The 2008 Civic Sedan is a 4-door, 5-passenger family sedan, available in 12 trims, ranging from the
The 2008 Civic Sedan is a 4-door, 5-passenger family sedan, available in 12 trims, ranging from the DX 5-Spd MT to the EX-L 5-Spd AT w/ Navigation System.
Upon introduction, the DX 5-Spd MT is equipped with a standard 1.8-liter, I4, 140-horsepower engine that achieves 26-mpg in the city and 34-mpg on the highway. A 5-speed manual transmission with overdrive is standard. The EX-L 5-Spd AT w/ Navigation System is equipped with a standard 1.8-liter, I4, 140-horsepower engine that achieves 25-mpg in the city and 36-mpg on the highway. A 5-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard.
"...this is a very nice little motor. Smooth, high-revving, and no quit. This motor is well-served by its six speed manual. Stir the gear-box frequently and keep the RPMs over 6,000 and this is a fun ride."
"The Civic has a solid body structure, comfortable seats, and sips fuel. The interior colors mesh well together producing a pleasant visual experience for the occupants..."
Summary: The Civic’s that are made in Canada has very poor fit and finish. The hood on the left and right fender would not be even, other panels on the car would be off on each side and also the bumper in the back. If they can't even make that right, just imagine the engine and the transmission components. “Honda owner check your civics and you would be able to tell the difference on the body panels are not even on the right and left sides of the car”. I asked the dealer sales people and their replied “they don’t know why”.
However the civic hybrids are made very well, those are made in Japan.
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Summary: Awesome car for balls out driving. Lots of bad things as well. The worst is a lack of throttle response from 2 -7 mph. Yes, that's right, if you are in neutral or in gear but have the clutch depressed, then rev the engine between 2 and 7 mph, you will not have any throttle response. It's so bad that if you were at a yield sign, coasting through, then realized you needed to get on the throttle because a car is about to slam you, the lack of throttle response causes an unsure moment as to whether or not your car will get out of the way in time. It's that bad. The Si I road tested before buying mine had the same problem, though at the time I didn't realize what it was and that it was a serious, ongoing issue. Another issue is the severe hesitation when cold, and even when warm, though to a lesser degree. I mean severe! My '94 Accord with 260,000 miles has an engine that is silky smooth, even when cold. Now we're in 2007 and can't have a vehicle that runs smooth when cold? Honda really messed up with their Drive By Wire ( DBW ) and computer programming. Another issue is the tire hop when, god forbid, it's even a little wet out. The hop is so bad that it jars the heck out of the car. Not something that I would expect from a limited slip differential, not to mention the suspension setup. Another bad thing? The quality of the body panel seams. Each and every one of the seams on the body are off. Either more space than another, or a panel may be actually sticking out further than the panel that is next to it. The battery struggles to turn the motor over as well. Always feels like it's struggling when cranking. When cold, the fast idle gets confused and will "catch" and go from 1750 to 2250 after a quick blip of the throttle. Oh yes, I don't want to forget the problem with shifting into 3rd gear. When cold, and if shifting without force, 3rd gear will always pop out and put you in neutral. Love it!
If it weren't so sexy, I'd drive it off a bridge while hitting 8000 rpm. Then I'd get insurance money to buy a car that has body panels that match and a throttle system that is not electronic. That would mean, I dare say, that it wouldn't be a Honda. Sorry Honda, your DBW sucks and your reluctance to address and fix these issues are your downfall in my eyes.
Strengths: Motor, looks, handling
Weaknesses: DBW and body seams
Similar Products Used: Lots of Honda vehicles for over 20 years
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Summary: Civic Si feels separate and different from the base model as soon as you open the door. Purists might bemoan the retreat of the hatchback Civic Si from American shores, but the new four-door Si's supportive and low-slung sports seats, stumpy alloy shifter and pedals positioned perfectly for heel-and-toe downshifts do their part to confirm that the spirit of the old Si remains intact, regardless of the door count.
A big part of that spirit, as with every fast Honda since the 1988 Prelude 2.0 Si, is tucked under the hood. Here the new Si doesn't disappoint. Within a whisker of 100 horsepower per liter, the Si's high-compression 2.0 liter twincam four pumps out 197 horsepower at a giddy 7,800 rpm. Also true to Honda form it makes a rather less exclamation point-worthy 139 lb-ft of torque.
The car tested wore more black than Johnny Cash. The seats are black, the carpet is black, the door panels are black, etc. Only the sporty red stitching on the seats and well-judged use of alloy-effect plastic on the console and steering wheel saved the car's interior from looking like the lost-and-found bin at a Cannibal Corpse concert.
