2005 Honda Civic Coupe EX SE 1.7 4 cylinder VTEC from North America
Summary:
Head gasket went at 70,000 miles
Faults:
1. Anti-lock brakes turn on if you hit a bump, pot hole, pebbles, a stick, etc.
2. Less interior room.
2. Engine light came on in October 2013. Cylinder #2 was not firing correctly. Spark plug and coil replaced.
3. Overheating issues appeared in November 2013. Took the car to several shops to have the head gasket tested with no problems diagnosed. Uses a little antifreeze on a weekly basis.
4. Losing more antifreeze in 2014; had head gasket retested = exhaust leaking into coolant system. Head gasket was blown at 70,000 miles. Honda had "product update" and only replaced parts into 2011. Manufacturer will not help.
5. I will never buy another Honda vehicle due to my experience with this lemon.
General Comments:
Less interior room. Don't have enough money to buy a different car, because I've replaced the radiator, water pump, timing belt, sensors, and thermostat (4 times) in order to find out why I lost antifreeze. Head gasket blew at 70,000 miles. I named it garage bill.
I would expect this scenario from Jaguar or Porsche... not Honda.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 7th April, 2014
21st Apr 2014, 12:56
How exactly does the exhaust get into the cooling system? That doesn't make sense to me. Also as far as the overheating did those "mechanics" test anything other than the heads, how about the thermostat, radiator, hoses, leaks, so on and so on. Sounds more like you had a bad mechanic experience, not a bad car experience.
25th Apr 2014, 14:40
The head gasket is what seals the combustion chamber from the cooling passages in the block and cylinder head of any motor. As a mechanic, that's what you test for, you pop off the radiator cap and put a hydrocarbon tester on it to see if gases are coming through the radiator. If they are, the head gasket is gone likely.
I want to say (as a Honda owner) that this is a rare occurrence, but honestly I've seen a lot of 1.7 Civics blow head gaskets.
10th May 2015, 11:55
My 2004 Civic had 2 head gasket replacements at 60000km and 70000km. Now we own 2 Toyotas, a RAV4 and a Yaris.
10th May 2015, 15:49
Or you look at your dipstick, and if it looks like chocolate milk, move on.
8th Apr 2014, 11:07
Hyundai makes a great car now. Test-drive a new Genesis...