Honda Owners Force Free Transmission Fix

Ah, the power of peaceful protest.

Honda and Acura owners recently saw their hard work pay off when Honda issued a technical service bulletin for the vehicle. The issue? Owners of certain vehicles claimed the car had a transmission problem involving the third gear randomly popping into neutral and grinding incessantly.

Previously, Honda claimed to know nothing of the problem and refused to issue a recall. A TSB is short of a recall, but owners can still get the problem fixed free of charge by bringing their vehicle into a dealership. You can see the TSB for the Honda Civic and Accord here, and the TSB for the Acura here. For a full list of models affected, go to the jump.

Cars.com Faceoff: 2008 Ford Focus, 2008 Honda Civic, 2009 Toyota Corolla

In honor of graduation season, Cars.com took three of the most popular compact sedans on the market and decided which one should get a big bow put on top. Even if you’re a Hoops McCann and no one gets you a car for your hard work, these three are sensible first-car choices for the newly employed, too. But which one takes the cake? See if the Honda Civic can stand up to the redesigned Ford Focus and all-new Toyota Corolla.

Cars.comparison: Graduation Gifts

Friday Fleet Notes: 4.25.08

This Friday's fleet notes come packed with insightful takes on the Saturn Astra, Infiniti EX35, Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic EX-L, and Toyota Matrix XRS. Our staff had plenty to say, both good and bad, about the vehicles, so be sure to check out their posts, then link to the expert reviews after the jump.

2008 Saturn Astra

• This was a bummer for me. I was soooo looking forward to driving this car, but when I got behind the wheel I was again greeted by anemic acceleration. However, unlike the Corolla, the Astra XR is supposed to be a fun-to-drive machine. I did not experience much fun. It handled well but felt heavy. The automatic transmission was a dog, and do I need to mention the controls? A fellow reviewer called them hieroglyphics because the symbols are so hard to translate. There’s no USB or AUX-in capability either, not even as an option. Eegads. It was nice-looking, though, I’ll give it that. — David Thomas, senior editor

Frugal Compacts Add Up with Basic Options

The compact car segment is no new place to find low base prices and a good deal on a new car. After having three major players in our hands over the past few weeks, including the 2009 Toyota Corolla, 2008 Honda Civic and 2008 Ford Focus sedans, we were scraping together specs and options to evaluate the competition. When we started to compare the cars, something surprised us. Mostly optional features that we think are necessary for a comfortable and safe daily driver — automatic transmission, air conditioning, power windows, cruise control, keyless entry, power locks, antilock brakes, side airbags and a CD player — have a funny way of changing each car’s relative value.

Hybrid Demand Staying Strong

Are you willing to play tug of war to get a Toyota Highlander Hybrid? How about rock, paper, scissors for a Ford Escape Hybrid?

It might come down to that; Cars.com statistics on unsold new-car inventory within a 30 mile radius of Chicago show only a pair of Highlander Hybrids on lots. There are just nine Escape Hybrids, 79 Honda Civic Hybrids and 248 Toyota Prius hybrids.

"When gas prices go up, so does demand for hybrids, and hybrids are in big demand," said Jeff Foltz, president of Auto Outlook, which tracks Chicago-area sales for local dealers. "In just the first two months of this year, hybrid sales in Chicagoland rose 40% to 1,514 units, from 1,084 a year ago."

Honda Recalls 182,756 Civic Sedans

Honda is recalling 182,756 Civic sedans from the 2006 and 2007 model years in the U.S. to fix a faulty wheel bearing that may cause the wheels to fall off. This significant recall is a rarity for Honda, which maintains one of the lowest recall rates in the industry. Toyota has recently seen an increase in recalls as well.

In a separate recall, 19,904 2006 Civics are being recalled because of a brake light that may fail.

Honda will notify owners by mail concerning both recalls, but you can call 800-999-1009 to get more information. All damaged parts will be replaced at no cost as part of the recall.

2007 Honda Civic Hybrid Real-World Mileage

Hybrid fuel economy has been a hot topic on the blog, so when I had a chance to take a 100-mile trip in Honda's Civic Hybrid, I made sure to keep detailed gas mileage notes. While my trip average of 40 mpg was much lower than the EPA's combined 50 mpg estimate for the Civic Hybrid, it's pretty close to the new combined rating of 42 mpg that 2008 Civic Hybrids will receive as a result of new government testing procedures. More interesting, though, was the effect different types of driving conditions had on the car's fuel economy.

My route took me on a variety of roads, including suburban streets and toll roads, with speeds ranging from 5 mph to around 70 mph.

Ch-Ch-Changes: Honda Civic Si Mugen Coming in October

Not much has changed in the Civic lineup for 2008. Last year, the addition of a four-door Si model was the big news. This year, a higher-performance version of the performance trim, called the Mugen edition, will join the lineup in October. There will only be 1,000 of the sedans made for 2008 — up from the 500 originally slated — and all Honda will say about pricing is that it will be under $30,000. A base Civic Si sedan starts under $22,000.

