My 2003 Civic suddenly switched to only electric power on the freeway. The gas motor was completely off. I could not go faster than about 40 miles per hour. When I got off the highway and came to a stop I had to rev it to about 5000 RPM's to get the car to start moving. The gauges for "assist and charge" were turned off completely as was the autostop light. After I finally made it home and turned the car off, waited a bit and restarted it worked fine. I am worried it will happen again. The dealer said there is nothing they can do unless I take it in while it is malfunctioning!

Any Ideas or suggestions?

My 2003 did the same thing one time, after I hit a pot hole while breaking slighlty. Same thing, IMA lights off. I was going up hill on the left lane at the 405 north, past Getty here in LA... Really scary. Had to keep it revved up like you, trying to move to the right or until the traffic stopped. I was already at the top of the hill when the traffic came to a stop, then I stopped the engine and restarted the car, all went to normal and it never happened again.

My feeling is that the clutch (there is one) was left "half engaged" somehow after the pothole (abs kicks in, IMA shuts off, I guess the clutch disengages the transmission... then you press the gas again and the car does not know what to do) I never took the car to the dealer for that (never went back to the dealer actually) but it was all ok after it did it.

My 2c

Juan S. Fernandez
06HCH and 06FEH
Los Angeles, CA

Thanks! I think you are completely right. I was on the Bay Bridge and hit a pothole also...I wonder why Honda does not publicize this problem more???

Hmm, I'm not sure if I follow. If the clutch is not engaged, then that also means that the elecrtic motor cannot propel the car either in the '03 Civic (the motor is integrated into the flywheel, and the clutch is located at the driven-end of the CVT, so the entire transmission disconnects from the wheels). Are you saying that the clutch may have stayed partially engaged (in "limited slip" mode used when creeping with a CVT), and cause the engine to stall?

That behavior may occur as a result of a stall, which the CVT logic may not be able to understand, and the ECU measuring the engine load (with no power being produced, but the throttle position sensor open), would apply more IMA to attempt to make up for the lack of engine power (no engine power).

I have not had this happen, but it is potentially quite dangerous, thaks for posting about it.

That's what I think. It was in "creep mode", burning clutch... Had to go 5000RPM to do like 30MPH and get out of the harms way.
It never happened again but that weighted a bit when I decided to trade the car for the 06 one year later, among other things