07 honda civic

pmc8

Hi im thinking about buying a 1.4 petrol 07 or 08 honda civic and wanted to know is there anything to look out for on these ?.ive always had toyota up to now but dont like the auris so thought i might try the civic.

CiniO

1.4 is not the best engine. Go for 1.8

Nuw

As above, the 1.4 is a good bit underpowered in the civic, 1.8 is miles ahead without costing a whole lot more to run (insurance included). Other than that, pretty solid inside and out.

pmc8

Thanks for the fast reply CiniO,i drive a 1.4 corrolla now so im not used to having any power anyway,id love to get the 1.8 as they seem to come with better spec but insurance would probably be horrific on it.

Nuw

You'd be surprised by the difference in insurance cost between the two, get a few quote for both, sometimes, it's as little as 50 quids per year...

OldPeculier

Hey pmc8,
Myself and the wife had a 1.4 06 Civic for 6 years and we loved it. It had 250k km's on it when we traded it in. We updated to a 12 Civic 1.4. The car was just so reliable that it was an easy decision to go for the same thing again! We had very few problems with it. I hope that helps!

conzy

The 1.8 engine in that civic is plenty powerful for most people and its surprisingly frugal. I think that shape civic is a lovely car, the looks are a bit mad but its very versatile and has fantastic space, loads of storage and with the seats down or folded fully up you can fit a lot of stuff in it

colm_mcm

Insurance on 1.4 or 1.8 civic is a bit more than on the likes of a focus or Astra, so you may as well get the 1.8, they're as economical as the 1.4 and are a much more advanced engine. You also get extras that are missing on the 1.4 such as the panoramic roof, cruise control, auto lights/wipers etc.

I've had mine 4 years and literally nothing has gone wrong. It's very easy on suspension parts too, I've only just replaced the original front shocks, never needed drop links or bushings.
Battery, rear discs and front shocks is all that's needed doing outside of servicing.

pmc8

Thanks for all the advice guys they seem to be a solid car which is what i want as my corrolla has never given trouble so im after somthing the same.i still think ill go for the 1.4 with insurance and tax being more.

One thing i have noticed is there seems to be two engines i dsi and a vtec i thought all civics were vtecs ?, is there any major difference would i be better off saving some more and trying to find a vtec engine civic ?

colm_mcm

The original ones (up till late 08 I think) were the I-dsi which is the engine out of the older model, think it's 88bhp or so. the I-vtec is 100bhp and has lower emissions so is more economical. The problem is that civics are going for bonkers money, especially later 1.4s.

Another option would be a Corolla Luna, 06 or very early 07. Just before the Auris came out. They have some nice extras, will be nippier than a 1.4 civic, cheaper to insure too.

A Hyundai i30 or Kia Ceed would be an option too, the 1.4 has 108bhp and they're a well built car. You'd get an 08 for the price of an older Civic.

CiniO

pmc8 wrote: »

Thanks for all the advice guys they seem to be a solid car which is what i want as my corrolla has never given trouble so im after somthing the same.i still think ill go for the 1.4 with insurance and tax being more.

One thing i have noticed is there seems to be two engines i dsi and a vtec i thought all civics were vtecs ?, is there any major difference would i be better off saving some more and trying to find a vtec engine civic ?

As Colm mentioned above.
1.4 i-dsi was old model engine and it was fitted until August 2009.
Once car went through face lift from September 2009, it was new 1.4 i-Vtec engine.

As you mentioned about car from 07 or 08, I didn't think you could get 09 or newer with 1.4 i-Vtec. If you can, then definitely go for it if you don't want higher tax and insurance of 1.8 and don't need the power.

But I would really choose 1.8 i-Vtec instead of 1.4 i-dsi, even considering higher cost of tax/insurance and no need for extra power.

It's just more reliable engine. 1.4 is on timing belt which needs to be chanced from time to time. If you need to do it after purchase, this will wipe out savings on tax/insurance for next 2 years easily.

Also fuel economy won't be any worse on 1.8 i-Vtec than 1.4 i-dsi.

FortySeven

I have a civic type s 2007 with the 1.8 vtec. Love this car, very reliable. Just the best car I ever had. Suspension on the s is not for most drivers on Irish roads but it has excellent handling and just the right power.

