2004 Honda Civic Fuel System Problems

TAKATA RECALL: TOP OF FUEL PUMP UNDER BACK SEAT CRACKED ON TOP WITH NO OTHER VISIBLE DAMAGE CAUSING FUEL TO SPRAY IN TO THE COMPARTMENT UNDER THE SEAT RESULTING IN STRONG FUEL FUMES AND GAS LEAKING UNDER THE CAR AROUND THE EXHAUST SYSTEM WHICH CAN RESULT IN A FIRE OR HEALTH ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH GAS FUMES.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 HONDA CIVIC. WHILE AT A FUEL STATION, THE VEHICLE WAS LEAKING FUEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FUEL TANK WAS FRACTURED AND NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 130,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 HONDA CIVIC. THE CONTACT NOTICED A FUEL ODOR INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A PRIVATE MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THE FUEL PUMP WAS FRACTURED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED AND THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 160,000.

I HAVE A 2004 HONDA CIVIC SEDAN I TOOK MY CAR TO SCOTT ROBINSON HONDA IN TORRANCE CALIFORNIA FOR A SMOG CHECK WITHOUT ANY MECHANICAL PROBLEMS MY CAR PASSED THE SMOG CHECK WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. I LEFT THE FACILITY ONE DAY LATER MY CAR HAD THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON. WENT BACK TO THE DEALER AND THEY CAME UP WITH A CODE THAT THEY SAID IT NEEDED A NEW CATALYTIC CONVERTER . I BECAME SKEPTICAL ABOUT THIS RECOMMENDATION SO I STARTED LOOKING THROUGH THE OWNER'S MANUAL AND READ THAT AN ENGINE LIGHT ON COULD BE POSSIBLY A LOOSE GAS CAP. SO I DECIDED TO BUY A NEW ORIGINAL FUEL CAP I WENT TO THE DEALERS PARTS DEPARTMENT AND PURCHASED A NEW FUEL PRESSURE CAP I NOTICED THAT THE REPLACEMENT CAP DID NOT LOOK LIKE THE ORIGINAL BUT THE PART DEPARTMENT PERSON SAID THAT IT WOULD WORK JUST FINE I THEN REPLACED THE ORIGINAL FUEL PRESSURE CAP. AFTER A FEW DAYS THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNED OFF UNTIL A FEW DAYS LATER THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON THEN I CHECK THE FUEL PRESSURE CAP AND IT IS LOOSE I TIGHTEN IT AND IN ANOTHER DAY THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT IS OFF. AND IT KEEPS DOING THIS UNTIL NOW SOMETIMES ON SOMETIMES OFF I ALSO SEE THAT MY FUEL LEVEL GAUGE ERRATIC IT HAS BEEN LIKE THIS SINCE I BOUGHT MY CAR BUT I JUST DID NOT THINK THAT THIS COULD BE A PROBLEM I HOPE THAT SOMETHING GETS DONE ABOUT THIS THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP. *TR

FIRST INCIDENT WAS WHEN MY GAS GAGE MARKED 1/2 FULL, DROVE TO WORK APPROXIMATELY 10 MILES AND THE GAGE SHOWED EMPTY AND THE GAS LIGHT CAME ON. I KNEW I DIDN'T USE THAT MUCH GAS. THE SAME DAY, THE GAGE SHOWED BACK AT 1/2 FULL. SEVERAL INCIDENTS FOLLOWED WHERE I WOULD FILL MY GAS TANK AND THE GAGE WOULD NOT MOVE UNTIL LATER THAT DAY TO SHOW THAT I WOULD PUT GAS IN MY CAR. I WOULD INFORM THE PEOPLE AT THE HONDA DEALERSHIP WHERE I GET ALL MY WORK DONE BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE TIME THAT WAS ANNOTATED ON MY RECORDS THAT THEY CHECKED THIS AT 15,000 MILES. I HAVE A COUPLE OF FRIENDS, HUSBAND AND FAMILY MEMBERS THAT KNOW ABOUT THIS HAPPENING TO MY CAR BECAUSE I ALWAYS MENTIONED THIS TO THEM AND HOW THE DEALERSHIP NEVER FOUND NOTHING WRONG WITH MY CAR. IT WAS VERY FRUSTRATING AND I WOULD NEVER HAVE MY CAR BELOW 1/2 A TANK BECAUSE I NEVER KNEW IF IT WAS MARKING RIGHT OR NOT. THE LAST TIME I TOOK IT TO THE HONDA DEALER TO CHECK IT OUT BECAUSE IT WAS NOT WORKING CORRECTLY, THEY TOLD ME IT NEEDED A BATTERY, THEY DID NOT MENTION ANYTHING ABOUT A FUEL PUMP BEING WRONG OR BAD, SO I REPLACED THE BATTERY THAT COST ME $149.00. I HAVE ALL MY WORK DONE AT THE HONDA DEALER AND HAVE ALL THE MAINTENANCE DONE THERE AS WELL BECAUSE I FELT HONDA'S WERE RELIABLE CARS. I WAS GOING TO BUY ANOTHER HONDA CIVIC BUT AFTER THIS, I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER HONDA CAR AGAIN AND WILL INFORM THE PUBLIC ABOUT THIS INCIDENT SO THEY CAN BE AWARE OF THIS. PEOPLE THAT OWN HONDA'S MAY NOT BE AWARE OF THIS LITTLE INCIDENT AND MAY JUST IGNORE IT WHICH MAY COST THEM MONEY LATER ON. THINK OF THE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS HONDA CAN MAKE OFF OF THESE PEOPLE. I SEE SO MANY HONDAS OUT THERE. IF I HAD BEEN AWARE OF THIS, I WOULD MADE SURE MY RECORDS WERE PROPERLY ANNOTATED. BEING A FEMALE, SOMETIMES WE'RE TAKEN ADVANTAGED OF. I DO NOT FEEL I SHOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THE FUEL PUMP THAT NEEDS REPLACING SINCE I HAVE DONE ALL THE MAINTENANCE ON MY HONDA. *TR

