I heard some disturbing news from TV that consumer report is removing Honda Civic 2012 from recommended buy list after a few decades due to choppy ride, excessive cabin noise, overall interior inferiority. Maybe someone else can elaborate after they read the full consumer report

I am concerned also because of the recent news that Honda may be moving their FIT factories to Mexico due to high YEN. It takes time to gain assembly line experience, irrespective of which countries the FIT is moving the assembling plant to.. are you going to buy the first batch of FIT made by newly trained workers?

If you have to choose between two identical FITs with same price but one is "made-in-Japan" FIT and there other is "made-in-mexico" or "made-in-China" for that matter, which one would you choose. Are we willing to pay more for the "made-in-Japan" FIT

However, given some time, I am sure our Mexican friends will gain the experience and will produce equally high quality FITs as well... good for the Mexican economy....

 

Japan! we dont drive mdm cars lol

 

I saw this also. They did specify that they were referring only to fit and finish, not reliability and...something else, can't remember what.

My Fit will be a 2012 and I am glad it will be made in Japan, if only because that seems more "original" to me. I think most Fit buyers (like those who don't hang out on FitFreak) won't know or care where the car is made. I could be wrong.

 

op- 'few decades' <= i am confused at your post.. the car's been only out in the USA since 2007. CR can't calculate too?

they need to keep their heads in the appliance section.

 

Honda Civic has been in the US since the 1970's, you are confusing with the Fit.

 

ahh, yah dont post in the General FIT TALK section then. post in the other cars section of the forum.

 

Someone give this guy a well deserved touche...

 

I think this is an appropriate topic for General Fit Talk.

A few of us ought to get out and look at the competition. Is Honda standing still when it comes to hard plastic interiors, mouse fur upholstery, thin carpets, expensive but low quality floor mats, inadequate air conditioning, expensive navi systems, exposed air conditioning condensers, crummy OEM tires, terrible low beam headlights, and poorly placed arm rests?

Maybe other manufacturers are catching up to Honda.

I haven't driven any other cars in this category lately, but Consumers drives them all. Maybe they're noticing something we aren't (or don't want to). Maybe other manufacturers are catching up to Honda.

Cheers.

 

2012 Honda Civic LX: Scores too low for Consumer Reports to recommend

 

Ill be the first to say, Consumer Reports suck, period!. As a major tech junkie and avid audiophile I have always laughed at their recommendations for anything tech. And their opinions on cars is a joke as well. Who the heck cares what a two bit popularity contest magazine thinks, I call bs on it anyway.

Anyway, I'm gonna go to the news stand to check out the latest Consumer Reports to see what hair blower they recommend.

 

I agree this topic is better suited to be posted in other car section of the forum... my apologies

 

Where something is built is less of an issue than where it was designed or who designed it. No matter where the factory is located, the manufacturer still relies on quality control and inspections to make sure their products meet their internal standards. One example is that iPhones are built in China but have a very high customer satisfaction rating.

 

Good point alam99

I think the other factor is public perception. If the made-in-Japan FIT has the same resale value with made-in-mexico or made-in-China FIT, then life is good

 

I felt the GE Fit's interior was kinda cheap compared to the last Gen Civic, and didn't seem as nice as GD models. Dad has a '09 Accord EX-L Coupe, and while it is a very nice car, many parts of the interior detailing in particular don't seem quite as nice as my '92 Accord was.

But, that said, I haven't really liked the Civic all that much since the '05 redesign. They seem to be catering more and more to old people. I drove my brother's home from the bar last week, and it's a nice enough little car, but the legroom sucks, the seat is horrible, and the whole driving position feels awkward.

I do think it's a matter of the competition mostly. 20 years ago, a Civic (or honestly, most Honda vehicles) was head and shoulders above anything else on the market in its niche. Today, Hyundai, Ford, even GM are kicking up their small vehicles programs and making very competitive vehicles. Remember when variable valve timing, hell, even having overhead valve engines with 4 valves per cylinder gave Honda an edge? Remember when Honda set itself apart by using unequal-length A-arms instead of cheaper MacPherson struts and shitbox twist-beams*?

