Tag: civic problem

Top 10 Most Common Problems for The 8th Generation Honda Civic FD (2006-2011)

Back in 2011, a 2007 Honda Civic FD car owner, Ashley, contacted our crew to run a detail check on her car. During that time, her car’s odometer has just surpassed 100,000 km (approximately 62,136 miles). However, everything looks very new for a 5-year-old car. The car smells new and runs very smooth when we hit 160km/h (100 mph). Read Honda Civic: It still smells new after runs for one hundred thousand km in five years for the full story we wrote 6 years ago. It really surprises us because we didn’t expect the car to perform just like it was new.

Today, another 5 years has passed and Ashely once again contacted us to review on her car. Currently, the car’s odometer has just surpassed 135,000 km (approximately 83,885 miles). The owner didn’t use the car that much compared to the first five years. Although the car hasn’t run that much, Ashley told us that she has replaced at least 10 parts on the car including wear and tear parts. According to her experience and a few opinions from other Honda Civic’s owners, we have created a list of top 10 most common problems for the 8th generation Honda Civic FD (2006-2011). The list here will be very helpful to those who are considering to buy a used or second-hand Honda Civic made between 2006 and 2011.

1. Motor Mount

This is a very common problems for Honda Civic FD. The engine will vibrate when you put the gear selector to Reverse (R). The vibration also will not happen when the engine is heated up. Ride side motor mount is made of rubber thus it will wear out over time. The part no is 50820-SNL-T01. Check out the detail story here at Honda Civic Engine Vibrates in Parking Reverse Transmission.

2. Air Conditioner Compressor Clutch

According to a Honda workshop in Thailand, they mentioned that Air Condition Compressor Clutch is an common issue for the eighth generation Honda Civic FD as well as Honda Accord.

3. Power Steering Pump

At about 120,000 km (approximately 74,565 miles), Ashley’s car power steering pump starts to leak. Every morning, a few drops of power steering fluid can be seen on the floor. Whining sound can be heard when the steering wheel is turned. It is either to replace a new power steering pump or to replace the seal.

4. Honda VTEC Solenoid Valve

Also at about 120,000 km (approximately 74,565 miles), Ashley’s realize the engine oil level on her car is gone after a few weeks. The engine oil leak from the VTEC Solenoid valve. It is either to replace a new VTEC Solenoid valve or just to replace the seal.

5. Valve Cover Gasket

Other than the VTEC Solenoid valve, the valve cover gasket is another reason that cause the engine oil level goes down.

6. Starter

When the car serves about 132,000 km (approximately 82,020 miles), the starter of the car RIP. Before that, you can feel the car is hard to start.

7. Rear Wheel Bearing

Also at the same mileage, (approximately 132,000 km/82,020 miles), both the rear wheel bearing is giving an annoying sound when the car reaches about 70 km/h or faster. This is also a very common problems for Honda Civic as well as Honda Accord.

8. Shock Absorbers and Struts

When the car reaches 138,000 km (85,749 miles), it starts to give some noises especially run over a bumpy road. That’s when you need to replace the shock absorbers and struts. This is a common wear and tear issue and it happens to the popular Toyota Corolla Altis too.

9. Radiator

The radiator is falling at 138,000 km too. It has to be replaced with a new one because the old one cannot be fixed. The entire job include a set of new water hose and new coolant. Engine flushing is a must too. According to a study, a car radiator usually will last for at least 8 to 10 years if it is well-maintain according to the basic car maintenance schedule. Thus, it is very reasonable to replace a new one after 10 years.

10. Transmission Oil Leak

At the same mileage, transmission oil is leaking from the gearbox. It can be seen clearly from the bottom of the engine bay. We brought Ashley’s car to a Honda dealer nearby and found another 2007 Honda Civic is sitting inside the workshop, having the same problem too. Perhaps this is also another common problems for the eighth generation Honda Civic?

11. Relay & Fuses

For an aged car, regardless of Honda or Toyota, relay faulty or burned fuse is common problem. A bad relay could cause your air conditioning stop working or car won’t start. Therefore, always diagnose your car problem start with the relay or fuse if it is related to electricity. See also: Honda Civic Fuse Diagram and 2007 Honda Civic Fuse Diagram.

12. Ignition Coil

The ignition coil is not in good working condition if you feel your Civic shakes, hesitates when accelerating or hard to drive. That’s another well-known issue on an aged Honda Civic.

Other than the top 10 common problems, Ashley also replaced a lot of wear and tear parts including brake pads, brake discs, Wiper blades and others. Are you also an eighth generation Honda Civic owner? Please share your personal experience with Honda cars at the comment section below. We would like to hear them!

