Honda Civic Type-R (2001 - 2005) 2.0i VTEC 3d (2003/52) Owner Review

What does this car say about you?

Proberbly not such a great thing, most are owned by chavs, or are chavs dressing a standard Civic as a type-R.

What do your friends / family / neighbours think of the car?

Friends like it, Parents not so keen, my dad thinks the interiour looks cheap, I think he means lacking features which is true and the idea of the car, it does weigh just 1250kg!

Would you buy this car again and why?

Not sure, I'm glad I bought it, but I change my mind a lot, I am unlikely to buy another, but thats mainly cos there are a lot of other cars out there for me to own in the future. I do not regret buying it as I is a fun car when driven hard.

What are you likely to buy next?

This will change by the week, but at the moment I am looking to swap the Civic in a few months time for a Nissan 200SX (S14a).

Type of dealer you bought from?

Didn't buy from a dealer

Did you buy this car new?

No

What price did you pay?

£3,900

When did you buy the car?

November 2010

Did you get a good deal and why?

Reasonably compared to others avaliable at time.

Is there any special reason why you bought this car?

Reliablity, Engine, Handling, Space.

What was the dealer like?

What's it like to drive?

Out of vtec it is reasonable quite and also reasonably slow and a fairly dull drive, when at motorway speeds the tyre roar is annoying requiring a high radio volume to over come, the standard fit radio is reasonably poor I have replaced this and even with the standard speakers it is reasonable, fuel economy is not its strong point motorway cruise don't expect more than 34mpg (30mpg is more likely), the seats and supension are fairly firm meaning long journeys are not enjoyable. In VTEC above say 5800rpm the car comes alive, you forget about the hard seats and supension it handles well it has supprised me on a few corners where I thought I went a bit too fast, it really does drive like on rails, however it does suffer bad understeer under throttle and lift off oversteer.

What's it like to park?

Could be better, steering lock is poor, often misjudged it, I used to drive Merc Sprinters and found these better to park than the Civic.

Have you had any problems with the car?

No, driven hard nearly everytime I have driven it, hit the redline on several times. Does USE OIL when driven hard. KEEP on top of this.

What's most practical about your car?

Reasonable boot and interior space.

Favourite gadget, option or accessory?

There are no gadgets.