[amurph0]

Hi.

I've followed the forum for a long time and this is my first proper post. I've been saving for an 8th gen Civic ever since I started driving about a year and a half ago.

Over here in Ireland 8th gen Civics haven't been very popular and its pretty hard to find a good used one with the right spec and engine size.

Up until recently Civics have been far beyond my budget but since the new year a few 2006 ones have popped up that have got me intrigued.

Only just a few hours ago I came across a lovely Black 2006 1.8 ES 5door for only €3990. The average price of other Civics usually start at at least €5000 for just base model 1.4's which I've no interest in. In fact I've been trying to specifically track down a Black 1.8 ES. The are only 2 other Civic's currently being sold by other dealers for about the same price which are the same color and spec but they're both higher mileage (ones 150000 miles and the other's 170000 miles).

The car I'm looking at has had 2 previous owners and has 140000 miles, which seems a bit high but I reckon its worth it.

My own mileage is about 7,000 which is low, so I wouldn't be putting too much strain on the car. I really only drive up to work on Sunday nights, stay in accommodation and then drive home on Friday evenings. The car remains parked up most of the week.

Also a good point is that the car is being sold by a registered Honda dealer which is also SIMI registered (Society of Irish Motor Industry, it means they have a good reputation and must maintain certain standards), so I'm expecting that the car should be in pretty good nick. Obviously it's fully serviced and freshly NCT'd. (Irish for MOT)

So what do you guys think about the high mileage? Should I go for it? I'm gonna have a look at it tomorrow afternoon, I'm gonna check for usual stuff (FSH and all that), is there anything else I should look out for with these cars? Any tips ye can give me would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Murph

 

[Kremmen]

I'm no expert in high milers so wait for more replies.

Apart from the FSH which already have logged, look for wear/rust along the top of the windscreen. If a SatNav model check the DVD is in place, and check again if you purchase at collection time.

 

[law000]

Check brakes for excessive wear, particularly the rears. Check the bottom section of the boot for damp.
Otherwise with a 1.8 petrol you can't go too wrong.

Question, why not come to the mainland to buy?

 

[ANOMALY]

Come to mainland & buy

I got my 2006 1.8 es in black for 4K with 55,000 miles.
Love the thing... Economy of a 1.5 with the power of a 2ltr

 

[amurph0]

I'm no expert in high milers so wait for more replies.

Apart from the FSH which already have logged, look for wear/rust along the top of the windscreen. If a SatNav model check the DVD is in place, and check again if you purchase at collection time.

Is the Civic prone to wear/rust along the windscreen?

No it doesn't have satnav. It's the ES model. Isn't the EX model the only one with DVD satnav?

Check brakes for excessive wear, particularly the rears. Check the bottom section of the boot for damp.
Otherwise with a 1.8 petrol you can't go too wrong.

Question, why not come to the mainland to buy?

Two reasons I'm not going to UK to buy;

1: I need to trade in my current car. I don't have enough cash to buy the car outright and I don't want to go through the hassle of selling the car privately so need to buy from a dealer that accepts trade ins. I don't think any UK dealer would give me a good price on an Irish registered 2002 OPEL Astra, especially a 4 door saloon.

2: VRT. Buying a car from the UK is really only cost effective when your spending close to or exceeding about €10k. Importing a UK 1.8 ES would cost about €1100 just to register it, not to mention the cost of flights, ferry and potentially accommodation if I'm not able to go over and back in one day. Then there's warranty issues. If I have a problem with a car I bought here then I can simply just bring it back to the dealer. With a UK import it would probably cost me more to bring the car back then it would be to just pay a mechanic to fix it here.

Come to mainland & buy

I got my 2006 1.8 es in black for 4K with 55,000 miles.
Love the thing... Economy of a 1.5 with the power of a 2ltr

4k in pounds? £4k is equal to about €5500, when you add VRT that same car would cost me nearly €7k when you factor in plane, ferry and petrol costs.

Thanks for the help so far guys.

 

[CivicCliff]

Is the Civic prone to wear/rust along the windscreen?

Yes, it has been covered quite comprehensively on here. I'm sure someone who knows more will be along shortly to advise you on this. It was however fully and permanently repairable and most have had the repair done care of Honda - so it may have already been done on cars you look at. As I understand, it was the plastic along the top of the windscreen being too tight and damaging the paint, which in time allowed corrosion to develop.

Buying from a Honda dealer should be a safe bet as the car should have been checked by them (even if it is not sold under the approved scheme). However, it will be more expensive than a private seller, you should be able to negotiate the price down slightly though.

The 1.8 is a proven and very reliable engine, in fact, a slightly tweaked version of the same engine is still used in the current 9th generation Civic. However, while it may not be an issue, I would be inclined to shop around for one with a lower mileage.

