YEAR, AND ONLY SHOWS UP WHEN IN DRIVE AND NOW A BIT IN REVERSE. IT IS NOT PRESENT IN PARK OR NEUTRAL. THE DEALER REPLACED THE CLUTCH BRAKE, BUT I STILL HAVE THE SOUND. I ALSO HAVE MINOR SLIPPAGE, AND I HAVE READ SEVERAL OTHERS HAVING THE SAME COMPLAINT ABOUT THEIR SAME MODEL WITH REPLACING THE TRANSMISSION. WHEN I WAS SOLD THIS CAR, A FIRST GENERATION HYBRID, I WAS TOLD IT WOULD LAST 200K MILES…

Owner-reported narrative. 92,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10472472 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10474590 · 2012-09-10 (September 10, 2012)

MY VEHICLE WHEN STARTING FROM A DEAD STOP SHUDDERS FOR JITTERS WHEN YOU GO. THIS SEEMS TO SLOWLY BE GETTING WORSE. I HAVE CHANGED TRANSMISSION FLUID ON REGULAR INTERVALS WITH HONDA CVT OEM TRANSMISSION FLUID. ALSO MY AIRBAG SENSOR LIGHT FOR THE DRIVERS SIDE IS CONSTANTLY ON. THIS HAS BEEN ON FOR SEVERAL YEARS. I HAVE JUST NEVER BOTHERED TO TAKE IT IN FOR FEAR THAT THERE WOULD BE A CHARGE TO FIX AN ITEM THAT I FEEL FOR SAFETY REASONS HONDA SHOULD TAKE CARE OF. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 96,500 miles reported. Look up ODI 10474590 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10464357 · 2012-07-05 (July 5, 2012)

IMA FOR ENGINE IS IN DEGRADED STATE. TOLD THE BATTERIES ARE FAILING AND NEED TO BE REPLACED. HOWEVER, CAR IS SUPPOSED TO BE UNDER WARRANTY UNTIL 80,000 MILES, NOW @85,428. PROBLEM WITH THE IMA BATTERIES IS A KNOWN PROBLEM, YET HONDA DOES NOTHING TO RESOLVE ISSUES WITH MULTIPLE IMA ISSUES. GOOGLE HONDA CIVIC HYBRID IMA BATTERY 2004. IF ONE LIVES IN CALIFORNIA, THE BATTERY WARRANTY GOES TO 150,000 MILES. THE HONDA INSIGHT AND HONDA HYBRID CIVIC'S IMA BATTERY SYSTEM IS SIMILAR, BUT WITH THE HONDA INSIGHT, 2002-04 INSIGHTS, BUT A RECALL FOR THE …

Owner-reported narrative. 79,347 miles reported. Look up ODI 10464357 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10596371 · 2014-06-05 (June 5, 2014)

3 YEAR OLD TRANSMISSION SYSTEM BEGAN TO FAIL AT 40,000 MILES. IT WAS SERVICED WITH SERVICE BULLETIN 07-049. IT DID NOT LAST AND EVERY YEAR THEREAFTER I HAD RECURRING PROBLEMS WITH THE TRANSMISSION. THE BATTERY BEGAN TO FAIL AND CAUSED INCREASING PROBLEMS FOR THE TRANSMISSION UNTIL THE BATTERY FAILED COMPLETELY AND THE TRANSMISSION THEN FAILED ALSO. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 40,681 miles reported. Look up ODI 10596371 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10663707 · 2014-12-11 (December 11, 2014)

ON 12/11/14, APPROXIMATELY 11:00 A.M., I STARTED MY 2004 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID AND ALLOWED IT TO WARM UP FOR A COUPLE MINUTES DUE TO COLD WEATHER (APPROXIMATELY 25 DEGREES F). I THEN DROVE THROUGH THE PARKING LOT, STOPPED AT THE STOP SIGN, TURNED RIGHT, ONTO THE HIGHWAY AND BEGAN TO ACCELERATE. THE ACCELERATION DID NOT FEEL NORMAL SO I RELEASED MY FOOT FROM THE ACCELERATOR AT ABOUT 20 TO 25 MILES PER HOUR HOWEVER THE ACCELERATOR STAYED IN PLACE AND WOULD NOT RELEASE. I HELD MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE TO TRY TO REDUCE SPEED HOWEVER THE ACCELERATOR CONTIN…

Owner-reported narrative. 139,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10663707 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10443507 · 2012-01-11 (January 11, 2012)

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS 2004 HONDA CIVIC HYBRID. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL ABNORMALLY WHEN ACCELERATING FROM FIRST TO SECOND GEAR. THE CONTACT DID NOT TAKE THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER FOR A DIAGNOSTIC TEST OR REPAIRS. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 160,000.

Owner-reported narrative. 160,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10443507 at NHTSA ↗