AI Damage1990 Honda CRX: common problems
Owners of the 1990 Honda CRX filed 5 complaints with NHTSA, most often about tires and air bags. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 5
- involving a crash
- 3
What fails most often
- 1 Tires 40% of all complaints
- 2 Air bags 20% of all complaints
- 3 Engine and cooling 20% of all complaints
- 4 Seat belts 20% of all complaints
- Tires: 2 complaints (40% of all), 2 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Air bags: 1 complaints (20% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Engine and cooling: 1 complaints (20% of all).
- Seat belts: 1 complaints (20% of all).
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 5 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tires | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Air bags | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat belts | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Bout siga supreme tr tires only used for less then three months was going 35 in light rain had to quick stop tires would not keep traction the brakes did not lock up either the tires simply did not hold the road rear ended another car...
Air bags failed to deploy, and shoulder belt restrained passenger for short while. Was hospitalized with a broken back.
Futura tires designed to be installed w/rotation of tire in one direction only, however no precautions are in place at point of installation, resulting in incorrect installation/loss of traction/accident.
While the vehicle was parked the contact noticed that the seat belt retractor was not working properly. The seat belt retractor that was attached to the door and the seat belt would not retract or remain lose. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to nhtsa. The vehicle was not repaired.
1990 honda civic crx spontaneous failure while driving at 55 mph. Noise was heard coming from the distributor area followed by the emission light coming on. The consumer suggested that the distributor issue may be that same as described in the 1990 and 1991 recall.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 14,282 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 39% most complained about).
On average one model year of the CRX has 5 complaints (3 years in the data). This year has 5, about average.
What to check before buying
- Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Seat belts. Belt pretensioners after airbag deployment, SRS codes.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1990 Honda CRX?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: tires, air bags, engine and cooling. Total complaints: 5. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: airbags did not deploy (20%), seat belts (20%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1990 Honda CRX?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1990 Honda CRX from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1990 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.