*These work well enough in a supermini like the Fit, but some manufacturers were using them even on large cars. Honda tried it as a cost/space savings on the Euro Civic during the most recent generation, and were thoroughly raked across the coals for it.

Those days are gone. Where are the gasoline direct injection engines? Where are the dual clutch transmissions? A truly GM move would be to just keep harping old technology, slap a tacky sticker on the side, and hope that it sells the Faithful.

But that's mostly a rant from an old Honda fan who finds the current Honda lots mostly boring. I want to see Honda build something with the same level of style and technological advancement as a Kia. The fact that I wrote that sentence without any sarcastic overtones makes me sad.

As far as Consumer Reports goes... I take their reviews seriously, but I've found that I differ with them on cars often enough that I do consider it in relation to others. For example, marking cars down on comfort and driving position because some 5'6 shorty can't push the clutch pedal all the way. Or noting that the driver's seat is high enough for most drivers... I hate a high driver's seat unless I'm in a truck/SUV. If I'm in a car, I want to sit low and stretch my legs out like a lazyboy.

It doesn't have the "No Advertising" cachet of Consumer Union, but I've long found that the best reviews of cars are in Consumer Guide, now part of HowStuffWorks.
Consumer Guide® Automotive: Search New & Used Car, SUV, Truck & Minivan Prices & Reviews

I'm curious how the new Civic will do in NHTSA NCAP crash testing. IIHS tests were very promising, but the new tests from NHTSA set the bar higher. The last Civic got only three stars overall, and the Accord got 4. It seems that Honda still refuses to test the Fit, and after seeing the Fit vs. Accord IIHS demonstration, I have my suspicions about why.

I really, really want to see Honda go back to being the pinnacle of small car engineering and refinement.

 

MDM = Lol Lol

 

Great post. However, I'm one of those old people you are writing about and I'm looking for exactly the characteristics you find are missing in the new Honda. Hondas used to fit together like little jewels, and you paid a premium for that. No longer, I fear, and I would lump the Fit in with that.

I really appreciate and enjoy the Fit. A jewel, though, it is not.

Cheers.

 

Where I find Honda to be leading today is in safety. Compare a base model 2010 Fit and a base model 2010 Focus. The fit, for slightly less than the focus has side air bags, side curtain air bags, and ABS. In Canada, that car is around the $15,000.00 mark. Want that stuff in a Focus (at the time, the Focus was Ford's entry level car), expect to pay around $20,799.00. On the Civic, I would have paid $16,990.00 to get those safety features. On the Focus, $20,799.00. Ford reliability has drasticly improved in the last 15 years or so, since Mazda influenced Ford design. But, their safety features are still lacking.

My point is simply this: In 2010, in the budget car price range, Honda was the safest car on the road, and a base model Honda is the car I would rather be driving or riding in if I were to be in a serious car accident.

 

Good point.

 

The Focus had standard side airbags in 2010, but it was an aging design. The 2012 Focus is a Top Safety Pick

For 2011+ cars (under the new system), neither Ford nor Honda have the guts to test the existing Focus and Fit under the new crash test standards. The Civic got 3-stars overall, which doesn't bode well for a lighter, flimsier car.

The Fiesta got 4 stars overall.

The Focus did well in roof-strength tests (16,059 lbs). The fit was at the low end of the Acceptible range (2nd to last, above the Aveo). That's probably why they won't dare cut a hole in it to add a moonroof.

Roof strength evaluations: Minicars

Overall, Honda does OK in safety, but again, times have changed. It's not like the old days when you just had to beat the Neon:

or the laughable Kia Sephia:


This shows you what's happening with the brands as of '09 (Consumer Reports)


So... yeah, different world. The next 10 years in the auto industry, thanks to technical innovations, the South Korean juggernaut, the energy sector, and unstable economy, may really shake things up more than we can imagine, and I'm afraid Honda and Toyota may wind up settling down to average.