I have now had my civic for around 2 weeks now ( 2007 2.2 Sport NHB- ex Honda corporate car- 4 months old, 1900 miles when purchased) and I thought I would share my feelings about it- and compare to old car (2003 VW Bora 1.9 TDI 130)
Here goes-
Performance/engine/driving
The engine is much more refined than VW unit, so much smoother & quieter. However despite what the figures say, I think my old Bora somehow felt punchier, with a more noticable "turbo effect". I think that a lot of this is down to the different way the civic delivers the power- it seems more even across the revs, whereas the Bora gave it all in one big dollop! Having done a bit more miles in the civic now I don't think there is anything in it, performance wise.
I have just been on a round trip from Glasgow to Liverpool and was slightly disappointed with the fuel economy. Trip showed average 45.3mpg, (at normal motorway speeds) when a similar trip in the Bora gave 54mpg. Hopefully this will improve with a few more miles on the clock.
The ride is quite hard as everyone knows, but I don't mind it at all. Can be a bit jiggly on poor stretches of motorway tho. Despite what I have read I think the noise level at speed is perfectly fine- engine can hardly be heard and road noise is fine. Handling is excellent- much sharper than Bora. The ride/handling balance is nowhere near as good as a focus.
Gearbox is good, but I think the shift is not as slick as old shape civic, but much better that Bora.
Interior/comfort
Love it! Nothing else comes close. dash looks great, seats & driving position are very comfortable for a long run. Stereo is fine- not the best I've heard but certainly not the worst! No problems with radio reception- just wish it had a standard ipod input. May do something about this in the future. Plenty of space front & rear- more rear leg room than Bora. The boot is great for the size of the car, very practical, especially with the "magic seats"
Plastics are a bit variable in quality- some area (doors & cente console a bit hard & cheap feeeling)
Rear visibilty is not great, but yoy get used to it, the big door mirrors help a lot. It is quite hard to judge where the front corners of the car are, I keep thinkning I am close to something when parking, only to get out the car and see I'm a about 3 feet away!
Exterior
Again- love it! One of the main reasons we bought the car. nothing else comes close!
The only reservations I have are the easily scratched/chipped paint- have a few stone chips already. This is a problem for most cars nowadays, with the types of paint used. Car looks fantastic in black (when clean) would be better fully colour coded. The body panels feel a bit thin compared to the Bora and I am a bit concerned they may dent easily.
Conclusion
Very good car. So much more individual and stylish than a Golf or Focus. A couple of things could have been done better, like fully keyless entry as in the Toyota Auris, standard ipod input.
Overall my wife & I are very pleased with the car (the wife loves it) and hopefully it will serve us well for the next few years. Its great to go for a drive in it after spending all week in my company astravan (new shape- so not bad for a van). So far I would definitely recommend one, but time will tell.
Here goes-
Performance/engine/driving
The engine is much more refined than VW unit, so much smoother & quieter. However despite what the figures say, I think my old Bora somehow felt punchier, with a more noticable "turbo effect". I think that a lot of this is down to the different way the civic delivers the power- it seems more even across the revs, whereas the Bora gave it all in one big dollop! Having done a bit more miles in the civic now I don't think there is anything in it, performance wise.
I have just been on a round trip from Glasgow to Liverpool and was slightly disappointed with the fuel economy. Trip showed average 45.3mpg, (at normal motorway speeds) when a similar trip in the Bora gave 54mpg. Hopefully this will improve with a few more miles on the clock.
The ride is quite hard as everyone knows, but I don't mind it at all. Can be a bit jiggly on poor stretches of motorway tho. Despite what I have read I think the noise level at speed is perfectly fine- engine can hardly be heard and road noise is fine. Handling is excellent- much sharper than Bora. The ride/handling balance is nowhere near as good as a focus.
Gearbox is good, but I think the shift is not as slick as old shape civic, but much better that Bora.
Interior/comfort
Love it! Nothing else comes close. dash looks great, seats & driving position are very comfortable for a long run. Stereo is fine- not the best I've heard but certainly not the worst! No problems with radio reception- just wish it had a standard ipod input. May do something about this in the future. Plenty of space front & rear- more rear leg room than Bora. The boot is great for the size of the car, very practical, especially with the "magic seats"
Plastics are a bit variable in quality- some area (doors & cente console a bit hard & cheap feeeling)
Rear visibilty is not great, but yoy get used to it, the big door mirrors help a lot. It is quite hard to judge where the front corners of the car are, I keep thinkning I am close to something when parking, only to get out the car and see I'm a about 3 feet away!
Exterior
Again- love it! One of the main reasons we bought the car. nothing else comes close!
The only reservations I have are the easily scratched/chipped paint- have a few stone chips already. This is a problem for most cars nowadays, with the types of paint used. Car looks fantastic in black (when clean) would be better fully colour coded. The body panels feel a bit thin compared to the Bora and I am a bit concerned they may dent easily.
Conclusion
Very good car. So much more individual and stylish than a Golf or Focus. A couple of things could have been done better, like fully keyless entry as in the Toyota Auris, standard ipod input.
Overall my wife & I are very pleased with the car (the wife loves it) and hopefully it will serve us well for the next few years. Its great to go for a drive in it after spending all week in my company astravan (new shape- so not bad for a van). So far I would definitely recommend one, but time will tell.