Any thoughts on Honda Civic i-VTEC 1.8..?
Discussion
Hi all
Currently driving a 2014 mk 7 Golf but have decided to get rid of it because,
1. I used to do fair bit of driving and wanted a comfortable motorway crusier which is no longer the case
2. I have read up on the 7 speed DSG box and no longer want to take the risk of owning a car with this box which can apparently break at any time and leave you with a repair bill for thousands....
Now my commute to work is only around 20 minutes I am looking for a new car in the region of 3-5.5k and am interested in a 2011 Honda Civici- VTEC 1.8, it seems a pretty decent car with a decent engine. I've heard the ride is pretty harsh though (some say shocking) and wondered if anyone had any thoughts/advice? Would going from a mk7 Golf (which are quite renowned for ride quality) into this be a bit too shocking?!
Just thought I'd ask and would appreciate any thoughts from anyone who's owened one.
Cheers
Currently driving a 2014 mk 7 Golf but have decided to get rid of it because,
1. I used to do fair bit of driving and wanted a comfortable motorway crusier which is no longer the case
2. I have read up on the 7 speed DSG box and no longer want to take the risk of owning a car with this box which can apparently break at any time and leave you with a repair bill for thousands....
Now my commute to work is only around 20 minutes I am looking for a new car in the region of 3-5.5k and am interested in a 2011 Honda Civici- VTEC 1.8, it seems a pretty decent car with a decent engine. I've heard the ride is pretty harsh though (some say shocking) and wondered if anyone had any thoughts/advice? Would going from a mk7 Golf (which are quite renowned for ride quality) into this be a bit too shocking?!
Just thought I'd ask and would appreciate any thoughts from anyone who's owened one.
Cheers
tommyG2022 said:
Hi all
Currently driving a 2014 mk 7 Golf but have decided to get rid of it because,
1. I used to do fair bit of driving and wanted a comfortable motorway crusier which is no longer the case
2. I have read up on the 7 speed DSG box and no longer want to take the risk of owning a car with this box which can apparently break at any time and leave you with a repair bill for thousands....
Now my commute to work is only around 20 minutes I am looking for a new car in the region of 3-5.5k and am interested in a 2011 Honda Civici- VTEC 1.8, it seems a pretty decent car with a decent engine. I've heard the ride is pretty harsh though (some say shocking) and wondered if anyone had any thoughts/advice? Would going from a mk7 Golf (which are quite renowned for ride quality) into this be a bit too shocking?!
Just thought I'd ask and would appreciate any thoughts from anyone who's owened one.
Cheers
I had a Civic Type S GT with that engine, the ride definitely wasn't 'shocking', I don't remember having any complaints about that. The engine is very economical on a run and I could average over 45mpg over a tank with a 20 mile A road commute each way. You have to work it hard for any kind of performance but the car handled quite tidily, but never really encouraged you to do that. With this generation of Civic you need to check daft things like wipers, folding mirrors, roof blinds if it has them, temperature sensor as they were common faults. I had to replace the CD player as well as it would overheat and eventually gave up, probably due to the placement of the air vents. 2011 will be after the facelift so should hopefully be better for all those issues and should have aux input by then. You've just got to try one and see what you think.Currently driving a 2014 mk 7 Golf but have decided to get rid of it because,
1. I used to do fair bit of driving and wanted a comfortable motorway crusier which is no longer the case
2. I have read up on the 7 speed DSG box and no longer want to take the risk of owning a car with this box which can apparently break at any time and leave you with a repair bill for thousands....
Now my commute to work is only around 20 minutes I am looking for a new car in the region of 3-5.5k and am interested in a 2011 Honda Civici- VTEC 1.8, it seems a pretty decent car with a decent engine. I've heard the ride is pretty harsh though (some say shocking) and wondered if anyone had any thoughts/advice? Would going from a mk7 Golf (which are quite renowned for ride quality) into this be a bit too shocking?!
Just thought I'd ask and would appreciate any thoughts from anyone who's owened one.
Cheers
Edited by LightningBlue on Monday 31st January 20:32
They're decent cars & well worth a look another car worth a look is the Astra GTC SRI 140:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112080...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202107165...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201241...
Or the Alfa Giulietta Veloce 170 these are a reliable & a very good option:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201111...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112080...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202107165...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201241...
Or the Alfa Giulietta Veloce 170 these are a reliable & a very good option:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201111...
LightningBlue said:
I had a Civic Type S GT with that engine, the ride definitely wasn't 'shocking', I don't remember having any complaints about that. The engine is very economical on a run and I could average over 45mpg over a tank with a 20 mile A road commute each way. You have to work it hard for any kind of performance but the car handled quite tidily, but never really encouraged you to do that. With this generation of Civic you need to check daft things like wipers, folding mirrors, roof blinds if it has them, temperature sensor as they were common faults. I had to replace the CD player as well as it would overheat and eventually gave up, probably due to the placement of the air vents. 2011 will be after the facelift so should hopefully be better for all those issues and should have aux input by then. You've just got to try one and see what you think.
