New to Forums! Best civic year for mpg?

[gonefm]

Hey guys I am new to the forums and I am looking to sell my current car and get a honda civic for daily driving. I am looking or the best year and model for mpg with an automatic transmission. I hear the civic hx (96-2000) is good. If not what is the best year/model for mpg and i would like it to be reliable. And im not looking to sped more than $5,000. Thanks.

[deathtrain]

why limit yourself to a civic? why an auto? do more research n cars and dont limit yourself. I was looking for a geo when i came across my yota. Looking at my sig I made a good choice. welcome anyway.

[hamsterpower]

I think it was the 1988 hf but those are getting very rare and nearing the end of reasonable service life and parts availibility. Also, newer models have lower emissions and more safety features.
My advice, since your budget is set, do a search of local used cars at that amount and find the best you can get and not worry about the best ever. If all you really want is the best MPG for that money, have you concidered a motorcycle?

[gonefm]

Originally Posted by deathtrain

why limit yourself to a civic? why an auto? do more research n cars and dont limit yourself. I was looking for a geo when i came across my yota. Looking at my sig I made a good choice. welcome anyway.

i want to go with a civic because i know they are more reliable than other cars, maintenance and repairs are cheap, and i can find them everywhere i my price range. and i want an automatic as a dd because dont want to be shifting all the time. thats what my other car is for.

Originally Posted by hamsterpower

I think it was the 1988 hf but those are getting very rare and nearing the end of reasonable service life and parts availibility. Also, newer models have lower emissions and more safety features.
My advice, since your budget is set, do a search of local used cars at that amount and find the best you can get and not worry about the best ever. If all you really want is the best MPG for that money, have you concidered a motorcycle?

no motorcycle i have to go through snow for the winter season, and im looking for the best mpg and reliability in my price range.

[Ryland]

If you need an automatic, then a Civic HX or a Civic Hybrid is going to be the way to go, but if you want reliability then avoid the automatic! but even a 2005 civic hybrid has a blue book value of $3,700 to $5,100 depending on condition.

Fuel Economy

Is a search for Honda's with automatics, I limited it to 1984-2006 to keep the vehicles in your price range, altho a quick search on KBB.com shows that the 2006 civic hybrid jumps in price and is not in your price range.

It boils down to all of the years of Civic HX with a CVT transmission being pretty close to each other as far as gas mileage goes, and the 2002-2005 civic hybrids also have about the same mpg figures, with a jump when they made a bunch of changes in 2006 and onward.

With a manual transmission you will get better gas mileage and you will pretty much avoid issues with the transmission, because a manual transmission wastes less energy the engine isn't working as hard so everything else is going to last a little longer as well, but some people have their reasons for not driving a car with a manual transmission, but I think most of us agree that you should be well informed about the benefits.

[gonefm]

Originally Posted by Ryland

If you need an automatic, then a Civic HX or a Civic Hybrid is going to be the way to go, but if you want reliability then avoid the automatic! but even a 2005 civic hybrid has a blue book value of $3,700 to $5,100 depending on condition.

Is a search for Honda's with automatics, I limited the search to 1984-2006 to keep the vehicles in your price range.

ok thanks, ive been looking at civic hx's but the ones i find are 2 door coupes and then on fuel economy i see they are hatchbacks...? also why is a automatic transmission not as reliable?

like here is one that im interested in:
http://newyork.craigslist.org/wch/ctd/2903544656.html

but what is wrong with auto transmission? is there something wrong with the civic hx's transmission?

[Ryland]

Originally Posted by fmars62

ok thanks, ive been looking at civic hx's but the ones i find are 2 door coupes and then on fuel economy i see they are hatchbacks...?

That is a fluke in their web site, as far as I know all of the Civic HX's that were built were 2 door coupes.

also why is a automatic transmission not as reliable?

Because automatic transmissions tend to have a lot more moving parts in side, they tend to either be a large pump/torque converter that is moving fluid around to move the car down the road, or in the case of the Civi HX it's a CVT, continues variable transmission, more or less a belt drive with two pulleys that change size to give you your gear ratios, the inside of a Civic HX transmission looks like this:

but what is wrong with auto transmission? is there something wrong with the civic hx's transmission?

Automatics tend to be a design that has higher wear so they don't last as long, if you call up a transmission shop and ask them if they rebuild manual transmissions most of them will tell you no, because it is rare that they need to be rebuilt so they make their living off of only rebuilding automatic transmissions.

Now I'm not saying that if you buy a car with an automatic that it is going to die on you on your way home, but the chances that you are going to have issues with it while you own it increase and if you are looking for fuel savings and a reliable vehicle to own then you have to look at that part of it.

[gonefm]

Originally Posted by Ryland

Now I'm not saying that if you buy a car with an automatic that it is going to die on you on your way home, but the chances that you are going to have issues with it while you own it increase and if you are looking for fuel savings and a reliable vehicle to own then you have to look at that part of it.

ohhhh ok thanks that explains it, but the reason i want auto is because im a commuter and i just really dont feel like shifting all the time (yes im lazy), i have my project car if i want to shift and go fast, so what i am getting at is what would be the best commuter car with an auto transmission for me? high mpg and reliability under $5k. ill open up my eyes, it doesnt have to be a civic...and no hybrids

[mechman600]

I bought a used 2001 Civic a few years ago with 75K miles on it, thinking it was going to be a super reliable car. BEWARE: there are some years of Civics that are ridiculously unreliable, despite their reputation. Soon after I bought it, a guy I know who happened to work at a Honda dealership told me, "prepare to pay."

Cracked exhaust manifold. Common problem.
Warped front brake rotors every 20K miles. Common problem.
Extremely poor suspension, Honda's first attempt at macpherson struts - HORRIBLE ride compared to previous designs. Wore out quickly.
Worn out driver's seat, jiggles front and back. Common problem.

This was my lone experience with a Honda car. The '03 Corolla I got afterwards felt like a Cadillac in comparison and never gave me a stitch of trouble. Don't assume that buying a Honda will be your answer to reliability. There are plenty of other (cheaper) options that are just as good.

[gonefm]

Originally Posted by mechman600

I bought a used 2001 Civic a few years ago with 75K miles on it, thinking it was going to be a super reliable car. BEWARE: there are some years of Civics that are ridiculously unreliable, despite their reputation. Soon after I bought it, a guy I know who happened to work at a Honda dealership told me, "prepare to pay."

Cracked exhaust manifold. Common problem.
Warped front brake rotors every 20K miles. Common problem.
Extremely poor suspension, Honda's first attempt at macpherson struts - HORRIBLE ride compared to previous designs. Wore out quickly.
Worn out driver's seat, jiggles front and back. Common problem.

This was my lone experience with a Honda car. The '03 Corolla I got afterwards felt like a Cadillac in comparison and never gave me a stitch of trouble. Don't assume that buying a Honda will be your answer to reliability. There are plenty of other (cheaper) options that are just as good.

damnn that stinks man sorry, so im asking everyone...what are the best cars I should be looking at? budget it $5,000. i want great mpg (40 highway, 30+ city), i need it to be reliable, automatic transmission.