Civic - Honda :: Hybrid Versus Regular For Highway Commute
Feb 1, 2011
I have a 35 mile (70 round trip) commute to work, all highway. I do some in town driving as well, but mainly the commuting. The price of gas is getting higher and I was thinking of getting a hybrid, but wonder if that is the best choice for my type of commute ? I drive a Honda CRV (04) which I love but maybe something smaller like a Civic would be better. I need room to occasionally put my 3 kids and hubby in and I want to feel safe in the snow.
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Recently, my Check Engine and IMA Check lights both came on. My Honda garage tech advised me that the code revealed "Battery Deterioration". The code was cleared and when the car was restarted both lights had gone off and have not come back on....yet (10 days ago). Eventually, I know the lights will reappear and I will have to commit (or do I?) to a new battery. The battery installed would run about $2500 dollars. A question occurs to me now that didn't when I was at the garage. Would that car function normally without the IMA? I know the mileage would drop but would I still be able to drive the car?
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I've got a 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid with Navigation. This morning, the navigation system did not turn on, and the screen- which is also the screen for the radio- does not work. I can still listen to the radio, but I have to use the steering wheel controls to operate, and I have to use the voice command to turn the radio on and off... the navigation screen is completely inoperable. To be honest, the only idea I have is that the fuse needs replacing?
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Just had engine replaced by dealership due to oil plug coming out on highway and subsequent engine damage (their fault).As soon I picked it up, felt left to right vibration going from front to back during acceleration.Took it back to dealership. They balanced/rotated tires and checked alignment (they said within specs). Still feeling vibration and so did technician who rode with me.The service advisor pulls me over and said that per the "Honda Master Mechanic" they spoke to via phone, vibration is being caused by engine timing not being correct because, being it it had to be reset, the computer needs 500 miles to set it correctly. Does this sound like bull to you to? I'm thinking damaged strut when they dropped front end to install engine or motor mount.
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I brought my car to one of those "quick change" places to get the oil and transmission fluid changed (the CVT is notorious for needing regular transmission fluid changes). Less than 2 weeks later, after several hundred miles of driving, the car was barely drivable. I brought it back. When they checked on their computer, it turned out they had put in regular transmission fluid instead of CVT fluid. They flushed and refilled transmission a bunch of times. I was there, watching, so I know the work was done - and the car worked fine for about 2 weeks. Then it started to act up again. I brought it back again, and they flushed it twice more, but now it's acting up again after only 2 days.
By "acting up," I mean shifting out of or into park, reverse, or drive is really, really stiff, and the car "lurches" at certain points when driving, both at low speed and at highway speeds. It's worst in stop & go traffic - attempting to stall when we come to a stop. If you try to manually shift into "L," it doesn't go, or rather it will go into low most of the way, but not quite far enough for the little light that says it's actually in low to light up. If the last two instances since the wrong fluid change are any indication, it won't be long before it fails to go into "L" no matter how hard I pull on the shifter, which also means it's going to start stalling again when I come to a stop.
They've been really, really nice about all this, and I've wanted to try to save the transmission - if for no other reason than to prevent the kid who made the mistake from being fired in this awful economy. It's a big name company, and I have a feeling they're not going to be very understanding of an honest mistake up at "corporate HQ." At the same time, however, I need my car to work.
Is there something else to try that could save the transmission? I know it can't be taken apart and rebuilt, because on this model car, the transmission core is completely sealed and is not serviceable. Or is it too far gone - should I ask for a new transmission?
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I had the Honda recommended software upgrade done on the car in July 2010 and have taken it back twice to two different Honda dealers more than once. The gas mileage has dropped from 44 to 40 consistently for the same route and driving conditions on my daily commute. Worst still the car's power has suffered as the battery does not kick in as often so it struggles going up a hill. The battery is in charge mode more quickly at roughly 50% life so it is not available to boost the power, prior it would not stsrt recharging until much lower like 20% left. In fact I have had to turn around on hills that it could manuever before as it would not go up hill after the upgrade. I have spoken to several other drivers of the same model that say they have the same problem. The software upgrade was to lengthen the life of the battery pack not kill the power and MPG of the car. Any recommendtaions on how to fix since Honda is of no assistance?
