Second Hand Honda Civic

Archer

Archer

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Anything dramatic I should know about/look for in a Honda Civic, 2007/2008 year model?
OR
Any other cars I could be looking at (second hand) for around R125k ±20k? Re-resale value, spares, servicing, running costs are important. 100 on the clock or less would be great. A bit of oomph would also be nice :p but since I'm moving from around 70 odd kw that shouldnt be difficult
 
I bought my VXi new in 2006 and have never looked back. It's a very good car that hasn't given me even a single day's problem. Apart from the usual second hand buying tips, I can't think of anything specific to this car to look out for. Mine still goes very well.

The one thing you'll notice about the car though is that the gearbox is not the best so gearshifts aren't always as smooth as you'd expect. The clutch is also a bit iffy and you can burn it in traffic on an uphill if you get a bit heavy footed (which I've done twice). Other than that it drives very well, has ample space and looks good inside. Maybe the one piece of advice I could give is that you shouldn't settle for anything but the VXi as the lower models don't come with climate control, steering wheel controls, cruise control and mags...
 
Pros: From a few friends that owned them, they are very reliable cars with very good consumption. As stated earlier by DJ, go for the VXI if you can find one.

Cons: I've heard replacement parts can become VERY, VERY expensive - this was the main reason for guys selling the cars.
 
Extremely reliable. But when something does go wrong be prepared to cough up.
My sisters 2007 Civic decided it didn't like having a radiator anymore. Cost quite a bit to get it replaced.
 
I drive the Type R and have not looked back since the day I got her. I wouldn't know much about the repair cost etc, as I have a full maintenance plan, but I had a look at the invoices I get after the service and it is normally around R2300 excluding brakes. So it is not ridiculously expensive for services. Parts might be a bit expensive, but like I said I wouldnt know :) Nothing wrong with my baby thus far.... If you join the Honda Owners Club you will also receive 10% discounts on all your parts and services.
 
Also talking out of Civic ownership experience. I own a 2009 VXi hatch automatic. Comes with a couple of extras the manual didn't at the time, including USB / Aux input, auto wipers and lights and rear PDC. Also has a different front grille and gloss (instead of matt) spoilers around the lower-body, sometimes colour-coded to the body as well. The auto isn't as sluggish as most people would believe - my bro-in-law drives a manual (bought his 2 months after mine) and I've driven both now. Power delivery is pretty much the same as the manual.

As Creature mentioned, I can't comment on the actual maintenance costs, as I have a full maintenance plan. What I CAN comment on however, is that repairing this car is insanely expensive. I had a small bumper-bashing beginning of June (with very minor damage, only a couple of scratches and slightly bent rear-bumper), but unfortunately had an incident with a security gate that same month (damage to the front bumper, both right doors and rear fender). All in all the repair costs came to just over R61k to replace both bumpers and doors. Obviously, the paint (metallic grey-ish / charcoal) made up almost half of that bill, so consider a non-metallic colour like black, red or white (although the white was only introduced with the auto and facelift in mid-2009).

The car is an absolute joy to drive. The suspension is a bit hard, so driving on uneven surfaces (which is the majority of Midrand) and dirt-roads tends to rattle you a bit and make you feel utterly emphatic for the poor car, but it still hasn't developed rattles or squeaks in the interior. I have had to replace both rear suspension struts due to the bad road conditions though... But that was replaced under warranty. Funnily enough my bro-in-law wen through the exact same thing, with Honda Westrand stating something about a factory fault in the rear suspension. But it seems to be sorted out now.

TL;DR - Very good / comfortable car, auto has extra features, expensive repairs, go for non-metallic colour, hard suspension, possible rear suspension issues
 
Out of interest, are they many used civics on the market? I havent seen many when i was looking about a month ago. You can find a ton of Jazz's but not civics.
 
FarligOpptreden said:
That's probably because the owners are so extremely happy with them :p
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I know. I would like to be a happy Honda Civic owner too, but i cant find them. In particular i was looking for the hatch back models.
 
Only bad thing I have ever heard is that the replacement parts are RIDICULOUSLY expensive. Brakes especially. Otherwise great cars.
 
msm said:
Cons: I've heard replacement parts can become VERY, VERY expensive - this was the main reason for guys selling the cars.
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The replacements parts have become expensive but then again not everything has to be purchased from Honda.

Back in the day when Honda was made locally by Mercedes the parts were dirt cheap compared to other brands and this directly from the dealers.

They are extremely reliable cars though and will last you many years.
 
Grimspoon said:
Only bad thing I have ever heard is that the replacement parts are RIDICULOUSLY expensive. Brakes especially. Otherwise great cars.
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Import them... I've found if you know you need something, order it three weeks in advance from overseas, and you pay up to an 1/8th of the price.
 
xrapidx said:
Import them... I've found if you know you need something, order it three weeks in advance from overseas, and you pay up to an 1/8th of the price.
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Good idea. But I doubt most people would do that.
 
Grimspoon said:
Only bad thing I have ever heard is that the replacement parts are RIDICULOUSLY expensive. Brakes especially. Otherwise great cars.
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Yeah, my civic eats breaks!
also a set of wiper blades - R1000 , what a rip off
very good car though, havent had a problem and had since new, 2007 model
 
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I've got a 2006 Honda Civic hatch that I bought new. 118 000 km on the clock and the worst I've had to deal with is a flat battery. Services cost about 2k and brake disk replacement costs about R1100 at the dealership (this is the same as Opel charged for my Corsa). Wiper blade replacements are expensive (approx R800), but I can't comment on parts prices since I've never had to replace anything that wasn't a normal wear and tear item.
 
Honda's in general are brilliant and reliable cars, if you get a nice VXi, go for it, you wont regret:)

However, overall long term maintenance and reliability, you still cant beat a Corolla. A 1.6 Advanced or so is 90kw and if you're lucky, the 1.8 is 100kw, comes with all the basic features and wont cost an arm and a leg to repair. My recommendation is the Corolla:)

Either car you choose - you're going to win:)
 
DefecteD said:
Thanks

Hoping to get rid of my civic prety soon,
there is a 2008 s2000 with 18000ks on it for R285000, what you think of the price?
sorry for thread hijack!
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seems about right for an S2000 of that year...
 
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