Faults:

The front brake discs are warped.

The air conditioning needed to be re-charged.

The radiator fans stopped working causing the car to overheat in traffic.

Rattles from behind the trim.

General Comments:

Very rapid in a straight line, only a little body roll in high speed cornering.

Reasonable fuel economy if driven sensibly.

Understated looks mean that I feel confident leaving it unattended, although I had to fit an alarm as they are not standard.

Why do they all seem to warp their front discs?

My only criticism is the steering. The wheel is too big and the turns to lock too many. This makes tight bends very difficult to take at speed.

Faults:

Nothing so far.

General Comments:

The Civic is a beauty in green with the rear spoiler and the aluminum wheels. It gives the car a sporty yet elegant look.

The interior is very pleasant, combine that with all the comfort and convenient options, you have a car that you can enjoy for miles to come.

The ride is excellent and it handles reasonably well.

The car is rock solid. You don't hear any squeaks and rattles. (I wish I can say the same about the 01 that I test drove)

The VTEC engine is smooth and fairly peppy and it get great gas mileage.

The automatic transmission is the down fall of the car. When slowing down to 15 mph and then accelerating it clunks into the gear harshly. Whenever I put the car into drive, the transmission won't shift into drive until about 2 seconds later. If I step on the gas any sooner it will pop into gear making the tires chirp. It holds the 2nd and 3rd gear unnecessarily too long up hill. Sometimes it won't shift gears until it is revved up to 3500 RPMs. I took it to the dealers to have it checked out and they told mt that the transmission was operating fine. (The 01's auto transmission was absolutely perfect.)

If I would have bought one with the 5 speed,it would have been the perfect car.

Overall I like my car a lot, but if it was a 5 speed I would absolutely adore this car.

Faults:

Rear Wheel bearing - common problem.

General Comments:

The Honda 1,8 VTI.

What a car, it corners like its on rails, difficult to unsettle and the noise it makes when the engine engages VTEC in the upper rev band, its fantastic.

I'd always seen these cars around and thought they were just like normal Gti's- in fact they are something completely different. The 1.8 power unit has similar power to a V6, but with a lighter engine coupled to a much lighter car, it makes for some embarrassed faces when you pass.

It is like Jekyll and Hyde, you can poodle around town at low revs and when on the open road and getting near the 5,500 rev mark it simply takes off and leaves (or puts distance on) whatever is behind. The only niggle is that in straight line "off the lights" performance it does tend to need winding up - but once your in the power band of the VTEC, every time you need to change gear the next gear is right where it needs to be for the power. This makes for easy overtaking, it can almost be intoxicating at times and can really motor.

The rev line is way up around the 8,300 mark, although you rarely need to take it that far since the power comes on strong at about 6,000 and tails of after 7,500. You have to be careful in this car with the performance, since you can quickly exceed even motorway speeds and the engine wants to keep on going.

As for problems, the only thing that has gone wrong in a year is a rear wheel bearing, which apparently is common on these "a touch expensive" when only the dealer stocks the item, but then it is a Japanese made car, although the 5 door is from Swindon.

If your after a 5 door family run-around with a bite, then this car would definitely be for you. Take the kids to school and then take the long route home!!