2003 Honda Civic DX from North America

Summary:

I'm very disappointed and may never buy a Honda again.

Faults:

1.All four interior door panels had to be replaced because of some defect with the glue - within the first year the material on the door started puckering and peeling off the plastic interior.

2.The left speaker had to be replaced twice in the first year and a half that I owned the car.

3.Several clips that hold the plastic flush with the car interior, broke leaving plastic posts between the doors disconnected from the car interior.

4. A sensor (I can't remember what type of sensor - it caused the check engine light to come on) was defective and had to be replaced.

General Comments:

It seems like the interior is really cheap. I owned a 1991 Civi hatchback for 14 years and 222000 miles. The interior held up nicely, but this 2003 Civic interior does not seem very sturdy.

I've been to the dealer at least nine times for nagging little problems (defective glue on interior door panels, defective speakers, defective sensor, defective interior panel clips).

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 7th November, 2005

10th Jan 2006, 13:02

I too have an '03 DX, but it is a coupe.

No problems to date except for the plastic cover under the steering wheel had to be replaced. A service tech broke it while it was in service for an oil change.

My 91 4door had 260K when I sold it last fall.

I am a Honda owner for life.

2003 Honda Civic type r 2.0 from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Brilliant fun

Faults:

Not a single thing, Honda reliability at it's best. no rattles, nothing at all during the time I had the car.

General Comments:

Very quick car indeed, when used to it's full potential, you will be impressed.

Good looking, reliable, poor on fuel plus everyone wants to race you.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 6th September, 2005

2003 Honda Civic TypeS 2.0 petrol from UK and Ireland

Summary:

The car would be very good if it did not have all of the problems I have described

Faults:

The engine hesitates when ever I drive the car from a cold start, but the dealer has not solved the problem under warranty.

The alarm started sounding in the early hours of the morning due to a faulty sensor.

The battery failed after only 12 months.

At 12 months old and 8,000 miles all of the alloy wheels had to be replaced under warranty due to corrosion.

When ever I go round sharp left hand bends I hear a rattling noise from the front right suspension, but the dealer cannot fix it after attempting several times.

While the engine is warming up and I am driving in slow moving traffic the rev counter needle will drop to a low r.p.m. when ever I apply the brakes, nearly stalling the engine.

The engine has a small oil leak caused by the garage leaving a bolt out of the rocker cover when they tried to fix the hesitation problem.

My car has now only covered 13,000 miles, but just lately I have been hearing a metallic slapping sound coming from the engine bay when I press the brake and clutch pedals.

General Comments:

I am very disappointed with my Civic TypeS as I believed it would give me many years of trouble free motoring.

The dealer does not seem capable of fixing any problems with my car, giving me the impression that Honda does not care about its customers.

My cars warranty expires soon and I going to trade it in for a Ford Focus mark II.

I will not be buying another Honda again.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 4th September, 2005

13th Sep 2005, 12:59

I have had my Honda for one month and already it has been back to Honda for 2 new headlamps and motors as they screamed even if the lights were not on. Honda advised that 2003plate owners were subject to recall because of this problem. Now when I drive straight or turn right I have a horrible noise coming from the gear box (sounds like its coming from engine!) It crackles around corners and very embarrassing to drive! The reason why its crackling is that 2nd gear is too slack. Again, Honda have advised this is another problem subject to recall. If anyone has a 2003 plate please advise if yours has ever been recalled. I need to know if my sport is a Friday afternoon car or Honda are telling the truth and the previous owner did not bother taking it back to Honda. I would not go as far as saying that I would sell this car now. I absolutly love it. Its just a shame I bought the car for reliability and already taken 4 days off work to sort the problems out!

31st Oct 2005, 12:49

Had my 03 plate Type-S for almost two years with no major problems. The only recall that I have had was to fix the alarm problem. It drives well, has more than enough power to bring a smile to my face and, in common with all Civics, is a bit of a Tardis when it comes to interior space.

Dealer service (in Aberdeen) is pretty good although its nearly impossible to speak to a mechanic.

The only complaint I have is that brake-pads are not yet available on the open market - only from the dealers (at dealer prices).

With steering/suspension improvements, cruise control etc, I would certainly consider buying a new model.