Honda Civic 2007 Repair/Maintenance

[Cheefarn]

 

yeah manz. i wonder how negotiable is that. theres a bunch of used cars out there which are not even moving.. basially i need them to shave off 6k from asking price...

yeah hondas in sg always premium priced.

 

funny engine mountings and shocks have that kind of wear and tear. so far my latio driven 120k still ok... touch wood

 

And plus the fact that you need 50% DP for used cars as well, and used cars loan rates is higher than new cars... I am not sure if that's a good idea bro. The uncertainly of buying a crashed or badly maintained used car is always there. And then SG used car dealers notorious habit of altering the odometer. Unlike western countries we don't have specific laws to tackle this crime so dealers are free to do whatever they want and get away with it.

 

Toyota engine mounts are durable too. My ex 2004 Altis 1.8 had a mileage of ard 90k when I sold it off at the 4th year. No trouble with the mounts at all. I think its becos Toyota likes to use really simple and crude hardware to max their profits. Sometimes overtly simple setup can also offers extreme reliability too. I rem Altis engine mounts were just simple spring loaded mounts with rubber cushions and pillows to act as shock absorbers. Such setup will be really durable de... How often does rubber wears off ? Do coil springs wear off? Extremely unlikely

 

Honda's engine mounts, esp the one holding the engine block and the one supporting the gearbox, they are real hydraulic shocks inside with a rubber sleeving outside. The shocks inside will wear out just like your suspension shocks.

 

This setup has been used by Europeans and Americans for many years already, this is why some of u may hear people saying Euro cars are always very quiet and stable and their engines near silent. The mounts plays a big part too.

 

Toyota has upgraded most of their models to such modern mounts these days... ermmm except crap cars eg Vios, Avanza, Fortuner. Even the G11 Altis are built similarly these days. Therefore Toyota owners will face similar issues in time to come.

[Cheefarn]

surprised! i nvr had a car no timing belt and water pump no need to change at 100k. really? haha.. i always budget 600-800 for this.

 

Be careful bro. Honda svc manual didn't mention anything about replacing the water pump, don't get conned by the SE.

 

FYI Honda also didn't state the need to replace radiator coolant!. Serious, after 6.5 years, I am still using the original radiator coolant from the factory. My workshop said no changes required, but he recommend that if you really want to play it safe, change the coolant at 160k km... that's a long time ah.... He also cautioned against the use of non original Honda coolant. He said although tech there's nothing wrong using coolant from other brands, none of them can offer the kind of extreme durability original Honda coolant offers.

 

This could be the reason why the Thailand made original Honda brand coolant is more costly than say, Toyota brand coolant, which is also from Thailand. The OEM could have added something inside.

[Cheefarn]

 

 

i will probably go in jb 1 time to change all. currently civics are 30+k for 2007 models

Going to JB is a great idea to save on labor charge. You just bring all your parts in.

 

The problem is, you need to know which workshop is good. I may be wrong but from what I see, good or even excellent Malaysian technicians are mostly in SG liao. The exchange rate is just too good to pass it up. Those who remained in Malaysia may not be as good. But like I said, its just my thinking. Hopefully I am wrong.

[LYC]

 

Thanks. Nope. No water pump etc etc changes...... and this version of Civic has no timing belt. I generally follow the servicing checklist advice by KAH.

 

Confirmed as I keep track of all servicing work on this car in an exel file since day 1. This car is pretty reliable.

 

Other than the usual oil leak on the engine block. Anyone out here changed the brake pump for your honda civic before due to spongy brakes?

[Spinelli_ck]

 

Other than the usual oil leak on the engine block. Anyone out here changed the brake pump for your honda civic before due to spongy brakes?

 

this issue may not be due to a faulty brake pump. it could be due to the stock brake lines. some FD owners have replaced them with steel braided ones.

 

Be careful bro. Honda svc manual didn't mention anything about replacing the water pump, don't get conned by the SE.

 

FYI Honda also didn't state the need to replace radiator coolant!. Serious, after 6.5 years, I am still using the original radiator coolant from the factory. My workshop said no changes required, but he recommend that if you really want to play it safe, change the coolant at 160k km... that's a long time ah.... He also cautioned against the use of non original Honda coolant. He said although tech there's nothing wrong using coolant from other brands, none of them can offer the kind of extreme durability original Honda coolant offers.

 

This could be the reason why the Thailand made original Honda brand coolant is more costly than say, Toyota brand coolant, which is also from Thailand. The OEM could have added something inside.

 

bro, are you still using the green Honda coolant which came with the car since day one? the newer Honda type 2 coolant is made in USA.

[Metalslug2]

 

And plus the fact that you need 50% DP for used cars as well, and used cars loan rates is higher than new cars... I am not sure if that's a good idea bro. The uncertainly of buying a crashed or badly maintained used car is always there. And then SG used car dealers notorious habit of altering the odometer. Unlike western countries we don't have specific laws to tackle this crime so dealers are free to do whatever they want and get away with it.

 

Toyota engine mounts are durable too. My ex 2004 Altis 1.8 had a mileage of ard 90k when I sold it off at the 4th year. No trouble with the mounts at all. I think its becos Toyota likes to use really simple and crude hardware to max their profits. Sometimes overtly simple setup can also offers extreme reliability too. I rem Altis engine mounts were just simple spring loaded mounts with rubber cushions and pillows to act as shock absorbers. Such setup will be really durable de... How often does rubber wears off ? Do coil springs wear off? Extremely unlikely

 

Honda's engine mounts, esp the one holding the engine block and the one supporting the gearbox, they are real hydraulic shocks inside with a rubber sleeving outside. The shocks inside will wear out just like your suspension shocks.

 

This setup has been used by Europeans and Americans for many years already, this is why some of u may hear people saying Euro cars are always very quiet and stable and their engines near silent. The mounts plays a big part too.

 

Toyota has upgraded most of their models to such modern mounts these days... ermmm except crap cars eg Vios, Avanza, Fortuner. Even the G11 Altis are built similarly these days. Therefore Toyota owners will face similar issues in time to come.

 

i like to find a direct owner to get e car from also. since i can shave off some more, but dealers offer something i can go back to after e car has problems. kick in the lemon law...i hope!

 

so far whats left in the market are pretty used civics with 2-3 owners, the 1 owners are calling 12-14k depr. crazy haha

Edited March 31, 2015 by Metalslug2

[Cheefarn]

 

Other than the usual oil leak on the engine block. Anyone out here changed the brake pump for your honda civic before due to

spongy brakes?

Bro oil leak in honda engines is not supposed to be normal. I had oil leak at the crankshaft gasket area once at ard 10000km but that was because of poor QA rather than a design fault. The transmission was removed and gasket changed. No problem since.

 

Spongy brakes pedal affects all cars, esp older ones. The brake lines are made of rubber and they do age over time. Replace them with braided lines and u will solve the problem

 

this issue may not be due to a faulty brake pump. it could be due to the stock brake lines. some FD owners have replaced them with steel braided ones.

 

 

bro, are you still using the green Honda coolant which came with the car since day one? the newer Honda type 2 coolant is made in USA.

Yes the green coolant from the factory. My workshop still stocks the Thailand made ones. I will ask them for the usa batch in time to come

 

i like to find a direct owner to get e car from also. since i can shave off some more, but dealers offer something i can go back to after e car has problems. kick in the lemon law...i hope!

 

so far whats left in the market are pretty used civics with 2-3 owners, the 1 owners are calling 12-14k depr. crazy haha

Dont bank all your hopes on that lemon law hor. You need to see how crap it is when u actually try to exe it. Sg laws are still biased against consumers despite the new laws

[LYC]

Bro oil leak in honda engines is not supposed to be normal. I had oil leak at the crankshaft gasket area once at ard 10000km but that was because of poor QA rather than a design fault. The transmission was removed and gasket changed. No problem since.

