Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Honda Civic

Greg - Your Car Angel- talks about the problems in each generation of the Honda Civic. Focusing on the 7th generation up till the 11the generation. Problems with the seventh generation which ran between the years 2001-2005 had many recalls with transmission problems, power steering pump failure, clear coat paint failure, hybrid battery problems, throttle management issues, and of course the Takata airbag recall makes this the civic the least reliable with the most problems. The 2006-2011 had problems with the paint but most serious was the engine block cracking. This issue was the worst and affected the 2006, 2007, 2008 and some 2009 models. there was a technical service bulletin for the R18 engine. Honda extended the warranty on these engines. The 2012 through 2015 models were very reliable except the 2014 and 2015 models equipped with the CVT transmission.
The 2016 through 2019 models with the 1.5 liter turbo earth dream engines had oil dilution issues. There was also a TSB but no recall on that.

Other videos in this series:

Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Toyota RAV 4

Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Toyota Prius

Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Toyota Highlander

Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Honda CRV

Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Subaru Forester

10 Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Car from a Private Party

[swizzblade]

I have the 2006 Honda Civic LX. Bought it brand new at the dealership on September of 2006. My son now owns this car. He drove it from California to Virginia with no issues. Now he returns the car back to and drove it again to CA with 170k on the dashboard and still running fine. Now I’m using this for work without issues. FYI, service your car when it’s due so you won’t have any problems later.

[earthling]

My 2nd car is a 2008 Civic. 155k miles. 15 years old now and all it's needed is standard maintenance: tires, brakes, starter, fluid changes.

[m.b]

I work at a dealership. Most reliable civic years are 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. However the 2012 and 2013 have low quality seat fabrics. They wear out really fast. Also 2012 but not the 2013 have a very cheap interior plastics

[zacharyparis]

Just picked up a 2013 Civic Si. Did all the basic maintenance and have been absolutely hammering on it. Runs like a charm so far.

[NovaTested]

i Personally own a 2012 Civic Ex model and i can add that the Cloth seats ware out fast although super comfortable, the fabric takes a while to brake in properly. Also, the button paint for the steering wheel switches will chip of extremely easily over time especially if you have long nails. interior is fairly quiet. the surround sound system for the ex model is great music sounds amazing. Overall its amazing. i have 94k miles and still going strong.

[cb]

Always enjoy your informative reviews Greg! We have a 2006 Civic, but with extremely low miles (38, 000 miles) but as it’s a second car, we only put a couple thousand miles on it every year. We did have a bolt that broke and took out our water pump, but have so far have avoided a cracked engine block - it’s been a great car for us.

[DavidMosby]

I had no idea Honda had that many problems. Everything was explained so well. Thanks for letting us know.

[josephaltman]

So glad I watched this video. I just bought a 2013 2D 88K and to hear it's a good year for this model made my day! Thank you.

[tellez]

I really hope u blew up like Scotty I been watching you since I was a young kid I’m 25 now man , life is crazy and fun live at fullest !!!

[fuijika]

I really wish you posted more often cause you give really good information.

[lukespack]

My daughter bought a used 2019 Civic. I had advised her to avoid the 1.5 turbocharged engine. She got one with the normal 2.0 engine. She has had it a year now and so far so good. Honda sells many more with the 1.5 boosted engine because it is peppier. Keep up the good work.

[murphyr]

My wife has owned 5 civics to include our current 2015 that we’ve owned since new. It just turned 90k miles and has never caused me a moment’s trouble except for a noisy blower motor that I replaced myself, and I believe we’re on our third set of Michelin tires. At the last oil change I requested the brakes be replaced, not because they were giving me any trouble but just to head off any. They were still in good condition, unbelievable to me honestly.
I spent 22 years selling used cars, I even opened my own Buy Here Pay Here lot in 2010 and I’ve seen a just as many shitty Hondas as I’ve seen of any other makes, honestly it’s all a bit of luck and being able to afford to maintain whatever you’ve bought. I myself drive mostly Audi and BMW’s and I’ve not had any nightmares per se but you must be prepared to pay more if a repair is needed, and you must do the routine maintenance.

[podmuse]

My mom had a 2012 LX. Overall it was a decent car. She lived in a apartment (no garage) and the weather stripping really did dry rot. The A/C went out in 2020. But really other than that it was a breeze to own for her. Since she didn’t drive a lot when she sold it last summer it only had 65k miles and other than the weather stripping it was in real good shape! Now I on the other hand own a 2021 CR-V… I rarely drive short distances as it’s 20 miles one way to work by highway so hopefully I don’t have the dilution issue 😳

[MrJFunkSanchez]

Own a 2012 Civic EX still running strong with no issues. No Bluetooth or battery issues either.

[littlethoughts]

Always informative! So much so that even though my 2000 Maxima died at 199, 281 miles (after babying it with clear fuel for the last five years of her life), I found a beautiful garaged 2006 Subaru Outback with 112, 000 mostly highway miles six months ago. (Slim Pickens on the Oregon Coast with dealers snatching up everything.) I wish I had found you sooner, but I watch whatever car you talk about! Thank you for being so very thorough! I found my son a babied 1990 Honda Accord in 2008 and what a little dream it was! Never a problem! At my age, I hope my Outback is the last car I have to buy...I didn't find you until after my last purchase, and I have watched your Outback video a few times and took notes!

[chudi]

I own a 2007 Honda civic hybrid currently with 425, 000 miles on it, and still running good.However I have replaced the engine, and transmission twice with used ones.The first engine went out at about 300, 000 miles.The hybrid battery pack was replaced by Honda dealership at slightly less than 150, 000 miles, but still holding good so far. Every electrical component on the dashboard works like new.The AC and heater still good.The fabric seats are like new, the doors and power windows are still great, and the rubber seals on the still good, except the one on the driver's side. I have replaced all the bearings, radiator, and catalytic converter, and oxygen sensors. I just love this car, and wont sell it.My goal is to hit 1 million miles on it.

[trails]

Great review. No car is perfect but the Civic is more perfect than most. Maybe the most perfect is the Corolla but Civics are more fun to drive, look better in my opinion, are economical and practical. I am on my 3rd civic and had a 1st gen CR-V that I drove 225k.

[vtzavp]

I bought a 2013 four-door and so far so good close to 150, 000 miles now love it

[alanonsr]

After a lot of research I went with the 2013 Civic for my wife. She test drove the 2013 Civic and Corolla. She liked the Civic more, and we've been happy with it.

Got it with 87k on it about 2.5 years ago. She's got 130k on it now. The only issue we've had with it is the common tear in the air intake hose from the air box to the throttle body. Gonna take care of that Mon and hope that takes care of the hitch in its acceleration curve.

But other than that, she's happy with it.

[dohc]

I am glad 😊 you have a new video out. I had a 1998 Honda Civic lx automatic. Honestly even though the problems were more prevalent in the referenced generation, mine had some of the same problems. The transmission started having problems around 15k miles, a blown head gasket, engine mount, cracked radiator, electrical issues, cracked exhaust manifold, and it was simply a tin can. Even a young lady who worked at the local honda dealership I visited stated Hondas were coming in for major service more frequently. That's probably one of the reasons why honda from a car perspective 🤔 has not grown as much as their competition specifically Toyota.