HONDA CIVIC HATCHBACK REVIEW

My car

This is my second civic of this type. I have had this one for 8 months and done about 10000 miles so far. Was really happy with the car - loads of mid range grunt and quite economical - I can average over 62mpg on some longer journeys. It has 17" penta wheels on it and you can feel the slightest imperfections in the road because of the stiff suspension, but the road holding I find is brilliant. Altogether the car is ace, build quality and level of equipment and servicing costs (I got my first 3 services thrown in for free when I bought the car!).

I have recently noticed that the clutch has started to (intermittently) slip in 4th gear when I put my foot down. This is obviously quite worrying so I did a bit of research and came across a civic owners site (civinfo I think its called). On this site there seems to be lots of people with this version of civic (2.2 diesel) that are having or have had clutch problems. Disappointing considering I bought the car because of the reputation of Honda.

My car

I've had this car for just over 2 years from new. Overall I'm fairly pleased with it. Pros: Great performance and refinement from the diesel engine and nearly 50mpg average. Pretty good considering I don't hang about! Love the looks of the car and the digital dash is superb. Good spec including standard climate control. Cons: Hard ride (even on 16" wheels), expensive servicing, suffers too much condensation, seats aren't very comfy on long trips. Terrible rear visibility & thick front pillars. No spare wheel. Has needed rear discs replacing TWICE under warranty, new handbrake on a safety recall, and new weather strip on drivers window. So I'm not too impressed with the build quality, but mechanically it's been faultless. Overall I'd say it's a good car but Honda really need to improve the build quality and the rock hard suspension. Would I buy another? - well probably not, but that's more to do with my hankering after another 4x4. To me, the Civic is a better bet than a Golf or a Focus.

My car

Ive had my car for over 3 months now, bought it new from a local Dealership, i loved this car from the first moment i set eyes on it. the looks are fantastic, i then went on a test drive and i was very impressed, the older model Type R is starting to look dated, i think that the new one will still look current in the year 3000!!! The cars suspension is very hard, and the ride is uncomfortable on poor roads, but to be fair it doesnt really annoy me, i quite like it really because u can really feel the road. the steering is well weighted and precise. The car is quick, people say that it could do with more power but the cars been deisgned and prefected to just work as a package with what its got, steering, brakes, suspension they provide a package that is fantastic. the noise is highly addictive when you rev above 5500 RPM and the pace is rapid. ive got the car in black and espically when its clean the car gets constant looks and comments. One point that is slightly annoying is the rear view with the spoiler blocking the main bulk of your rear vision and in the rain u just aswell not have a rear window, but you do get used to it and the large wing mirrors help alot. all in all a fantastic car that im proud to own, no problems so far, and i'm satisfied with what i have exerienced so far with the dealership, im 20 years old and they treated me with the respect of an older potential customer.

My car

I have had this car as a courtesy car while my Accord automatic Diesel Tourer is having a dent repaired, don't they dent easily!

This little car is a delight to drive and the rear seat arrangement actually makes it more practical than the Accord with our two Labradors. The walk through rear is absolutely wonderful and the entry very low for aged canines whilst high enough to be practical for aged humans too in this car we could have two people up front two dogs in the rear and the boot free for luggage.

The little 1.4 iVtec engine is no whirlwind in fact if you change up in accordance with the shift indicator it is decidedly dead but on short trips I am getting an average of 39.1mpg which I find very impressive. Gearbox is superb if you have to have one of those twiddly things I have not driven a nicer one. Nice to be able to change from MPH to KPH at the touch of a button and a very clear speedometer.

Perhaps a tad short on equipment but this is not a high spec car, lack of rear wiper is a pain as is shutting the tailgate.

All in all a very acceptable little car