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CarsLore / Honda / Civic / 1989

1989 Honda Civic

69 owner complaints — #37 of 46 Civic model years. 1 recall, 4 service bulletins.

69complaints · 15 crashes, 2 fires
1recalls
4manufacturer bulletins
100,000 mimedian mileage at failure

Problems owners report

Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 1989 Honda Civic, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.

  • Seat belts18
  • Electrical system11
  • Vehicle speed control9
  • Engine and engine cooling8
  • Fuel system, gasoline7
  • Seats4
  • Latches/locks/linkages4
  • Suspension3
  • Service brakes, hydraulic3
  • Tires3

NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 18 injuries and 2 deaths reported

Compared with other years

’81’84’87’89’90’93’96’99’02’05’08’11’14’17’20’23’2669’81’84’87’89’90’93’96’99’02’05’08’11’14’17’20’23’2669
19861987198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023202420252026

NHTSA ODI complaints by model year

Fatal crashes in the US

From 2020 to 2023, 8 1989 Civic vehicles were involved in crashes on US public roads in which someone died; 9 people died inside them, and 2 of the vehicles rolled over. This is a count, not a crash rate: it grows with the number of cars on the road.

NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), crash years 2020–2023 (public domain)

New York safety inspections

At its first New York inspection the 1989 Honda Civic failed the safety check 0.70% of the time — 13% less often than the average 1989 passenger car (0.81%). Median odometer at inspection: 144,912 miles.

427first inspections
0.70%failed on safety
144,912 mimedian odometer
0.0%1.0%2.1%’86’88’89’90’92’94’96’98’00’02’04’06’08’10’12’14’16’18’20’22’24’260.7%0.0%1.0%2.1%’86’89’92’95’98’01’04’07’10’13’16’19’22’25’260.7%

NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count

Engines

The most common engines in 1989 Honda Civic cars on Dutch roads are the 1.6 petrol (91 kW, 122 hp), 1.5 petrol (66 kW, 89 hp) and 1.3 petrol (55 kW, 74 hp).

EnginePowerCarsShare
1.6 petrol91 kW 122 hp6244%
1.5 petrol66 kW 89 hp5740%
1.3 petrol55 kW 74 hp2316%

RDW Open Data (CC0): registered passenger cars and their fuel data · engine size rounded to 0.1 litre, net maximum power · versions with at least 20 cars

In the Netherlands

203 first registered in 1989 are on Dutch roads; 39% arrived later as imports.

21.7%had an APK defect recorded since June 2022
84.6%logical odometer history
0.0%with a recall still open

Most common APK defects

Colours

Red 33%Grey 25%White 16%Black 14%Blue 6%Green 2%

RDW Open Data: registered vehicles and APK defects (CC0) · defect descriptions in the RDW's Dutch wording

In the United Kingdom

65 cars built in 1989 were licensed for the road at the end of 2025, and 298 more were declared off the road (SORN).

65licensed, end of 2025
18%of those still registered are on the road

Department for Transport and DVLA, vehicle licensing statistics (table VEH0124, year of manufacture) · Open Government Licence v3.0

In Finland

38 of these cars first registered in 1989 were in use in Finland on 30 Jun 2026, with an average of 259,000 km on the odometer at their last inspection.

Traficom (Finnish Transport and Communications Agency), open data on vehicles in use · CC BY 4.0

In New Zealand

191 1989 cars are on the New Zealand register; 54% arrived as used imports, 44% were sold new in New Zealand.

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, Motor Vehicle Register (March 2026) · CC BY 4.0

Recalls in Canada

1 Transport Canada recall for the 1989 Honda Civic.

1995086
24 May 1995		Seats And Restraints
On certain vehicles, the platic front seatbelt release buttons may break allowing plastic pieces to fall into the buckle assembly. If this should happen, a no …

Transport Canada Vehicle Recalls Database · Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada

Recalls

95V103001 · Seat belts24 May 1995 · 3,700,000 vehicles

THE FRONT SAFETY BELT BUCKLE RELEASE BUTTONS CAN BREAK. THESE RED PLASTIC RELEASE BUTTONS ARE MARKED "PRESS." IF A BUTTON BREAKS, PIECES CAN FALL INTO THE BUCKLE ASSEMBLY CAUSING THE BUCKLE TO OPERATE IMPROPERLY.

Whether a recall was fixed on a particular car is known only to the manufacturer: check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA recalls · summaries in NHTSA's own words

Service bulletins

What Honda told its dealers about the 1989 Honda Civic: known faults, fixes and updates.

BulletinSummary
629065CONCERNS WITH A CLUNK OR SQUEAK FROM THE REAR SUSPENSION WHEN GOING OVER ROUGH OR BUMPY ROADS. *TT
610611EXPERIENCING A CLUNK FROM THE REAR SUSPENSION WHEN GOING OVER ROUGH OR BUMPY ROADS. *TT
54041PROBLEMS WITH HEAD GASKET LEAKS. *YC
44013UNKNOWN

NHTSA manufacturer communications (public domain)

NHTSA investigations

EA94035 · Seat belts:front:buckle assemblyopened 27 Oct 1994 · closed 31 Jul 1995

SEAT BELT BUCKLE FAILURE

PE94052 · Seat belts:front:buckle assemblyopened 11 Jul 1994 · closed 27 Oct 1994

SEAT BELT BUCKLE FAILS

PE93082 · Electrical systemopened 23 Sept 1993 · closed 31 Jan 1994

STALLING

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation