Team-BHP (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/)

-   Test-Drives & Initial Ownership Reports (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-drives-initial-ownership-reports/)

-   -   Honda Civic 2010 S/MT Initial Ownership Report (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-drives-initial-ownership-reports/98206-honda-civic-2010-s-mt-initial-ownership-report.html)

Hello everyone,

Its good to be here on team-BHP finally. I've been lurking around these forums for the last year or so when I happened to discover it, and let me just say what a gold mine it is, for anything to do with cars.

Window shopping: Sometime around September last year, we decided to go in for a new, and a 'bigger' car. At that point, we had a Santro Xing and a Accent Viva Crdi. A few months preceding that I was doing my research on the options available in the market, which led me to this forum. So here were the alternatives we considered:

Skoda Laura
Honda Civic
Chevrolet Cruze
Toyota Corolla
Honda City
Hyundai Verna

Our requirements were for a slightly bigger and better car compared to the Accent we had. And so that narrowed the list down to the Laura, Civic, Cruze and the Corolla. Corolla kind of ruled itself out with its almost sedate looks even though its a fine car. Laura was a serious contender, and I gave it good consideration. The engine, the european fit and finish and a sharp looking car made it a strong choice. But then, I began to read the ownership reviews and horror stories here. :O One or two could be considered an aberration, but so many negative reviews put a question mark over it. So just to make sure, I inquired with a few Skoda owners in the family & friends circle, and although they vouched for the quality of the car, they could not say the same about the service and maintenance issues. When you're putting down so much on a car, the last thing you want is headaches in maintaining it. The next option was the Cruze. A new entrant into the market from a reborn GM. It had a lot going for it. A 2.0L engine with loads of power, muscular looks, and a diesel option (which I test drove). I must say it has great road presence when you look at it from close quarters. Interiors seemed a bit tacky (why-o-why do they put chrome to everything to give it an upmarket feel?). The trust level was somehow missing for me for the Chevrolet and its A.S.S was a concern. In the end after looking at all the facts and figures, it was a gut decision to go for the tried and trusted Honda brand.

I'd driven the Civic in the US (Civic on US roads looks like a Honda City on Indian roads because of large number of SUvs on roads there), and knew what to expect. So after a test drive, and a visit to the Dakshin Honda showroom, it was finalized that we would go in for the Civic. The 'all-new Civic' as they called had a few upgrades like the tail lamps, standard cruise control on both trims and what I thought was standard (and should have been standard) was the steering mounted volume controls, but it wasn't. The next decision was to choose the trim level. We didn't want leather seats and fog lamps, and since cruise control was standard and I'd assumed volume controls were also standard, decided to go for the S trim. Of course, the AT was never an option that was considered.

Purchase:

The car was booked through Dakshin Honda (Hosur Road, Bangalore). It was going to be a Metal Metallic Civic S MT with reverse parking sensors as an additional accessory. The final on-road price worked out to be Rs.15.21L (Road tax in Karnataka is insane!!!). There was a bit of goof up from Dakshin Honda with RC smart card. Initially we had decided to buy the car in the company's name, but later decided to get it in my mother's name and they clearly new about this. But they got the papers mixed up, and wrote the wrong information on the application and submitted it to the RTO. We got the corrected RC card back after months of two and fro calls to the person in charge of this at Dakshin Honda, and finally received it a few weeks back. That was the only negative bit, but the rest of buying and after sales experience with this dealer has been good. Touch wood.

When I did find out about the steering mounted volume controls not being standard on the S trim, I was disappointed. When you pay 15L for a car, can't you put this tiny bit of accessory on to the steering wheel? Baffling!! The good part though, from a safety aspect, all their safety features are standard on both trims, which I think is the right way to go. You shouldn't need to pay extra to get ABS and Airbags. They must be made standard on all cars. The beige cloth fabric that comes standard on the S trim is pretty good, although it is a dust/dirt magnet. We plan to go in for seat covers in a years time.

