2005 Honda Civic SE 1.8L

Summary:

Cheaply made, with too many small annoyances

Faults:

When cold engine mounts squeak, and crackle to the point it feel like its about to fall out, Honda is unable to fix. Struts have gone from bad to worse. Rust is appearing on the trunk. Dust deflectors had to be adjusted as they were releasing back into the brakes.

General Comments:

I was excited to buy this vehicle new. My Jeep was just getting to the point I couldn't afford the cost of fuel. The Civic ran well until the first few cold days. I live in Canada. On cold days, it sounds as though the engine mounts is rubbing metal on metal. I had it in for service 5X to the dealer, and each time they "fixed" something else. I always had to wait until a very cold day -10 celsius or more so I could show then. The mechanics were so inept one evening when I picked it up it made the noise immediately... they told me the part they replaced needed a few days to work itself in. This has never happened 2yrs later, and I gave up arguing with them and just live with it.

Now today I've noticed a hole in the trunk, and a good deal of rust appearing. Time for another trip to the dealer, which becomes frustrating and difficult as it's about a 1hr drive.

Beyond these problems it does have great fuel consumption. It's peppy for a little 1.8L, but only until about 20-30mph, after that its pretty poor performance. The car rides like a German Army Tank... the seats are uncomfortable, the ride is rough, and the interior materials are cheap. Not GM cheap... but not far off. It's very very loud on the highway, so be prepared to turn the stereo up higher than normal. I'll keep it until it dies, or rusts out at this rate, but can't say I'm very happy with the car, nor would I ever buy another Honda.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 11th January, 2008

2005 Honda Civic SE

Summary:

There's a reason this is the best selling car in Canada!

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with this car. This car is everything I ever wanted it to be.

General Comments:

The ride in this car is fantastic, both city and highway. The gas mileage is unbelievable for a 4-door sedan; in the city I average about 400km per tank, and about 600 on the highway, and that's with the A/C on! With the price of gas being so high in Canada, good fuel economy is essential when buying a new car, and the Civic doesn't disappoint. Lots of room in the interior as well as in the trunk, however there are no cup holders in the back, and power windows and heated outside mirrors (very important with Canada's cold winters) are only available in the much more expensive LX-G model. In addition, this "Special Edition" Civic doesn't have adjustable intermittent wipers, something I had on my base model 1984 Mercury Capri. In fact, the only things the "Special Edition" Civic have that the base model doesn't have is the A/C and the CD player. Still, I absolutely love this car and in all my years of driving it is the best car for the money that I have ever driven.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 17th March, 2007

2005 Honda Civic EX 1.7 VTEC

Summary:

Good, reliable transportation

Faults:

Nothing but normal servicing. I do wonder why the dealer charges so much for synthetic oil ($50) over their own brand. ($30)

I am getting a strange whining sound coming from what I believe is the transmission, and occasionally (when engine is still cold or when I am driving in heavy freeway traffic) the tranny shifts are "harder" than when I am in normal driving conditions. Any feedback would help.

General Comments:

Overall, a great car. Light, fuel efficient, and comfortable.

The suspension is a nice mix of comfort and sport.

The seats are well bolstered (I am 6' tall) and perfect for long drives.

A little underpowered, I don't like revving the car above 4000 RPM to get the power out of it, but still adequate. I would have bought the manual, but the little lady can't drive stick. Oh well, I'll just have to wait for my S2000.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 30th October, 2006

11th May 2007, 21:45

Original poster here. I have checked and read many forums on late model Civics and Accords, and have found an unusually large number of vehicles whose transmissions fail between 50,000 and 100,000+ miles. I was concerned about a whining sound coming from the transmission, and took it to my mechanic who drove with me in the car and performed a few tests, and we both listened to it. Although he could not tell me exactly why the sound was present, he said to keep an ear on it, as he has had many Hondas in for transmission problems.

ALSO, BG Products has a transmission flush service, that if performed BEFORE the 36,000 mile factory warranty and performed every 30,000 miles thereafter, will give you $2000 if your transmission goes out before you hit 150,000 miles!! Highly recommended, check it out at:

http://www.bgfindashop.com/bgprotectionplan.htm

12th Nov 2009, 14:28

I own a 2005 Civic EX with manual transmission, and also experience the same "whining" noise as you described. The noise appears to be originating from the front left engine bay and occurs at an annoying 1800-2000 RPM (basically normal cruising speed). The noise resembles something like a high-pitched RC toy or turbine. If the car was supercharged then I wouldn't mind! :-)

My first suspicion was the timing belt. I took it twice to the dealer under warranty in which they checked the timing belt, wheels/ball joints etc. but could not find anything wrong. They said this was the normal sound of the engine (venturi effect of the air passing through the air-intake), however I can still recreate it to an extent when revving to 2000 RPM with the car at a stand still. As it's not too loud, I've basically learned to live with it by trying to avoid that RPM range, or listening to music...