Honda Civic Care and Maintenance

blueiedgod · February 2005

My four door Honda Civic 2000 has a knocking sound on the front passenger side when making tight right turns.



Took the car in today and dealership states brake pads are a worn down and drums need machining. This is being done but I am not convinced it will fix the knocking sound. I am wondering if it may be the CV joint or such.



Any ideas on what may be causing the knocking sound? Is it the brakes?



Is it possible to get a second opinion on the car condition before the warranty ends? How would I go about doing this?



Thanks.

Sounds like CV joints to me. How are you under warranty on a 4 year old car? Is is extended warranty? Is it Honda care or aftermarket warranty? Honda dealer probably does not want to do CV joins as that would be under warranty, and brake are cash deal, as they are considered wear and tear items. The OEM brakes should last at least 45K miles with normal driving.

You can check out the CV joints your self, look under the front of the car ans shine the flash light on the rubber boot. If it is broken, you will see grease splattered all over. There is inner and outer joints, check out both driver's and passenger sides.

cooper123 · February 2005

I purchased an 05 Honda CR-V a couple weeks ago. In the past, I've always had the oil changed in my new cars during the first 1000 miles--something my father used to do--to get rid of new engine crap collecting in the oil. My salesman (who's been with Honda for several years) says that early oil changes are a waste of time with today's engines and that April is probably the earliest I should consider doing it. What IS the rule of thumb for changing oil in new cars? Thanks!

theracoon · February 2005

What IS the rule of thumb for changing oil in new cars?

Read your owners manual. There's a section on break in, that specifically tells you not change the oil before the first scheduled maintenance.

ruking1 · February 2005

Yes, I do not know what it is on the CR-V but on the 2004 Honda Civic, the first interval is 10k normal/5k severe. There is also a specific section that makes it a point to say keep the oem fill in till the first oil change, which by default is 10,000 miles normal. Also the recommendtion for oil filter change is every other oil change or 20,000 miles. The problem is the marketing folks have most of us mentally shoe horning ourselves into the SEVERE catagory, when the truth is most folks are not. The owners manual does go on to list what they consider severe.

jap man · February 2005

ya i think whats happened is your on board computer has picked up a problem and stored it in its memory there by letting you now theirs a problem you need to take it in to a dealer or garage where they can perform a scan on your car it could be anything from a sensor to a wire or component failure my guess being you have a 97 i would guess probably an 02 sensor has failed

jap man · February 2005

i would not buy any warranty from honda why would you want to when you already have an amazing car already years ago back in 95 when i first bought my first new civic honda tried to sell me an extended warranty and i just laughed at the sales guy and replied aim not buying a domestic here aim buying a quality car thats not only mechanically refined but has been around since the early 70's and you now what i was glad i did not buy any warranty because up to now my car has had amazing trouble free driving

cooper123 · February 2005

I will take your advice and follow the manual. It seems that times have changed (for the better) on this oil change issue. There was a time, at least with domestics, that I wouldn't have trusted car manufacturers to even give the best advice re. their own vehicles. American card companies were (still are?) that bad. This is my third new Honda, and I ain't going back! Thanks.

ruking1 · February 2005

If you stay with conventional oil, the ExxonMobil Superflo is a stellar oil especially at about 1 per gal. Honda OEM is made by ExxonMobil to their specifications, but can be a bit pricey at the dealers (last I check 4-6 dollars over the counter.)

If you decide on synthetic it is hard to beat Mobil One! Best of luck to you!

blueiedgod · February 2005

the ExxonMobil Superflo is a stellar oil especially at about 1 per gal.

I think you meant $1/qt. $1/gal is very cheap, I would stop using mobil1 and switch back to dyno at that price. lol

Mobil1 is probably the best oil you can buy over the counter. Pepboys have a coupon in the calendar for "buy 3, get 3 free" of Mobil 1. Sometimes pepboys have it on sale. I think last time I bought Mobil1 it came out to $1.50/qt with coupon. Plus, when you send in your receipts and tamper rings you get $5 back per 6-pack from Mobil1.com in form of certificates and goodies.

https://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Rewards/Mobil_1_Rew- ards.aspx

ruking1 · February 2005

Opps! I made a quantity mistake!

