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Honda Civic Hybrid Owners: Problems & Solutions
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Comments
How much does an fluid change cost for the CVT fluid?
my 06 HCH is running on just the electric motor. Does
anyone know more info on this. I guess the tach won't drop
to zero because the engine is still turning when just
on electric power and I am guessing the auto stop light
dosen't come on either. Very dissappointing.
under certain low speed cruise conditions it will run
on just the electric motor. Believe me I researched
it thoroughly, check out the Honda website. Although
its hard to know what those conditions are if you can't
tell when its doing it.
Den PGH
tunes77, "Honda Civic Hybrid" #1504, 3 Dec 2005 9:05 am
definitely won't start out from a stop with just electric
the new feature is when cruising under low load conditions
the gasoline engine will shut down. The Prius electric
motors are much more powerful. The thing that upsets me
is Honda must think buyers are stupid and don't care about letting the driver know what mode the car is in so they
can adjust their driving habits accordingly.
mpg in an 06)and stay there, when the ice starts back up it will drop. The engine restarting is so subtle as to be almost undetectable but it does do it and the temp here was only 10 degrees F.
Another problem which may be related is that sometimes the car (engine?)jerks with a loud noize at the moment it comes to a full atop. I tried to get the dealer to reproduce it when the car was still under warrantee. The dealer claims they cound not reproduce it.
What were the symptoms of your transmission problems?
That sounds like a bargain. Where do you live and how many miles on the car? I think they should have to replace the Catalytic Convertor as part of the emissions system. Several Prius owners past the warranty have paid $2100-$2900 to get their Prius back on the road with bad catalytic convertors. Good luck!
I guess the problem was the battery (regular one) needed to be replaced (over 3 years old) and the software update was needed.. VERY happy with HCH!! :shades:
Resale value is HIGH right now, but might not be after used '06 models hit the market, ya know?
As was reported in either Motor Trend, Road and Track, or Car and Driver, one of the magazine's noted the uncomfortable Civic seats. While the back's lumbar support isn't a problem, the headrest for me is. At 5'10" the headrest hits my head at an uncomfortable position.
Any suggestions?
Are the earlier Honda Civic's headrests different?
Do other Honda models have different shaped headrests?
Or does anyone know of a headrest with the same two prong base from some other vehicle, which might work in my 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid?
Sharon
2006 Honda Civic Hybrid
If that absolutely doesn't work, then there are two other fixes to try. An aftermarket seat cushion could move you futher away from the headrest.
Finally, if all else fails, the headrests from an 06 accord will match and fit in. Those are a little less protruding and might do the trick. I actually purchased one for my car. It's sitting in my closet. I got used to the original ones!!!
mcam
I am not from USA and in my country HCH is planned for sale at the beginning of next year. I wish to buy it but concerned about some exploitation issues. For example does anybody has problems with usage HCH in low temperature climate. I mean 20F and lower.
Thanks for feedback in advance.
:lemon:
"Cold-Weather Quirks: As I mentioned in the Cons, the IMA has some trouble waking up when the temperature gets down below -20C. The primary symptom is that on a cold start, the IMA battery charge shows its charge for a moment, then goes blank, then the Check Engine light goes on. Fortunately, in this case that light's bark is worse than its bite. If you keep the engine running, let the engine warm up for a few minutes then turn it off and on again, the IMA will engage and stay active. The Check Engine light will stay on for about a day after, then go off by itself; if you're in a multi-day cold snap then it may stay on for longer.
My one-and-only gripe with the design of the Hybrid is where they put the rear windshield defroster button. Some brilliant designer decided to hide it down low, to the left behind the steering wheel, as though it were an afterthought. When it switches off you can't tell at a glance. This is a problem when it's cold outside because the rear window fogs up quickly and takes a while to clear again."
Best wishes with your decision. I'm ready to give it a try. Here's to a more peaceful 2006!!
My HCH 05 model is about 6 or 7 months old. I take
care of it with proper oil change and maintenance at the dealership.
I live in texas and after winter (for about a month or more),
I see my HCH has been giving me about 120 miles LESS with whole
tank of Gas. Normally I get around 600 or 610 miles with
my full tank. These days I get around 480 or 500 miles max!!.
