Issues regarding ground clearance of CIVIC

[Vishesh]

Hi all,
I have been noticing for quite some time now that wherever i read an article about the new Civic, there's always a special mention of the ultra low ground clearance. I wanted to know, is it really so bad ? The Civic has a spec. GC of 170 mm, which is in league with most other luxury cars, i suppose. Even the Accord, City ZX have lesser GC than the Civic according to the auto-mags.
Then why this special mention ? Also, when there are 4-5 average people seated, does it tend to scrape every breaker ? Your Comments !

[BUSA]

Honda's Civic has a soft suspension setup so when people are seated the car goes down a bit more then other cars and hence scraps.

[hellspawn]

the ground clearance is decent but due to the suspension being soft,it scrapes the speedbreakers.

[speedy]

my aunt has a civic and she is already planning to exchange it for another accord or the CRV. the car is low anyways and due to the soft suspension when there are three people sitting in the back the car tends to hit even the smallest of speedbreakers. otherwise she is very happy with the car.

[csentil]

This has already been spoken about in enough threads. Please do a search.

With three people in the back and lots of luggage in the boot the civic will scrape the big speedbreakers. I've driven close to 1000kms with 5 people and luggage and the car doesn't bottom out on every pothole and every speedbreaker. The big ones are a problem. Drive over them slowly or diagonally and you will not have scrapping.

The issue is with the long wheelbase of the Civic even though the GC is 170mm.

[doctorkats]

have driven a buddy's civic all over the place.it tends to scrape most breakers.maybe the ones here are higher or cruder.
either way my heart bleeds hearing that sound.
when will international car manufacturers understand indian road conditions before bringing on their vehicles here?

[speedy]

Originally Posted by csentil

This has already been spoken about in enough threads. Please do a search.

With three people in the back and lots of luggage in the boot the civic will scrape the big speedbreakers. I've driven close to 1000kms with 5 people and luggage and the car doesn't bottom out on every pothole and every speedbreaker. The big ones are a problem. Drive over them slowly or diagonally and you will not have scrapping.

The issue is with the long wheelbase of the Civic even though the GC is 170mm.

it might have been spoken about in enough threads csentil but that is the problem faced by my aunt and exacly her driver is not as good a driver as some people so even the small speedbreakers touch. dont know what he does but my aunt is fed up.

[alankarm@sancha]

Originally Posted by csentil

This has already been spoken about in enough threads. Please do a search.

With three people in the back and lots of luggage in the boot the civic will scrape the big speedbreakers. I've driven close to 1000kms with 5 people and luggage and the car doesn't bottom out on every pothole and every speedbreaker. The big ones are a problem. Drive over them slowly or diagonally and you will not have scrapping.

The issue is with the long wheelbase of the Civic even though the GC is 170mm.

The suspension of the CIVIC is a problem probably due to it being Too soft. Honda should have remembered that this is INDIA and fine tuned the suspension. I feel this suspension is bound to go wrong with most CIVICs in India within 50,000 km or so, especially with persons driving it as a regular car over not so silky roads.

I am already facing the problem of suspension noise right from the start. Now, even after 22000 kms it is still not being sorted out. 2 rear tyres have already been changed due to uneven wear (iriver wear), which according to the tyre company persons was due to suspension problem. This problem is bound to recur in Civic as the suspension keeps bottoming out.

Honda MUST tune the suspension for Indian conditions.

[Vishesh]

hearing all your views, i think the only DIY solution would be to use bigger 16'' alloys on slightly higher profile rubber, so that there is atleast 15mm-20mm increment to the GC. But then, are the wheel wells capable of fitting in 16 inchers ?

[deepakvrao]

Originally Posted by Vishesh

hearing all your views, i think the only DIY solution would be to use bigger 16'' alloys on slightly higher profile rubber, so that there is atleast 15mm-20mm increment to the GC. But then, are the wheel wells capable of fitting in 16 inchers ?

Is adding 15-20mm to the GC a good idea at all - what will happen to the odo/speedo readings?

[BUSA]

are the wheel wells capable of fitting in 16 inchers ?

Civics are seen with 18inchers so 16inchers wont be a problem, stock Civic in countries like Malaysia come with 16inchers so no issue fitting them.

[diabloo]

As somebody asked before, what if the GC is low? What if it scrapes the speed-breaker? What harm it does? Should one consider this aspect while buying a car? Is this issue so important?

[csentil]

Originally Posted by deepakvrao

Is adding 15-20mm to the GC a good idea at all - what will happen to the odo/speedo readings?

would adding higher profile tyres increase GC by 15-20 mm????

[aah78]

Originally Posted by diabloo

As somebody asked before, what if the GC is low? What if it scrapes the speed-breaker? What harm it does? Should one consider this aspect while buying a car? Is this issue so important?

The underbody of your car is exposed to the elements. While most cars have a "shielding" of sorts under the engine bay (I know the 800 did not have this for sure, neither did the Zen, I think), your exhaust system is generally exposed and the most vulnerable.

Everytime the car bumps and scrapes, there is a chance of your catcons and mufflers being punctured and damaged beyond repair.

It is an important issue while selecting your car depending on the roads you generally drive upon. If you usually drive on smooth roads with minimal number of speed-breakers and potholes, then you're OK using a car with low CG.

Ofcourse, the techie gurus will add the remaining systems which I've missed out.

[hellspawn]

these days,i see a lot of civics with scraped and damaged/bent lower side panels,probably due to getting damaged by speedbreakers etc.
its surprising to see that honda hasnt found a solution or atleast tried rectifying it.