 

Spongy brakes pedal affects all cars, esp older ones. The brake lines are made of rubber and they do age over time. Replace them with braided lines and u will solve the problem

 

Yes the green coolant from the factory. My workshop still stocks the Thailand made ones. I will ask them for the usa batch in time to come

 

Dont bank all your hopes on that lemon law hor. You need to see how crap it is when u actually try to exe it. Sg laws are still biased against consumers despite the new laws

 

Am driving a 05 civic 1.7A. I had a leaky engine at the gasket area in the last year of ownership. Brakes are spongy as well. Test drove 06/07 Civic 1.8A, seems to have this spongy brake issue. And out of the 5 cars i seen within the past few months, 3 had a leaky engine near the gasket area. If not vibration quite strong, might need change out engine mounts, transmission showing signs of slipping etc. Seems like there is a lot of wear and tear signs that need replacements when taking over.

 

Current car gonna due next week, still can't find a decent car within the 10-11k depre that do not need a lot of replacement parts. Jialat...

[Donut]

 

an alternative way to confirm if the wheel bearings need to be replaced is to:

 

1. jack up the car.

2. put both hands at the six o'clock position (top and bottom of the wheel).

3. rock the wheel back and forth and check if there is any free play.

 

another way is to put one hand on the spring, the other hand spin the wheel. if u feel vibration on the spring, then bearing is gone

 

this is from personal experience. my wheels have no free play, but bearing confirm gone due to high noise and spring vibration

[Cheefarn]

 

Am driving a 05 civic 1.7A. I had a leaky engine at the gasket area in the last year of ownership. Brakes are spongy as well. Test drove 06/07 Civic 1.8A, seems to have this spongy brake issue. And out of the 5 cars i seen within the past few months, 3 had a leaky engine near the gasket area. If not vibration quite strong, might need change out engine mounts, transmission showing signs of slipping etc. Seems like there is a lot of wear and tear signs that need replacements when taking over.

 

Current car gonna due next week, still can't find a decent car within the 10-11k depre that do not need a lot of replacement parts. Jialat...

 

This is why I said buying a used car, esp cars of 7-8 yrs old, its a bad gamble. The chances of buying a car with serious mech issues (blown gasket due to lack of maint eg) is very high. And since the FD is still considered an Ah Beng car (ah bengs cant be bothered with today's FB Civic), the chances of buying a hasty repaired crashed Civic is high too.

 

The intention of saving $$ by settling for a used cars may very well end up having u forking out tons of cash to repair the faults and issues. And completely defeat the purpose of saving $$ .

 

Its best if u can own the car from day 1 till the 10 yr. At least u know the car inside out and you are on top of its entire life span health

[Donut]

Going to get a Honda Civic 2007, any known problems i should look out for and change?

 

How much will the estimated costs be?

 

Thank you!

 

you need to know the mileage of that car.

 

with all the advices from fellow MCFers, the only thing i can advice you is to only worry about potential GB problem. Other things are just wear and tear that eventually need to be replaced anyway

 

GB problem is hard to detect until it happens and will be expensive to replace. Other things are just normal replacement.

 

The golden rule you must rem is to always use original Honda parts. No shortcut to this. You can easily buy parts from stockists and usually not expensive.

[LYC]

 

This is why I said buying a used car, esp cars of 7-8 yrs old, its a bad gamble. The chances of buying a car with serious mech issues (blown gasket due to lack of maint eg) is very high. And since the FD is still considered an Ah Beng car (ah bengs cant be bothered with today's FB Civic), the chances of buying a hasty repaired crashed Civic is high too.

 

The intention of saving $$ by settling for a used cars may very well end up having u forking out tons of cash to repair the faults and issues. And completely defeat the purpose of saving $$ .

 

Its best if u can own the car from day 1 till the 10 yr. At least u know the car inside out and you are on top of its entire life span health

 

New cars cannot get immediate delivery. Looking at getting 1 as a temp car, while waiting for COE to drop bit more then book new car.

[Civic2000]

I am driving a 2006 FD2 (Auto) bought new from KAH Motor. No problem for first 6 years. The problems start coming in the 7^th year, and it was not cheap to rectify these problems:

 

Rear Wheel bearings = $185.00 (KAH quoted higher, so have it done outside)

 

Replaced Alternator = $400 (same as above)

 

Engine Mounting = $160.00 (Done at KAH with 35% discount)

 

One pair of Front Shock Absorbers = $583.70 (same as above)

 

Gear Box overhaul & Front Disc Rotor = $2,616.82 (Done at workshop in Kaki Bukit, as KAH Quoted me $4500 for Gear box repair)

 

One pair of Rear Absorbers = 280.38 (Same as above)

 

Engine Valve Gasket, spool filter, VTC O Ring with labour = $220.00 (same as above)

 

Lower Engine Mounting with labour $220.00 (Same as above)

 

All the above done in the 7^th and 8^th year. So if you are buying a car of 7 years old and above, you are likely to have the problems listed above.

