1998 Honda Civic 1.4i 1.4 from UK and Ireland

Summary:

ULTRA reliable!!!

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong in 30,000 miles of driving!

General Comments:

Having previously always owned performance cars, I guess I was expecting too much from this 1.4 engine. But when I first took to the driving seat, I was pleasantly suprised by the town driving experience as the engine provided a enough power to potter around below 40mph. On the motorways however, this car is totally under powered (what do you expect from a 1.4!) and struggles on the slightest incline or when overtaking.

On the plus side, this car is VERY easy to drive and has an excellent turning circle (great for those U-turns in narrow roads). The fuel economy is *okay*, although I expected it to be better than 35mpg whilst doing mostly motorway driving. And considering that my father's 1.4 manual Vauxhall Astra did around 45mpg and a friend's 1.6 Astra managed 40mpg on similar journeys, I would have hoped the Civic could have done better.

Handling is good despite having such skinny tyres and suspension is also good for a standard car. So unless pushed hard in to a corner, the Civic was always neutral (never over or under steering) and handled bumpy roads better then most cars in class I have driven.

Overall, I'd say that the 30,000 odd miles I have covered in the past year have been totally faultless. Not bad really considering it's been racked up in such a short amount of time.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 13th December, 2004

18th Jul 2008, 00:32

I agree with you mate! In fact, I originally purchased a 1998 and have replaced it twice (the dark sky-blue was only offered one year, then I purchased the light sky blue, and now I have the green-bluish paint color). Maybe I should re-think such fortitudes <Civics> as I keep wrecking these autos (no fault of the manufacturer). Honestly, this is probably why I keep buying them. They are very economical and SAFE automobiles! I don't know what more I can say beyond this! Chris.

1998 Honda Civic EX 4 cylinder from North America

Summary:

Most reliable car I have ever owned.

Faults:

The CV joints needed to be replaced after 99,000 miles due too bad boots.

The brake shoes needed to be replaced at the same mileage.

Passenger side window switch stopped working at 85,000 miles.

Most repairs at this point have been the result of normal wear and tear.

General Comments:

This has been the most reliable and cost effective vehicle I have owned. Virtually nothing has gone wrong with the car in the first 100,000 miles that I cannot admit to being normal wear and tear.

I never have to worry about wheather or not the car is going to start or second guess taking the car on long road trips. I have only had to replace the tires once.

The car still has a lot of "pick up and go" after 100,000 miles and I have no doubt that I will be able to put another 100,000 miles on the car without putting too much money into it.

The car held up fairly well in a rear end collision.

The gas mileage has been great and held steady at around 30 miles per gallon.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 5th December, 2004

20th Jan 2008, 12:02

I purchased my 98 Honda Civic EX 5 Speed used back in late 2003. It had over 60,000 miles on it at that time. Overall, I really enjoyed my Honda - it was very reliable, and I must admit that I never experienced any severe mechanical problems with it. However, there were a few things that I became irritated with throughout the time I had this car:

* Both the driver and passenger side windows became extremely sluggish - sometimes they would not go down more than a couple of inches. At one point, the driver side window came off the track and my brother in law had to take the door apart to re-set the window.

* In the wintertime, I ALWAYS had a problem with my locks freezing. Make sure you buy a can of lock de-icer with this car!

* I have changed the tires quite a few times. I think I've got new tires on this vehicle about three times in the past four years.

* This car is EASILY STOLEN! The only reason I don't have it any longer is because it got stolen and totalled. The vehicle was locked, and somehow they got in quite easily and when they stripped the steering column, there's a little white disc that they used to start it.

* Most recently (the past year and a half) my boot would knock on the front passenger side and make a terrible noise when I was turning. Just before the vehicle was stolen, the noise also started on the drivers side as well.

Overall, the car was AWESOME on gas and I really enjoyed driving it. I would recommend this car to anyone who likes something compact and easy to maintain. If you have children and are looking for something with some room, I would recommend either purchasing a four door or something a little bigger.