New Civic Owner Reports

pat

Congrats on your new ride! Here's the place to tell us your initial impressions of your new Civic.

harvey44

Pros - killer mpg so far. Two tanks, 33 and 42 mpg. Fun as heck.
Cons - Cheap door plastic. Crack in rear deck plastic - ordered new piece. Small dent in roof.

Lovin it.

kero1

Just curious, the crack you have on the rear deck, is it visible from inside the car or from the tunk underneath or both.

I know a few people mentioned that some civic have rattles in the back of the because something with the rear plastic deck where the speakers go.

I do have quite an annoying rattle back there and hope it's just the rear deck. Funny though that when I try and move it and or make it rattle by hand I can't.

hangaralf1

previous posts have mentioned that the brake light housing was rattling against the window. i think they shoved a gasket or some sort of shiv? in there to stop it.

check the speakers too - there is only one bolt holding the speaker driver in "solidly". two tabs go under the metal part of the deck, but in mine, when i replaced the speaker, the bolt, which screws into a nylon "nut", was stripped, or rather, the nut was. maybe the driver is rattling.

harvey44

Rear deck crack - it's right where the middle seat belt goes into the deck. Visible from the inside.

M

85crx

I also was cursed with the rear deck rattle, and a few weeks ago, when I changed out the rear speakers I decided to try and fix it. I took a can of expanding foam and squirted it under the deck. The rattle stopped, but I also inadvertently managed to glue the center seat belt retractor so that the center seat belt will not pull out! So, I recommend that you have the DEALER do this, so if they mess up, its on them. I plan on keeping the car until it dies, so the thought of not being able to carry 3 people in the back doesn't bother me. I do hear another annoying sound from back there though, it more of a vibration or buzz and seems to be the seatbelt retractors in the rear deck themselves. I really like my EX, but it does seem to be a pretty "rattly" car for a company with such a legendary reputation. I had a Mazda3 for a short time(long story: was wrecked and this is how I ended up in a Honda)and it seemed so much more solid than this car over uneven roads.

xwayzz

:P I just worked out a deal for my new 06 EX-Civic sedan. I wanted the Hybrid but I just don't see the gain in MPG's (40+MPG's/ 50 MPG's) to be so significant. We need these estimates to be made under "real" world conditions. I drive my car back and forth to work at a steady 70 to 75 MPH. To go and figure out the MPG's at 55 MPH is.... pointless at best!

The Civic does not have any real competition, in it's class. The fit and finish, technology and attention to detail are far superior. Even the plastics are better on this car than on the competition.

To drive this car, is to love this car. As a commuter, this car hits the mark. The engine and gear box are perfectly matched, allowing the engine to show very little effort at most highway speeds and situations.

:mad: My only gripe is with the attitude and dare I say arrogance of the Honda dealers. I also own a 2006 Mercedes Benz ML and they treat you like you are the only customer they have. I was shocked by the way the Folks at Honda behaved. They act as if you should feel fortunate of the fact that they would allow for you to own one of their vehicles. "we have no lease specials, no finance specials and no incentives of any kind" "our cars sell so fast and are in such high demand, that we see no reason to do so"????HUH?

roundtrip

xwayzz

Whaddya pay for your "deal"?

xwayzz

Hey there! My final price (out the door) was for the sticker of $19,280. I'm still not very happy with how they took care of me, in reference to my trade. An 05 Nissan Altima S-2.5 with 33k on it is only worth....$12k???? Both Kelly and Edmunds have it at $14+ for the trade. I will be taking delivery of my new girl on Friday from Danbury Honda (CT),but Brewster Honda (NY) just called and they now wish to make a better offer........ the plot thickens!!!

brw115

Just passed my first 1000 miles. My impression-

Pros: Nice design, love the dash features and the peppy feel the car has when accelerating. Happily surprised by how much power the car has. Stereo is okay,not great.

Cons: Rattling Moonroof (see my other post) and the nagging "swaying" feeling the car has when you reach 65 MPH. It seems to take both hands to keep the car in the lane but there is not an alignment issue.

Overall- fairly pleased so far but I will have to see if the steering gets any easier.

xmontx

The only things I can complaint about the car is the rattling coming from the top of the sunroof and transmission. I believe it to be the sliding panel from the inner compartment is rattling. And lastly the transmission can be stiff. from 1-2 and 2-3 and down shifting from 4-3. Heard people had the same problem as me. And improvements were seen when they change the transmission fluid with GM syncomesh and others that are similar to those. I haven't changed mine yet, but feel really confident that has worked with other drives with the same case as mine.

bluecoat

About 1 month old now.

Mpg around 20 (published 30\40). As a comparison my 06 Camry gives 24 ( 24\32) for the same commute. and my 92 Mazda Protege gives 23 (23\30)for the same commute.

