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Comments
I'm paying $400 per month for the car and $200 per month for insurance and I've spent more time on the bus and in a rental car during January and February than I have in my car.
Another thing is that I didn't start having problems with mine until after 14,000 km...so for those of you with 2002s with less than that, you *could* be in our situation when you hit a certain number of km as well. Until you are dealing with this situation and you are dealing with a company like Honda that thinks it can do no wrong, you wouldn't understand.
And I agree with Chacha, there seems to be A LOT of people complaining about the same problem. The sad thing is if you call Honda Canada or American Honda, they'll tell you that they have no record of this happening to anyone else.
So I apologize if my post seems anti-Honda or angry, but I am very frustrated with dealing with this whole situation. I'm sure Honda's built in Japan or Honda's that were built pre-2002 are great cars...unfortunately I was sold a lemon that was built by North American Stupidity.
My 93 Civic had a major case of pinging at 60.000miles, but was also a POS car - the famed Honda reliability did not find itself on that car.
I would take it easy for 3-5 minutes after a cold start and no engine damage should occur.
Also:
Check oil level!
Might wanna go to mid grade fuel.
Dinu
I actually bought a 98 Civic new in November of 1998. I had owned it for 3 months and had 4700 miles on it when I noticed there seemed to be evidence of paintwork on the rear of the car and the little piece beneath the rear tail light did not line up properly. I called Honda and after dealing with their District rep and their customer service dept I ended up getting a 1999 Accord EX for dealer cost and received $1000 check towards that purchase.
They didn't have to do anything. There was no quality defect, the car ran fine, and someone else wouldn't even have noticed it. But they stepped up and I have been loyal to Honda since.
I did buy a Protege ES but dumped it after 7 months because of the rough engine and the car seemed to be on a path towards self-destruction when it was cold.
I'm assuming that you are in some way affiliated with Honda, hence the 'they can do no wrong' attitude, but even a handful of people with this problem is too many for a company that is known for their reliability.
I'm happy that your car works well. It was probably one of the ones built in Japan or you just happen to be lucky. I have a 2003 Civic Sedan rental right now with under 3,000 km that starts every time too. I wish that the Civic Si that I'm paying for did too. And I wish Honda would take this seriously.
I am in no way affiliated with Honda on a professional level. I've owned plenty of their cars and due to those experiences I am extremely loyal to Honda. Maybe I just have good luck but I have yet to have a major problem (knock on wood) with any new or used Honda we have owned.
I own a 2002 Si which was built in the Swindon, England plant. Our Accord was built in Ohio and it has been trouble-free as well. I am not saying that a problem does not exist in the vehicles here on Edmunds. But Edmunds is generally used as a complain forum and if you consider the number of Civics that have been sold since 2001, it is far from catastrophic, it is far from making the Civic a lemon, and it is far from making Honda any less reputable than before.
One local dealer has service so bad I don't know how they stay in business. Another plays "I don't care" sales games. No sale there!
My current dealer is pretty good and when they make a mistake they always do a satisfactory job in the end. One brake service took four tries, but they gave me a free rental on the fourth day. Some times you have to vent a little to get their attention. Then say thank you when they get it right. You would be surprises how well this works. This is my third lease from this dealer.
8200 Km on my 2002 Sir, very tight. Very satisfied. TMV tells the story if you want to compare.
Complaining about Civic's reliability out of frustration is a big NO-NO even at the Civic Problems thread.
I call it a "Honda superiority syndrome".
Lots of folks here nourish the car reliability and resale value priorities as their biggest reasons for buying a Honda.
They won't allow people like you to put even a slightest dent in that wildly spread public perception.
...Until they get problems of their own. But even then they'll probably blame themselves for not taking a better care of their precious "investment".
Sorry for interrupting.
If you will notice no one ever said that the people who are complaining aren't having the problems they describe. It's just not reasonable to then label Honda as unreliable just because your car has a problem. Most manufacturers would kill for a 1% defect rate and if even 1% of Civics sold between 2001-2002 are having the same problem that's 7,500 that would be complaining.
Basically, if you think your Honda is unreliable then what else are you going to buy? A Ford Recall ,, I mean Focus? A Sentra? Pretty reliable but there's a few lemons there too and you have a rear axle. A Corolla? Reliable, just like the Civic, but again you have people who complain about it too. What else does that leave? A Protege is reliable but the engine is a bit buzzy, but there are people who have had transmissions replaced in their Pro's. Doesn't mean all of them are bad though. Outside of that you have the Neons, Cavaliers, Sunfires, and Elantras of the world. None of which are setting the world on fire with their reliability and/or safety ratings.
Is anyone else having a problem with their 2002 Civic where the trunk just comes open at random times, or it won't close the first time you try to shut it???
I am going to take it in for service, but I wanted to see if anyone else has had this problem.
gperr
Another problem people have had with the trunk is with the trunk release lever inside the car... it sometimes gets stuck in the up position, so when you think you've closed the trunk, it is actually not latched. I don't know if this would cause the trunk to open at random times, though.
Greetings from sunny Miami.
They also come with an 80,000 mile tread warranty.
Bought it new, 97. Had all the usual issues...dome light working only intermittently after I had an aftermarket stereo installed...Fuel door release busted after some minor interior flooding, and seatbelt (driver) a bit iffy on the retract...
