CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2001 Civic has transmission problems, transmission problems & more transmission problems. Did we mention transmission problems? And a dangerous defect with the front airbag that didn't get recalled for 10 years.
Although eventually the defective 2001 Civic airbag inflators were fixed under recalls in 2011 & 2013, that meant for 10 to 12 years airbags were activating with excessive force where metal fragments went shooting into passengers when the airbag deployed.
As for the 2001 Civic's transmission woes? Honda conducted a major transmission recall in 2004 & settled a class action lawsuit for defective transmissions in 2006. But, neither the recall or the lawsuit included the 2001 Civic.
Last thing to consider - the 2001 Civic is the most-recalled car ever, closely followed by the 2002 Civic & the 2001 Accord. The 2001 Civic is the 4th most-recalled vehicle overall, only a Ford truck & two Ford vans have more.
7.4
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$700
Average Mileage:
105,950 miles
Total Complaints:
40 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
replace exhaust manifold (14 reports)
not sure (12 reports)
have crack in manifold welded (7 reports)
buy a new manifold from ebay, and have local mechanic fix it (5 reports)
I went to a car repair shop to check some noise of my car, and found out it was from heat shields. I had this problem repaired twice already. When the dealer (DCH Academy Honda, NJ) told me the problem first time in 2006,(39000mile), they estimated $226 for repair. I went to other place to weld the exhaust shields. Now the car only has 52000 miles and the noise appeared again!
This is bullshit. Didn't expect to have these types of problems with import manufacturers. Clearly a design flaw. I'm not sure my next vehicle will be a Honda.
After checking I was amazed at all the complaints of cracked manifolds in this make and model. Seriously wonder if this is a design flaw and that Honda should do something about it.
Another manifold cracked here...had the car in for compliance bushings and timing belt...that was $675 and last week it was a torn cv boot/brake clean up...$400. The mechanic said try and buy a used one but don't let the dealership fix cus it will be a shiat load of money. Gonna check into welding it. My buddy is a partsman...will see if he can get an aftermarket manifold.
I noticed I was getting headaches when I was house hunting from driving slowly down streets looking at new housing developments. One day my wife complained too and said that she smelled exhaust. I started poking around and noticed that I had a crack forming in the manifold. After the sticker shock of the replacement part I left it for a while figuring that I do mostly highway mileage so I could chance that I'm not going to get fumes on my commute.
Coming up to my first emission test I feared that the crack was going to make me fail so I took the manifold off and had what was then a 4" crack welded. It cost me about $100 for gaskets and studs/nuts/bolts as I knew someone who could weld it for free for me.
All that being said, I agree that it should never have been cracked to begin with. It is a crappy piece of stamped and welded steel rather than being a proper cast manifold, which likely is the reason they don't last. I just wish the replacement price was indicative of the crappy materials. How they can charge $600 for a part you know will be cracked again in 100,000km's is beyond me. With so many of them cracking, either fix the problem in your OEM parts or drop the price so they are more disposable.
I just had my 2001 Civic in to the dealer for the 120k maintenance. I was told that my vehicle needs both front lower control arms PLUS exhaust manifold is cracked. I've read your posts and I called Honda and spoke with John. None of the parts are covered. The provisions on the exhaust manifold are 8 yrs or 80k miles. Since I'm well over the mileage, I'm 100% responsible. There was no history of this being an ongoing or reported problem to Honda. So, if you are still Civic owners and have a cracked manifold, step up and call Honda America 800-999-1009 and report your problem. As far as John was concerned, I'm the only one with the problem. Thanks for your advice.
Found out about the cracked exhaust manifold when I took my car in for its yearly NC inspection, and nearly cried when I found out what it would cost to fix, since I'm living on a fixed income while I make it through grad school. Even better, when I asked the service consultant at the Honda dealership why this happened, he told me it was because the car was old. Yes, it has 136,000 miles, but they were all very friendly highway miles. Not to mention how the dealer bragged about the "million mile odometer" when I bought the car. Long story short, my dad did some quick research and found that this seems to be a problem with this car.... and I plan to have a conversation with Mr. Service Guy when I take my car back to get the inspection sticker that will cost me almost a thousand dollars.
I too have this problem. I reported it at 95,000 miles after dealing with it for over a year. The crack developed around 70,000miles but I didn't realize that it was a cracked manifold. The noise just got more and more noticeable. By the time I couldn't stand it any more I had racked up enough miles to put me over the mileage cutoff for warranty repair. Honda will not repair. I located a 500 dollar oem part from majestic honda. I haven't placed an order because I'm going to try to weld it first. (Note: I have tried JB weld but that only fixed the problem for about 5 miles LOL what a stinky and smoky mess that was!)
I am furious to hear how many people are having the same problem as me. I car sounded like crap! I had to pay $1210.00 to repair it and this is unacceptable. Come on Honda -step up to the plate and replace this defect!!!
Oh! Well, it's good to finally know what that funny sound my car would make after going over a puddle is- thanks to what another Honda owner explained! I am at 100,000 miles right now and my transmission is blown. After being informed of that repair cost, my mechanic showed me the 2 inch crack in the exhaust manifold! I also need 2 02 sensors, a timing belt and have a power steering leak so I guess Hondas are real quality cars! Thanks Honda!
The crack is between the fourth and third cylinders and is about two inches long on the seam of the manifold. This part of the exhaust manifold has a factory flaw, there is a low section in the seam of the manifold in which water sits after driving through puddles of water. This was mentioned in the Honda service technical bulletins, as customer complained about odd sound after running through puddles of water, this sound is created after the manifold has cracked. The water which get into this low spot cools the hot metal and after it evaporates the metal heats up again. Thus, causing the part to crack over time. Honda is well aware of this problem and uses the same excuse, "Due to the age and mileage on the car there is nothing we can do for you." I have talked with several mechanics and they all agree this is the problem. Honda could have prevented this problem by not creating the low section in the manifold. I learned my lesson about first year models. Also I can scratch Honda off of my next new car list. Thank you very much Honda for your wonderful customer service which took me 3 weeks of constant phone tag to tell me you will do nothing for me.
This one boils down to poor design by Honda. Welding is the cheapest fix. I have also noticed that the gas mileage suffers as a result of the leak. The crack runs between runners on cyls 3 and 4 most of the way around. Look for this when buying a used car.
Dealership cost would be about $900.00. Removed it myself and took it to a welder, had it TIG welded. There was a crack around the circumference of the exhaust manifold pipe where it is welded to the mounting plate. Poor workmanship from Honda!
So after having tremendous difficulty with my car, I find out that i have a crack in the exhaust manifold and that at the dealership it is going to cost $1000! I was told by another mechanic that the only way to have a crack in your manifold with a 4 year old car, is that it was defective in the first place!
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
I went to a car repair shop to check some noise of my car, and found out it was from heat shields. I had this problem repaired twice already. When the dealer (DCH Academy Honda, NJ) told me the problem first time in 2006,(39000mile), they estimated $226 for repair. I went to other place to weld the exhaust shields. Now the car only has 52000 miles and the noise appeared again!
- Evelyn C., Woodbridge, NJ, US