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I have a 92 Honda CX hatchback, 5pd with 140k on it. Since I bought the car used about a year ago it's had a low speed stumbling/bucking issue. For the most part, it's only when driving slow and steady but occasionally at highway speeds it'll do it as well. It's as though the whole engine just cuts out for a second. Giving it more gas always brings it back but it's incredibly annoying, especially in a parking lot with a cup of coffee or something in your hand.
For starters, the rotor, wires and cap are all very recent. I pulled the ECU codes and it indicated #7, Throttle Angle Sensor. Bought a new one, calibrated it, reset ECU and drove on. No change. Car still bucks and the CEL comes on occasionally. At first, I suspected the plug to the TPS since it was loose. I pulled new wire and soldered directly to the ECU and TPS. No change. Of interesting note, when the CEL would come on, it seems the TPS falls offline and the car runs great! I disconnected it for a tankful and noticed my 40mpg/hwy go down to 25mpg. Completely unacceptable for a car so painfully slow.
Another observation, the stumbling doesn't start until the car warms up. Also, if it's particularly humid/raining, sometimes it won't do it at all. A lot of people have suggested the O2 sensor, distributor, fuel pump/filter. I don't have money to just start throwing at this thing and of many similar issues I've read of others with the same car, nobody seems to have a solid fix.
I've replaced the TPS, completely cleaned the throttle body and IACV, checked for vacuum leaks and even opened up the ECU looking for cold solder joints. It looks newer than new inside. Like I said, with the TPS disconnected, car runs great but the mileage goes south.
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I've owned this Civic since new, now at 153K miles. This is a recurring problem that I've been having for over a year. First symptom was there would be no heat coming from the heater at idle with the motor well warmed up. Add some rpm's and the heat returned. The reason was not enough coolant in the system, filled up radiator and all OK. Then it happened again and there is coolant in the overflow tank, but pull the radiator cap and no fluid under cap. Fill radiator and all OK, but it kept happening. I replaced the OEM radiator cap with a new "Slant" brand for an '03 Civic. No better, no worse.
Last week I had a significant overheating event while on a highway. I pulled into a "Dollar Store" parking lot, went into the store and bought 50/50 coolant and shop rags and let the car cool off for 30 min. When I pulled the cap, it was a steamy mess and I let it cool some more. Eventually I put in the coolant and finished up the drive with no more overheating. The overflow coolant container was at the "full" mark all during the overheating event.
At this point I took it to my trusted mechanic. My mechanic determined that the overflow tank was clogged and he blew out the line. So, I hoped all was fixed. But I don't think so. With the car cool this morning I pulled the radiator cap and got a swish noise indicating some pressure release. The level of coolant in the overflow contain hasn't moved. It still seems coolant is not being pulled from the overflow container back in to the radiator when the car cools off. I blew into the radiator top (where the cap goes) and that did produce lots of bubbles in the overflow tank. It seems it is no longer plugged - but why isn't the coolant behaving properly?
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We have a 2005 honda civic hybrid; there is a squealing noise coming from front passenger side, when braking, when accelerating, decelerating, but not while driving at speeds of 30 mph, straight. Also when backing up, turning wheels. It's going to the mechanic on monday for regular maintenance, 100K miles, etc.
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I have a honda civic 2000 and recently I noticed that it overheat only after exiting a long drive on highway. The car does not overheat for my normal daily commutes (within the city).
I tried the following:
- Checked coolant on bot radiator and overflow tank.
- Changed the thermostat- No leak on the ground in the garage where I parked the car overnight
- No noise to lead to an eventual issue with water pump
- Radiator fan is kicking ok
- Had a mechanic do the chemical test for the head gasket: negatif
- Found that there is air in the cooling system:tried to burp the system 2 times but air is still in the coolant system. Not sure where its coming from !!?? Might be that this could be causing the overheating ?
- Found a crack on the manifold and changed the manifold then tried to get rid of the air (burping the system): no success. The air is still not removed completely.
- Changed the radiator cap.
What can I do next to diagnose the overheating condition that happens only after exiting long drive highway?
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I was driving my 99 honda civic at a steady 65mph on the highway for about 10 minutes. I was not accelerating or anything, when it cut out totally as if I turned off the engine. When I would step on the gas (still moving), it would not even hit/sputter or anything. I pulled off to the side of the road and immediately tried to restart... nothing.
Two minutes later, I try to restart, and it started right up. Get going another 5 minutes, and it does the same thing. This time I only waited about 30 seconds, then it started up again, but it 'missed' a couple of times just before it started up. Then it was fine for the rest of the drive to work, and hasn't stalled since (one week).