The Mugen Si only comes in one color, Fiji Blue Pearl, and upgrades include:

• Lightweight 18-inch wheels and summer tires
• Track-tuned suspension
• Aerodynamics kit for the front, rear and sides
• Rear spoiler
• Sport exhaust system
• Unique interior trim

Related
Limited Edition Civic Si Sedan on the Way (KickingTires)
Civic Si Sedan Expert Review (Cars.com)
2007 Civic Si Sedan: Performance with Four Doors (KickingTires)

Honda Sued Over Hybrid Mileage

Now here’s one of those stories you just know the ending to: A man from California is suing Honda in a class-action case because he’s getting worse mileage than the figures on the sticker. He says he’s averaging 32 mpg, while the sticker posts 49/51 mpg city/highway.

We scoff a bit because Honda doesn’t set the figures on the sticker, the Environmental Protection Agency does. We’re no legal experts, but we don’t understand how an automaker can be at fault for being forced to put EPA figures on a sticker. The EPA also admitted that the tests that led to 2007 and earlier figures were not accurate and instituted new tests, resulting in lower mileage figures.

Mileage also varies due to driver habits, especially with hybrids. Automotive journalists can tell you that driving a car at its limits for a week won’t return the normal day-to-day commute numbers that owners experience.

Maybe we’re a bit slanted because we’ve been covering the change in EPA mileage figures for the past year — as well as some poor real-world mileage for the Toyota Prius —  and try to get the message out to car shoppers about what to look out for. It’s too bad this guy wasn’t a regular reader. 

Hybrid Owner Sues Honda Over Mileage Claims (The Detroit News)

Related
2008 Adjusted Mileage: Honda Civic Hybrid (FuelEconomy.gov)
EPA Releases Official 2008 Mileage Calculator (KickingTires)
2007 Toyota Prius: Real-World Mileage (KickingTires)
New Hybrid Vehicles Buying Guide (Cars.com)

Honda Recalls 45,000 Civic Hybrids

Honda is recalling more than 45,000 Civic Hybrids built between 2005 and 2006, most of which were in the U.S. The recall is to fix defective voltage converters that could stop the cars’ engines and prevent them from restarting.

There have been no reports of accidents but the recall sounds serious in nature and owners should contact their dealer.

[Honda recalls 45,000 Civic Hybrids, Detroit Free Press]

Best-Selling Cars of 2006

A few readers recently asked when someone would release the list of last-year’s best-selling cars. The answer, it seems, is now. MSN Autos tracked down the top 10 best-sellers of 2006 using data from Automotive News, and there are few surprises. The Ford F-150 still tops the list, and the Chevy Silverado comes in second despite a 6.7% downturn in overall truck sales last year. The full list including total sales is below.

Reader Review of the Week

This week our winner was an easy choice. In the history of our award-less award we haven’t found a more thorough review than Chance of Indiana’s take of the 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid. The really cool thing about Chance’s report is that he had a 2003 Civic Hybrid and details the difference in the two models in a number of criteria and he does so in an exact manner. You can read Chance’s full review below and if you want to write a review of your own car you can go here.

Reader Review of the Week

It seems Cars.com readers are really getting into writing their own reviews. Each new review we read — of the hundreds that come in each month — offers a unique perspective on a car that you can’t get from just one expert review. For example, this week’s winning review was written by a former Honda S2000 owner calling himself Calpilot7 from Houston, who moved into a much more practical Honda Civic Si Sedan. This illustrates the common occurrence of someone staying with the same automaker, but enjoying the move from a sports car to something less sporty.   

Limited Edition Civic Si Sedan on the Way

Honda has produced a number of race-inspired versions of its cars in Asia — partnered with Mugen, a high-performance parts manufacturer — but the company has never brought them here. Now, AutoWeek is reporting that the Mugen Civic Si sedan concept that was shown at SEMA in Las Vegas last week will be coming to the United States.

This will be an extremely limited edition, with only 500 examples going on sale next spring at a cost of less than $30,000, according to Honda executives. The 197- hp engine and six-speed manual transmission will remain stock from the current Civic Si sedan, but there will be significant suspension, brake and body modifications. The Civic Si sedan went on sale last week starting at $21,895, and we’d expect this limited edition to bump up right against the $30,000 ceiling. 

[The Wait is Over, AutoWeek]

Related:
Civic Si Sedan Review
2007 Civic Si Sedan: Performance with Four Doors

Honda Civic Si Sedan Gets Official Price

The new Civic Si sedan we tested a few months back goes on sale tomorrow, and Honda has released the starting price for those waiting in line: $21,290, plus $595 destination, will bring the practical yet remarkably fast four-door home. Add another $200 for optional summer tires, or pay $23,040 for an Si sedan with the navigation package. We’d write more about the Si sedan, but we’ve got too much to blog about today. Instead, check out these links:

Civic Si Sedan Review
2007 Civic Si Sedan: Performance with Four Doors