Automatic Emergency Braking Problems of Honda Civic - part 1

I was driving my 2026 Honda Civic in the early morning hours before sunrise traveling the speed limit of 75 mph on a rural highway in north texas. Out of nowhere, my vehicle activated the collision mitigation system bringing me to a complete stop in the middle of the highway. I verified that no hazards were present and the system activated on its own. Thankfully no other vehicles were around which could have negatively impacted them.

Phantom braking when there is no cars or anything on the road. The car would immediately brake out no where. It could cause an accident randomly braking when using cruise control.

See all problems of the 2023 Honda Civic 🔎.

I am reporting repeated electronic safety system malfunctions in my 2023 Honda Civic sport sedan that occurred while driving at highway speeds and present a serious safety concern. In June 2025, while driving at highway speed, multiple warning lights and messages suddenly appeared, including: brake system warning, road departure mitigation system warning, parking brake/brake hold warning, and adaptive cruise control warning. These warnings appeared simultaneously without prior notice, raising concern about whether the braking and safety systems were functioning properly while the vehicle was in motion. I took the vehicle to a Honda dealership for diagnosis. The dealer did not identify a specific electronic or mechanical defect and instead claimed the issue was caused by liquid spilled near the electronic parking brake switch. I was told the repair was not covered under warranty and paid approximately $600 out of pocket. No evidence was provided explaining how this would cause failures across multiple safety systems. In January 2026, the same group of warning lights appeared again under similar conditions while driving at highway speed. This recurrence strongly suggests the issue was not caused by driver error but may be related to an intermittent electronic, sensor, or control system defect. I have a scheduled dealer appointment tomorrow to address this second occurrence of electronic malfunctioning. Because these warnings involve critical braking and collision mitigation systems and occurred while the vehicle was in motion, they present a potential safety risk. I am submitting this complaint so NHTSA can document and evaluate whether this represents a broader safety defect.

My Honda will randomly beep and slam the brakes but there is nothing in front of me, it has done this multiple times and getting to the point I’m scared it will cause an accident. When it happened the first time I thought maybe it was because it was slightly raining, but it will do it regardless of the weather conditions. It has happened probably 5+ times, and it’s starting to become more frequent.

See all problems of the 2024 Honda Civic 🔎.

While driving on rt. 119 through uniontown PA, I was going 60-65 mph on a four lane road passing a cat on the right. I was about 3/4 of the way passing the car when three emergency braking kicked in and applied full braking. The road was straight, there was no vehicle or other obstruction in the road. This happened at approximately 3:30 p. M on 11/14/2025 with overcast sky and dry conditions. This caused the full sized tractor trailer behind me to lock up his brakes to attempt to not hit me. The only thing I can think of that kept me from getting hit, was I was able to hit the gas pedal.

See all problems of the 2025 Honda Civic 🔎.

Nov 9th, 3:00pm, fruitridge rd 35 mph, driving with foot on the gas the safety brake feature overrode my ability to drive by forcefully coming to a complete stop while flashing 'brake' messege appeared on dashboard. No car, item or person was in front of me. The car behind me (who was also going around 35 mph) almost hit me and drove off angrily.

See all problems of the 2021 Honda Civic 🔎.

Driving about 40 mph on a rural road, coming up to a curve in the road (or already in the curve when suddenly the 2025 Honda Civic hybrid sedan sport touring beeped fast and then immediately braked hard. There was no car in front of me but there was a car coming towards me in the opposite direction. There was no fog or rain, it was daytime. Believe the cmbs caused this. If a car would have been close behind me, I may have been rear ended. Also, if this happened on snow or ice, would have lost control. Did not take it to the dealer as others have stated, they could not find the problem. I believe the dash showed “ brake” just as it happened but nothing before.

Brakes I wasn't able to stop when I got to the intersection. My emergency brake system never turned on and stop me from hitting the rear of the ambulance. I had called my sales man that I buy my cars from about a week after buying the car and advised him that something popped up on my dash and he adviced me to take the car back to the dealer to have it checked out so I did and they said there was nothing wrong with it. So I left and about 2 or 3 weeks later it came back on and before I could take it back to dealer I had the accident. Also what popped up on my dash was that my view was being obscured but it was day light perfectly clear. I do have a picture of what popped up on my phone.

I’ve only had this car for 2. 5 weeks. Today on my way to work (the same roads I take everyday) I had the automatic breaking system pop on with a “brake” light pop up and the vehicle was braking on its own, with no other vehicles to the front or side of me. Semi sunny day, camera clear of dirt etc. My safety was put at risk, because the car behind me had to slam on their brakes after my car slammed on the brakes for no reason. They honked. Came close to rear ending me. It hasn’t happened again for me to show the dealer. However I have been looking online and this seems to be a very known issue with Honda. I hope it doesn’t continue to happen. This is very dangerous for me and my family as well as anyone else on the road ways. A extreme safety hazard. Now I’m more worried about my new car purchase instead of being excited.