I would also switch back from Mobil One 0w20 to ExxonMobil 5w20 at .25 cents per qt!!!

speterson1 · February 2005

Uh, ruking, don't you mean 25 cents/qt? At .25 cents/qt a gallon goes for one penny...

gregoryc1 · February 2005

Purchasing and Extended Warranty on any vehicle, (land or water based), is a personal choice. Some people, who have been "burnt in the past" with high repair bills after the original warranty expired, remember that experience, and as such, they cover themselves with this additional coverage. If a person does not believe in the extended warranty concept, that is "ok". Take the gamble! But if something happens to the vehicle, after the original warranty has expired, the owner should not seek financial help with the repair from the manufacturer, because they saved the money on the warranty, so as such, they are ahead of the game, and that "saved money" now goes toward the repair. (They took the gamble)! But in the "real world", most people who will not purchase the warranty, also want the manufacturer to help them financially, when a major repair presents itself, after the original warrnty has expired. In reality, they want the extended coverage, and save their money at the same time. They want the best of both worlds. I have two Honda vehicles,(2003 Accord and a 2004 Civic). Both vehicles are covered by a Honda 7 year / 100,000 mile 0 deductable extended warranty. I purchased this, not because I believe that Honda makes a poor quality product, but because in the "real world of automotive use", things happen. We paid less that $1,000 dollars for each of these warranties financed over three years, ($875.00 for the Accord & $975.00 for the Civic). An Alternator or Starter repair, with labor, would be somewhere between $400.00 and $500.00 dollars. A transmission, would be a minimum of about $3000.00 dollars if not more. An A/C compressor would be around $800.00 if not more. So, in 7 years or 100,000 miles, I expect that I will at least earn back my warranty investment. The Accord is only 24 months old, and it has 44,000+ miles on the clock. It is not even three years old, and it is out of warranty. The Civic is not used much, so it will most probably run the full seven years on the warranty. Yes, an extended warranty is a personal choice!

ruking1 · February 2005

I would also agree with you.

To me, it is as simple as: if you got a lemon: buy the extended warranty and hope they can correct all the ills before the warranty expires!

The other is the time/mileage horizon in which you will keep your vehicle. This is of course the good news and the bad news. The warranty is almost always (7) X years (or whatever) OR (100,000)Y miles.

So if you run 26,000 miles per year like I do, I get shorted on the time side! In addtion, extended warranties do not pay for "wear and tear" items.

Doesn't really pay you much if the car is kept for 250,000 miles and it is flawless during the 100,000 extended warranty and the repairs really start to occur in frequency at 100,001 miles and beyond.

Over a longer time mileage horizon, a new starter, alternator, battery, are really "unscheduled" but scheduled maintainance items. So again you would pay twice, once for the chance of it happening during the 100,000 mile coverage and twice when it actually needed R/R at say 150,000 miles.

ruking1 · February 2005

Opps forgot the sleeper! In the case of a 7 year or 100,000 mile extended warranty; it is neither. Honda for example warranties the vehicle for either 3 years or 36,000 miles. (There are of course other ones for emissions etc etc. )

So that makes this extended warranty 4 years or 64,000 miles if the word extension is to be believed.

gregoryc1 · February 2005

I will not own the vehicle at: 100,001 miles. It will be traded at: 99,999 miles. Most likely the Accord will be traded when it is 5 years old. I would rather own a new vehicle with a warranty, than put large amounts of maintenance money in a high mileage vehicle.

imidazol97 · February 2005

When the car is a dependable car, often it's much cheaper to put some repair/maintenance money into fixing things that will get another 100K out of it than to trade--especially for new. If you're buying 1-2 year old cars, you're getting idea cost vs return out of long-life cars. If the car has many flaws, time to trade.

OTOH my father-in-law was leasing so that he would always have an in-warranty car. He traded every two years!!! and 12000 miles!!! Waste of money. Now he finally bought a LeSabre.

