IllustrationWHILE DRIVING VEHICLE, THE ABS SYSTEM WAS LEAKING CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO HAVE EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE. TS
1996 Honda Accord
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1996 Honda Accord do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 356.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Accord years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 85 of 472 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 109 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 96 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 74 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
52 crash reports3 fire reports21 injury reports
What owners actually said
472 reports1996 HONDA ACCORD. DIMS 11 IVOQ ENTRY POSTED AFTER 12/12/02 CUT-OVER TO ARTEMIS---------------770774. *AK *NLM
WHILE DRIVING THE "CHECK OIL" LIGHT ILLUMINATED. CONSUMER PULLED OVER TO INSPECT VEHICLE. AS CONSUMER WAS REFILLING OIL, IT WAS POURING BACK OUT OF THE "SEAL". MR *JG
THE SRS LIGHT ILLUMINATED. CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A PERSONAL MECHANIC WHO INFORMED CONSUMER THAT THERE WAS A COMPUTER GLITCH WHICH NEEDED TO BE DEALT WITH BY HONDA'S SERVICE DEPARTMENT. CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND THE GLITCH WAS CORRECTED. THE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AGAIN AND CONSUMER WAS INFORMED…
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THE SRS LIGHT ILLUMINATED. CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A PERSONAL MECHANIC WHO INFORMED CONSUMER THAT THERE WAS A COMPUTER GLITCH WHICH NEEDED TO BE DEALT WITH BY HONDA'S SERVICE DEPARTMENT. CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND THE GLITCH WAS CORRECTED. THE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AGAIN AND CONSUMER WAS INFORMED BY A HONDA REP. THAT THEY DID NOT CORRECT THE PROBLEM, THEY ONLY RESET THE COMPUTER. *JG *DT
CONSUMER STATES BECAUSE SHE HAS BEEN UNABLE TO SATISFY HER RECALL NOTICE , ALL OF HER OIL LEAKED OUT OF HER AUTO, AND HER ENGINE SEIZED UP. IT STOPPED ON THE HIGHWAY, AND SHE HAD IT TOWED TO THE NEAREST HONDA DEALER. NO INJURIES. THE AUTO WAS ABLE TO ROLL OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY. CONSUMER STATES SHE HAS BEEN TO MOR…
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CONSUMER STATES BECAUSE SHE HAS BEEN UNABLE TO SATISFY HER RECALL NOTICE , ALL OF HER OIL LEAKED OUT OF HER AUTO, AND HER ENGINE SEIZED UP. IT STOPPED ON THE HIGHWAY, AND SHE HAD IT TOWED TO THE NEAREST HONDA DEALER. NO INJURIES. THE AUTO WAS ABLE TO ROLL OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY. CONSUMER STATES SHE HAS BEEN TO MORE THAT 2 PLACES AND HAS BEEN TOLD THAT THE PART IS ON BACK ORDER. TS
CONSUMER STATES THAT AIR BAG SYSTEM FAILED AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. AIR BAGS HAVE NEVER DEPLOYED. MR
THE BALANCER SHAFT SEAL ON THE CAR HAS BLOWN. CAUSING THE OIL TO DRAIN OUT AT AN ALARMING RATE. TO FIX THE PROBLEM THE ENGINE MUST BE PULLED OUT TAKE APART THEN REPLACED. ALL OF THIS FOR A SEAL THAT COSTS NO MORE THAN 20 DOLLARS. MR
CONSUMER STATES THAT AIR BAG SYSTEM FAILED AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. AIR BAG HAS NEVER DEPLOYED. MR
SRS DASH BOARD LIGHT HAD BEEN INTERMITTENLY STAYING ON AFTER ENGINE START UP. TURNING OFF AND ON ENGINE WOULD CAUSE LIGHT TO GO OFF. TWO DAYS AGO, LIGHT STAYED ON AND WILL NOT GO OFF, WHILE INGNITION IS ON. SYSTEM WAS SCANNED AND CODE INDICATES AIR BAG PASSIVE RESTRAINT CONTROLLER HAS FAILED. AIR BAG SYSTEM IS INOPERABLE. THE AI…
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SRS DASH BOARD LIGHT HAD BEEN INTERMITTENLY STAYING ON AFTER ENGINE START UP. TURNING OFF AND ON ENGINE WOULD CAUSE LIGHT TO GO OFF. TWO DAYS AGO, LIGHT STAYED ON AND WILL NOT GO OFF, WHILE INGNITION IS ON. SYSTEM WAS SCANNED AND CODE INDICATES AIR BAG PASSIVE RESTRAINT CONTROLLER HAS FAILED. AIR BAG SYSTEM IS INOPERABLE. THE AIR BAG IN THIS VEHICLE HAS NEVER BEEN ACTIVATED. THIS APPEARS TO BE A SYSTEM DEFECT SINCE CONTROL UNIT HAS NEVER HAD TO BE ACTUATED. HONDA SHOULD BE ASKED TO COVER THIS ITEM BY RECALLING VEHICLE FOR THIS SAFETY DEFECT. MR
CONSUMER STATES THAT WHILE DRIVEN THE VEHICLE HAD BUCKLE THE SEAT BELT AND WAS ABLE TO PULL THE BCKLE OUT WITH OUT RELEASING THE LOCK.DEALER WAS CONTACTED.
Official recalls
198V231000 · Electrical System:wiring:front Underhood
Sep 22, 1998
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: SEDAN, COUPE AND WAGON PASSENGER VEHICLES EXCEPT THE DX MODEL AND MODELS WITH V6 ENGINES. THE FACTORY INSTALLED AIR CONDITIONER WIRE HARNESS WAS IMPROPERLY ROUTED ALLOWING SOME WIRES TO RUB AGAINST EACH OTHER, EVENTUALLY CAUSING A SHORT CIRCUIT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THE SHORT CIRCUIT CANPOSSIBLY CAUSE THE UNDERHOOD WIREING TO OVERHEAT AND SMOKE, CAUSING A FIRE IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. A SHORT CIRCUIT CAN ALSO RESULT IN A BLOWN FUSE OR DEAD BATTERY.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE VEHICLES FOR PROPER ROUTING OF THESE WIRES. ANY HARNESS IMPROPERLY ROUTED WILL BE INSPECTED FOR DAMAGE AND THE ROUTING WILL BE CORRECTED. IF ANY INSULATION IS WORN THROUGH AND THE COPPER WIRES ARE EXPOSED, THE HARNESS WILL BE REPLACED. DEALERS WILL ALSO INSTALL PLASTIC TUBING TO PROTECT THE HARNESS.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.