[raj_5004]

Tips from a fellow Civic owner and a friend, which I thought should be shared on this forum -

1) Civic is a delicate car, treat her gently.
2) Do not keep the steering turned at full lock for more than 3-5 seconds, the steering rack has a tendency to leak.
3) The bumpers are fragile at the corners and have a tendency to snap out due to the vibrations.
4) Check the engine mounts and get it replaced under warranty, Honda has given a 5 year warranty on the mounts.

[Utopian]

The car is in good shape for a three year old car. Although, no longer in production the design still looks contemporary.
The speedbreakers definitely are a big pain in the Civic. Another area which I find lacking is the front visibility. One needs to rely on good judgement for navigating narrow turns and crowded streets.

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by Utopian

The speedbreakers definitely are a big pain in the Civic.

In the facelifted models, Honda has stiffened the rear suspension. So, the car does not scrape as much as the older ones. Yes, you need to go slow. I did scrape once, but that was with 4 heavy people on board!

Another area which I find lacking is the front visibility. One needs to rely on good judgement for navigating narrow turns and crowded streets.

+10.

I asked my brother to stand on the corners of the front bumper with me in the driver's seat, just to get an idea of the corners of the car!

[vikramvicky1984]

Congrats Raj,

Infact I have also been searching for a clean Civic AT for a friend in Mumbai

OT: Aks your dealer to remove your car. Its still listed http://www.karmaxcars.com/cardetails.asp?carid=437

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by vikramvicky1984

Congrats Raj,

Infact I have also been searching for a clean Civic AT for a friend in Mumbai

OT: Aks your dealer to remove your car. Its still listed http://www.karmaxcars.com/cardetails.asp?carid=437

Yes, its on their website but its mentioned as "sold"!

http://www.karmaxcars.com/showstock1...in=0&yearmax=0

[raj_5004]

A visit to the A.S.S. needs to be planned -

1) After all its a used car, so I plan to get a complete check up and evaluation done by Honda as preventive maintenance.
2) The driver window has troubles going up, it hits the rubber beading at an angle and the 'anti-pinch' system pushes it down again!
3) A faint rattling noise from the front passenger door needs to be taken care of, I hope the Honda A.S.S. can solve it.
4) The driver's seat belt is slow to retract.
5) The cigarette lighter cover is broken, needs to be replaced.

The car had its 30k service done just a few weeks back. So, I will be directly doing its 35k service. I am planning to change to synthetic oil as every Civic owner recommends that.

Plus, I spoke to a guy who said he can help me fit an aftermarket horn without removing the bumper. Lets see how it goes.

I am itching to get some 16" alloys and fatter rubber, but the car is under warranty till 11/2014. Unlike Fiat, I have heard Honda is very "touchy" about aftermarket fitments. So, no ICE or alloys till end 2014.

Atleast, I can go for small touches like a CF grille with red Honda badges and a CF lip spoiler. I wanted to get a double DIN touch screen HU which can act as a GPS unit, reverse camera and Bluetooth receiver. But in the Civic, I have to open up the dash and fit an aftermarket fascia to accommodate the new head unit. I am afraid that this will lead to squeaks and rattles in the future, which I detest.

More importantly, I wish to upgrade the headlights and fog lights. But since my driving is within city, I am still considering whether its necessary.

[sgiitk]

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...t-dos-325.html

may give you a lot of gyan.

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...t-dos-325.html

may give you a lot of gyan.

I follow this thread regularly sir.

Though I am a silent reader. I cant post much owing to my limited knowledge in this territory.

[sumeethaldankar]

Originally Posted by raj_5004

A visit to the A.S.S. needs to be planned -

...

Honda A.S.S follow the replace rather than repair policy.So beware when they say this and that needs to be changed.You are better of doing the smaller stuff like window not winding up properly at smaller but competent independent garages. HASS as i have found is only good for routine oil changes and running the Honda diagnostic if needed. In fact i no longer go to HASS except for hard to find genuine stuff like the fuel fillter aka fuel strainer.Even the mounts can be had for a fraction of the cost of what Honda asks for in the after market.

[raj_5004]

The first casualty with the Civic already happened, a scar on her beautiful white bumper -




Guess she needs the "limbu-mirchi" treatment which my chauffeur has been recommending and I am avoiding.

It happened when I was taking the car out of a very very tight parking and I totally mis-judged the front bumper clearance. I should not have taken the risk especially when I am still new with this car. I am usually a very careful driver but this time, I got a bit overconfident with the size of the car. Lesson learnt.