But it's like owning stock: whatever will let you sleep at night is right for you. And Gregory has a plan and it works for him.

flynfl01 · February 2005

Hello All. I purchased a 2004 Honda Civic LX Coupe last summer. I recently had it in for the second oil change. The dealer overfilled it with oil and the dipstick shows the level about a quarter of an inch over the full mark. Is this enough to cause damage? The service department says no damage will be done. Should I have the excess removed or wait until the next oil change?

cptsesso · February 2005

Go back and make them either drain it to the correct level or do a new oil change. They screwed up, so they should make it right.

ncampbell2002 · February 2005

Although I do agree with the previous poster that you should take it back to the dealer, a 1/4 inch on the dipstick is approxomately 1/4-1/2 quart. I wouldn't worry too much about it. As long as you don't see an abnormal smoke come out of your exhaust, then you should be fine, but I would still take it back to the dealer at your earliest convenience to make them fix their mistake.

ruking1 · February 2005

While engine damage due to this condition would be EXTREMELY remote, I would tend to agree about taking it back. "Go backs" or whatever they are called now a days, really get on the management radar and go backs would tend to trigger at least management attention if not action. So this would additionally serve as adequate documentation, so secondarily and remotely IF the remote condition of needing warranty work on engine damage should occur, this is one less incident they could possible deny your warranty with.

sek4mlk · February 2005

I noticed this problem with several Honda dealers here in the northern VA area. I never worried too much about it, but I now do my oil changes myself.

missbazilb · February 2005

I have a 1999 Honda Civic DX Hatchback, with 50,000 km on it. The other day I was backing into my parking spot, and it made a kind of squealing noise, coming from the rear. I drove it to work this morning with the window down to listen. There was some very minor squealing if I was turning right, but it seems quite loud when I am backing up.

Any thoughts?

flynfl01 · February 2005

Thanks everyone for your responses. In case you're wondering how it turned out, here's what happened. The first dealership dismissed it as no problem and didn't own up to their error. I explained in an e-mail to the customer service manager what happened in as nice a way as possible yet letting them know about their mistake. Never got a response.

Unfortunately, that was before I noticed my oil was beginning to darken rather quickly (in my opinion). I suspect that possibly the first dealership may have forgotten to change my filter and dumped the new oil in on top of it, thus the overfill condition.

Since I tend to worry, I took my car to another Honda dealership today and got the oil changed again. The oil level was exactly right when I got my car back. Guess I know who I'll take my future service needs to....

blueiedgod · February 2005

I have a 1999 Honda Civic DX Hatchback, with 50,000 km on it. The other day I was backing into my parking spot, and it made a kind of squealing noise, coming from the rear. I drove it to work this morning with the window down to listen. There was some very minor squealing if I was turning right, but it seems quite loud when I am backing up.

Any thoughts?

Is it a squeal? Sounds like your brake pads are going and the sensors are telling you that it is time to change. Could also be bearings, but they would make a crunching noise.

ncampbell2002 · February 2005

Just regarding your thoughts on the filter change whether they did it or not....If that dealer was following what the maint. schedule says in the owners book, then the filter is only changed every other oil change, although I don't know too many dealers that would do that.

gregoryc1 · February 2005

It should be listed on the Repair Order for that service. The maintenance schedule, as listed in the owner's manual, is the minimum level of acceptable maintenance. Oil and filter changes at 5,000 and 10,000 mile intervals might be "ok" if the vehicle is driven on VERY long road trips, at highway speeds, using a synthetic lubricant, and even then, it might not be "state of the art maintenance". My dealer recommends oil and filter service at 3,750 mile intervals, at a cost of $19.99 + NJ sales Tax..

missbazilb · February 2005

Turns out there was a small stone in the rear driver's side brake.

Very inexpensive to fix, thank goodness!

annie23 · February 2005

Any advice on what I should be doing for my car?

It's a 2004 Civic LX. It only has 1200 miles on it. Got it back in August 2004.

It's my first car. Since I don't drive it all that often, I'm not sure how often/when I should be getting oil changes, tire checks, etc. Thanks!

ruking1 · February 2005

The best is to look at the owners manual, shop manual (if you are so inclined) or Honda even has a web site for the recommended oil changes 10k normal/5k severe, 10k tire rotations, etc.

owners link

http://www.honda.com/index.asp?bhfv=7&bhqs=1

I have a 2004 Honda Civic bought new in September 2004 It has app 6600 miles. So unless you are close to taking 1200 1 mile trips, and/or idled much of the time (severe)(actually the web site gives examples of what is meant by severe) I would not let anyone talk you into the severe cycle. I have done 6600 miles and I fall into the normal category.

blueiedgod · February 2005

Any advice on what I should be doing for my car?