Interiors:

Everybody speaks of the Civic's 'cool' interiors, so I won't go into that much, suffice to say, I look forward to sitting in the drivers seat every time. The quality of the interiors is top notch. Driver's seat comfort is pretty good, although, it takes me a while to find the right position (I'm 6 ft). (They should have electronic adjustable seats with memory). Hand brake can get brush against your leg, when its on. Rear seat comfort is also good, although would have preferred a bit more thigh support, but it won't affect me much since I will hardly sit there. The legroom even after the front seat is pushed completely back leaves a bit of room at the back, so space is no issue. Ingress/egress is a touch difficult since the seats are low, thats what my mom tells me at least. She found it difficult for the first few days, but got used to seating posture and getting in and out of the car. The flat floor and the audio controls at the back are a nice touch. Two people can sit comfortably, and 3 can sit easily without too much trouble either. The AC and the climate control work pretty well, but gets quite loud when used at full blast.

I'm quite impressed with the quality of the audio system in the car. My aunt who drives an S-class was surprised at the quality of the interiors and the audio system, so I guess it compares well. USB socket and the mp3 player as opposed to the 6-CD changer on the older model is a good upgrade. I have my portable 100GB HDD stored away under the arm rest compartment. I listen to mainly rock n roll, blues, jazz, and some trance occasionally and I find the sound quality very good. Highs are tight, with excellent mid range. I did notice though, that front speakers are louder than the rear. Works for me since I'm usually sitting in the front, but I might consider upgrading the rear speakers sometime. Another thing you will notice is, if you have all windows up, there is hardly any noise that filters in from the outside.

Engine & driveability:

Now for the most exciting part. The driving bit. The engine is super quiet. When on idle, you cannot hear the engine noise, which can sometimes cause you to press on right pedal a bit more than you would. After having driven the Accent Crdi for the last 5 years, the driveability and acceleration on the Civic took me a little while to get used to. Accent Crdi has a slow start until 2500rpm, and then rockets after that in 3rd gear if you step on the gas, which I've been so used to driving around in city traffic or on highways to overtake. Civic, on the other hand has a linear and smooth acceleration. A lot has been said about the low end torque, and slow acceleration, and I find that it takes a while to get used to it, but is perfectly fine for city driving.

On the highways, it might require more gear shifts to get some power in, but if you are looking to cruise, then boy is it a delight. I haven't even come close to pushing the car yet, but you get the feeling there is tons of power underneath just waiting to be unleashed. The car has done just about 2k kms (yes, I know, not much at all). We've done a couple of short drives - one to Srirangapatna on Mysore road, and the other to Tumkur on NH4. The former with a fully loaded boot, and 5 passengers in the car. While the load becomes noticeable in terms of acceleration on the Accent, I didn't find the engine lacking power when required, with a fully loaded car.

But what a fully loaded Civic does, which I found out painfully, is that, as mentioned by numerous people, scrapes every goddamn unscientific hump, of which there are plenty in and around Bangalore. Even if you crawl over a big hump, it will kiss the bottom, if the car is fully loaded. Blame it on the soft suspension and the long wheelbase. But what the soft suspension does is it provides you with a super smooth ride over potholed roads, also of which there are plenty in India. It simply glides over them compared to the Accent, where you can hear the thud of every pothole filtering through to you. I can't wait to take the car out on a long drive. Like I mentioned, I haven't really pushed the car yet, but on a few occasions it has clocked more than a 100, the car has appeared very stable with no hint of uncertainty on the roads. It corners quite well around bends, and there is minimal body roll.

Fuel efficiency in city so far has been averaging around 9. On the highway, it gives you 15 on average if driven with a light left foot. I actually managed to get 16.9 kmpl from Bangalore to Tumkur on NH4 with AC on when I pretty much cruised on 5th gear throughout.

Thats about it for now. Here are a couple of pictures. I will definitely add more and better quality ones in the future. And I also hope to update this after a few road trips.

Drive safe!!

Congratulations on the Civic. It is one of the best out there, ever! Specially the 8th gen. Nice review, will look forward for more pictures and observations.

Actually Bangalore seems to have many and better options on this front. At least thats what I could gather from the reviews. I have half a mind to drive to Bangalore for this.