I HAVE 2004 CIVIC AND I HAVE A PROBLEM THAT IS SIMILAR TO ONE ABOUT THE GAS TANK INDICATOR. IT STARTED AFTER MY 30K SERVICE AT THE LOCAL HONDA DEALERSHIP. BUT, I DID NOT COMPLAIN TO THEM, AS I REALLY DO NOT TRUST THESE PEOPLE. (THEY HAD QUOTED ME FOR A FULL SERVICE, AND THEN CALLED ME AT WORK TO SAY THEY HAD TO REPLACE THE CABIN FILTER, SO ADDED ANOTHER $80... TOTAL TO WELL OVER $500.) I KNEW IF I WENT IN WITH A PROBLEM THEY WOULD TAKE ME FOR A RIDE AGAIN. ANYWAY THE PROBLEM WENT AWAY AFTER I ADDED STP FUEL CLEANER A COUPLE OF TIMES INTO A FULL TANK. WALL MART HAS THESE FOR ABOUT $2.50 FOR THREE SMALL BOTTLES, EACH WORK A SINGLE CLEAN. I LOVE MY HONDA. NOTHING MUCH WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. IT IS JUST A GOOD NATURED CAR, OTHER THAN WHEN TRYING TO BREAK GENTLY AT VERY LOW SPEED, AS IT HAS A TENDENCY TO JUMP. AT LOW SPEEDS, I NOW GIVE MY SELF SPACE AND I BREAK WITH REGULAR PRESSURE. FIRST, ALL CARS WILL HAVE SOME PROBLEMS. NOTHING MECHANICAL CAN BE PERFECT. SO BE AWARE OF THIS WHEN SERVICING A CAR. SECONDLY, THE PROBLEM IS MAINLY WITH DEALERS. HONDA OUGHT TO CRACK DOWN ON THESE CROOKS BY HAVING SET RULES POSTED ON DOORS OF DEALERSHIPS OVER PRICING, WHAT OUGHT TO BE IN A SERVICE, WHEN THE REGULAR SERVICE IS, ETC. EVEN AFTER THE FUEL AFFAIR WAS DONE WITH, I NOW WATCH HOW MANY MILES I DRIVE AND FILL IT EVERY 250 MILES OR SO. THAT WAY IT CAN NEVER RUN OUT OF GAS. A FEW DAYS AGO I FILLED IT UP AFTER 246 MILES. IT ONLY NEEDED 6.5 GALLONS TO TOP IT UP! YES, THAT IS OVER 39 MPH ON THE HIGHWAY MOSTLY @ 65 MPH. WE AS CONSUMER SHOULD COMPLAIN. WE NEED HONDA TO BE MORE AGGRESSIVE WITH STANDARDS. IF HONEST PEOPLE SELL CARS FOR HONDA, THE IMAGE IS THAT MUCH BETTER. HONDA OUGHT TO WATCH OUT. I HAVE DRIVEN CARS FROM THE COMPETITION THAT IS BETTER AND BETTER. THEY ARE A MAJOR ENGINE AWAY FROM CATCHING UP, BUT IN THE AREA OF CUSTOMER SERVICE THEY ARE PASSING HONDA. *TR

NEEDED TO REPLACE FUEL DOOR CABLE. THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON OCCURRENCE. *TR

I STOPPED TO GET GAS AND I PUSHED THE LEVER TO ACCESS THE GAS CAP. WHEN I WENT OUTSIDE IT WAS NOT OPEN. I TRIED MULTIPLE TIMES TO PUSH THE LEVER BUT NOTHING WAS HAPPENING. I WENT TO A HONDA DEALERSHIP (DIFFERENT FROM WHERE I BOUGHT MY CAR) AND THE TECHNICIAN WAS ABLE TO OPEN IT BUT NOW I CAN'T CLOSE IT UNTIL I REPLACE THE CABLE. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM ON HONDA CIVICS. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THERE WOULD NOT BE A RECALL FOR THIS IF HONDA IS AWARE OF THIS ISSUE ARISING ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS. *TR