However, the check engine light came on the next day after the stalling episode, and has also been on since. The code is P0420 (which says that the O2 sensor before and after the catalytic converter read similar, indicating a bad catalytic converter). I'm not sure if this is, however, a downstream effect/ symptom of a larger problem (that this is not the cause, but the effect of a larger problem?)
Here are some extra facts that may be relevant, or may be totally random:
I occasionally catch a whiff of egg like smell (smells like it's running rich, and maybe it is heating the catalytic converter)
It seems to be functioning fine (no loss of power)... the gas mileage even seems OK-I filled up with a new tank of gas the night before the drive (I've since filled up again)-There was an ignition recall, that I did NOT have done (I just found out about it -The car is pretty beat up: 170K miles-Gas gage quit working about a month ago... always reads full.
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I have a 1994 Honda Civic LX. It has a new 4 month old radiator and the fluid level is good. When I do in city driving I have no real heat to speak of. But when I get on the highway the heat kicks back in.
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I was driving my son to Mygym this morning and everything was completely normal, but when I got onto the highway for the last 5 minutes of the drive my car started making a loud fast rhythmic thumping sound. I thought it was my tire and slowed down to stop... and then in stopped. So I went a little faster and as soon as I hit 50, it started again. I slowed down and drove the rest of the way to my sons class and looked at my tires and they looked fine to me (I have no idea what a tire should look like, but I can tell if one is very flat... I think). I also looked under the car for any obvious debris or whatever and didn't see anything.
We had our class and when I got back on the highway and accelerated to 50, it started back up again, so I slowly drove to our exit. By the time we were nearly home I wasn't even thinking about the problem anymore, but in the 45 zone near our home it started thumping again... sure enough, I was going 50. I am also wondering if it is safe to drive my car as long as I stay under 50? I have no other means of transportation and we need to go out pretty often (daily) for classes and therapies for my son.
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My '97 Honda Civic overheats when driven at high speed on the highway for more than an hour. I've changed the thermostat and the radiator fan, but it still does it.
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1.5L with automatic and 90K miles. In December going 60 mph on the highway at steady speed the car stalled, would not restart, towed home, tried new fuel pump relay, made no difference, put old relay in and it started, ran great for 6 months and now after filling up the tank, I hit a bump and went around a corner and it stalled again, same scenario, towed home and it started the next day. Been running fine since. Ground on fuel pump/ bad gas? another relay in the fuel pump circuit?
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Looking to buy a used bmw x3 (75K miles) 2006 model versus a toyota highlander limited hybrid 2010 with 65K miles. The bmw is priced at 14K, while the highlander is priced at 26K. Both cars drive good, clean records. However the hybrid I fear has hidden costs.
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Just bought a 2013 ES300H after ten Acura's. My car is two and a half years old and wondering how long does the original battery last. On Acura's it is about three years. There was no warning when they went.
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Is it possible to do a long charge of the hybrid battery with a regular battery charger? If so how?
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This is a video to compare some of the advantages and disadvantages of the two most popular hybrid battery technologies in hybrid vehicles today.
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This is on an 2012 SEL, 34K on it. Since the last couple of months, I have noticed that there some wub-wub-wub sound coming the wheels, well, at least from the road surface while drivng on highway speeds.
The sound is just like something is touching the tires, but can't be sure. I may have sensed some very minute shaking as well which may seem correlating with the wub-wub frequency. But as you can see, I am not quite sure how describe it. It is not a distinct sound, not something very obvious. But it is there. I asked my SO too, and both of use can notice the sound independently, so it is perfectly reproducible. The sound appears to be coming from the front, but it is hard to pin point. I also tried opening the window at 65 mph, but the wind and road noise just drowns out all other sounds.
I have thought of getting its wheels balanced as the first step. Went to Costco but apparently they balance only the wheel with tires sold by them on them. I am thinking of taking it to the dealership but want to be prepared by some basic info myself. Hence this question. Hopefully, they wont come and tell me that the wheel drive shaft or some such needs to be changed.
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Well, I have a new friend who has a 2012 Honda Accord Coupe EX-L w/ Navi. He has about 1,100 miles on it since yesterday. When I first hung out with him, he made fun of the Prius, then test drove one, and loves it & wants one. He said "I wish I would have driven the Prius before the Accord."
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