It's a 2004 Civic LX. It only has 1200 miles on it. Got it back in August 2004.

It's my first car. Since I don't drive it all that often, I'm not sure how often/when I should be getting oil changes, tire checks, etc. Thanks!

Whatever the manual tells you to do. All the info is there. If you want more info get Helms manual, it has complete teardown procedures, and diagrams for every component.

gtowndave · March 2005

I bought a 2004 Civic Ex with the automatic transmission last May. I have a little over 13,000 miles on the car and love it. However, I've noticed that I'm not getting the 31/38 city/highway mpg that are in Honda's specs. Most of my driving is stop and go city driving, I average about 29 mpg. Has anyone else experienced this discrepancy with the 2004 Civic Ex or am I just overly concerned?

speterson1 · March 2005

Last night on the NBC Nightly News they had a story about exactly that - how in many cases the real world results for many cars & trucks are nowhere near what the EPA mileage that the sticker says. Some examples they cited were the BMW Z4, which the sticker said got 21/29 mpg town/hwy, and AAA got something like 14 mpg in mixed conditions, and the PT Cruiser, which had similar results. They told how the EPA figures are done in a lab with a warmed up car on a flat surface. Real world conditions of idling, weather, and hills, not to mention the speed & power changes of all driving are obviously going to give you different results.

I'd say if you average 29 mpg and the sticker says 31, you're being overly concerned. If the difference was 5 mpg or more, then you might have something going on which you should check out.

typongtive · March 2005

Ok today i went out to clean the interior of my wife's 2005 Honda civic ex special edition. When i was don i went to lock the door with the Honda supplied remote and it would not lock or set the alarm. The only was for me to lock it was to us a key or be inside the car while it was running. My wife is taking it in tomorrow to have them look at it, any ideas? Also the leather/vinyl interior seems to be fading already, we've had the car since December, I use the turtle wax 2001, which i've used in my other cars with no prob, but all it does is smear and then seem to leave massive streak

any help would be awesome. Thank you guys.

blueiedgod · March 2005

Ok today i went out to clean the interior of my wife's 2005 Honda civic ex special edition. When i was don i went to lock the door with the Honda supplied remote and it would not lock or set the alarm. The only was for me to lock it was to us a key or be inside the car while it was running. My wife is taking it in tomorrow to have them look at it, any ideas? Also the leather/vinyl interior seems to be fading already, we've had the car since December, I use the turtle wax 2001, which i've used in my other cars with no prob, but all it does is smear and then seem to leave massive streak any help would be awesome. Thank you guys.

I am strong believer that reading owner's manual is great for educating people about their purchases:

1) If one of the doors or trunk are not completley closed the remote keyless will not lock it. Also, the power door lock button will not lock the driver's door while it is open. Standard Honda dummy-proof since at least my 1985 Civic. SE does not come standard with Alarm, as far as I know. You may have dealer installed Alarm or an add-on Honda alarm, which may be the cause of the malfunction.

2) You should not use Armor All or Turtle wax 2001 on Vinyl. Buy a Honda vinyl and leather treatment spray and use that. There have been instances where Armor all caused the vinyl on Hondas to bubble. Honda will not cover warranty replacement on the plastic that was treated with Armor all or anything else other than mild soapy water and Honda Vinyl and leather threatment. Honda vinyl treatment has a "low gloss/matte" finish, which drastically reduces glare from the plastic dashboard. It also reduces dust sedimentation, which is an inherent problem with Armor all and like treatments.

Hope this helps.

lillibbie · March 2005

Greetings everyone:

About to marry a wonderful gal who owns a '98 Honda civic 5-speed (manual) with roughly 180,000 miles on the odometer (achieved mostly through highway driving). Although she is great, she has dumped her car maintenance on my plate. So, I took the car to get an oil change this morning (seemed smart as the last oil change was 4,500 miles before). Anyway, I thought it might be good to get an overall inspection on the car to see what needed replacing and, of course, as one would expect from a mechanic shop, they came back with a list of every possible thing that should be replaced. Now granted, I'm trying to track down what's been replaced thus far (i know the brake pads were replaced recently), but was wondering if anyone had insight on the plethora of other parts they recommended changing (pretty sure i'm gonna replace the timing belt as that is original and i know about the tire rotation/alignment)...

