2003 Civic hybrid- 80K miles. Bought in 2006 with 60K miles. The vehicle hesitates when accelerating from a stop. There is about a 5-8 second delay in pressing the gas and the car going, which has caused me to almost be rear ended a few times. The vehicle also slows down extremely rapidly when the foot is removed from the gas pedal. Even with no pressure applied to the break pedal. To ordinary (not hybrid) cars, it seems like I am pressing my brake, they just see me slowing down, but there are no lights to warn them, I have almost been in two really bad car accidents that were avoided by mere inches when: On the highway I have taken my foot off the accelerator to slow my vehicle, but I did not need the breaks since the car slowed down so fast on it's own. I threw on my emergency lights and tapped the brake to signal to cars behind me who were moving much faster still. I think that Honda should put in smaller lights or a different safety light when you remove your foot from the accelerator on the Civic hybrids, to avoid rear-ending accidents due to rapid decrease in speed with no usage of the braking system. History of problem: During test drive vehicle made slight shudder noise and hesitation before starting to accelerate. The dealer told me that it was a normal noise for hybrids. I foolishly believed him. A few months later the shuddering was worse and I knew that it wasn't a normal noise for any transmission to be making at 60,000 miles! over the last 2 years I have taken the car to the dealership many times to "fix" this problem, which is only patched up and the shuddering comes back a few thousand miles later. Honda knows about this problem and has a service bulletin for it, yet their dealerships try to put off fixing the problem until someone's warranty is almost over, or over. Honda needs to be held responsible for this faulty vehicle. A recall should be done at the very least, to fix the cars driving around with bad transmissions.

- Mount Prospect, IL, USA

After numerous transmission problems with my 2003 Honda Civic hybrid, the transmission failed completely while I was driving on us 11 in berwick pa. Fortunately did not cause a crash. Honda dealer says the car needs an entire transmission.

- Plains, PA, USA

Transmission hesitates. Manufacturer changes the transmission fluid, but does not repair. Manufacturer will not solve the problem only bandaids this recurring problem. Vehicle hesitates and shutters during acceleration which can be dangerous in intersections and in general traffic. This is occurring on several years of this vehicle according to websites I have read. The vehicle has also gone through two replacement of the catalytic converter.

- Ridgefield, WA, USA

Car is sluggish when taking off and driving. Have read that this is a common problem with the transmission (cvt).

- Ridgefield, WA, USA

Car stopped while driving on beltway. No warning. Car was towed to Honda dealership. Has been there for six days so far, we were first told it was a cvt belt, or so they thought. Now they state the transmission can not be repaired but needs to be replaced. The car is five years old and we have not had one problem prior to it stopping.

- Montclair, VA, USA

While parked in a parking garage, I was backing my car out of a space. When about 90% out of the space, the car suddenly shifted into drive (without my help) and slammed into the wall in front of which I had been parked. The airbags went off, and the front of the car is really banged up.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

Since the purchase of my 2003 Honda Civic hybrid the car has stuttered when taking off from a stop. My wife took it back to the dealer and they told her it was "normal" for a hybrid. I have since researched this and found this is not normal and would like Honda to replace the transmission.

- Ludowici, GA, USA

I bought my 2003 Honda Civic hybrid with 70,000 miles on it. In less than a year, I had to have the catalytic converter, egr valve, fly wheel, and transmission replaced. The transmission was replaced 7 months ago and the same exact problem is happening again: The transmission slips every time I press on the gas or take my foot off the gas, and when I'm coasting the transmission chugs.

- Eddystone, PA, USA

Ongoing transmission problems. Have replaced transmission 4 times and still having problems.

- Houston, TX, USA

2003 Honda Civic hybrid transmission problem: Pulling into traffic, sometimes the transmission seems to go to neutral then slam into gear. Also has a strong vibration intermittently, yet happening now almost daily. So far, Honda dealership is following a service bulletin to correct the problem, with no luck and out of pocket expenses building while they experiment. Found over 128 similar problems posted online.

- Malone, NY, USA

The power steering motor and pulley failed and had to be replaced while the car is not even 5 years old.

