Satisfaction General gripes (57-plate 2.2 ES)

[eighteentee]

Hi guys,

Just me 2p worth having been an owner of a 57-plate 2.2ES for a few weeks now:

1. The boot really does not shut properly. Indeed, pulling the release feels as though the boot is 'barely' shut.
2. There's a small piece of dash trim hanging down under the steering wheel that is deformed so it won't push back into place.
3. The paintwork seems to be akin to nail varnish, i.e. chips dead easy. Bonnet seems to be getting peppered with stone chips after only 400 miles.
4. Both front windows make the door trims 'move' when they're fully closed.
5. The brake pads seem to be coated with coal soot as within the first couple of days of driving they were black.
6. Dealers lied to me about delivery time and time again - various excuses such as "it's on the transporter" or "it's been delivered to another dealer" etc etc.
7. After a very 'rushed' PDI, the car still had polish on it and polish on the dark plastic exterior trim.
8. The 'auto' setting on the climate control works erratically, i.e. blows cold then warm then cold etc. Does not maintain the temp lilke it should.
9. The rear spoiler and rear light clusters attract moisture in their outer edge seals.
10. The dashboard seems to be made out of the same material as iPods, i.e. scratches and marks even if you look at it the wrong way!
11. The radio constantly drops out of stations and often you're left with just static.
12. Strange clunk coming from under the car occasionally when changing gear
13. Dealers don't return calls when they say they will.

I'm really disappointed so far

[Pottsy]

A couple of answers for you:

1. The boot is perfectly shut if there is no warning on the dash. It just feels odd because it has a power assisted electric release.
2. Dealer will replace this for free.
3. Modern cars have to use sub standard materials for environmental reasons. I preferred good paint and shorter planet life, but hey-ho.
4. It's a by-product of lightweight production methods, to improve economy and acceleration.
5. See 3.
6. It seems rare to get a poor Honda dealer, but they are out there and it looks like you've found one. Maybe time for a change?
7. As above.
8. The Auto tries to maintain a constant cabin temperature (not air output temperature) by varying the output temperature. If the sun comes out, it will cool the output air down.
9. True. Cosmetic only, and it's on the outside of the cluster.
10. Yes. Take care (treat it like an LCD monitor and you'll be fine), or spend £50 and put the Type R one in.
11. Try the dealer for a firmware update. Or maybe the reception is poor because of a faulty rear-screen antenna or cabling.
12. Not sure about this - could be anything. Your dealer should fix this.
13. This is the same for all car dealers. You need to work at getting the best out of them.

HTH

[rhoworth]

Welcome to the world of Honda Civics

I have similar issues to the ones you have identified but unlike you my dealership has tried to sort the majority of the problems. Unfortunately you can do very much if your car is a turkey.

I've complain heaps abut the paint work and how awful it is. the general response is "it is environmental paint so it's not as good as it used to be or don't wash your car very often as this causes the swirls"

If i could i would go and get another car but i would lose 4 grand when i trade it in. A 2007 plate civic EX with 6000 miles would get a trade in of only £13000.

[eighteentee]

Thanks for the reply. Point 4 made me laugh! It just seems that build quality is seriously not as good as the Mk5 Golf I came from. Point 4 for instance, there is really no excuse for the door trim to move when the windows are operated! I makes the car look cheap. But it ain't cheap at £17,500!!

[robbo51]

12. Strange clunk coming from under the car occasionally when changing gear

It fuel in the fuel tank (under the front seats)

[rhoworth]

Some more things to look forward to

Condensation in the rear lights
Paint swirls that make your car look like you have washed it with sand paper
Squeeky front seats

One thing that makes me laugh is when i complained about the paintwork is why did i not pay for the dimondbrite paint protection as this would have solved the swirling issue, to which i answered if it is that good why is honda not useng it as standard.

The answer is honda do not want you to keep your car for 3 or more years, they want the repeat business.

[eighteentee]

At the risk of starting a rant here I can feel myself wanting to sell the motor now in view of what has happened and is happening. I honestly thought Honda was the way to go...

[rhoworth]

Is you can get your money back or not lose too much i would sell in a heart beat, it's too late for me. I'll have at least 1 or so yeard to go.

Have a search for handbrakes in the forum. Mine failed and cause £1000 worth of damage, luck nobody was hurt.

VW or BWM will be my next car. I've always wanted one of the new hondas and almost as soon as i got it the problems started. I've maybe been really unlucky but i'll never have a honda again

[4540flossy]

Originally Posted by rhoworth

Is you can get your money back or not lose too much i would sell in a heart beat, it's too late for me. I'll have at least 1 or so yeard to go.

Have a search for handbrakes in the forum. Mine failed and cause £1000 worth of damage, luck nobody was hurt.