It seems to get more frugal when I rag it which is handy. Truly excellent car and it still looks more modern inside and out than most.

colm_mcm

Even the non type S has firm enough suspension. I've seen it mentioned on every review of that generation civic, but to be honest, in real life it's only evident at very low speeds, going over speed bumps etc. It's not as supple as the likes of a Golf, but you also don't need to change suspension bushings every 5 minutes either.

Funny you should say that about the the fuel economy 47, if I'm doing back roads the fuel economy is often the same or sometimes better than when I'm on motorway, probably because I might go a good bit faster on the mway, but economy on twisty roads is surprisingly good given the speeding up and slowing down you'd do.

So to recap, I'd say if looking at 1.4 just don't bother with a civic, the dsi is too slow, the ivtec 1.4 is too expensive, get the 1.8 if you can, if not then buy a corolla or i30 or something which has a better 1.4 engine.

FortySeven

colm_mcm wrote: »

Even the non type S has firm enough suspension. I've seen it mentioned on every review of that generation civic, but to be honest, in real life it's only evident at very low speeds, going over speed bumps etc. It's not as supple as the likes of a Golf, but you also don't need to change suspension bushings every 5 minutes either.

Funny you should say that about the the fuel economy 47, if I'm doing back roads the fuel economy is often the same or sometimes better than when I'm on motorway, probably because I might go a good bit faster on the mway, but economy on twisty roads is surprisingly good given the speeding up and slowing down you'd do.

So to recap, I'd say if looking at 1.4 just don't bother with a civic, the dsi is too slow, the ivtec 1.4 is too expensive, get the 1.8 if you can, if not then buy a corolla or i30 or something which has a better 1.4 engine.

I've tested this a few times now. Trying to drive frugal returns 7.7l/100km. Ragging the beans out of it gets me down to 7.2l/100km.

colm_mcm

You're not ragging it hard enough

I've done a few runs where I try to get the best possible mpg, usually staying around 80kmph in 6th is the sweet spot. Managed 53mpg over 40 miles IIRC. I haven't the patience for that though.

StereoSound

You can't go wrong with a Honda Civic for reliability.... These newer 06' onwards models thankfully never got the little boy racer image that all the older ones had.

FortySeven

colm_mcm wrote: »

You're not ragging it hard enough

I've done a few runs where I try to get the best possible mpg, usually staying around 80kmph in 6th is the sweet spot. Managed 53mpg over 40 miles IIRC. I haven't the patience for that though.

I'm ragging it as hard as the roads and other drivers will let me!

Just switched it over to mph. Showing 38.7mpg and that has been over 171 miles of heavy traffic in town and heavy traffic on a 20 mile commute. I am a very aggressive driver and I would be commonly overtaking 5 cars at a time on my commute in, usually 70kmh to 130kmh 3rd into 4th. Foot to the floor. It's impressive. I used to drive a 3l v8 bmw. I got 20mpg if I was lucky and it wasn't any nippier.

pmc8

Thanks for all the advice guys, i wasnt aware that the 1.4 had a timing belt so its somthing for me to look out for if i do decide to go for a civic not really sure what to go for i suppose it all depends on what i can sell my old car for and if somthing else catchs my eye on donedeal.

bridster007

Great car and still very modern looking but check boot for sings of leaks - water may have collected under the spare wheel.
Seems to come in around lights or somewhere

colm_mcm

They don't have a spare wheel

Unless you're talking about the Saloon.

flossy1

had 2 Though that they were had on petrol

colm_mcm

Which engine did you have in yours flossy?

FortySeven

colm_mcm wrote: »

They don't have a spare wheel

Unless you're talking about the Saloon.

Mine has a spare wheel and a compressor.

(Blows large raspberry)

colm_mcm

Mine had a fridge in it last week.

Didn't come with the car either

billyhead

Whats the reason for the Honda civic not having a spare wheel. If your stuck on the motorway with a flat what are you meant to do?

colm_mcm

In the compartment on the drivers side of the boot there's a bottle of gunk and an air compressor, you pour the gunk into the tyre valve, then pump the wheel up, the gunk seals the puncture.
Honda call it Instant Mobility System, quite common on cars nowadays. Gives you more boot, reduces weight.

Doesn't work for more severe punctures of course, but in 4 years I haven't got caught.