It's Honda...
Written: Apr 08 '04 (Updated Apr 19 '04)
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Pros: Gas mileage, handling, nice clutch, competent transportation, it's a Honda
Cons: Cheap plastic interior, small, slow, kinda ugly, it's a Honda
The Bottom Line: Get it if you want something that'll get you around. If you want something fast, comfortable, large, or exciting, you need not apply.
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| classic58caddy's Full Review: 1996 Honda Civic 4 Door |
I just got a '96 Civic EX 4-door as a daily driver. I have a '68 Mustang that I used to drive day-to-day, but at 15mpg, the gas bills piled up and I was gassing up every other day. The Stang is now sitting next to my '58 Caddy as an occasional fun machine.
I went into this with some trepidation, since I don't normally like Hondas, but I tried to be as objective as possible.
Quality:
It seems pretty well assembled, with only very small gaps, although I can't say much for the interior. Plastic of any kind never imparts a feeling of quality to me, although the stuff used in here wasn't too bad as plastic goes. You won't confuse it for a luxury car by any means, but it gets its job done. I haven't had any trouble with it yet, perhaps not surprisingly, but I cringe to think at repair bills. I'm a fairly accomplished backyard mechanic, having restored both the Cad and the Mustang myself, but I wouldn't touch most of what's on the Civic because it's so complicated, and I'm sure I'd have to pay accordingly to get it done for me.
Exterior: Well, it's a subjective call, for sure, but it's not a pretty car to me. All the plastic trim gives it a somewhat cheap look, and the large glass areas, while providing excellent visibility, make the car look tall and sort of gawky. And the shiny bling-bling plastic hubcaps the last guy look terribly out of place...I'll have to fix that.
Interior, in depth:
The inside is a mixed bag. Front seat room is pretty decent for such a small car, but the back seat is no bigger than my Mustang, really, the biggest difference being that it's got the rear doors to make things easier. Quality materials are in short supply, as I said, but it's well put-together. Also, everything is within easy reach being exactly where you'd want it to be, and controls are simple to decipher. The seats were middling, they seemed a bit stiff to me, but arent what I'd call uncomfortable. Gauges are neat and visible, if a little un-informative. I'd like to see a few more gauges replace the idiot lights so you can see a problem coming before it strikes and damages anything.
Size:
It's a compact car, so room is at a premium, though more so in the back seat than up front. Trunk space was impressive though, besting my much larger Mustang with its large, flat floor and nice, low load height. As mentioned, the back seat is not the biggest around, but is just big and comfortable enough to haul a family around on short-medium trips.
The drive:
The ride is small-car stiff, with short, jouncy reactions to most bumps due to the short wheelbase, although it pays dividends in handling. I'd rather have a softer ride because I never use handling, but at least the stiff ride isn't completely for naught. The steering is agreeable, it strikes a nice balance between heavy, sport feel and light, easy maneuvering. Power-wise...well, the tiny 1.6 liter 4-cylinder is fairly sophisticated, but...it doesn't have any. It relies on its smooth, rev-happy nature to account for its 127 hp, but it has no torque and frankly feels gutless accelerating at city speeds; get some revs on the clock and it seems to be much happier. It does like the freeway much better, and it loves a good hard 3rd gear stretch. It cruises fine at any speed, but has little in reserve for passing and will never get your heart pumping. If you need to pass, make sure to grab a gear beforehand or you're in trouble. Still, it runs smoothly and at 30mpg pushed reasonably hard a lot of the time, I'm not complaining. The gas mileage is just phenominal, my old Focus got "only" 28mpg when I drove it granny style (remember, I'm used to driving a pair of gas hogs). The 5-speed is smooth if a little imprecise, but the clutch is light while providing some decent feedback. The seats are a little stiff, but not uncomfortable.
Overall, it's not a bad car per se, but it's strictly basic transportation. I see a lot of these modded (big fartcans, stupid wings, etc), and I can't figure out why - I'd never confuse this for anything sporting. But if you want basic transportation, it's not a bad car to look into. It doesn't do anything THAT well, but it really does nothing badly.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 4000
Condition: Used
Model Year: 1996
Model and Options: EX Sedan
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Epinions.com ID:
classic58caddy
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Reviews written: 6
Trusted by: 1 member
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