Faults:

Noise or "squeaking" in the clutch pedal due to wear of the bakelite (pad) in the spring.

Brake pads that wear out prematurely and problems with handbrake retention on inclines.

Water leaks in the rear wheel wells.

Comfort is limited on long journeys and it may suffer from a lack of power.

General Comments:

This car can handle anything you throw at it. As someone who's owned numerous sedans with large engines and has now switched to a fuel-efficient car, I have no regrets. It's an absolute joy to drive.

The 5-speed manual gear ratios are perfect and make for incredibly quick starts, but acceleration is sluggish above 60 km/h, solely due to the engine size. It's not slow if you floor it, but this car practically begs you to. The engine revs quickly, sounds fantastic, and the clutch is so smooth when fully engaged it almost seems designed that way.

Steering is also excellent; Honda did a perfect job with a full rotation of the steering wheel for a 90-degree turn, meaning your hand always ends up at the top of the steering wheel when turning and shifting gears at the same time.

This is a driver's car through and through, but it has fallen victim to this model's inherited problems, such as faulty ignition coils and rear wheel bearings. But other than that, I love it.

The best brakes of any car I've ever owned. Enormous interior space—it's more spacious inside than most sedans.

No major mechanical problems. Regularly maintained and runs great. I replaced a few minor parts due to its age and mileage. The car has over 200,000 km and I think it will continue running for another 150,000 or 200,000 km.