Honda Civic Coupe LX 2002 Review

Overall Rating

Racey handling, great suspension and road-holding ability. Superb fuel economy; £35 to fill up the tank (at current 92p a litre) that will last up to 400 miles on a steady 70MPH motorway cruise. Sporty looks and performance, loads of power in reserve when you need it. Excellent brake mechanism: stops on a two pence piece. Luxury leather interior with comfortable seats. Air Conditioning, dual airbags & side airbags. 2nd/3rd most reliable car on the road according to the main three surveys. Smoothest, most enjoyable ride of ANY car I have ever owned!

None that I can think of. Maybe making the engine block 1.8 or 2.0 litre to add that little bit of extra power. Just a tiny bit more headroom would be nice as the fit is quite close if you are 6ft or taller. Cabin noise can be bad at motorway cruising speeds, greater than the Vectra. Numerical markings on the fuel indicator would go a long way, but these are minor gripes that I only mention as the title is "Bad points"!

The car I own is the 2002 Civic 2 door Coupe; which looks completely different to the one in the picture above. It compares to the EX model available here in the UK. It is primarily based on the USA model, which goes for a slightly sportier configuration, instead of a practical family car. Under the bonnet is a 127 BHP 1.7 Litre VTEC engine which is only topped by the Type R in terms of power & performance, but is so much cheaper to insure and road tax. The engine does the impossible (except for the Japanese engineers it would seem), performing in every aspect as a sports engine, but having the practical fuel economy normally associated with underpowered and sluggish family saloon cars. It will rev to infinity, almost like a motorcycle instead of a car. My Vauxhall Vectra would rev to a maximum of 3700RPM, no matter what gear you were in, this goes all the way to 7000! Every element of this car screams "Drive me fast": Suspension and steering is perfectly balanced, meaning a confident & refined drive that always leaves the driver in control of the car (not the other way around). The gearbox is quick-shift, almost like a rally car; with very little travel needed between all 5 gears, 75 MPH in 4th into 5th then all the way up to 125+. The all leather interior lends a really nice "quality" feel to the inside of the car, controls are all in sensible places and are clearly marked and easy to familiarise yourself with. Safety features are top notch, all-round airbags and ABS on all 4 wheels not just front 2. Honda standard CD player surprisingly good quality with clear crisp & bassy sound. Flat floor in the back seats is a nice touch, normally 2 footwells with "pillar" for the middle seat...Enormous boot, which is highly deceptive to look at, but is deep and goes back a long way. Build quality is what you would expect from Honda; sturdy and hardwearing. All in all I would instantly recommend this car to anybody, it is fun to drive, economical on fuel, built to last, smooth comfortable ride and packed with safety features. It is big enough to seat 5 adults for short trips (up to 50 miles), or 4 for any more than that. If this sounds like a car you are looking for, don't hesitate to test drive one and see what I mean for yourself...