VW or BWM will be my next car. I've always wanted one of the new hondas and almost as soon as i got it the problems started. I've maybe been really unlucky but i'll never have a honda again

Good luck being let out at junctions

[eighteentee]

I suppose if all the 'niggles' (!) get sorted by the dealer, in view of me doing around the 600 mile mark, my 2.2ES will be worth about 50p now won't it

[Pottsy]

Which of the above list of ten niggles are the ones that make you want to sell?

[Dutch_Civic]

When i look at your list, there isn't much to be really worried about (in my opinion that is).

1. As Pottsy said, the boot does shut properly, it just feels 'light'.
2. The dash trim should be easily fixed by the dealer.
3. I know what you mean with the paint, but unfortunately a lot of new cars have that because of the reasons mentioned by Pottsy.
4. I agree about the moving door trims, i noticed it too, but almost a year later i haven't given it another thought. Noone has ever mentioned it, so it can't be that obvious.
5. No problems with mu brake pads, my car always shines
6. Find yourself another dealer, mine has excellent service.
7. Same as above, my car looked fabulous when i picked it up.
8. It reacts to sun and changing temps, so it's true it blows cold and warm air depending on what's happening with the inside and outside temperature.
9. True, noticed it too. When you look carefully though, it's only on the outside of the seal, so it's not really a problem.
10. It scratches easily, but it does look nice! Just treat it carefully and you should be fine.
11. Can't comment on the radio, i mostly listen to cd's or i just listen to the engine sound.
12. Strange noises should be fixed by your dealer. I don't have it, so they should be able to fix it.
13. Same as earlier, change your dealer.

Most problems you have should be fixed easily or aren't really a huge problem. Now i'm aware of the fact that everyone experiences things differently, so if things are a problem for you, then they are, even when i see it differently.
My Civic brings a smile to my face everytime i look at it and when i drive it. I made some test drives with other cars and driven cars from friends, but none of them gives me the same feeling the Civic gives me. If possible, try to enjoy your car for the things it does right, instead of worrying about the little things it does wrong. Many competitors have problems too, so getting another car may not help you much, it'll just get you a less good looking one.

[elfa7]

Hi eighteentee. Sorry about your problems, and I hope they are sorted soon.
I bought mine in Feb. 06, and I also felt very disappointed with the niggles that the car had. But the majority have been rectified by the Dealer, just a couple of rattles to be sorted.
So stick with it, if your dealer is a good one, he should be able to sort things for you.
I still love going for a blast in mine -- the diesel is a beauty.
Going down your list ....
1 no prob.
2 no prob.
3 We've got to live with it.
4 No trim movement on mine.
5 no prob.
6 Some good -- some not so good.
7 no prob.
8 no prob.
9 no prob.
10 got to live with it. don't look at it the wrong way !!!.
11 no prob.
12 no prob.
13 mine does.

Happy motoring.

[jazzman]

Sorry about your problems but all I can say is that my car is fabulous and so is my very friendly and helpful dealer, so who could wish for more.

Wish you luck

[theface]

ive had my 57 plate 1.8 ex for a month now and i have to say it does have a couple of slight niggles.

dash is very easily scratched.(just taking extra care)

rear heated screen is pretty useless.(my only real disapointment)

occassional slight rattle from behind radio area.(will get this sorted by dealer at service time)

paint does seem to be 'softer' than older cars.(use good wax and accept that all modern cars will be the same ish)

but generally i am very very very happy with my civic.
my dealer have been spot on (crown of soham,cambs).

it does seem to be a case where there are regular faults which honda have addressed, but still there are a few very poorly finished civic about, im just glad i havent got one ( at least for the moment).

i have no regrets at all, would buy the same car tomorrow.

and having a forum like this makes owning a civic so much better.
just check out the threads on other car related forums to see how bad some cars can be.

[Brodick]

Originally Posted by theface

ive had my 57 plate 1.8 ex for a month now and i have to say it does have a couple of slight niggles.

dash is very easily scratched.(just taking extra care)

rear heated screen is pretty useless.(my only real disapointment)

occassional slight rattle from behind radio area.(will get this sorted by dealer at service time)

paint does seem to be 'softer' than older cars.(use good wax and accept that all modern cars will be the same ish)

but generally i am very very very happy with my civic.
my dealer have been spot on (crown of soham,cambs).

it does seem to be a case where there are regular faults which honda have addressed, but still there are a few very poorly finished civic about, im just glad i havent got one ( at least for the moment).

i have no regrets at all, would buy the same car tomorrow.

and having a forum like this makes owning a civic so much better.
just check out the threads on other car related forums to see how bad some cars can be.