In my defense, I also have to say that manuals are better in such situations as the half clutch and brake method is much more convenient and safe.

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

Even the mounts can be had for a fraction of the cost of what Honda asks for in the after market.

My car is under warranty, so wont the mounts be covered under it?

[sumeethaldankar]

I am not saying you will needing a mount change i am only trying to highlight the difference in hass parts pricing.All am trying to say is that incase something does go wrong with the car hass need not be the only place to go.
Yours is face lifted model and unless i am mistaken honda seems to have rectified the mount problem in this version and chances are that it will last longer than one in the older edition.

[raj_5004]

Gulp!



This is on a busy morning with heavy traffic. I understand this is a petrol A/T, but this is Lamborghini territory!

Meanwhile, I was looking for a good GPS device for my car. I was initially planning to put in a 2 DIN system with inbuilt GPS and Bluetooth. But the Civic needs a custom fascia to accommodate a 2 DIN. The complexity of the install plus the fear of rattling and squeaking in the future made me avoid that route. Next came buying proper navigation devices from MapMyIndia or Garmin. But then these days free offline maps are easily available for download. So I bought this -



The reason I bought this phone is because -
1) It is cheap
2) It is the cheapest phone with GPS (be careful to pick a phone with GPS and not A-GPS)
3) It has a big 5" screen (for easy readability of maps)
4) It has a 8 MP camera, so it can act as a dash cam too!

[raj_5004]

Got the European type horn (Skoda/VW/Merc) fitted on CeeVee today. I have always liked such horns because I feel it sounds "sportier"!

Also bought a tyre cleaner/polisher (Formula 1) and shampoo (Formula 1 Wash & Wax) for her along with micro fibre cloths... the detailing era starts this Sunday!

Also got her a Honda logo keychain-

[PlatzdaTurbo]

Originally Posted by raj_5004

Tips from a fellow Civic owner and a friend, which I thought should be shared on this forum -

1) Civic is a delicate car, treat her gently.
2) Do not keep the steering turned at full lock for more than 3-5 seconds, the steering rack has a tendency to leak.
3) The bumpers are fragile at the corners and have a tendency to snap out due to the vibrations.
4) Check the engine mounts and get it replaced under warranty, Honda has given a 5 year warranty on the mounts.

^^^
1) Agreed
2) What ? Has it happened on many cars ? My car is 7 years old, from the first lot that arrived on our shores and never has this happened. Are you sure this was'nt a one off case ?
3) Fragile yes, but snap out due to vibrations ? Again, might be a specific case perhaps. As far as forward visibility is concerned, with time youl get spontaneous with it. Until then just be conservative with your braking distances.
4) PLEASE do this. One of the mounts had broken and the crashing sound was just unbearable. Sooner you get this done the better.

Originally Posted by raj_5004

A visit to the A.S.S. needs to be planned -

1) After all its a used car, so I plan to get a complete check up and evaluation done by Honda as preventive maintenance.

Who are you opting for ? Linkway is near your place and they have been extremely good, honest, consistent and punctual (personal experience) in the last 7 years.

Originally Posted by raj_5004

Got the European type horn (Skoda/VW/Merc) fitted on CeeVee today. I have always liked such horns because I feel it sounds "sportier"!

Sportier or not, was there any problem with the civic horn ?

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by PlatzdaTurbo

1) Agreed
2) What ? Has it happened on many cars ? My car is 7 years old, from the first lot that arrived on our shores and never has this happened. Are you sure this was'nt a one off case ?
3) Fragile yes, but snap out due to vibrations ? Again, might be a specific case perhaps. As far as forward visibility is concerned, with time youl get spontaneous with it. Until then just be conservative with your braking distances.

I dont know. These are just opinions from a fellow owner. I hope these are one off cases as you said.

By the way, I slightly scraped the bumper at a very very low speed causing the chip in the paint in the front bumper as shown in pics above. And the bumper did snap out of the corners.

Talking about braking distances, I had a couple of scary moments... A/Ts just dont stop the way you expect them to.

4) PLEASE do this. One of the mounts had broken and the crashing sound was just unbearable. Sooner you get this done the better.

I have given my car to Linkway Honda today and asked them to do a complete heath check up. They mentioned that the engine mounts and power steering oil leaking issue will be checked.

Who are you opting for ? Linkway is near your place and they have been extremely good, honest, consistent and punctual in the last 7 years.

Good to know that. I am expecting the car tomorrow afternoon.

Sportier or not, was there any problem with the civic horn ?

Nothing at all. I just hated the way the stock horns sounded. Planning to get the Mindas on the XUV as well.