At 90000 miles a faulty oxygen sensor caused a slight delay in acceleration.
This car is amazingly versatile! The hatchback can haul more than you might imagine.
I get 45-60 miles per gallon, and it accelerates very strongly. There is no other car that mixes this much power with fuel efficiency.
I wish Honda would revive this car and power train!
I also have a 92 Civic VX 3 door. I bought it with 43,000 miles and have owned it for 9 years. At the time, it was all I could afford. It now has 134,000 miles and it runs just as great as the day I bought it. It is a really basic car, but its versatile hatch has hauled more than its share of cargo. I have had several friends request my car to help haul cargo when they are moving. The gas mileage is phenomenal. I probably average about 40 mpg in mixed driving. I love the fast acceleration and the 5 speed transmission. At 120,00 miles, I did have to put a thousand dollars into replacing the ball joints and coil springs, but it drives like a new car now, so I consider it money well spent. I only hope the body will hold out. It has spent a lot of time parked on the street through some tough Wisconsin winters. Honda should have never done away with this fantastic model.
My Father had a Honda Civic VX and I have mixed emotions about it. On one hand it had great fuel efficiency and it went very fast. On the other hand it was way too expensive on parts and garage fees.
Man, any car will be a pile if it has been abused. I personally own a Honda from this generation and I think that it is fabulous. You simply have to maintain it, just like you would any other car.
My 93 Civic VX has 163,000 trouble free miles. The car has been a dream. I drive it like a sports car, redlining at 5,000 rpm on a regular basis and it still gives me 42 mpg around town. On the road I get 50 mpg cruising at 75 mph. Back in the days of the 55 mph interstate I once got 69 mpg. My shade tree mechanic fixes anything that goes wrong which thus far has only been broken front axles resulting from living at the end of a washboard dirt road. For the $12,000 I spent in 1993, who needs a hybrid?
I have a 1994 Civic VX. It currently has 214,000 miles and drives the same as when I bought it in 1996 with 40,000 miles. I have really only had to do basic maintenance (no clutch replacement!). The key is to keep up with the preventive maintenance. I have found that some of the private shops that specialize in Honda maintenance is the best way to go. The dealer is pricey and other "retail" shops may not use the "right" components for the vehicle (trans fluid, coolant, brake fluid, etc).
My 1995 VX now has 204,000 miles. I love this car and use it for work. I had to put quite a bit of money into it lately, but seeing as I paid cash for it in 1999 ($5,600, 110,000 miles) and have never made a car payment, the fact that it sips gas, and the fact that it has needed few repairs before now, it has well been worth the upkeep. After replacing the O2 sensor (expensive, go to AutoZone for the best price I could find) it runs like the day I bought it.
60 MPG on a highway trip. Expensive hybrid? Why?
I have a 1993 Honda Civic VX purchased in early 2001 for $5500 with about 72,000 miles on it. As of April 2005, I have just over 147,000 miles logged. It is a very fuel efficient car that gets 48-53 MPG consistently in spring through fall, 45-47 MPG in the very cold weather. Even when I tow a small utility trailer or my small sailboats, I still get over 40 MPG. Very few repairs have been needed. If you need an O2 sensor (technically a Linear Air Fuel sensor), go to AutoZone - Bosch actually buys the sensor from Honda, re-boxes it and sells it for about $175 (less than 1/2 the price). I'll probably buy a used Prius next since these VXs are getting pretty hard to find, but I hope to double the mileage I have now.
I bought a 1992 civic VX in 1994 with only 35,000 miles on it for just under $9,000. I do love my car very much. As of now I have just over 337,000 miles on it, and all I've replaced, other than basic maintenance, are the CV joints, the fuel pump and just recently the clutch at 322,000 miles. Yesterday I was rear ended by a dodge ram 1500, and I must say the car can take a beating. It doesn't look to pretty from the back, but there is no change in the way it drives. Jeff in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
I have wondered about this car, the Civic VX, for awhile. A Honda dealer I asked a litte while ago had no info on it. What is the deal with it, such good mileage. How is it different from a normal Civic? It makes a hybrid seem like lots of engineering without much to show for it. Shed some lighton the Civic VX for me.
