Honda Civic Recall Issued Over Parking Brake Problems, Rollaway Accident Risk

More than 350,000 Honda Civic vehicles are being recalled due to a risk the electronic parking brake may fail, potentially allowing vehicles to roll away when turned off and cause an accident or crash. 

The Honda Civic parking brake recall was announced by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on October 13, after reviewing at least 342 warranty claims that indicated the electronic parking brake (EPB) may not engage if it is applied immediately after turning the ignition off.

Although no injuries or crashes have been reported, the vehicles are being recalled due to the potential roll-away and crash hazards they pose if the parking brake fails to engage. Children or passengers could be at an increased risk of a roll-away crash if the driver exits the vehicle without the parking brake engaging properly.

According to the NHTSA, the EPB feature could be interfered with by the software programming of the Vehicle Stability Assist Electronic Control Unit (VSA ECU), by preventing the application of the EPB when the brake is applied immediately after the vehicle ignition is turned off.

Vehicle operators will be notified of when an parking brake failure is occurring by the illumination of a red brake light signal of the dashboard display. The brake light signal will blink red for 15 seconds following the parking brake’s failure.

Honda first started receiving warranty claims of the issue in December 2015, and opened an investigation in conjunction with its EPB parts supplier Continental. Honda received 342 customer complaints, and after testing to try and recreate the problem, decided a motor vehicle safety defect exists and that a recall was necessary.

The vehicles included in the recall are certain model year 2016 Honda Civic two door and four door vehicles with 1.5L turbo and 2.0L engines. An estimated 350,083 vehicles manufactured by American Honda Motor Company are included in the recall and have varying date ranges of production that can be found on the NHTSA recall notice.

Honda announced it will begin notifying owners of the defect and instruct customers to schedule an inspection at their local licensed Honda dealer for the vehicle’s software to be updated, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on November 8, 2016. Customers with questions or further concerns regarding the recall may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-424-9153 and reference the recall number ‘KC6”.