Just picked up an 09 EX 5sp coupe. Original owner was a woman and this purchase is for my wife so I guess that is fitting. It will be her daily commuter (55 miles) and we both love it. Our first civic, and first new car, was an 84 CRX HF and later a new 90 Si hatch (also black), both 5sp, so we are familiar with the brand and model having driven both to well over 100k. It's replacing an 03 mazda protege 5 wagon that was a total POS; not the model line, just my particular car. I'm a pretty good judge of condition and have done well with all my used purchases but this one was an exception. I swear a self destruct timer began when I gave the PO the money. Luckily I got $200 less on trade-in than what I paid so I didn't take much of a bath on it. I now get our 2010 Prius III back. :rockon: I've all ready implemented some FE tips I picked up here on PC on the EX: ultra-gauge installed, switched to mobil 1 0w-30 syn, and set tires to 40f/38r. Now lets see if I can keep the wife from getting out of the VTEC You see, this i-vtec motor is designed for FE in the 1,500-3,500 rpm range and not big HP like the Si motors. I've seen 40-42mpg under favorable conditions: 65mph hwy, no a/c, level road, no headwind, etc. but hope that my leadfoot wife can at least achieve 35mpg on a day to day basis.
My 7th gen civic coupe would net 35-40mpg. It was a manual, but an EX (also called the SI in some regions as the "true si" was never exported from the motherland). When that vtec-i kicks in, wowza. It's pretty hard to completely kill a honda. My old civic I sold to a friend is still chugging along at 130K miles, and my Prelude is still going at 160K miles. I doubt the Mazda would have lasted half as long. Hope she has fun.
Yeah, that mazda will be lucky to last the year without major repairs. Like you, no real repairs on either of our previous Civics so I hope our 8th gen will continue the streak. I added both a fresh engine and cabin air filter this evening. Although it's WAY to early to tell, the wife is getting 36 mpg after the first couple of hundred miles so that's a good thing! She only got 39ish (41 on the computer) in the Prius due to her lead footing ways and a serious headwind on the return legs in the afternoons.
Congrats! It looks pretty slick! I do love the 16" alloy design on the mid-cycle updated EX models. A little more pizazz than the previous 5 spoke alloy.
I had a 1989 Honda Civic wagon for 15 years. I never had a moment's trouble with it. It never let me down, never left me stranded, never failed to start even in the most severe of North Dakota's winters. It was a great car. I sold it and bought the 2004 Prius mainly because I wanted air bags, ABS brakes, and stability control. Honda is a great company. But I think the Prius is a much better car. And the Tesla is more fun.
As a fellow '09 Civic EX friend (not coupe, though), I say, "hot car!" Very nice choice. Though I lust after a hybrid, my atomic blue Civic is a reliable hottie. :-D
Get a coat of good wax or sealant on that Honda Black. IMO Honda paint is abnormally weak. Black is challenging enough to maintain, but swirl marks and chips escalate that from challenging to near impossible. Judging from the picture? Looks like you've already done this though....looks good.
Yeah, I've had a few black cars before and several black bikes including my current Triumph so I'm very familiar with the upkeep. Since it's going to be a commuter, I'm all ready bracing for the numerous chips and knicks it will suffer at the hands of our infamous chip seal roads. I just added a set of Goodyear Viva Fuelmax LRR tires and went up from the stock 55 series size to a 60. The ride difference is phenomenally better :rockon: and much quieter than the previous Riken Raptors. Straight roads around here (sigh) so I'm not concerned with any possible trade offs with at-the-limit cornering.