Other observations on civic LX : Higher wind and road noise compared to the other two cars. Radio (FM reception) is not as good as the other two cars. Initially I thought the Civic interior looked great, but after looking carefully I am concerned about the fit and finish quality. Rear window noise when opening and closing, Front window trim - inside(rubber) already coming loose. Front glass trim outside near wiper warped. Have had no real fit and finish quality problems with the other two cars.

Considering I bought this car for daily work commute with the follwing three main criteria I lost on all three counts --

Road\wind noise
MPG
FM radio

grfriedm

I bought a new Honda EX Aug 06 from DCH KAY Honda RT 36 Eatontown. Right off the bat, the gas mileage is barely 34 - 35 mpg and it got down to about 30.5 mpg in the cold weather. Sticker said 40 mpg. Could be worse. Drove the car at all speeds to determine best gas mileage.
Car does pull unexpectedly, left and right, from time to time and service said it was the tires. Guess car needs better tires before it kills someone. I personally find the car unsafe and do not let the wife and kids drive it. The shocks are mushy and almost appear worn out. Four people in the car and you hit a dip in the road, car almost bottomed out. People in car asked "what the hell was that". I said, "It’s my new Honda". Do you like it? They said NO!
Car door doesn't shut from time to time. Car door handle won't retract flush into inside of car door. Guess I need to get car in thru out the week because service (3x now) says "don't have the people in this weekend to handle that type of work". This is after the first time they told me this excuse. Thought they would bring someone in next time I scheduled the car for that type of work but NOOOOOOO!
Also, don't touch the paint or rubber molding w/ anything besides wet noodles cause it mars the paint something fierce and the rubber molding is torn up w/ as little as a finger nail impression. You ought to see what happened the first time I tried scraping ice off the car and windows. Oh, also, windows do not go down w/ the slightest amount of ice on them (even after traveling 40 minutes). You'd think it would warm up by then. Not real happy w/ this car.
SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST: ARE YOU LISTENING, DCH KAY HONDA, THE $625 CAR CARE PACKAGE DOESN'T PAY FOR [non-permissible content removed]. The coupon book is worth about $429 and you must be an idiot to think that spending another 20K for a new car and another $1100 for the recommended scheduled maintenance is worth the $250 coupon in the back of the book. Read the fine print. If anyone wants to talk more about the Car Care Package, comment on this subject and I'll get back w/ you. I'd like to start a class action lawsuit. The Car Care Package is a rip off and if you don't catch it before 90 days, your refund is "prorated" and you lose so much money over it, that it’s not worth pursuing. I found this out because I put 35K miles a year on my car and found out that the coupon book (Car Care Package) didn't pay for [non-permissible content removed] on the first 10k mile check up. I was basically told by the Honda finance person that the Car Care Package paid for ALL scheduled maintenance. Guess he lied or doesn't know his job too well.
This car and experience is a real bummer. I wish I had my old Honda, w/ 239K miles on it, back.
Another thing Honda, my BMW dealer treats me like gold.

targettuning

I too am not happy with my Civic either (see other posts scattered around for my complaints)and I won't repeat them here except for one that "slapped me in the face" last evening and does every time I get in it. The pattern on the fabric driver seat upholstry (the side backrest and cushion bottom bolsters)is disappearing, wearing off. This on a 2006 EX sedan with 7700 miles... Anyhow with regard to your fuel economy..it is about what the NEW and improved for 2008 EPA fuel economy sticker states. The Civic numbers have dropped to a more realistic set. They appear "real world" like. Simply ignore the EPA 40/30 mpg sticker it is generally not going to happen in spite of what you will read here. Others in the forum swear they get that and MORE.

eldaino

ok first of all, its silly to judge all honda dealers based off of one. Common sense.

some of the things you have posted just seem silly, or you got a major lemon. These are all things that you should have gone to a different dealer to at least fix or back to this dealer to address.

Right off the bat, the gas mileage is barely 34 - 35 mpg and it got down to about 30.5 mpg in the cold weather. Sticker said 40 mpg. Could be worse. Drove the car at all speeds to determine best gas mileage.

A HAA HAA HAAA! Are you serious? You averaged 34-35 mpg in a car that says its suppossed to be getting anywhere from 30-40? (ever heard of the the word 'estimate'?) You are getting smack in the middle of what the epa says you should get! Do you know what the new sticker for the civic is? 25/36. Your mileage is great. What has the world come to when we complain about 35 miles to the gallon? :sick:

personally find the car unsafe and do not let the wife and kids drive it. The shocks are mushy and almost appear worn out. Four people in the car and you hit a dip in the road, car almost bottomed out. People in car asked "what the hell was that". I said, "It’s my new Honda". Do you like it? They said NO!

geez. did you bother researching or test driving the car first? So many of these things could have been avoided. And this whole paragraph is weird. What kind of dip did you hit? They should have been complaining about your driving and not the car...(who asks people their opinion about the car after hittin a ditch anyway?)

eldaino

target, even if the sticker stayed at 30/40, his numbers would match up fine. You get 'around' those numbers. And thats what he is getting. (notice how he didnt get into his driving conditions?)

as far as you go, your car is jacked and something needs to be done. You have like the worst civic ever.

eldaino

Considering I bought this car for daily work commute with the follwing three main criteria I lost on all three counts --

Road\wind noise
MPG
FM radio

this was your criteria? I can think of about 10 cars that would have fit this description and you could have paid less.