However, I must say I was downright guilty about "abandoning" this sweet car that served me 150% every day I took her out of the garage...why? After 97,000 miles, I did nothing other than change the oil, and replace the tires. No sparkplugs, brake pads, coolant, nothing. AC was as cold as the day I bought it...now I realize that I should be arrested for such an egregious display of neglegance to a vehicle, but honestly, I have never owned such a tolerant car...but, she was just too cramped and noisy in the end, but served her purpose well which was to 1- never break down and 2- save me lots of money...mission accomplished.
May she RIP, and forgive me...
It sat for a week, and it wouldn't start at all on Sunday. Replaced the orginal battery since it had been on the way out anyway, but it still wasn't starting. A couple of bottles of dry gas and techron, and everything seems okay.
Are there any known issues with the Civic fuel system? Pump/fuel filter?
The check engine light is now on, thinking it was because of the battery disconnection. How many key cycles does it take for the error to be cleared? Is there anyway to check the codes without having a scan tool? I know I can check my codes with a on/off sequence with the ignition.
Finally, there's a popping/squaking noise from the front right suspension area. Noise started after the tires were rotated. Thinking bump-stop or spring support issues, something out of place allowing metal-on-metal contact.
Thanks for any and all advice!
-B
Change the way you start the car.
Turn the key to the on position until the check engine light turns off. Supposedly this pressurizes the fuel system.
Then start the car. Mine starts on the first try every time, cold, hot, and low fuel, it doesn't matter.
If you want to check codes you can buy a Helm manual for the car you are curious about. (Around $75 and it will tell you how to fix anything in the car. MUCH better than a Chiltons manual.)
I recently purchased a 2000 civic lx automatic with appx 45000 currently
I've put approximately 900 miles on it so far and have a few problems I wanted to see if anyone had any suggestions or advice on
1) I seem to be getting pretty bad mileage from the listed average
my first tank averaged a dissapointing 31 mpg for appx 80-90% hwy miles but I had not had the 30 and 45 k service done the original owner only changed the oil and front brakes so I went ahead and had the combined 30 and 45k done at just over 44k
my second tank following the service got a dismal 23mpg for approximately 50 50 city hwy I thought possibly due to the gas treatment and oil treatments the dealer used in the major service so I waited again and my 3rd around 29.7 mpg right now im at 137 miles and less than half a tank so i have a feeling its going to be bad again (I spoke to the dealer and they suggested the oxygen sensor but he said a maintenance light should be coming on)
2)I've noticed a strange vibration after having the Tires rotated and balanced at the major service it seems to happen most prominently between 40-45 to 50-55 mph I think its a tire I tried some slow driving and turning doughnuts in a parking lot to try and figure out what it was and noticed what seemed to be a "dip" like one of the tires has a lump or something . I took it to the dealer and a mechanic rode with me but he said it seemed like road bumps to him its strange it seems to come and go and not happen every time I get in that speed range and at higher and lower speeds it isnt really noticeable it has been a bad vibration at times (makes me nauseated) any thoughts?
3) and most important the brakes act funny I'll hit them and start applying larger amounts of pressure and then its like they "slip" and the car seems to gain momentum and then catch again any ideas or advice would be greatly appreciated thanks
Bent wheel/rim
Weight on wheel shifted or felt
Tire pressure not the same in both front and both rear tires
Worn-out tires (bulge, cut-off part of tire on thread or sidewall)
Allignement off
Dinu
Dinu
What the heck is up with Honda quality lately? It seems the have gone down hill fast. I had a 92 Accord and it was not perfect but it was a great car. It had the original shocks when I sold it at 130k miles! I read the Accord posts with popping noises, engine problems. The civic posts are just as scary.
My question is has to do with a 98 Civic EX with auto trans. This is a friend’s car. The check engine light is on and the transmission seems to be delaying shifts. The engine seems to rev higher than normal before the next shift. I plan to try to hook up my laptop with OBDII adapter, but have not done this yet to get the trouble code. Anyone have any ideas what is wrong or is there a common problem with this year?
I ended up selling the piece of junk after head gaskets blew twice and a cylinder head went the way of Enron. Also: the A/C and radiator went... It only had 125K kms.
Dinu
I can tell you I have friends that have done NO maintenance and thier Civics are running fine. I've owned several myself and never had a failure. So I guess that would leave us right where we started.
On another note, I have also been getting really lousy gas mileage. An average tank will get me about 25-27 MPG city driving. I know it's winter, but I don't think it should be this low. On a recent highway trip I only got about 33-34. Could this be related to my gurgling problem?
Thanks for any help you can give!
But back to Honda problems. An intermittent sound like that coming from the dash can be a tough one to solve. You may have to wait until it gets a little more predictable, so you can get the dealer to try to isolate and fix it. Call your service manager and ask, maybe you will get lucky. Hopefully it can easily be solved while you have a warranty. Good luck
Further, I noticed that the maximum gas I can fill is about 10 gallons as opposed to the 13 gallon gas tank.
I will be grateful to any replies and remedial measures.
Quality has a lot to do with what the rotors can and can't take. BMW designed there rotors to sightly wear so that brakes don't glaze. Honda is suppose to me more fun to drive than a Toyota but what fun is there if you can't drive it hard every once in a while. ;-)
Looks like Brembo cross drill rotors will replace them soon.