I have had no mechanical problems with my car at all. The car runs great and performs very well for this type of car.
The only problem that I have had is that the front right side tire had swollen and had to be replaced. The stock Michelin XGT V4 195/55VR-15 tires supplied by Honda for this car is expensive. I had to spend $200 to replace ONE of these tires!
You get a lot of car for the money (or should I say "bang for the buck"). The performance (acceleration and speed) of this car is very good and the car handles very well. The 160-horsepower VTEC engine produces a lot of power, but one needs to shift at high RPM's (5000-6500 RPM's) in order to harness the power of the engine.
The manual transmission is precise, well-balanced, with a very good feel, overall. This car is overall, a very fun car to drive and is a true driver's car (the overall feel of the car reminds me of the late 1970's/early 1980's BMW 320i's). It is an ideal car for being both a daily driver and as a car that can be raced and driven with "passion" (which is one of the main reasons that I bought this car).
Also, the quality and workmanship of this car is very good, like any other Honda. In the 1 year of owning this car, I have had no defects or problems with this car at all.
I only have a few minor complaints about this car. Since I am a car fan and take my driving seriously, most of my complaints are related to improving the performance of the car, which most drivers may not care about. The engine is relatively weak, in terms of torque and could use more torque (it only has only 111 lbs/ft of torque), which will help give this car even more "pick-up" and make it a faster car. The manual transmission should either be a less closely-geared 5-speed or simply a 6-speed, so that the engine will rev at lower speeds on the highway. The engine revs at around 3000-4500 RPM's on the open road on the highways, creating too much engine noise inside the car. Also, I also wish that leather upholstery and leather appointments were available for this car when I bought it last year.
I agree that Honda needs to work on torque, it makes for much more fun. The interior of most Honda's is disappointing, but you get what you pay for.
The engine is only 1.6 liters. So as far as torque goes the only way of seriously increasing it would be to add a forced induction Honda does not mess around with. Also, I concurr on the leather interior.
I agree with the whole leather interior thing on the si, but dude this car was only 9k when I got it, and it produced good clean power after adding my stage 3 clutch (with a lightened fly wheel), so if anyone is thinking about buying the clutch kit it will be the best 600 bucks you will ever spend (besides the ladies love the si).
I own a 2000 Honda Civic LX with 56,000 miles on it. Last month my air compressor went out and I had to spend $900 on a new one. I am really disappointed the the air compressor went out so soon on a Honda. Of course, my warranty had expired two months before. Laura, Mobile, Alabama.
For a 1.6L engine, what more can you expect in it!?!? This thing hauls and there's no denying it! You want a race car? Buy one. Honda made their cars to last. If they added more speed, people would kill the engine so fast it'd ruin their Honda name as long lasting. I got my money's worth. All 160hp's worth.