FIRST THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON. THEN THE CAR STARTED RUNNING POORLY LIKE IT WAS STARVING FOR GAS. THEN IT DIED. SEEMED LIKE THE FUEL PUMP WAS BAD. I HAD IT TOWED TO HONDA TO GET IT FIX. WHEN THE SERVICE LADY CALLED SHE TREATED ME LIKE A CHILD. SHE TOLD ME I WAS JUST LOW ON GAS LIKE I AM SOME KIND OF MORON. I EXPLAINED WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HER AND SHE JUST SHRUGGED ME OFF AND SAID THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG.($80.00) NEXT DAY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AGAIN AND HAD ANOTHER MECHANIC LOOK AT IT. CHECKED THE CODE AND REPLACED THE O2 SENSOR. (300.00) NEXT DAY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT LIGHTS AGAIN AND I TAKE IT BACK TO THE MECHANIC. FINALLY THEY LISTEN TO ME AND CHECK THE FUEL PUMP. FROM WHAT I LEARNED THERE IS A FAULTY PLASTIC CLIP ON THE FUEL PUMP THAT HOLDS THE PRESSURE REGULATOR TO THE PUMP. IT UNCLIPPED ITSELF AND THE CONNECTION SEPARATED. THE MECHANIC TALKED TO HONDA AND THE HONDA MAN SAID IT WAS A PRETTY COMMON OCCURRENCE LATELY. THE FIX, REPLACE THE FUEL PUMP. ($330.00) SO AFTER 710.00 AND AN 80.00 TOW THE CAR IS FINALLY FIXED. *JB

MY 04 HONDA CIVIC, FUEL DOOR LATCH WOULD NOT OPEN DUE TO THE LATCH NOT WORKING. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS HAPPENED. IT COST ME 160.00 TO FIX IT AND I BELIEVE ITS A DEFECT IN THE CAR. *JB

THE FUEL GAUGE GOES CRAZY FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM. ONE MINUTE YOU'RE DRIVING AND THE GAUGE SHOWS YOU HAVE A HALF TANK OF FUEL. A FEW MILES LATER YOUR FUEL LIGHT COMES ON AND IMPLIES YOUR OUT OF GAS. THEN WHEN YOU FILL-UP, THE CAR ONLY NEEDS A HALF TANK OF GAS. AS SOMEONE WHO DOES HIGHWAY DRIVING EVERYDAY, THIS CAN BE UNNERVING. SOMEONE ELSE WHO HAD THE PROBLEM SAID A DEALER SAID TO FIX THE GAS GAUGE WOULD BE COMPARABLE TO BRAIN SURGERY. TO GO INTO FIX IT WOULD PROBABLY CAUSE SOME OTHER PROBLEM. *NM

ON JULY 13, 2006 ON MY WAY HOME FROM A TRIP, I NEEDED TO REFILL MY GAS TANK. I PULLED THE FLOOR LEVER TO RELEASE THE FLAP THAT COVERS MY GAS CAP AND THE LEVER DID NOT WORK. THEREFORE, I WAS STRANDED 100 MILES FROM HOME BECAUSE IT WOULD NOT OPEN. THERE IS NO MANUAL RELEASE IN THE TRUNK. I HAD TO BE TOWED HOME AS THE AAA RESPONDER COULD NOT DETERMINE HOW TO DISENGAGE THE CABLE THEREBY RELEASING THE FLAP. MY CAR IS LESS THAN 2 YEARS OLD. WHEN I SPOKE TO THE HONDA MECHANIC HE IMPLIED THAT THIS IS A DEFECT WITH THIS DUAL RELEASE LEVER AND THAT THEY HAVE BEEN SEEING THIS PROBLEM REGULARLY. IT TOOK THE MECHANIC JUST A MINUTE TO DISENGAGE THE CABLE SO THAT I COULD ACCESS THE GAS CAP WHILE THEY ORDERED A NEW LEVER CABLE. I ASKED IF I COULD HAVE A KEY RELEASE FLAP AND MY REQUEST WAS DENIED. SO NOW I COULD FACE THIS PROBLEM AGAIN IN THE FUTURE. SEEMS LIKE HONDA SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO EITHER RECALL THESE CABLES OR PUT A MANUAL RELEASE IN THE TRUNK OR SEND OUT A NOTICE TO ALL HONDA OWNERS AND TOWING COMPANIES LIKE AAA ADVISING THEM AS TO HOW THEY CAN DISENGAGE THE CABLE AND AVOID BEING STRANDED. *JB

WHENEVER IM DRIVING MY 04 PILOT THERE IS A LOUD AND DISTURBING THUMPING SOUND COMING FROM UNDER THE CAR..AFTER SPEAKING TO HONDA AND TAKING THE CAR IN 3 TIMES I WAS TOLD THIS IS A NORMAL CHARACTERISTIC OF THE CAR AND THERE IS NOTHING ANYONE CAN DO.AFTER RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE I SEE THAT THERE ARE MANY OWNERS WITHTHE SAME PROBLEM BUT YET NO RECALL IS EVEN IN SIGHT.THE REASON FOR THE FUEL SLOASHING NOISE IS DUE TO THE LONG NARROW SHAPE OF THE INSIDE GAS TANK..