Tag: Honda Civic Air Conditioning

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 Air Conditioning Problems, Symptoms and Solutions

I am writing this article to share the experience I had with my 2006 Honda Civic air conditioning problems. I sorted the root problem based on every symptoms the car gives and hunt for the best solutions. Honda Civic owners who face different kind of air conditioning problems should go through this article. I strongly believe that this article could save you hundreds of unwanted repair cost from untruthful dealers or mechanic.

Last week, I was driving my Honda Civic from Northern Thailand to Southern Thailand, out of sudden, the car AC stops working. It blows only hot air. I parked the car and had a glass of coffee. The AC works again when I start the car. However, it blows hot air again after 1-2 minutes of cold air. This is definitely a weird symptoms to me. As a person who knows nothing about car, the only thing I can do is drive it to the nearest AC workshop. The mechanic, Chang, opened the car hood and did some checking with the gauges on his hand. He told me the air-cond gas is still full but the AC compressor is gone. The approximate price is $1,200 include labour charge. This sounds ridiculous to me because I remember I had just replace the compressor clutch and refill the gas a year ago. I decided to leave with it and go to another shop.

Here comes another mechanic, Shyne, Shyne was a good man and he told me the AC compressor clutch works for 1-2 minutes then stop working. The compressor clutch is the metal plate attached to the compressor as shown in the image below. When you switch on the AC, it should be running/spinning.

In my case, it spins for a few minutes then stop working. It works again after a few minutes then stop working, again and again. After a 5-minute checking, Shyne told me the AC compressor, condenser and other parts are working fine. He told me that it was the AC compressor relay that giving the problem. The AC compressor relay is located at top right under the car hood. Please refer to the image below.

Once you opened it, you will see a few relay and fuses (see also Honda Civic Fuse Diagram). The AC compressor relay is the one circle in red in the image below. The original relay from Honda is MITSUBA brand, made in VIETNAM. In order to test if it is the relay that cause the problem, you can always switch other relay (similar readings) to the one circle in red. Once switched, you will know if it is the problem. Bingo! It is!

In Thailand, there are options to go for Omron or Denso relay. Personally I am more to Denso therefore I bought a brand new DENSO relay at only 100 baht ($3 dollars). It is made in Thailand and that could be the reason why it is cheap.

A special tool is needed to remove the AC compressor relay. However, you can use a flat screwdriver to remove it. Make sure you remove it gently.

This is how my under hood fuse box look like with the new DENSO AC compressor relay (the one in blue). Now my Honda Civic air conditioning is working again and all I spent is just $3 instead of $1,200. Always check your relay, fuses and wiring related parts if your AC is not working. Do not simply believe untruthful mechanic because Honda Civic air conditioning compressor is something could last for at least 6-12 years (or 150,000-180,000 km).

See also: Honda Civic Engine Vibrates in Parking Reverse Transmission, 2007 Honda Civic Fuse Diagram and Honda Civic: It still smells new after runs for one hundred thousand km in five years.

This article is written and submitted by Somchai Songsakul, from Thailand. Please use the Write For Us page if you would like to submit an article to MalaysiaMiniLover.com.

May 9, 2016