Looking to buy a new honda civic,opinions appreciated,good and bad.

seanshine · 11-15-2005, 02:48 PM

Let me preface this by saying that if I do buy one,it'll be my first foreign car.
I've always bought american,and I've always had 20 year old junk until a year ago when I bought my first new one.It's a 2004 dakota,and I have to say that I am not impressed with it's reliability.This friday it goes in again for the same problem.
What I'm looking for is dead nuts reliability,and I don't need 5,000 horsepower like I did when I was 18.....*sigh* that nova was fun,but I digress.
A local dealer has a new 2005 coupe for what seems to be reasonable,although I can't understand why a/c isn't standard,is it just the way japanese cars are?
So,civic owners,tell me what you like and don't like about 'em.

Wiredwrx · 11-15-2005, 03:30 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by seanshine

Let me preface this by saying that if I do buy one,it'll be my first foreign car.
I've always bought american,and I've always had 20 year old junk until a year ago when I bought my first new one.It's a 2004 dakota,and I have to say that I am not impressed with it's reliability.This friday it goes in again for the same problem.
What I'm looking for is dead nuts reliability,and I don't need 5,000 horsepower like I did when I was 18.....*sigh* that nova was fun,but I digress.
A local dealer has a new 2005 coupe for what seems to be reasonable,although I can't understand why a/c isn't standard,is it just the way japanese cars are?
So,civic owners,tell me what you like and don't like about 'em.

I have never had one, but

Pros-Hondas in general are very reliable. If you are into modifications, there are TONS for the civic.

Cons-Typical ricer car, and can only be described (at least the 2005 or earlier model, the new for 2006 versions aren't so) basic transportation. No real frills, no super sporty, just plain Vanilla transport.

Michael

Sonicxtacy02 · 11-15-2005, 03:59 PM

if you want a reliable car that 1 in 8 people on the road are going to have the civic is what you want. Personally i'd look at a mazda 3, a scion tc (top pick in fact), or jetta. All of these will run forever as long as ya change the oil... and that scion tc is one sweet little cheap car

RPI Geek · 11-15-2005, 03:59 PM

Before a crackhead douchebag smashed my Civic, I liked it. I had a 2004 HX and it did what it was designed to do abmirably, especially protect me in the accident. It was a bit underpowered and after a few months of driving I started missing having power windows and ABS, but that's what I got for getting the economy model. One big plus was that I was able to coax upwards of 40 mpg (combined city / highway) on a regular basis ... on 87 octane.

Another plus is that Civics (and all Hondas really) have really good depreciation; check out the price for 5-year-old Civics and compare that to Hyundai or Mazda or Nissan.

Before the Civic, I had a 94 Mazda 626, which was a really nice car until it hit 145000 miles and started needing $300 in repairs each month (which I could have done for a fraction of the cost if I'd had 1) time to do them, 2) a backup car in case it took more than a weekend to fix, and 3) a job that I could have gotten to using public transit or muscle power). What I'm getting at is that Civics are about the same cost to repair as domestic cars once they get old, simply because they're so damn popular the parts are readily available, and every mechanic has worked on them before.

Insurance is another factor: the Civic was more expensive to insure than the 626 because it didn't have such a good crash rating.

Edit: spelling

tj!2k4 · 11-15-2005, 04:05 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by RPI Geek

Insurance is another factor: the Civic was more expensive to insure than the 626 because it didn't have such a good crash rating.

.. and don't forget that Civics are quite popular with car thieves

seanshine · 11-15-2005, 10:44 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by RPI Geek

Before a crackhead douchebag smashed my Civic, I liked it. I had a 2004 HX and it did what it was designed to do abmirably, especially protect me in the accident. It was a bit underpowered and after a few months of driving I started missing having power windows and ABS, but that's what I got for getting the economy model. One big plus was that I was able to coax upwards of 40 mpg (combined city / highway) on a regular basis ... on 87 octane.

Another plus is that Civics (and all Hondas really) have really good depreciation; check out the price for 5-year-old Civics and compare that to Hyundai or Mazda or Nissan.

Before the Civic, I had a 94 Mazda 626, which was a really nice car until it hit 145000 miles and started needing $300 in repairs each month (which I could have done for a fraction of the cost if I'd had 1) time to do them, 2) a backup car in case it took more than a weekend to fix, and 3) a job that I could have gotten to using public transit or muscle power). What I'm getting at is that Civics are about the same cost to repair as domestic cars once they get old, simply because they're so damn popular the parts are readily available, and every mechanic has worked on them before.

Insurance is another factor: the Civic was more expensive to insure than the 626 because it didn't have such a good crash rating.

Edit: spelling

Sorry about your car man,thankfully you are alive,and that's all that really matters.
Thanks for the heads up about the safety rating,although now that I think about it my wife's neon probably would have the same result in an accident,and I was sort of expecting to have about the same performance given the fuel economy it gets.
Since I drive a public transit bus all day,anything that goes from 0 to 60 in under say two minutes is a rocketship to me

So,civics are the mustangs of japanese cars? it's nice to know that there are lots of parts out there.
Interestingly enough,my insurance agent says that it's going to be about the same price as what I pay now,but then having a professional lic and being 40 is good for your rates.

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