On July 1 and July 27 when I started the vehicle a warning came on saying collision mitigation braking issue. See your dealer. It is available for inspection upon request. Will call dealer tomorrow. Not inspected yet. Will call dealership tomorrow. By info we are reading, there is no solution to this. Huge concern. Huge safety issue.

See all problems of the 2022 Honda Civic 🔎.

Phantom braking. Really dangerous.

See all problems of the 2020 Honda Civic 🔎.

I was driving today and for no reason at all the cars anti collision system automatically braked hard and could have caused an accident if someone was driving behind me. There was no one, objects or vehicles around my car at the time that would cause it to happen.

See all problems of the 2018 Honda Civic 🔎.

My automatic breaks that prevents me from rear ending a car keeps engaging when I am a few car lengths from another vehicle. It’s happened once yesterday and once today. Both times in heavy traffic areas. I’ve had the car for two years and this is the first time this has happened. Thankfully no one was following close behind because they may have hit me. I’m afraid this is going to happen one day when someone is too close and I’m going to get rear ended. It’s really scary and dangerous. I’m scared to drive my car.

Very frequently, the brake alert system comes on while on the highway causing my vehicle to engage the braking system. This happens whether or not there is a vehicle in front of me.

I was in a situation where I needed to accelerate rapidly to avoid a crash. However, the car refused to accelerate, and “low speed breaking control” flashed on the dashboard. Thankfully, whatever triggered that soon stopped, and I was able to continue forward just before a collision. I don’t know what caused “low speed breaking control” to stop the vehicle in the middle of a busy street. I have attempted to disable “low speed breaking control” on this vehicle, but the vehicle doesn't allow me to disable it. I expect that the vehicle will someday cause a collision because it will once again decide that it needs to apply “low speed, breaking control“ when that would put me in danger.

Was traveling ~60mph on a 3 lane section of interstate highway when vehicle in front of me abrutly decreased speed. I braked until my vehicles matched that speed. As I raised my foot from the brake pedal (I had matched the speed of the vehicle in front of me and had an acceptable amount of seperation given the flow of traffic), the brake pedal fell away from my and to the floor and I felt abs engage. This nearly resulted in my vehicle being rear ended by the car following me. I have driven with the emergency braking system active since the incident (as it is by default after every vehicle power cycle) and have not encountered this behavior again. This had not previously occured in the ~20,000 miles of usage prior to the incident. Since no damage occured during the incident, the vehicle has not been inspected by anyone besides myself.

Sometimes wheni go to brake the brake pedal goes all the way up and I can’t press it down to stop the vehicle. This only lasts a few seconds then the brakes return to normal. I believe this may be due to a previous recall. “a common brake issue reported with the 2019 Honda Civic is a potential problem with the brake system due to a faulty tie rod fastener connecting the brake master cylinder and brake booster, which could result in improper braking and is currently subject to a recall by Honda” not sure why my vehicle is showing 0 recalls under the VIN.

See all problems of the 2019 Honda Civic 🔎.

Hello. My 2024 Civic sport had an automatic brake system that failed to operate correctly. As a result of being blinded by the sun that brake system could have potentially prevented the accident in question. Instead, the system did not deploy and the car ended up totaled with both air bags deployed after just a 20 mph fender bender. If the intended systems worked as they were designed, the accident wouldn’t have happened in the first place.

As you are driving the the car will just say (brake) on the dash and will quickly apply the brakes when going slow and it's happened at speeds around 65 mph. With the cruise control on. Took car into Honda dealership no issues they said.

Went to start my car one night after it had been perfectly fine throughout the day when 5 warning lights came on, lane keeping assist system, collision mitigation braking system, road departure mitigation system. Auto high beam problem and adaptive cruise control system problem. I immediately went online to see how I could possibly fix the problem and found numerous message boards with people with fairly new low mileage Hondas complaining about the same issue and stating either various completely different solutions or no luck finding a solution. Other than those warning lights everything else on the car is functioning right and the battery is still in good shape.

On multiple occasions my car has applied the brake while driving on the highway as well as my caliper has become frozen and I have replaced brakes 3 times in less than one calendar year. I have all old brakes that have needed to be replaced and there is uneven wear on them.

The vehicle’s emergency braking system randomly applies the brakes even when the front is not obstructed. Front sensors are kept clear of any debris, dirt, or bugs. I went to Honda of el cajon in el cajon, CA and they could not help me even though the service advisor admitted that another Honda cr-v driver had the same problem the same day. This is a safety concern as my car has applied he brakes while on the freeway and at stop signs at random. Honda has failed to acknowledge the issue.

I rear ended a vehicle and my brakes did not respond nor the emergency system activate I gave a dash cam on the incident and no one has inspected the car for that failure.

