2001 Honda Civic EX review from North America

Anti-theft radio "goes to code" every few days for no reason at all, clearing the clock setting, tone settings, and all radio presets. Supposedly Honda knows about this problem, but where's my letter of acknowledgement?

Various interior rattles have already cropped up, which I find surprising on a Honda with less than 4,000 gently-driven miles on it. The glovebox door doesn't fit properly, and neither does the passenger's side airbag cover or climate control surround.

Various rubber pieces around the windows and along the roofline don't fit properly either. I'm quite surprised (and generally disappointed) in these poor build quality traits, even on a cheap model like the Civic. But hey... this thing has an $18,400 sticker price! It's not THAT cheap!

Also, the dealer-installed alarm system hasn't worked properly since about week three, but that's a DEI problem.

The automatic transmission delays its downshift too long, which is very (very) annoying. I'll slow down to turn a corner, then step on the gas to accelerate. The car lugs in too high a gear for about two seconds and then it finally realizes to downshift. My 1989 Civic's auto transmission never did this, nor do any of the GM auto transmissions I've driven and owned over the years. Oh, and sometimes it clunks heavily into 3rd gear, which I don't particularly like either.

I can't stand the driver's seat right-side armrest, which is almost completely useless and only gets in the way. Why, oh why did they design that? Honda should've installed a full center console, like the one in my Mom's 1999 Civic Value Package sedan. The idiotic little "pen holder" (I can't think of any other name for it) in the console is useless too.