Very well said that man

[eighteentee]

Thanks for the input guys, much appreciated. My main gripes seem to be with dealer behaviour and overall build quality. When I collected my Golf 55-plate Golf GTTDI I didn't have to wait or be lied to multiple times. It didn't get 'lost' at another dealer. I didn't have climate control that 'doesn't'. I didn't have door trims that move when you close the windows. I didn't have a dash that scratched so easily it's crazy.

I'm sorry to bang on about this but the car I have seems inferior in quality compared with what I had which really really bugs me. The car I have right now is probably the worst brand new car I have ever owned. I feel really let down. I was expecting Honda 'quality' and it simply isn't there.

I could almost understand if the car was second-hand but for heavens sake it's brand new!

Sorry to rant guys - just needed to get that off me chest. I feel better now

[theface]

i feel these must be isolated 'poor' examples because if you look at the satisfaction survey, it quite clearly shows how happy most owners are with the civic's.
and i think the survey is a very un biased indicator.

[Munro]

I am absolutely delighted with my Civic.

The only problem I have had was a rattling rear hatch which took 20 seconds to fix, after reading a post on this site.

The only contact with my dealer since picking the car up was a phone call after @ 3 weeks to ask if I was happy with the car - excellent. When I picked the car up it was absolutely spotless.

There are a number of things I would change (and have in a couple of cases) but they are not faults.

I think the build quality is fine for the price you pay. Sure I wouldn't mind an Audi R8 , but that would cost 4 times as much and be nowhere near as practical.

My dealer does have a good reputation from others on this site and I have no complaints so far.

Murphys Law - Having made all these positive comments my car will probably break down tomorrow !

Another dealer may be the answer to many of your problems eighteentee. This link may help you find one:
http://www.civinfo.com/wiki/index.ph...rship_feedback

[Topcat]

Originally Posted by eighteentee

Hi guys,

Just me 2p worth having been an owner of a 57-plate 2.2ES for a few weeks now:

1. The boot really does not shut properly. Indeed, pulling the release feels as though the boot is 'barely' shut.
2. There's a small piece of dash trim hanging down under the steering wheel that is deformed so it won't push back into place.
3. The paintwork seems to be akin to nail varnish, i.e. chips dead easy. Bonnet seems to be getting peppered with stone chips after only 400 miles.
4. Both front windows make the door trims 'move' when they're fully closed.
5. The brake pads seem to be coated with coal soot as within the first couple of days of driving they were black.
6. Dealers lied to me about delivery time and time again - various excuses such as "it's on the transporter" or "it's been delivered to another dealer" etc etc.
7. After a very 'rushed' PDI, the car still had polish on it and polish on the dark plastic exterior trim.
8. The 'auto' setting on the climate control works erratically, i.e. blows cold then warm then cold etc. Does not maintain the temp lilke it should.
9. The rear spoiler and rear light clusters attract moisture in their outer edge seals.
10. The dashboard seems to be made out of the same material as iPods, i.e. scratches and marks even if you look at it the wrong way!
11. The radio constantly drops out of stations and often you're left with just static.
12. Strange clunk coming from under the car occasionally when changing gear
13. Dealers don't return calls when they say they will.

I'm really disappointed so far

Hmmm two years on and still some of the same problems popping up. Unfortunately many on here are quick to class those of us that expect better quality for our money as moaners.

1. Not sure what you mean about this, certainly the boot takes a good few attempts at times to shut it and then on a cold day the boot struts dont want it to open
2. Take it back to the dealership to fix.
3. Dont get me talking about paint - it is rubbish on the civic, and there is no way it is of the same quality as other car manufacturers I have yet to see any of my friends new cars looking like some of the civics I have spotted. Mine has had a complete re-spray now so no longer a problem thank god.
4. Yes you are right mine do it too.
5. I havent had that problem.
6. Find a better dealer I did and it was the best thing I did to relieve the stress and frustration of all the other problems with the car.
7. That is annoying but easily rectified.
8. This has been a problem for many, I had my climate control fixed and have never had a problem since.
9. Yep they sure do and given time you will also start to get debris and mould growing in the light cluster trim - at least I have anyway!!
10. Had mine replaced for the type R one paid for by a bodyshop that scratched mine whilst cleaning it, had the central clear plastic bit changed under warranty.
11. Some are worse than others, my first civic radio was absolutely dreadful and I could barely use it, now the radio still has its moments where it had terrible static but it is not as bad.
12. Have the dealership take a look.
13. Find a better dealership.

Mine is currently in for the steering rack, lost count of the number of things that have been fixed on the car now I have to put up with it as I can not afford to replace it, but soon it will have so many new parts together with the re-spray it will be like another new car anyway