I agree with some of what you've said. But in reality the civic does in no way compare to its German rivals. I downsized from a Bmw 318is to a Civic ls 1.5vtec and have been regretting it ever since.
The chassis is not stiff, making handing at speed, like driving a canal boat on the roads. This is not helped by being front wheel drive. When you approach a bend you get loads of understear then the chassis flexes and wobbles, making it really, really unsafe to be driven at speed. I admit the economy is good when at low revs but the vtec won't kick in untill 4000revs - so you have no power, no power, lots of power for a millisecond and then you have to change gear again and your back where you started. On hondas website it states that the engine in this vehicle is capable of 135mph. I can only laugh at this statement. The 1.5vtec I have won't do more than 100 and that's pushing it to f##k. You talk of the little green light on your dash. This is honda 's brilliant idea of an automatic economy setting (ECONO) that switches off nearly all the power to the engine. This is awful and dangerous. When you change lane on the motorway and have cars approaching at speed there is just no power to increase speed and get out of the way of upcoming traffic. I have to drop down to sometimes 3rd just to get the thing to accelerate. The driving position is terrible giving me chronic back ache on long journeys. The ride is bumpy and noisey. The gear change isn't smoothe at all, due to an extremely springy clutch with a very odd biting point.
I'm sure your now thinking that the one I bought must be a banger. Not true. It had only done 40k miles, full service history and had 1 previous owner (a lil old lady). In contrast to the BMW: the ride was smooth, quiet, the handling was pin point accurate, it was comfortable, you put your foot down slightly in 5th and your off. However, admittably the economy is much better in the civic. One can get 45mpg out of the civic and I was getting little over 30mpg in the BMW.
The only good points I would say there are with this car are:
>Economical
>Reliable
>Lots of toys (air con, elec windows, sunroof etc)
However, I would give caution to anyone expecting anything else from this vehicle because it simply won't perform.
I agree with what you have to say. I accidentally purchased one of these vehicles (Car was bought for me, long story). Anyway here's my summary:
> Very unresponsive. My girlfriend's 1.2 Corsa is faster than it. This is due to the econo setting turning off the valves in the engine. Also 5th gear is purely 4 cruising - you cannot accelerate in 5th making motorway driving a nightmare. 114bhp but only 100mph max.
> Poor handling. Front wheel drive. Thin bicycle wheels. Long chassis with uneven weight distribution. However good brakes (discs all round)
> Economy. It is economical if you drive around like a lil old lady - not going above 4000rpm. However, in a car which is as unresponsive as this I find myself revving the nuts off it to get it to move. This then makes the fuel efficiency drop down dramatically. So I find myself spending more on petrol than I have with previous cars.
> Styling. The car is ugly in my opinion. Not helped by the abundance of Rover 400's which are exactly the same.
> Interior is fine. Lots of gadgets, nice seats, but a bit dreary. Also, what's the point in a sunroof and AC. The extra weight from electric windows all round, sunroof and AC makes the car heavy and makes the performance even worse.
>Reliability. Honda engines are bullet proof and build quality is good. So no problems there. However, I have had 2 leaks.
> Practicality. Massive boot. Plenty of leg room.
In summary. Good as a lil run around to pop down to Lidl with enough space in the boot for your zimmer frame. However, if you're under 60 you will be disappointed. Younger drivers stay clear of this model. The Civic LS is designed purely for economy. No matter how much you spend on mods, the increase in performance will be minimal. Civic 1.6 ES vtec or 1.8 VTi is much much much better and more worth the money.
To the previous reviewer, you should have stuck to your e36 Beemer mate. A whole different class to this car.
If you have an 1.5i LS, there's definitely something wrong with your car.
This car gives 192 Km/h max and does it in 4th gear.
In 5th gear you can only get 180 Km/h, and this gear is unable to go over 6000 rpm (maybe less).
By the way, one amazing feature of this car, which I've tried, is the ability to get 115 Km/h on 2th gear. If your car can't do this, then there's something wrong with it.
Unlike what you said, this car is quite responsive for it's fuel consumption and motor size.
Beware that there are two different Civics from the same age:
- The "Rover" style (sedan and Aerodeck [van]) that the second comment talked about - which it's really ugly;
- The "Japanese" style (Hatchback and Sedan), that is what I've got - it's a sporty car, remember that.
I can assure you that the "Japanese style" is pretty well balanced and safe on city and country side roads with demanding curves(and probably beats the BMW here) and maybe a little less fitted for motorways. But since it gives only 180 Km/h of cruising speed, I think it's quite good for what it needs.
By the way, the green light is just an indicator to the fuel consumption you're doing, and it's related to the Vtec fuel saving mechanism.
Unlike what most people think, the difference vtec makes in LS models is in the way it behaves before reaching 3000 rpm (not sure of the value here) when it uses only 8 valves instead of the 16 available.
About the driving position, that's a fact, that's the only downside I find on my car, specially because the 96-98 models don't have a lowerback adjustment system. Notice that I'm not looking for a comfortable ride, but for a city-sportive one.
Between BMW gasoline models and Honda Civic, the last is definitely the best cost/benefit in terms of mechanics, fuel consumption and even power (if you get hands on a 1.6 VTI model that has 160hp output).
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