- pcv valve
- fuel filter
- radiator flush
- radiator hoses (upper and lower)
- radiator caps
- thermostat, seal, gasket
- timing belt
- water pump
- fuel system tune-up
- ignition wire set (including rotor and distributor cap)
- IN Rail fuel system tune up (is this any different that a fuel system tune-up?)
- wheel rotation/alignement

blueiedgod · March 2005

Congrats on the Aquisition, lol.
These should be part of regular maintenance:
- radiator flush
- pcv valve
- fuel filter
- ignition wire set (including rotor and distributor cap)
You should add:
- replace spark plugs
- air filter
- Change engine oil
- Change manual tranny oil (use HONDA MTF ONLY!!!!)
These are more of preventative maintenace, if you don't want her to be stuck by the side of the road.
- radiator hoses (upper and lower)-- Squeese the hoses, if they feel crunchy you can replace them. But there are also heater hoses that may have deteriorated as well.
- radiator caps -- there is only one, it can tested with cap tester, or just buy one at AutoZone for $5.
- thermostat, seal, gasket -- if it ain't broke why fix it?

There is nothing to tune up, as far as I know.
- IN Rail fuel system tune up (is this any different that a fuel system tune-up?)
- fuel system tune-up

Required items if you want the car to not self destruct, but it may cost you $300-$500.
- timing belt -- depending on the model year, should be replaced at either 60,000, 90,000 or 105,000 intervals.
- water pump -- although it may not be broken, since the timing belt is done, it will save you labor costs to do at the same time.

- wheel rotation/alignement -- every 7500 miles.

lillibbie · March 2005

Thanks for the advice blueiedgod...

nyyanks81 · March 2005

Does anyone know what size are the lug nuts?

I would like to buy a socket set and a torque wrench to install the wheel locks but am unable to locate the size of the lug nuts in the manual.

blueiedgod · March 2005

Does anyone know what size are the lug nuts?

I would like to buy a socket set and a torque wrench to install the wheel locks but am unable to locate the size of the lug nuts in the manual.

My Si is 19 mm or 17mm, don't remember now. Wow, you are probably the first one to torque the lug nuts here. I thought I was the only one doing that. I torque them to 85 lbs. ft. in criss cross pattern.

My advice, don't buy cheap "Alltrade" or whatever is the falvor of the month at walmart. If you can afford get Snap on, if not then Craftsman or Husky. It will save you lots of aggaravation and bloody knuckles later.

gorewolf · March 2005

Have you fixed this problem yet? I have a similar noise on my 2001 CRV with an automatic. It happens at 2100 RPM. Please let me know if you have a fix. I have heard there may be a problem with the belts loosening or the belt tensioner not functioning.

Thank YOU

rowaxe · April 2005

I have recently acquired a "free" '85 Honda CRX that has cost about $2000 so far. I am trying to service whatever I can myself. I'm down to a last few details and I cannot find any resources on the internet. I need to find out how to assemble the steering wheel onto the steering column. Someone took it apart without remembering how to reassemble it. I found one piece of blue plastic type material in a roughly square shape looking like it fits onto the screws that hold the springs for the horn. The problem is, there's only one and it's ripped off. I tried to re-assemble it but I can't figure how. I've replaced the plastic squares with flexible soft plastic bits of similar size and shape. Is there someplace I can look for help. i'm stuck in New Zealand and the Hayes manuals are OUTRAGEOUS here. it's like $75 to get one. I also need to find a photo of an original dashboard so I can see which parts have been torn out of that as I have gaping holes where some parts were.

flynfl01 · April 2005

Hello all. My car is a 2004 Civic LX coupe. Since I do not have a garage, I'm wondering if I should apply some kind of protection to my dash and plastic on the doors before the hot summer months. I've seen several cars where the dashes have started to fade and would like to preserve mine as long as possible. I've heard Armor All and Turtle Wax both make good products for protecting interior trim. Anyone had experience with these on their Civics? Do they work well? I'm concerned that applying these to the dash may cause unwanted glare, but I don't want to leave the dash unprotected, even though I do use a sunshade. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks very much.