Cheers for that, yes I heard that the engines (which I assume are natually aspirated) need to be worked hard and lack a bit of the low down "shove" you get with a turbocharged TSI engine for example. 45 MPG sounds good, it looks quite a fun car for a fairly cheap "runabout" compared to all the usual suspects...Edited by LightningBlue on Monday 31st January 20:32
ZX10R NIN said:
They're decent cars & well worth a look another car worth a look is the Astra GTC SRI 140:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112080...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202107165...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201241...
Or the Alfa Giulietta Veloce 170 these are a reliable & a very good option:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201111...
Thanks very much, will definitely check them out!https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112080...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202107165...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201241...
Or the Alfa Giulietta Veloce 170 these are a reliable & a very good option:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202201111...
I owned a 2009 face-lift 1.8 EX for a couple of years.
Not a fun car IMO but then I was coming from sportier stuff like an mr2 roadster so perhaps not a fair comparison. I used it as our main family car and fir that it was okay.
The ride was a bit poor, quite crash and firm but not in a sporty way. I changed it for a 3 series which was a revelation in ride quality. Again the engine was underwhelming. If you're expecting high revving type r like fun then think again. At high revs it was thrashy and it didn't like to go there. But lower down the rev range it was a but gutless. Economical enough and nothing mechanical went wrong with mine.
What killed it for me was an electrical fault where the tailgate would randomly fail to open. Took it in to be looked at a couple of times but of course it didn't do it then. I changed the boot lock as well as the drivers door actuator but no luck. Never got to the bottom of it but it was very annoying.
Good points were practicality. Boot is huge and the rear seats fold away to create a flat load bay. They fold up too giving a large space in the back, you can wheel a bike in there. It was also pretty cheap to buy and run. Oh and they've always been a decent looking car.
Not a fun car IMO but then I was coming from sportier stuff like an mr2 roadster so perhaps not a fair comparison. I used it as our main family car and fir that it was okay.
The ride was a bit poor, quite crash and firm but not in a sporty way. I changed it for a 3 series which was a revelation in ride quality. Again the engine was underwhelming. If you're expecting high revving type r like fun then think again. At high revs it was thrashy and it didn't like to go there. But lower down the rev range it was a but gutless. Economical enough and nothing mechanical went wrong with mine.
What killed it for me was an electrical fault where the tailgate would randomly fail to open. Took it in to be looked at a couple of times but of course it didn't do it then. I changed the boot lock as well as the drivers door actuator but no luck. Never got to the bottom of it but it was very annoying.
Good points were practicality. Boot is huge and the rear seats fold away to create a flat load bay. They fold up too giving a large space in the back, you can wheel a bike in there. It was also pretty cheap to buy and run. Oh and they've always been a decent looking car.
Possibly the SE version might be a bit better damped, rather than the Si or GT versions.
The R18 engine is a very reliable engine. Some things to be aware of
- 6000 mile or 12 month oil change interval - just like VWs, it's crucial you use the correct oil (well, with most modern cars tbh)
- Valve clearances should be checked every 30,000 miles - find a Honda specialist willing to do it
- If there is a squealing from under the bonnet, especially under high electrical load, e.g. headlights on - the aux belt probably needs changing - they can do this from 60,000 miles onwards
- If there are lots of vibrations from the engine, then the mounts might need changing
Overall lifespan is around 180,000 miles.
The R18 engine is a very reliable engine. Some things to be aware of
- 6000 mile or 12 month oil change interval - just like VWs, it's crucial you use the correct oil (well, with most modern cars tbh)
- Valve clearances should be checked every 30,000 miles - find a Honda specialist willing to do it
- If there is a squealing from under the bonnet, especially under high electrical load, e.g. headlights on - the aux belt probably needs changing - they can do this from 60,000 miles onwards
- If there are lots of vibrations from the engine, then the mounts might need changing
Overall lifespan is around 180,000 miles.
georgeyboy12345 said:
Possibly the SE version might be a bit better damped, rather than the Si or GT versions.
The R18 engine is a very reliable engine. Some things to be aware of
- 6000 mile or 12 month oil change interval - just like VWs, it's crucial you use the correct oil (well, with most modern cars tbh)
I sold mine 9 years ago but the official interval was 12,000 miles or a year if I remember correctly.The R18 engine is a very reliable engine. Some things to be aware of
- 6000 mile or 12 month oil change interval - just like VWs, it's crucial you use the correct oil (well, with most modern cars tbh)
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