240k on first honda
295,000 miles on my '92 vx.. if only wisconsin didn't use so much salt! all honda's seem to rust out over the rear wheels... most reliable brand I've had. I just don't get it.. hybrid? why? this car rocks when properly tuned.
My 1994 Civix VX with 96000 miles gets 40 to 53 mpg and runs like a chicken with the Colonel after it!!! Why did Honda stop making it???
A couple posts up someone asked about how the Civic VX gets such great mileage. I have one (216,000-45 mpg) and did research prior to buying it. This is what I found:
1. The VTEC-E engine is 16 valve. Below about 2200 RPM, eight of the valves are not used. Once you get above that RPM threshhold, you can feel them kick in for added power. Shutting off those eight valves uses less fuel.
2. The battery recharges only when slowing down (not sure on this, but Honda claimed it improves fuel economy).
3. The air to fuel ratio is very high. This is a true "lean burn" engine.
4. The gears are "tall" and there is a shift indicator light that advises correct shift points.
5. The hatchback design has a very low coefficient of drag to begin with (aerodynamic). The VX adds a front spoiler to minimize drag even more.
6. The stock alloy wheels a light weight and meant to reduce weight and improve fuel economy.
--Overall, I see the VX as being introduced about 15 years too early. 1992 was the beginning of the SUV craze. They stopped making the VX because a lot of people did not like the acceleration. I hope they revisit this technology!!!
I sold my VX last year with 302,000 miles on it. I bought it new in 1992. It ran fine when I sold it, but I was ready to move up to a little more luxury (new purchase: 2004 Acura RSX). I did replace the clutch at 180,000 miles and the O2 sensor (like everyone else, it seems). Other than that, just followed the Honda-recommended maintenance schedule religiously. Up until the last couple of years I averaged 50mpg combined highway/city. In some ways I'm sorry I sold it, but I don't have the room for all the cars in my family. Here's the punchline, though: Sale price: $1,500.
I searched long and hard before finding my '92 vx with 204,000 miles, and it was worth it! although the guy I got if from put over 100,000 miles on it and did "nothing other than change the oil, and put tires on it" so I've had to put a lot of work in to it, but I got it because the engines compression is still at 185psi (exactly what it should be) so the first thing I did was replace the water pump and timing belt to make sure the engine was good for another 100,000 miles.
Parts for this car are not cheap, the throttle position sensor is part of the throttle body, and they are known for wearing out, causing a dead spot in engine power at cruiseing speed, a used one I bought worked for a few weeks then had the same problem, new ones cost $450 off hondaautomotiveparts. com and that is the cheapest I can find new, but it should be good for another 150,000+ miles and give the car new life, and better mileage.
Other small gripe about parts is that the stock tire size is a 165/70 13 and that a lot of compenys stoped making that size, but if you can get some, they are most likely going to be a high performance, low roling resistance tire, get the right tire, they help the car preform better all around.
I got a Honda because I fit in it, and I can fit 6' 4" friends in it too.
It's a good car and it's biggest enemy is teenagers who want a race car.
I bought a 92 VX in May of 1992 and owned it for 10 years and put 155000 miles on it. I sold it because it started to rust in several areas (Illinois salts its roads liberally). Also had a problem with maintaining highway speed that was throttle related. I started to see a decrease in MPG at about 145000 and first saw a check engine light at 125000 but didn't check into it.
Yesterday, I found and bought another 92 VX with 125000 miles with less rust than my first one had and without the throttle problems (yet). I missed my Honda for three years and lamented the loss in fuel economy it provided. Except for replacing the exhaust once and cv half shafts because of torn boots I had no trouble at all. I changed the timing belt once at 80,000 and did the recommended maintenance. The first VX was my most favorite car and I am ecstatic that I found another one. It needs some body work, but I should be able to repair this very reasonably.
The VX was the top mileage car for 92 and I still cannot understand why Honda abandoned it for a hybrid. It seems to me other than the NOx concerns this car was a home run and should have been introduced into other Hondas. Oh well I'm just glad I got another one!