Unusual behavior with the "driver assistance system", specifically cmbs (collision mitigation braking system) and rdms (road departure mitigation system) warning messages appear too frequently. The first time this error appeared was when driving home from the lot after purchasing the vehicle (bought at 56 miles). After the first appearance I've seen this error appear ~60% of the time when driving or idle (these errors stay on then disappear within ~3 seconds of it appearing). My vehicle was inspected by the purchase dealer's service personnel, but they claim that there is no error logs recorded on the car's s and they could not replicate the error. At their direction I have since brought back the vehicle to monitor for the errors again so I can bring it back to the dealer for them to try to replicate this error again. . . I am aware of the cmbs issue with Honda vehicles up to 2022. I am very sad and surprised that the 2025 vehicles also have this issue. I have not yet randomly braked on the freeway (thank god) but I am fearful that my vehicle is next because Honda says they cannot find an issue currently. After noticing the frequent appearance of the warnings, I began documenting the warnings to the best of my ability with photos. To be safe I am unable to document the photo while driving so I am only able to take the pictures on the occasion when I am in the passenger seat when my wife is driving. I have attached two instances of when these errors pop up, one instance at 192 miles parked, and one instance later driving at 35 mph at 196 miles. Unfortunately, due to my misplaced faith in Honda, I was unable to document the previous warnings, but I will try my best to safely document all future ones. Please NHTSA, investigate further into this and pressure Honda to fix these vehicles. There will be more accidents and deaths if they are not held accountable. I am stuck with the vehicle, unable to purchase another one. I hope we Honda owners will be safe.

I have had dozens of incidents where I will be driving down the road and my car will just break for no apparent reason. It is totally random and at times terrifying. It happens with no other vehicles in front of my vehicle as well as while I am just driving in traffic with cars behind me. Many times, after it happens initially, I cannot accelerate the car due to the breaks locking up. I have to put the car in park and then drive to accelerate. I have asked my service providers at Honda the dealership about this, and they have no idea why this is happening. This is so dangerous and frightening.

8/31/2024 the power steering column locked up while driving down hwy 85n causing an incident that caused the car to become a total loss. A police report was generated where ii stated the power steering column locked which caused the incident, I informed my insurance company immediately and throughout the dealings with my insurance company and Honda collision center I kept stating the steering column locking as the issue. I even reached out to Honda automobile customer spoke to danielle and casey at 1-888-234-2138 on 10/4/2024 at 3:36 pm in which I was advised of the recall inspect eps part 23089. Honda collision center advisor drove the car around the parking lot and made an assumption it was not the power steering column. I have since 8/31/2024 have been looking for an attorney to sue Honda and now I have the recall letter sent by Honda I hopefully will be able to retain one.

There is a warning flash to brake when there is no vehicle or anything in front or alongside. This has happened several times. I am concerned if vehicle is safe to drive.

The contact owns a 2021 Honda Civic. The contact stated while driving on several occasions at approximately 70 mph, and changing lanes, the forward collision avoidance automatic emergency braking system inadvertently activated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000.

The vehicle brake suddenly and has light appear when parked and or not driven. Car shut off once on the freeway already and yesterday the whole car would not run . It has been in and out service about ten times and they can’t find an issue this is calling emotional distress, the breaking with kids in the car almost causing an accident three times with this vehicle. Currently under lemon but Honda is not taking this seriously ! I have multiple repair notes and also video.

[xxx] VIN has the same issue for transmission failure as for the recall notice issued for all the Honda Honda has issued recalls for certain Honda Civic models with continuously variable transmissions (cvt) due to software issues that may affect the transmission's performance and durability. For example, in 2015, Honda recalled the 2014–2015 Honda Civic and 2015 fit due to an issue with the cvt control software. In some cvt operation modes, the software was programmed to use high hydraulic pressure, which could put a lot of stress on the drive pulley shaft. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

See all problems of the 2015 Honda Civic 🔎.

I have had a few incidents where I am driving and the brake signal starts flashing/dinging when I am nowhere near another car. In one instance; the car automatically braked in the middle of the highway with no car in front of me. This could have caused a major accident if I did not react quickly. In addition, I could have gotten major whiplash as I was driving over 40 mph. I am also having issues with the auto lock feature on the car. Sometimes when I am driving the car will try to lock the doors even though the doors are already locked. It will continuously lock, the only way this issue has stopped is by turning off my auto lock function. I liked have the auto lock function on because it made me feel safe. There have been no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms prior to these incidences happening. I have not taken my car to the dealer or independent service center due to the cost of high cost the issue. I am open to someone coming to inspect the car as long as it is free of charge.

Failure in all advanced driver systems at 7500 miles.

Braking system warnings and possibility of brake failure warning. Dealership thought it was sensor issue and replaced sensors but it happened again and I’m also experiencing a phenomenon referred to as “phantom braking” as my car will stop as if an object is directly in front of me while I’m driving, which has happened a few times on the interstate now and I’m afraid to drive. This is a serious safety risk for all involved.

The carr some times breaks self and the gasoline not passing through the engine.

Gas door opens randomly and it’s happened more than a few times now which is becoming a safety hazard especially because I drive 80 miles daily for work. Also my automatic brake senor is a hazard because it’s going off when cars or objects are farther away; which leads to the 3rd issue with my seat belts which is either to tight on the chest area and possibly choking me when the car automatically brakes when objects aren’t near or in close distance to my car.