Faults:

Power steering rack and pump.

Power steering rack and pump... Again.

Clutch master cylinder.

Clutch slave cylinder.

Brake caliper.

The paint has peeled off the bonnet and lacquer in other areas!

General Comments:

Absolutely terrifying build quality! Surely Honda got their reputation for building good cars from somewhere other than the Civic?

The dealer couldn't be more useless, they are quick to charge you for a diagnostic, but don't seem to understand their own results?

The power steering won't self centre; they told me that they nearly all did this, but decided not to recall them, and instead wait for owners to bring them back and complain, otherwise they just left them until the warranty was out, and then state 'sorry out of warranty'. You're looking at about £1500 to fix a fault that the car was sold with when new!

The fuel consumption is also about the same as a Range Rover. I do a regular trip in a Skoda Octavia 1.8, and it usually costs me between £35-£40; the Honda used £75, and gave me a numb backside.

If you are thinking of buying one, I strongly suggest you have an independent inspection, as the prices for spare parts are through the roof, and also check the steering feels as it should. Apparently this was a very common fault, and is very expensive to fix, or very annoying to live with.

Also the boot release handle feels like it was made for 50p, and needs WD40 every 2 weeks or so, just so the spring flicks it back, otherwise you find the boot opening when you least expect it!

Faults:

Transmission failed a month after owning car.

This is a good car overall though. Cheap to run and 30 mpg around town.

Replaced door door lock and ABS sensor, but nothing else. Runs good and reliable.

General Comments:

Car is fun and peppy. Good value for your money.

Faults:

I purchased the car with high miles, so it had some minor issues:

- Front bumper has a huge crack in it and needs to be replaced (partially my fault; it was a minor before winter hit). It's epoxied together for now until the weather warms up so I can install a new bumper.

- SRS light was on at purchase, driver's side seat buckle failed and would not buckle after two days - Dealer replaced for free under recall and turned the SRS light off. Dealer replaced SRS module and driver's side airbag for free under recall as well.

- 2 out of 4 speakers blown, stock CD player would stop playing CDs sometimes - replaced with new headunit/speakers myself.

- Some interior/exterior rattles, common with this year/model, probably age/mileage as well.

- Shifter ball cracked (shifter jammed and split it almost in half on a cold day) making shifting imprecise at times. Replaced shifter and bushings with Revo SS unit & aluminum bushings myself in 15-20 minutes.

General Comments:

Pros:

Generally, for the price I paid, I feel this car is a great, reliable, and fun bargain. The car is pretty easy to maintain yourself as well.

The car was well-maintained by its previous owner with a stack of service records, as normally I wouldn't touch a car with over 120k. The appearance of the EX model gives this car a nice, sporty look with many additional features (rear spoiler, 15 inch alloy wheels, decent handling package, ABS, side air bags, close-ratio transmission, vtech engine/better exhaust system, sunroof, etc).

The interior is comfortable and very roomy with good trunk space as well. The D17A2 engine, combined with a close-ratio manual transmission seems to provide a healthy balance of performance and excellent fuel economy. The engine is smooth and responsive, and it starts every time with ease. The handling is good, and the ride quality on the highway is excellent.

Honda dealer service was outstanding, as they honored all the recalls without question. I went to Honda expecting to have to pay $150+ for a seat buckle to install myself, and left there with money in my pocket and a safer car.

Cons:

The ride seems fairly harsh on rough pavement, despite its excellent highway ride, because of the suspension setup on the 7th gens. The harsh ride sometimes causes the ABS to kick in unexpectedly when stopping at higher rates of speed on rough roads.

The D17A2 VTECH motor does not respond to "mods" as well as the previous generations of Honda motors have in the past, it. If you're not looking for a tuner car, then the performance is good/peppy even for a high mileage, 127hp SOHC motor.

The manual transmission sometimes can be difficult to shift into first, which is a common issue.