As said above, service history is very important, it does not have to be full Honda though as the cars you are looking at are a little older, as long as the schedule has been properly followed.

Maybe consider getting an AA/RAC check done (this may not been needed if buying from a reputable source).

My biggest piece of advice is be patient and shop around, cars come and go all the time.

 

[law000]

I agree with the above. Go be honest, unless it is a matter of urgency I suggest you wait and save a little more to get one with lower milage. It's not that there is something wrong with a high milage, it's just that it is already at the life expectancy of a car.
If you plan on keeping for a while, I suggest waiting for the the right car with about 80-90k most.

 

[RickHondaR]

Two reasons I'm not going to UK to buy;

1: I need to trade in my current car. I don't have enough cash to buy the car outright and I don't want to go through the hassle of selling the car privately so need to buy from a dealer that accepts trade ins. I don't think any UK dealer would give me a good price on an Irish registered 2002 OPEL Astra, especially a 4 door saloon.

2: VRT. Buying a car from the UK is really only cost effective when your spending close to or exceeding about €10k. Importing a UK 1.8 ES would cost about €1100 just to register it, not to mention the cost of flights, ferry and potentially accommodation if I'm not able to go over and back in one day. Then there's warranty issues. If I have a problem with a car I bought here then I can simply just bring it back to the dealer. With a UK import it would probably cost me more to bring the car back then it would be to just pay a mechanic to fix it here.

Buy the car from a Honda dealer in the UK, you can have all the finance agreed and ready to sign when you drive to collect and as the car gets a full 1 year Honda warranty any problems can be dealt with at a local dealer. I am not sure if they will do a PX on your car but we buy any car and others should get you a PX value local Maybe also up your budget a little say by £50pm and get a low mileage 9G Civic as a lot better car and if you keep it longer then the import fees will be more reasonable than on a older car and I am sure from what you have already said the cars are a lot cheaper here.

Problem you have at the moment is Euros are worth much to the pound

 

[Type 666]

Where you from? Good to see another Irish poster here. I got my Type S 2.2 from the North (the diesel Type S was never sold in the Republic) in 2011, vrt came to €2,000.

There's a good few Civics in Cork, I see them around a lot. Type R's are very rare though.

They are a great car, fantastic reliability, and still look great on the roads compared to other makes.

There are loads of enhancements and this great site will definitely inspire you to upgrade the looks, with spoilers, splitters, colour coded arches, double din, coilovers etc.

Make sure you test drive over a rough bit of road first, the ride can be harsh. Thats about the only negative I have about the 8th gen Civic.

Good luck with any car you look at.

 

[baldbiker]

I bought 96000 mile 1.8 08 a week ago and it still as tight as new, the oil is golden after a year and the amount of cars for sale over 120000 miles proves what a good engine they are if looked after. The brakes etc will need looking at but that's normal for any purchase. Do the other checks as said before and if good I know you will be pleased.

 

[Liam John]

Its just that I see your car will be stood for 5days,there are instances where civics stood for days run the battery down and will not start,It has happened to me when I started to use the company van and the Civic stood all week,Great reliable car ,and my 2.2 diesel is very frugal.If you start it or run it through the week it should be ok.

 

[Martin1973]

Not sure you would get much for that part exchange anyway to be honest. High miles are ok but if you want to keep it a long time I personally would look for something lower. On the money you have it would go further on buying a Vauxhall. Just my opinion but the 8G is a great car and still looks good now.

 

[amurph0]

Cheers for all the advice lads. I went to see the car yesterday and took it for a test drive. Seems in good condition. I checked the windscreen all around the seal, it looked fine. I noticed a few stone chips and scratches on the bonnet but I believe that's common for civics? The rest of the car didnt have any noticeable scratches, and it only had a tiny coin sized dent on one of the doors that you could only see from certain angles.

I noticed the rear lights had moisture inside them and front fog lights seems a bit faded (gone a bit of a greeny/yellowy color). Other then these details the exterior was fine.

As for the interior it was in good condition, just a few nicks here and there, nothing major, everything was working fine, including the pan roof.

I took it for a test drive and seemed fine, no odd noises, the car was very quiet, compared to the astra anyway. The only thing I did notice was when your stopped and in neutral and you take your foot off the clutch it makes a barely audible buzzing noise. Is that normal? You can barely here it. I remember hearing the same thing in my old fiesta, but that was normal. Its not something I notice in my astra anyway.

Where you from? Good to see another Irish poster here. I got my Type S 2.2 from the North (the diesel Type S was never sold in the Republic) in 2011, vrt came to €2,000.

There's a good few Civics in Cork, I see them around a lot. Type R's are very rare though.