 

Btw, I will be scrapping my FD 2 before it turns 10 years old in Feb next year.

 

[Metalslug2]

wow thats a long list of repairs. Whats your mileage? Do you drive heavy footed?

 

My Latio Sports CVT is now nearing 210k km, and so far so good on GB. touch wood

[Cheefarn]

wow thats a long list of repairs. Whats your mileage? Do you drive heavy footed?

 

My Latio Sports CVT is now nearing 210k km, and so far so good on GB. touch wood

 

You tends to drive with heavier foot in a FD becos the engine, both 1.8 and 2L are so smooth and rev happy. And sad to say due to the way the iVTEC was tuned, u need to rev at least 3000rpm before real power comes on. The engines runs happily from 3000-6000rpm, which your Nissan 1.5L would be gasping for air and your CVT giving up the ghost at such rpm.

 

Heavy footed means more freq trips to the gas stations and more freq replacement of brake pads. At least for me. This is esp true if you upgrade the disc rotors to cross drilled and slotted. The pads will wear off even sooner, but you are rewarded with much better braking power, and reduced chances of suffering from rotor warping due to rotor overheating.

I am driving a 2006 FD2 (Auto) bought new from KAH Motor. No problem for first 6 years. The problems start coming in the 7^th year, and it was not cheap to rectify these problems:

 

Rear Wheel bearings = $185.00 (KAH quoted higher, so have it done outside)

 

Replaced Alternator = $400 (same as above)

 

Engine Mounting = $160.00 (Done at KAH with 35% discount)

 

One pair of Front Shock Absorbers = $583.70 (same as above)

 

Gear Box overhaul & Front Disc Rotor = $2,616.82 (Done at workshop in Kaki Bukit, as KAH Quoted me $4500 for Gear box repair)

 

One pair of Rear Absorbers = 280.38 (Same as above)

 

Engine Valve Gasket, spool filter, VTC O Ring with labour = $220.00 (same as above)

 

Lower Engine Mounting with labour $220.00 (Same as above)

 

All the above done in the 7^th and 8^th year. So if you are buying a car of 7 years old and above, you are likely to have the problems listed above.

 

Btw, I will be scrapping my FD 2 before it turns 10 years old in Feb next year.

 

 

Hmm... did u service your car regularly bro? Did u replace the ATF fluid at required mileage intervels? Did u use factory original ATF? Honda AT are not French AT, Honda ones are built to last for a long time with proper maint.

 

And did u use top grade engine oil? Engine gasket and valve rings shouldn't break down at all.

 

The $$ are high becos you return to KM for svcs. The engine mounting for eg, can be had for $100/ea for the 2 main ones. The 2 smaller ones are at $70 each,.

 

Shocks surely don't need to cost that much ya

[Metalslug2]

i do enjoy my latio in sports mode... quite zippy if u ask me haha...

 

that said with the car at 210k km i am thinking to move on since mileage and wear and tear are definitely there. though 2nd hand cars sure have some risk...

 

see if any good buys come up...

[Yeobt]

 

And plus the fact that you need 50% DP for used cars as well, and used cars loan rates is higher than new cars... I am not sure if that's a good idea bro. The uncertainly of buying a crashed or badly maintained used car is always there. And then SG used car dealers notorious habit of altering the odometer. Unlike western countries we don't have specific laws to tackle this crime so dealers are free to do whatever they want and get away with it.

 

 

bro, there are ways to buy an excellence used car with a 100% unaltered odometer IF you willing to pay for the premium.

 

tips;

 

get one from KM used car section

get one with full KM service records

[Yeobt]

am also considering to get a FD after my EK expired in 2016.

very reluctant to change becos my EK is also a very reliable chap.

beside those ah beng mod i did to her, i only changed the rear wheel bearing twice in 5 years.