Faults:

Does not work very well with CNG.

Hand brake is not good at all. It needs to be improved.

General Comments:

It is a good car. I like it.

Faults:

Replaced the fuel door cable 3 times. Twice under warranty.

Replaced TPS sensor and Throttle body at 80,000 Kms.

Replaced the O2 sensor at 80,000 Kms.

Paint chips easily.

Body work is extremely thin and dents easily.

General Comments:

We purchased the Civic based on the reputation Honda's have for reliability. The $1400 worth of repairs before 3.5 years old was very disappointing.

Car is good on gas. It got about 40 MPG (US).

The body was made of very thin metal which flexes under very little pressure. My son closed the door with his butt and stoved in half the door area. It had to be pulled out with a plunger. The paint chips very easily. I live on a dirt road and have never experienced the amount of chips on any of the many vehicles I have owned.

The car is very noisy. There doesn't seem to be much insulation in the passenger compartment to keep out the road noise.

Faults:

A couple of small items; such as missing screw cover plate on drivers door, and I had to replace dust caps on alloy wheels because of pitting.

Since the second year of ownership, the automobile has developed a hard starting issue on occasion. It acts like it is flooded and won't start unless the pedal is depressed. A couple of visits to the dealer and speaking to the regional manager have not resolved the problem. I guess I will have to wait and see if it gets worse.

The battery had to be replaced at three years.

General Comments:

The usual Honda traits; bumpy ride and a lot of road noise.

So far, the cost of ownership seems to be higher than other new cars that I have owned in the past.

The rear window design makes it extremely difficult to clean.

Faults:

Nothing yet.

Just normal wear ie) Tires and breaks.

Squeaky clutch peddle. Sprayed some WD40 where the plunger goes through the fire wall. Problem gone.

General Comments:

Sadly the Civic SiR is no longer imported to Canada. 2004 was the last year of this car in Canada. It’s still manufactured in the U.K. but too expensive to import over here to be priced competitively. A 2004 civic was SiR $25,500 Canadian. Now a “no extras” 2004 SiR would be around $18,000 or $17,998 as the dealers would put it. I’ve always wanted one.

The SiR in Canada is the Si model in the U.S. and I think the S model in the UK, not the type R. The type R in the U.K. has 200hp, a 6-speed transmission, and an 8000 RPM red line. We don’t get the type R : (.

The SiR is front wheel drive and has a two liter, 4 cylinder, dual overhead cam shaft engine. It also has a timing chain - not a timing belt and is only offered with a 5-speed transmission. The engine also has the I-Vtec system (only 2004+ SiR’s). The difference from regular V-tec is that the I-Vtec engine has a wider power band range through out its revs, instead of a surge of power at high rpm’s. It seems that power really comes on at around 5000 rpm. The engine output is 160hp @ 6500 rpm and 132 1b.-ft @ 5000 rpm, 7000rpm redline. It’s basically the engine out of an Acura RSX.

The engine has lots of power to pass even when going up steep hills. You can leave it in 5th gear without having to wrench the guts out of it to maintain the speed limit when climbing steep hills (the advantage of the I-Vtec system). And best of all…its takes REGULAR 87 octane gas! It’s also good on gas.

It doesn’t seem to have much sound dampening material between the fire wall and cabin. So the engine is noisy at high revs or constant highway speeds. I don’t care because the car is a performance orientated vehicle. I like to hear the revs when shifting gears. It’s really not that bad at all.

The suspension is tight, but not unbearable when driving over bumps. If you want a softer ride, get a regular civic. This car is a driver’s car. It likes to be thrown around the corners. I have the 16” crap stock tires that came with the car. The tire wear is average. They have not been replaced and are at about 40% all around. I will be buying better tires when these die.

The steering is electronic powered, no steering pump. To most people it would seem rather firm all around. I however, really like the firm steering because it gives you more feed back during hard cornering or when you are approaching a corner. Feed back from the steering is excellent, not vague at all. I also like how the steering wheel is leather wrapped and a smaller diameter then most.

The brakes are good. Not amazing, they’re…good. Typical four wheel disc breaks. Break wear is about 35%.

The seats are great. They look like racing seats, but that’s about it. They have adequate lumbar support (not adjustable). The seating position is perfect. You can see the mid point of the hood and the dashboard doesn’t seem to be three miles deep. The back seat headrests do impair vision out the back window / rear view mirror. So I took mine off. Its much better now. The seat belt retract mechanism is not the greatest.

The car is roomy. Good head room even for tall people. Leg room…not so great for tall people. Good enough room in the back with the front seats all the way back for average height people. Great head room in the back too. It has 60 / 40 foldable rear seats. Good enough for skies, snowboards, or hockey sticks. It’s a 2 door hatch back. Sorry folks no four doors were made. The trim level is excellent for the price.

The gauges are analogue. No oil pressure gauge and no alternator gauge. I don’t like having a light come on and tell you that you have no oil pressure.

The controls are well placed and there are lots of little compartments to place small objects in - objects that will fly around when cornering. And yes it has cup holders, three in the front (one slide out one that is useless) and one for the back. They are all non-adjustable. Air-conditioning (put the window down), cruise (you are lazy), heated power mirrors (stuff to break), power windows (more stuff to break), power locks / keyless entry (OK, I like this one), CD player, and sunroof (possible future water leaks) are standard.

I really wish when you buy a new car that you could take the options you don’t want out, save cash on the sticker price, and still get the sports model of whatever car you looking at. Yes, I know the car companies stand on this issue; they can’t make custom built cars for mass production and make a profit.

The gearshift is located on the lower console area, a couple of inches below the CD player. Gearshifts are smooth and short. The gear ratios are well done, especially 2nd and 3rd gears. Since the gear shift is located on the lower console it takes a while for you to get used to not having anywhere to rest you gear shifting arm on when driving. It just kind of feels weird…um I mean – “Always have both hands on the steering wheel when driving kids!”

The clutch peddle lets out almost right away (not at the top) and is slightly heavier then say, your regular civic.

Lastly, they weren’t messing around when they said it has power windows….they have power alright, enough power to crush a concrete cinder block.

This car is an excellent all around car. It has tight steering and handling, good power to pass cars on the highway with confidence, enough room to put your snowboards in, and most importantly…its very fun to drive.