- Arlington, VA, USA

My 2003 Honda Civic hybrid (hch) with its cvt transmission (52,500 miles) exhibits severe bucking, hesitation and lurching. During low speed maneuvering in a parking lot or turning a corner, less than 20 mph, the car will lurch and buck. It will become so pronounced and violent that the car will lurch forward and your head will hit the headrest. I took the car to Honda of tyson?S corner in Virginia in early August 2007 and their solution was to replace the cvt fluid. This did not solve the problem. Now in September 2007 the issue is becoming worse and a lurching or slippage is noticed at speed up to 50 mph. I took the car to an independent garage and they confirmed a major transmission issue but due to lack of technical information they were not equipped to repair the cvt. They also reported that no engine trouble codes were detected. Searching the internet it appears other hch owners are experiencing the same problem. The only fix seems to be replacing the cvt fluid progressing to rebuilding or replacing the cvt without correcting the core problem. You just end up with a transmission with the same technology doomed to failure again. I am afraid that Honda is not helping the dealers fix the defect and instead just taking a band aid approach.

- Vienna, VA, USA

I have an intermittent problem with a 2003 Honda Civic hybrid cvt transmission. It occasionally bucks when accelerating or decelerating. I have taken it to my dealer and had the transmission fluid changed and gears "burnished". I am afraid that the problem will get worse. My brother's 2003 Civic hybrid also experiences the same problem. When I asked about the problem in July my dealer will only tell me that a recall has not been issued.

- Pickerington, OH, USA

This was also filed under the general header powertrain, but since I saw more complaints here I thought I should file it here instead as there seems to be more strengths in numbers and this problem is dangerous and needs to be addressed. My car has been shuddering/bucking/slipping. It started before the car was out of warranty. With all of the stories I have read it has become clear to me that Honda was aware of the problem and that the transmission fluid change was a way of stalling the consumer until the warranty had run out. I took my car in, had the fluid flushed and it temporarily fixed the problem. This was done a second time and after the warranty had run out a third time. Each time there was only a temporary fix. Now the problem has become dangerous. The car hesitates, races and bucks. I am afraid to drive it as I don't know if it will quit on me while making a left turn and I am afraid that the car will stall in front of oncoming traffic. This is especially dangerous in congested city driving where quick turns are frequently necessary. I am not a risk taker and I am still hesitant to make turns even when there is plenty of room for a highly conservative person such as myself.

- Richmond, VA, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Civic-hybrid. The contact stated that the vehicle shutters and jerks when shifting gears. The failure occurs at all gears, with the greatest difficulty shifting out of second gear. The dealer replaced the catalytic converter, starter clutch, and flushed the transmission, however, the failure still persists. The dealer stated that some jerking was normal. The speed was unknown. The current mileage was 71,000 and failure mileage was 30,000.

- Raleigh , NC, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Civic-hybrid. At 72,000 miles, the contact noticed that the transmission is beginning to vibrate upon acceleration. The failure occurs during speeds of 0-15 mph. The dealer and the manufacturer have not been notified. However, the contact went to the dealer to get Honda's brand of transmission fluid in hopes that it would resolve the failure. The current mileage was 72,000 and the failure mileage was unknown.

- Myrtle Beach, SC, USA

Continued problems with me 2003 Honda Civic hybrid and the constant velocity transmission. Slipping or surging when accelerating and bucking or shimmy when decelerating. Honda has only flushed the transmission fluid. It does improve the situation, only to return within a few thousand miles. This will only push my vehicle to the end of it's warranty period with no annotated issues in my vehicles records. Honda needs to fix this ongoing issue as it pertains to hundreds, perhaps thousands of owners.

- Woodbridge, VA, USA

I own a 2003 Honda Civic hybrid with a faulty transmission. It jerked into gear and had many problems. I bought the car from carmax, and they assured me it was fixed. They patched it up at aamco. Now the warranty expired and I need to buy a new transmission.

- Mission Viejo, CA, USA

When accelerating on the freeway the transmission started slipping. The car lurched, and the transmission wouldn't catch. Luckily, we brought the car to a safe stop on the side of the freeway. Then, the transmission was stuck in first gear and would not shift. We limped off the freeway in first gear.

- Belmont, CA, USA

- contact stated that on the evening of April 9, 2007 while driving at 35 to 40 mph in light highway traffic, the contact heard a loud noise from under the 2003 Honda Civic hybrid. The check engine light turned on, and transmission gear shifted from drive to neutral. The contact noticed that the rpms went up to 4000, but the vehicle was not accelerating. The vehicle lost power, and would only drive at about 15 to 20 mph. The contact was waiting for Honda to inspect the vehicle. The current and failure mileage were 83,000.

- Columbia, SC, USA