As far as wind noise goes, mine never bothered me, but others do compalin about it. Again things that you could have thought about or noticed after several test drives.

targettuning

Worst Civic ever?? Not really, many have had the same complaints I have posted and more. I can't actually say that I have had a large mechanical problem or even a small one at this point. It is more a series of small un-Honda like things that constantly bug me..cause me to take off work, drive to the dealer (a 50 mile round trip) sit in the same old customer waiting area I had hoped to escape when I bought a Honda. I am satisfied with the fuel economy unlike others here so that isn't even an issue with me. But seats that wear out at 7.7K miles when our 1995 Stratus has perfect seat fabric @ 184,700 miles well,even long time Honda buyers/lovers have to admit something is wrong with that picture.

eldaino

yes there is! which is why i said you must have a huge lemon. My seats were always fine.

sandman46

Ditto here!

The Sandman

targettuning

And you think these things make it a lemon? What they really make it is "the new Honda" devoid of some of the previous high quality expected from Honda. In other words...they are starting to ride the reputation of earlier Honda's. To restate something I previously said "mine isn't the only one with many of these problems" Just because you do not have them consider yourself lucky.

eldaino

i didn't consider myself lucky; even if 30 people on this forum have horrible experiences with their civics, they represent a miniscule fraction of the population who owns them, and who are quite happy with them.

I still think hondas rep is fantastic, but no car maker is perfect.

grfriedm

All problems aside from the Honda itself: anyone have any dealing w/ the other issue of the "Car Care Package"? It was a $625 deal where supposidely it paid for a good portion of the recommended scheduled maintenance up to 65,000 miles. Again, after adding up the coupons that represented each scheduled maintenance (ie 5K, 10k, 15, etc to 65K), that added up to about 420 bucks. Did anyone buy into that deal?

targettuning

True but how many thousands (perhaps?) have these same problems and never heard of this and other sites where they can post their (poor?) experiences? So, although 30 here... your number...are complaining it still says there are problems in the real world. These 30...your number...complaints may be a tiny fraction of the overall 2006 Civic owners but they are contained within this relatively unknown site. Yes I agree the reputation IS fantastic but how about the actual quality? My experience says maybe not so fantastic.

tseosh

"The only things I can complaint about the car is the rattling coming from the top of the sunroof and transmission. I believe it to be the sliding panel from the inner compartment is rattling. And lastly the transmission can be stiff...."

I'll add to that the rpm hang issue, which totally kills the driving enjoyment when shifting the car. I won't buy another Honda because of this - there is no excuse for it. And the seats and interior/ exterior surfaces are less durable than anything I have seen on a car before. Again, no excuse for this. Other than that it would be the best value on the market!

kenlw

geesh, some of you folks must be awfully new at this buying a new car process.

You really need to drive THE ACTUAL car before you buy it.

You might take that opportunity to LOOK at the interior, NOTICE the hangtime (which a TSB supposedly corrects), as well as HEAR the wind noise.......

tseosh

That's quite the patronizing tone there, kenlw

- I didn't notice the rattling sunroof in the middle of the winter.
- I didn't take the revs high enough on the test vehicle to let the rev hang really shine.
- I didn't have evidence that the interior quality sucked until living with the car on a daily basis and watching it become more scratched and scuffed than my 12 year old Infinity.
- I didn't realize the exterior (paint) was substandard until paint started chipping off down to the bare metal.

Based on my previous experiences buying new cars, including great experiences with Toyota, Infiniti, and Honda (even selling Hondas years ago), I expected a much higher quality product.

BTW, there isn't a TSB for the 2007 rev hang. But there should be.

targettuning

I agree with the previous poster about a so-called "test drive" which usually means a spin around some pre-set route and takes a few minutes. Not to mention the salesperson riding along blabbing the whole time about this and that feature and "how do you like it?" etc etc etc... You MAY get a first impression during the test drive...if you are lucky. The real test is owning the thing for a few months or a year and of course it is far far too late by then. I try to rent cars I am considering buying but sadly no rental 2006 Civic.

eldaino

thank you!

it seems like the new civic get plauged by people who see that 30/40 and just buy the car.

targettuning

"See that 30/40 and just buy the car". Sure, and why not??...with gas over $3.00 per who wouldn't be sucked in especially if you like the design (I did and still do) plus the implied quality simply by attaching that Honda "H" on the front.

eldaino

um...because maybe there are other factors to consider before purchasing a vehicle?

still say you got the lemon.