I take the same route from my apt to work and drive the same
style - no crazy acceleration, sudden brakes etc... My
driving style between summer and now is
same. The tyre pressure seems alright as I know
that is a major factor. Do any one of you out there
see the same dip in mileage recently. I have around 8K to 9K miles
on my car. What should I do?...
Any useful comments would help me.
-Thanks in advance.
All cars lose MPG in the cold. Hybrids are more noticable because people are expecting high MPG all the time "just because it's a hybrid."
Unfortunately, the laws of Physics do not care what kind of drivetrain you have.
Even moderate temp drops can negatively affect the hybrids MPG. This is my second winter with my HCH and I am struggling to keep it in the 44-47 range.
In part, with the Hondas (I own an HCH myself) it's because the IMA system is used less when the car's engine is below optimium operating temps, and that happens more in winter weather. Until prime op temps are reached, the gas engine is used more, the RPMS are staying higher, and the battery is being charged with the gas from the tank.
Your choices for helping maintain good MPG in the winter are:
buy an engine block heater
garage the car and use a space heater
Other than keeping the antifreeze warm and/or keeping the car stored in a warm area, nothing else will help. These will help a little bit.
But you need to come to accept the fact that your hybrid will suffer in coldish temps. I have been using a space heater for 25 minutes every morning, blowing 80 degree air under the front of my car from about 18 inches away. It helps a little bit - I do in fact lose LESS MPG every morning because of the heater usage.
Larsb-
That is an electric space heater, right? Are you really saving money considering that such heaters use a lot of energy? Have you done the math?
Even if it was more than for fuel, I'd rather pay the local utility company than Big Oil or a Saudi king ANYDAY !!! :shades:
I'd love the rear seat to fold down like the standard Civic but EVen the 06 won't do that.
The resale value of the Prius is much higher than the civics and they sell 2.5 to 1 in favor of the Prius. The plugin hybrid option from edarive is only for the 04 Prius or newer.
My next Hybrid will be the Prius. I want 100+ mpg.
If you are thinking of modifying a Prius you should buy an out of warranty 2004. Any mods to the hybrid system will surely taint the warranty. If you plan to add the $12,000 worth of batteries getting a high mileage Prius for a cheap price makes more sense. Good luck and keep us posted when you do the plug in Prius.
Thanks for any help you can give.
I have the same problem! I'd be very interested in knowing if you did get a different headrest and, if so, whether you're happier with it. I feel so miserable that I'm liking the car less, which is a shame.
I'm 5'2", so I guess the problem spans the spectrum of heights!
Hope to hear from you,
Emily
2006 Honda Civic Hybrid
Why not just tilt your seatback a bit more?
I have a few quick questions for those of you with the same vehicle:
According to Honda, during low speed crusing, the engine's valves close off, fuel injection ceases, and the car is supposed to be powered for short distances by battery power alone. What are you guys seeing/experiencing when this happens?
Specifically:
-Do you see the MPG indicator pegging out at 100 mph?
-Do you see any response from the IMA dash indicator showing "Assist"?
-Do you hear anything different during this mode of operation?
I'm just curious if my HCH is actually performing as it should.
Thanks in advance.
PS: I'm experiencing the same "bug" in the FCD that others here are.... As it operates now, my FCD is useless for tracking mileage.
I did, and unfortunately, no real luck. I'll call the dealer about it, though. Thanks!
"Honda highly discourages trading out a seats headrest. The headrest was tested with the Honda Civic Hybrid seat and they work together as a unit."
In other words, Honda won't look into the problem, nor will they help.
I've wrapped a lumbar support cushion around the neck of the headrest. This seems to have helped a bit. Though after spending a lot for this car, I feel a little like I'm having to create an adhoc answer that looks pretty terrible."
Sharon
2006 Honda Civic Hybrid
I've ridden in the Toyota Prius and frankly, I just don't like the style of the car. The gas mileage is also around 40 miles per gallon, no matter what Toyota maintains the mpg is.
The one thing I don't understand about the 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid is it's interior. While the Honda S2000 or the Civic CSI (I think that's the model name) can come equiped with attractive black leather interiors, the 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid doesn't even come with leather.
I have the blue and white fabric interior. And, yes I'm growing accustomed to it, but it feels so... ugly utilitarian 1970's Japanese car interior. Why?
Why didn't Honda design the 2006 Civic Hybrid with a cool interior?
The 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid has all these hi-tech features, it drives smoothly, the Navigation System is just perfect for my needs... But, the interior is bad motel meets oil embargo 1974 MacDonalds.