blueiedgod · April 2005

I have recently acquired a "free" '85 Honda CRX that has cost about $2000 so far. I am trying to service whatever I can myself. I'm down to a last few details and I cannot find any resources on the internet. I need to find out how to assemble the steering wheel onto the steering column. Someone took it apart without remembering how to reassemble it. I found one piece of blue plastic type material in a roughly square shape looking like it fits onto the screws that hold the springs for the horn. The problem is, there's only one and it's ripped off. I tried to re-assemble it but I can't figure how. I've replaced the plastic squares with flexible soft plastic bits of similar size and shape. Is there someplace I can look for help. i'm stuck in New Zealand and the Hayes manuals are OUTRAGEOUS here. it's like $75 to get one. I also need to find a photo of an original dashboard so I can see which parts have been torn out of that as I have gaping holes where some parts were.

That is about the price for HELMS manual. Hayes is not worth it. Check out ebay for a used Helms manual. Also, if you find a CRX enthusiast website, there may be people who will give you Helms in .PDF format for free or a $1.

blueiedgod · April 2005

Hello all. My car is a 2004 Civic LX coupe. Since I do not have a garage, I'm wondering if I should apply some kind of protection to my dash and plastic on the doors before the hot summer months. I've seen several cars where the dashes have started to fade and would like to preserve mine as long as possible. I've heard Armor All and Turtle Wax both make good products for protecting interior trim. Anyone had experience with these on their Civics? Do they work well? I'm concerned that applying these to the dash may cause unwanted glare, but I don't want to leave the dash unprotected, even though I do use a sunshade. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks very much.

Your dealer should carry Honda vinyl and leather protectant. It is a low gloss/Matte formulation, and is the only one that will not void your warranty if your plastic cracks. I belive the owner's manual mentions it in the "care" section.

You should clean the surfaces with mild soapy solution, as per manual. I use Armor all cleaning wipes, and then apply the Honda Vinyl and leather protectant to a microfiber cloth and wipe on. It is better than Armor all because it does not attract dust, and it does not blind you on a sunny day.

Also, I use one of those round shades in the windshield. I think it is called Miracle shade, it folds onto itself into a small flat circle for storage, but when unfolded, there are 2 pieces that cover the whole windshield.

asg2307 · April 2005

I have been searching the Internet but can not find a good source for used parts. Specifically looking for the strip on hatch on bottom of rear window, and windshield wiper switch.

blueiedgod · April 2005

I have been searching the Internet but can not find a good source for used parts. Specifically looking for the strip on hatch on bottom of rear window, and windshield wiper switch.

Your best bet would be to drive into the "not so good" part of town and find a junk yard. Looks like new one from Honda is $137
Part number 9 in the picture.
http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/auto/jsp/mws/prddisplay.jsp?inputstate=5&catcgry1=Civi- - c&catcgry2=1985&catcgry3=WGN+**+4WD&catcgry4=KA5MT&catcgry5=STEERING+WHEEL+SWITCH

theracoon · April 2005

Also, if you find a CRX enthusiast website, there may be people who will give you Helms in .PDF format for free or a $1.

Of course in the US this would be a violation of US Copyright Laws.

(use your imagination to insert a non-car smiley here)

coldwellkt · April 2005

I am taking my car in tomorrow because it doesn't seem to be shifting into overdrive correctly. When I drive the car it will take a little bit for it to shift the first time and when it does it goes all the way up to 3 RPM's and then it won't shift again until it gets between 4 and 5 RPM's. Does anybody know what's wrong with it?

Thanks,

ColdwellKT

blueiedgod · April 2005

I am taking my car in tomorrow because it doesn't seem to be shifting into overdrive correctly. When I drive the car it will take a little bit for it to shift the first time and when it does it goes all the way up to 3 RPM's and then it won't shift again until it gets between 4 and 5 RPM's. Does anybody know what's wrong with it?

Thanks,

ColdwellKT
Year, model, trim, options, miles?

At what RPM was it shifting before? What RPM's would you like for it to shift at?

P.S. 3 RPM = 3000 RPM, 4 RPM = 4000 RPM and so on.

ddecker5 · April 2005

I have a 97 Honda Civic with 130K miles. What is the best oil to use for it, and do I need a special tool to change the oil filter?

Thanks

Honda Civic Care and Maintenance

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