I know!

Have you tried the DSP hack? You might also think of dampening the front doors for a better audio quality.

As several reviews here says, at 180+ also, the car is rock stable. Ditto for handling.

Again, congratulations and drive safe.

Congratulations teknicsand on your civic. I am sure you must be having fun with 1.8 L, 132 PS i-VTEC engine.

Steering audio controls not available in civic SMT? That's disappointing for sure, even ANHC SMT has audio controls on steering.

I suggest you to get seat covers after stock ones gets little dirty. What mileage are you getting with your civic? Keep this thread updated with more pictures and service experience. Congratulations once again and drive safe.

Congrats on your buy ! I am sure she will keep you excited always. Happy and safe motoring.


There are no steering mounted audio controls on any variant in the Civic and this is a major gripe that I have too. :Frustrati Honda India thinks that the Civic is meant to be chauffeur driven.

No steering audio controls on V/MT/AT too? Well that's even more surprising and made me doing this:Frustrati. A 15-16 Lac rupee car lacking this feature and surprisingly even Honda jazz has steering mounted audio controls:eek:.

Congratulations on your decision on buying a Civic. It is a car that will age really well and will give you plenty of joyful moments!

Strange observation. IIRC, all four speakers (in front and in the back) in Civic are exactly the same!

Think about poor mortals like me driving the pre-facelifted Civic and it will help alleviating your disappointment! ;)

Good FE figures. They will get even better after completion of run-in period.

dot, for all those who are using DSP hack, I would like to mention not to pump up the volume too much! I believe 12-14 should be fine but volume levels higher than that seem to damage the speakers permanently! Happened with a friend of mine! Just a suggestion.

haha... why do you think I went through all the pain for DIYing the steering embedded controls in my car? Kinda stupid but Civic has these controls in the back and Corolla has them on the steering itself! Should have been other way around IMO! :uncontrol

congrats man, love the color, great write up. good luck with it and happy driving.

Nice car. Do post more pics!

Drove dot's Civic AT recently and fell in love with it! Those interiors! That handling! The Honda City is so gareeb in comparison.

Thanks guys!! I will definitely try and update this as often as I can.

@dot: Sorry I'm ignorant about modding cars, so not sure how a DSP hack is done. Dampening the front doors is a good option though if it results in audible difference in sound quality.

@rr_zen: The V trim and AT versions do have the steering audio controls, but not on the S trim. I asked the guys at Dakshin Honda, if I could get it fitted as an accessory, but apparently I can't. Can't believe they didn't make it standard.

@Ace F355 Yes, strange I know. Any DIY hack for getting steering controls on the Civic?

It is shocking that Honda doesn't do it but unfortunately rr_zen is right, teknicsand. None of Civic's varient comes with audio controls on steering wheel. Neither S nor V. :deadhorse

I did the DIY with help of a friend. Look for the pics and procedure followed in my thread.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2258764

Nice work on getting those controls in. Maybe I can buy those controls and convince the Honda guys to put it in, but I think they will crib about the warranty. To your early point on the controls not being on any variant, I think I'm pretty sure having used them when I test drove the V variant if my memory serves me right, but I might be wrong.

You may want to do a reality check on this, though I wish to be proved wrong. I did check with my dealer last week on retro-fitting the audio controls from the City/Jazz and he denied that possibility saying it is not just a mere task of connecting wires but more. I didnt want to argue but left with the thought that I may need to get it done outside.

Honda India website link:

Honda Car India :: Civic

See the left side of the steering! It is just a mesh.

I think you are confusing City and Civic together. City has audio controls and Civic has cruise control. None of these cars have both of them! :Frustrati

That is true rr_zen. It is a much complicated task than what it seems like. The problem is, putting everything in the connection through the steering wheel. You always gotta remember that steering moves and so is the internal wiring system wrapped around it!!!

Does the Civic with the sunroof even sell? I am yet to see one on the roads here. Its appalling that Honda chose to go with the sun roof rather than adding the steering controls and few other features that are sorely missing in a Civic.