Sharon
2006 Honda Civic Hybrid
I drive a big 3 year old Hyundai GLX with 80,000 miles, which I drove regularly long distance highway miles. But now I am in new job, much less driving and I actually prefer a small car for ease of driving, maneuvering and parking. And good mileage is a plus, for guilt-free weekend cruising etc.
Now, having read every message in this forum, I have doubts about the following items and would like comments. I do realize that problems are the purpose of this message board and are over-represented, and if I look at ANY model car on these forums I'll see similar numbers of problems:
1. There sure do seem to be a lot of transmission problems. If there is a weakness to the Honda Civic hybrid, it seems clear to me it is the transmission. I only drive automatics. How long is the transmission covered under warranty anyway? Any one out there have over 100,000 miles and NO transmission problems or complaints?
2. I am concerned about cold weather starting etc. Its cold here in winter, and although I have a home garage, I park outdoors at work.
3. I am not particularly concerned about mileage. I never get EPA mileage and don't expect to. I figure I'll get much better mileage with Civic hybrid than I would with a normal car, and I like that idea. What else I want though, is a car that can get over 100,000 miles, with excellent maintenance and of course some repair. Maybe this is a good car, but not one that can be relied on for long term ownership?
4. Should I get the extended warranty, and for how long? I do no personal maintenance. I like to have the dealer do it. I can afford the 6 or 7 year warranty, but I'd prefer to take my chances with no extended warranty if the odds favor taking chances. Is the extended warranty a good deal, and if so for how long? By the way, my local dealer says they are Connecticut's largest volume Honda dealer (Danbury Honda). Did most of you guys buy extended warranty? Anyone who did or didn't and are to comment why? Would you do it differently?
5. I'm still considering Prius, but I think I'd prefer Honda Civic hybrid. I am, at the last minute, also thinking maybe I should look at Honda Civic EX non-hybrid. Maybe its more reliable long term and has no cold weather problems. But I might regret not getting Hybrid, and being scared off by cold weather stories and transmission stories.
6. Any friendly advice?
7. I hope you all don't mind my lengthy questions. I am researching this purchase much more than any other, but I think its appropriate. Hybrid technology is sort of new, and I do want to own this car a long time.
Ron Stephens
I share your concerns regarding hybrids. There are, needless to say, many more components under the hood of any hybrid, and so, many more sources of failure. None the less, I decided to go ahead and purchase a 2006 Civic Hybrid (without GPS). Its standard powertrain warranty is only 5 years and 60,000 miles, and so I opted to purchase a 7 year, 100,000 mile plan, which, if not used, will be refunded to me (offered by Herb Chambers of Boston).
I agree with you about the transmission, as well. Although I have owned 2 Subaru Justys with ECVT, and I had one of them fail me, they are a technology that started with snowmobiles, expanded into forklifts and then cars in the end of the 80s, and as such have come a long way towards becoming a sound automotive component.
Essentially, a CVT transmission involves two "pulleys" and a "belt" which rides on continuously variable surfaces as the bi-concial pulleys expand and contract to provide the requested torque to the wheels. In the case of a snowmobile, this belt is out in the open air, and you can cause it to smoke if you gun the engine up a steep hill, greatly reducing the belt's life expectancy. On a car, this "belt" is really a specially designed chain that is inside of an enclosed oil bath, and the "pulleys" are quite sophisticated variable cogs which keep the tension on the chain within a useable range for zero slippage. As a result, there is no fluid clutch as in a classic automatic transmission, but rather a simple start-up engagement inside of the engine side "pulley". This allows for operation with far less dumped energy loss from shifting gears with a fluid coupling, and so my Justys had very good city and highway efficiency for a non-hybrid car (36/48mpg). The reason my first ECVT failed me was this: I pushed it too hard. I commuted 70 miles a day, and I didn't back off on the gas when driving into a strong wind on an uphill stretch, and the poor little transmission eventually wore out (at 88,000 miles). Subaru decided to stop selling the Justy in the US in 94, so I don't know if they have made improvements since.
Honda also made forklifts with ECVT before their cars, but have typically taken an aggressive stance on making them more reliable and serviceable. None the less, it is still wisest to consider that if you are the sort of person who at times will require a lot of horsepower out of your car (lugging a full load up hills at speed), I would not recommend you getting it. I went ahead with it knowing that I would not be needing to push it with mine, either out of necessity or desire (it wastes the most efficiency).