They are a great car, fantastic reliability, and still look great on the roads compared to other makes.

There are loads of enhancements and this great site will definitely inspire you to upgrade the looks, with spoilers, splitters, colour coded arches, double din, coilovers etc.

Make sure you test drive over a rough bit of road first, the ride can be harsh. Thats about the only negative I have about the 8th gen Civic.

Good luck with any car you look at.

I'm originally from cork as well actually

The car I looked at is up in Louth. I went to look at a civic today in cork, it was the same type of civic but for €5700 and it only had 75000 miles. But it was sold this morning unfortunately. Just before I got there.

I had a look at auto trader UK alright. There's no black 1.8 ES's for sale in the north inside my price range. As for the mainland the only ones I found were SE's or Cat D ES's and a few Sport versions. Most of them were over 100,000 miles as well.

I applied for a loan yesterday. My cash budget (without my current car as px) is about €4000 (~£2900) or I could do €4500 (~£3200) at a push. That's without considering VRT as I'm sure I can cover the cost of importing it when I sell the old car.

 

[amurph0]

Its just that I see your car will be stood for 5days,there are instances where civics stood for days run the battery down and will not start,It has happened to me when I started to use the company van and the Civic stood all week,Great reliable car ,and my 2.2 diesel is very frugal.If you start it or run it through the week it should be ok.

It won't really be stood for long during the week when I'm working. I'd still be using it for shop runs and stuff. It just won't be doing any trips that would warm up the engine properly. I had that problem with my astra alright, but I put a higher capacity battery in it about 6months ago and it hasn't gone dead on me yet

 

[amurph0]

Just spotted another Civic. Its a bit over my budget at €6500 but it's only got 75000 miles. It's a Black 5dr 1.8.

I'm gonna see if I can get a larger loan so I can go for that one.

I think its a SE model though without pan roof or power folding mirrors, but it has cruise control and some other bits that I thought were standard on ES, I had my heart set on the pan roof but i think i can sacrifice it.

Is it possible to retrofit power folding mirrors onto an SE?

A big plus though is that the car comes with a Type-R spoiler already installed and its comes with 18inch aftermarket alloys.

When i checked the car's history though it came up as being an SES? Which is confusing. Is it SE or ES?

 

[amurph0]

I ended up buying the more expensive one with 75,000 miles on it. Got it for €5400 with my Astra as PX. I am now the proud owner of a Black 2006 1.8 5dr SE.

I'm convinced that the car must have been owned by someone on here. A Type-R spoiler mounted to a 5dr, blue foot well lights, blackened bumper trim. It has the smell of civinfo all over it!

 

[geemac]

Good stuff glad you got sorted

 

[Type 666]

Ah nice one! Delighted for you! You got a sweet-looking car there, bound to have been looked after properly.

Some mods already done for you as well. Is there wheel spacers on it? It looks like there is.

If you're looking to further mod (and if you stay on this site believe me you will) then I can highly recommend a double din - fantastic pieces if kit.

You got the best looking colour too

Happy motoring and welcome to the club.

 

[amurph0]

Ah nice one! Delighted for you! You got a sweet-looking car there, bound to have been looked after properly.

Some mods already done for you as well. Is there wheel spacers on it? It looks like there is.

If you're looking to further mod (and if you stay on this site believe me you will) then I can highly recommend a double din - fantastic pieces if kit.

You got the best looking colour too

Happy motoring and welcome to the club.

I'm not sure about the spacers actually. Is there any way to tell without taking the wheels off?

I've already ordered a gear gaiter and gear knob off eBay, and one of those Hole'y sumo rear vinyl panels. Theres plenty more stuff I have in mind for it

Yeah I've always wanted one of those android double din units. Are they any good? There's seems to be plenty of those unbranded Chinese made ones on eBay but I'm worried about the quality.

Do you have a double din on your civic? How long have you had it? And have you had any problems security wise? My car is usually parked in the city centre and I'd be terrified that someone would break in and try to rob it.

 

[Type 666]

Just looking at the wheel hub will tell if you have spacers or not, and extra disc of steel would be present between the wheel and the hub. Very obvious to see.

I have a double din fitted for about a month now and its the best mod Ive ever done along with the Meister coilovers. Its a Pioneer f940bt, and the sat nav is fantastic on it, I got a rear view camera hooked up to it as well - I got an auto electrician to hook that up for me cos electrics aren't my strong point - but there are excellent guides on here to help you install yourself, the double din installation just needs a good dose of confidence and patience.

Security-wise it does have a removable section of the face-plate that renders it useless to a thief - but it wouldn't stop them initially breaking into the car.

Yeah its a risk parking in a city centre, I understand where you're coming from.