Worst purchase decision I have ever made

 

Exterior It used to be a very nice looking car in 2008, when I bought mine. Now it looks a little jaded compared to younger competitors.

 

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) Very nicely finished. Quite comfortable.

 

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox The engine is excellent. It started rattling though at 32000 km and we discovered that the engine mounts had given away. On calling up the service station, we were told that this is typical of all Honda Civics. Though this thing is expensive, it got covered under extended warranty which I had smarted negotiated while buying the car.

 

Ride Quality & Handling On smooth highways, this is a great car. On Indian roads, the car is a pain. It is slung too low for places like Gurgaon. The car scrapes over every speed bump, every pebble and every little bit of dog poo on the road.

 

Final Words The customer service is non existent. We have had two instances of the battery dying in the last 3 years and everytime we had to beg & borrow to come back home. Since the car has automatic transmission, the push start option is not there. So you are stuck wherever the car stops without warning. Calling up their 24x7 assistance number is useless. Honda road side assistance is horrible.

There have been situations where the authorized service providers (Ring Road Honda and Pearl Honda) do not have spares available. Critical parts like brake pads, lamp bulbs etc are out of stock for weeks.

In summary this is a great car if you live in Japan. It is not designed for Indian roads. And it is definitely no road worthy over long journeys. 

 

Areas of improvement  

1. Ground clearance

2. Customer support 

3. Spares management

4. Road side assisntance.

 

Smooth, extremely easy to drivePoor ground clearance, low fuel economy, horrible after sales service