2] Cold weather starting- should not be a problem. The Civic Hybrid behaves just like a regular Civic until the hybrid battery warms up anyway.
3] If you are driving just 5 miles each way, you can easily get over 100,000 reliable miles out of this machine if you don't have to push it too hard (as mentioned above).
4] I went with the extended warranty, simply because I really do intend to keep it a long time, and it is refundable.
5] The Prius is an impressive car (I have rented them from ZipCar), but they are more of a maxed-out 4 passenger car, while the Civic is a very nice 5 passenger car. The Prius has a larger motor/smaller engine, and so can attain even higher efficiency, but that is more dependant on driving habits than the actual average diffence between them. The Prius has a driving mode that the Civic doesn't: moving around with the engine off. Most important to efficiency is the stopped autoshutoff, though, and moving without a noise makes the Prius more accident prone in a parking lot full of pedestrians.
6] My friendly reccommendation is that you also pick a car that has what you need, but can be upgraded later if desired (I may later pick out a GPS). One warning: the car will take a mile or so to warm up enough to go to full hybrid mode in winter, so your efficiency will not be nearly as boosted in winter. My first tank efficiency was 53mpg driving along Rt 9 from Brooline to Framingham (20 miles each way), but I am a rather studied driver when it comes to high efficiency. PS: The radio in the Hybrid is awesome. I can drive through the infamous Needham antenna farm without any loss of fidelity. They won't say why this is so, but I suspect that it is due to a tuned dual antenna (between the windshield and the rooftop stub).
It is the EPA you have to thank for the efficiency rating, not Toyota, and it varies more with driving habits than any other single factor, hybrid or otherwise. My one take on the 2006H styling is this: at least the 'spoiler' on the trunk is not a significant obstacle to my bike rack or to the overall aerodynamic drag. It actually may prove to be a nice 'dent guard'.
I got the Galaxy Metallic Gray (Now renamed Pewter Pearl) so that I could have the nice looking Ivory interior. It doesn't look much like the supposed 'sample' in the brochure, but it is still nicer than your blue and white. Overall, it seems like an awfully stingy selection of colors that were unnecessarily coupled (exterior to interior). I guess that is how they managed to make such a nice hybrid so cheaply. Just one warning: drive gently. Especially at highway speeds, don't stomp on the gas, as this will really tax the ECVT, shortening its life span.
The 2006 Civic is supposed to have electric mode only mode at low speed startups. They changed the electric motor to get more power...
I chose the Prius 5 weeks ago. I used to live in No. Jersey and spent a lot of time in CT. Barring a sudden ice-age the weather is not too terrible. It's not Fargo.
That being said. I'll try to give you some unbiased
The new Civic has more style and according to Edmunds is more fun to drive.
Hybrids are basically ICE vehicles:
All ICE vehicles suffer in cold weather.
All ICE vehicles suffer from short trips.
The two together really kill Fuel Economy for any ICE vehicle.
Starting either vehicle should be no problem at all at anytime except for extended periods of say minus 20 deg weather. VT or ME or MN or SD.
With the proper care there should be no reason not to expect either vehicle to carry you well past 100000 mi.
Honda transmission problems? I will leave that to someone else to answer since I have no expertise whatsoever.
There is no transmission on a Prius.!!!
An extended Warranty is a personal preference. I chose not to get one because I will put 200000 mi. on my Prius in 4 yrs so I'd be buying it for only 2 yrs. Owning Toyota's since 1990 I've never had any vehicle need anything more than normal maintenance for the first 100000 mi.
The Prius is quicker and faster than the HCH and gets about 10% better FE over long trips ( according to Edmunds ).
Whichever you choose get a Hybrid.
You wrote: "There is no transmission on a Prius.!!!"
Of course the Prius has a transmission. The specifications link on the Prius website states "TRANSMISSION Electronically controlled continuously variable transmission (ECVT)".
Any vehicle without a transmission (to TRANSMIT power from the engine to the wheels) would be nothing more than an expensive paperweight.
It has a planetary gear power split device that is sealed. It is not a transmission in the sense of other vehicles on the road. It has to be called something so 'transmission' is a commonly understood term.
Yes I agree that the power has to be transmitted to the wheels.. it's just different.