January 10, 2017
Honda Civic: It still smells new after runs for one hundred thousand km in five years
Thanks to Ashley who invited us to check on her car, here we got a chance to write a detail used car reviews on her 2007 Honda Civic. Ashley bought the Honda Civic back in February 2007. It is just about a year after the eighth generation of the Civic has been introduced. The model year is 2007 and it is an Asian model which also known as Civic FD.

The reason why Ashley invited us to review on her car is because the mileage is going to hit 99999 km today. And yes, we are the lucky one who rides in the car with her from 99999 km to 100000 km. We drive the car up hill, down hill and also try some corners with higher speed. We also test the car at speedway up to 170 km/h and the result is really impressive. The car feels stable at 165 km/h and started to feel a little “windy” when the speed hit 170 km/h. Boy, don’t try this at normal way.

How the car was taken care? The car we are reviewing is owned by a single lady at 30 years old. She bought the car when she was 26 years old. 100,000 km for 5 years is quite an average based on our study. Each year runs 20,000 km is somehow average for a car that travel roughly 50 km a day. The owner maintains the car follow the basic car maintenance schedule as suggested in the owner’s manual. Engine oil get changed every 5,000 to 10,000 depending on the oil grade. Brake fluid, auto transmission fluid, and oil filter was changed on time too. According to the owner, spark plug only changed twice since new and the brake pad was replaced when the car hit 70,000 km. Four tires were replaced when 80,000 km when the thread almost finish. We noticed that the only thing didn’t change on time is the air filter. It is dirty and not really in good condition. The car also went to car wash every two weeks and interior gets polished every three months with cheap polish kits purchased from Tesco.

Total maintenance cost over ~5 years

For the first few times, Ashley brought the car back to Honda for maintenance and services because it is free and under warranty. After that she feels it is unnecessary to have a nice café to sit while waiting for the car so she brought to a trusted mechanic for cheaper labor cost. This is the rough estimation of what she has spent for the car over ~5 years.
- Engine oil, oil filter, and services: RM220 x 10 times = RM2,200. Each time for 10,000 km.
- Car Tires: RM1,200 for four
- Spark plug: RM60
- Transmission fluid: RM80
- Brake Fluid: RM50
- Air-cond fan and AC gas: RM380
- Total: RM3,970. The amount is really amazing.
Update: At the ninth years, the owner, Ashley contacted us saying the car has reached 117,000 km (72,700 miles) and she has replaced the engine motor mount.

What is good about this car? It tastes like a new car. The 1.8-liter 16 valve chain-driven SOHC i-VTEC engine gives the maximum 140 hp @ 6,300 rpm and maximum torque 174 Nm @ 4,300 rpm. As we mentioned above, the car is still stable at 160 km/h after putting 100,000 km on it. Cornering, up hill, and braking is pretty good too. The 1.8-liter has enough power for us although there are rumors said that it is under power. May be the rumors were compared to the 2.0S model.

What isn’t so good about this car? The color of the rubber surrounding the car window at four doors is faded and need replacement. It has never been changed before. According to the owner, the air-condition start giving problems when the car runs 80,000 km. The air-condition fan was spoilt and it was replaced. At the moment we test drive the car, the AC pulley is seems not in good condition too. It causes the AC not cold enough when the car stuck in traffic jam.

What about the look? As for the exterior, the car still looks brand new. The headlights didn’t become yellow like some of the cheap cars do. The rear lights, exterior logo, grill, bumper, and windscreen are still in good condition. For the interior, dashboard did not have any crack although it often park under hot sun. The only thing spoilt is the Honda logo at the steering wheel which is a little odd.

What about the safety features? The car has a good braking system with ABS assisted. Front is using ventilated disc and rear is using solid disc. It also comes with dual SRS airbags, security alarm system.

Any extra point for it? Yes the car boot is big enough for few large luggages and the fuel consumption is low.

Price: There are three models available from Honda, the Civic 1.8S, Civic 1.8S-L, and the hotter model Civic 2.0S. 1.8S is basic model without leather seat from the price of RM114,980, 1.8S-L is RM119,980 and the hotter 2.0S is from RM130,980.

Honda Civic’s competitor or similar car: Toyota Corolla, Nissan Sylphy, Mazda3, Peugeot 308, Kia Forte, Chevrolet Cruze, Volkswagen Polo, Ford Focus, Mitsubishi Lancer, and Proton Inspira.

In conclusion, the Honda Civic is definitely still smells as good as new car after almost 5 years of driving with 100,000 km run.
December 28, 2011