Honda wisely chose to fit the Si with electrically-assisted power steering as opposed to hydraulic steering found in the rest of the Civic lineup. The result is a sharper feel at the helm, seeming at once more delicate and more mechanical. Feedback from the road is good, but not outstanding. Sadly, Honda's days of unassisted, feel-every-pebble steering seem to have died with the NSX, but the Si's steering is still about as good as it gets in this price range.
The Si is fitted with a limited slip differential, but you wouldn't know it at parking lot speeds, where there's wheelspin aplenty. At higher speeds the 'diff makes its presence known, divvying up traction between the front wheels to punt the car out of corners with a minimum of wheelspin, but it doesn't emulate the more uncompromising Honda Integra Type-R's (available only to the European and Asian market) wonder differental, which is reputed to give an almost rear-drive feel.
The Si gets a red-tinted tachometer as opposed to the standard Civic's more peaceful blue one, and the separate digital speedometer stacked on top of the 'tach in a housing just under the windscreen is shared by both. Shuffling your gaze up and down between the tach and speedo, rather than side to side to make sure neither socially sensible revs nor Conway traffic laws are breached takes some getting used to; and mighty tempting it is to venture into the naughty side of both.
A twist of the key is all it takes to know Honda put some of their best and brightest to task on the Si engine. A trait of most high-compression engines (11.0 to 1 for the Si, the same as a Lamborghini Murcielago LP640(!)), the cylinders make high-pitched chirping sounds as the starter motor stirs the engine before it bursts into life with a surprisingly bass-rich burble. The as-standard sports exhaust system makes about as good a noise as you're going to get with an inline four, at once cultured and exuberant.
Low revs aren't the Si's fort. Compared to, say, the Scion tC or Cobalt SS SC, the engine feels downright anemic below 2,000 rpm. But Honda's engineers have been working for almost two decades to perfect a hole card that trumps the tC's Camry-sourced 2.3 liter and Nissan's 2.5 liter, and almost matches the Cobalt SS SC's supercharged 2.2 in outright power output: i-VTEC. Explaining just how VTEC works is one of those long-winded gearhead diatribes that sends even the most patient listeners running for the hills. Suffice to say it's a mechanism by which the camshafts shift slightly at a certain RPM (6,000 in the Si's case, give or take a few hundred revs) to allow the engine to breathe in as much fuel and air as is physically possible.
It's the same basic principal as the old "cammer" engines of muscle car lore. Dragstrip aficionados will know the rough, uneven idle of Detroit big iron tuned to sing like Pavarotti down the strip, but so highly-strung they're barely able to keep ticking over at anything under 1,000 rpm.
i-VTEC is the best of both worlds. With the camshafts spun back to their normal low-rev, around-town configuration the Si is a grocery getter, getting 31 miles to the gallon. Above 6,000 rpm it's a racer, and fuel consumption concerns fly right out the window. If the engine pulls a Jekyll and Hyde from idle to 6,000 rpm, it's a full-on Dracula from 6,000 to the 8,000 rpm redline.
There's a noticeable kick in the back as the needle passes six grand, almost like the second stage of an old four-barrel carburetor coming on-line, accompanied by a sudden hardening of the exhaust note and induction whine. Keep the revs below the VTEC camshaft shift point and it's an economy car. Pass it and it's full speed ahead and damn the ice caps. Making an engine spin faster, to refute the oft-repeated racetrack mantra, is one of several replacements for displacement.
You can ask
Strengths: Fun, motor, handling, standard equipment, stereo, resale value
Year / Model Reviewed: 2007 Honda Civic EX with Nav
Summary: 2007 Civic gets 19 MPG and Honda says that is OK :(
Do NOT believe the MPG estimates. If you are lucky enough to get one that gets the kind of mileage they advertise then you are very lucky. My car gets 19 MPG and Honda says that is just fine with them. They said there is nothing they can or will do about it and it is just bad luck.
If you get the grey interior expect a very dangerous reflection of the entire dashboard on the windshield while you are driving. This is present in all light.
Strengths: Fun to drive, looks nice.
Weaknesses: Doesn't get anywhere near the MPG range they state and advertise.
Similar Products Used: Previous owner of Honda's and Honda civic. Multiple Honda owners in the family as well as Toyotas.
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Summary: This is my 4th Honda Civic and I can't believe the incredible road noise when on the freeway. It sounds like the wind is whistling through the windows. After a one hour drive on the freeway I could not wait to get out of the car as I now had a massive headache. The noise is so bad I am considering getting rid of the car.
Strengths: It's a Honda.
Weaknesses: Way too noisy!!
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