Would it be a bit daft to buy a 1.8 NA now?

Relentless81

Relentless81

Relentless81

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Joined
18 May 2010
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Hi,

I'm looking at changing my car, I'm unhappy with the bodywork other than that all it needs 4 new tyres before the end of next month, thats not an issue as all cars need tyres but worth considering when thinking of changing

I'm also unhappy with the suspension which is very crashy especially as the roads seemingly get worse it gets more annoying. I've had it four years this month, its a 2009 1.8 Civic and want something a bit more modern
If I was to keep it I would spend some money on it, bodywork, wheel refurb, 4 tyres, windows tinted as baby on the way

I really like the engine, its the main thing I like on the car other than the reliability, I also know a very good ex Honda mechanic with his own business and servicing is cheap and easy, seeing as though there isnt anything that interests me out there other than the Toyota Auris Hybrid Estate which are out of my price range I was considering just getting another 1.8 Civic due to the large 470L boot, reliability and all the kit I need for £11 to £12k there are a few available locally

My main concern is the value will drop rapidly over the next few years due to people seeing the engine as a "large" engine thats normally aspirated, the engine was first released in 2006 so getting on but its still quite good in terms of performance MPG and reliability, it was also updated in 2013 making it slightly more frugal and better emissions but I dont think a lot of people will see it that way in 4/5 years time

There is the Auris 1.2 Turbo Estate in my price range but I'm concerned the small petrol Turbo engine wont like short journeys over time which I do quite a lot of plus servicing will be more expensive, other than that there isnt anything else I like, I've ruled out the Octavia BTW, reliability is important to me and there are too many horror stories out there that put me off the TSI engines

Any thoughts?
 
1.8 isn't large. The 4.7 V8 in my Jeep is large.

Dont worry about engine size or anything like that. Just buy the car that does what you want.

Nothing will change dramatically in 4/5 years.
 
I think the market will be first to shun diesels before it starts focusing on which petrol engines are in favour or not. By that time the car will be worth very little anyway so i wouldn't worry, i just wouldn't necessarily buy a brand new diesel at the moment.
 
Skyrover said:
1.8 isn't large. The 4.7 V8 in my Jeep is large.
Click to expand...

Yeah we know that but a lot of people will see it as large especially in 4/5 years, or maybe I'm just overthinking it and like sovietspybob says it'll be worthless in that time anyway

My current car is only worth around £3k now, I paid £7.5k for it 4 years ago
 
sovietspybob said:
I think the market will be first to shun diesels before it starts focusing on which petrol engines are in favour or not. By that time the car will be worth very little anyway so i wouldn't worry, i just wouldn't necessarily buy a brand new diesel at the moment.
Click to expand...
I don't think so, they're making diesels that are cleaner than petrols now.
I think diesel will make a come back but only for its correct user of longer distance cats not city cars.
I think as less people get diesel it will become cheaper and petrol will once again be more expensive.

If I was buying a car right now it would be a diesel for my commuter car and a 2lt petrol for the city car.
 
Yeah I'm going to get that thought out of mind and concentrate on finding one with a spec that will keep me happy, just rang a dealer about one with the exact spec I want but it sold before they even put pictures up so it might be an interesting challenge
 
robj20 said:
I don't think so, they're making diesels that are cleaner than petrols now.
I think diesel will make a come back but only for its correct user of longer distance cats not city cars.
I think as less people get diesel it will become cheaper and petrol will once again be more expensive.

If I was buying a car right now it would be a diesel for my commuter car and a 2lt petrol for the city car.
Click to expand...

How do the new generation of petrols compare to the lastest version of diesels?
The new petrols being the ones that are also having particulate filters, because from what I have read, there would appear to be similar filtering in effect now eg
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/...ips-petrol-cars-particulate-filter-technology

To be honest I think the cost of diesel vs petrol will be taxed to ensure that the latest "you should drive this" advice from the government is backed up by the price at the pumps.
When Ev is a genuine alternative I suspect we will see massive tax increases on fossil fuels, something like inflation +10% every year.
There will be very little reason to keep people driving ICE cars once EV is delivering what we need it to.
 
TBH I would question the value in changing from a Mk8 civic going to a Mk9 (I presume on that budget it will be?).

I have done this exact thing recently when our 2009 was written off we bought a 2014 model to replace it. The ride is certainly better and less crashy but the steering is vague and the engine is more eco focussed so doesn't seem to pull quite so well to me, overall while the ride is better I enjoy driving the new car less. I also preferred to dash layout on the older car. Don't get me wrong I like the civic very much and we test drove a load of other things and decided we wanted another civic for the exact reasons you are doing it but I expect you will look back on the decision and question why you spent £7k+ on what is basically much the same car.

In terms of the engine I expect as everyone has said it wont be a big issue.
 
Last edited:
Relentless81 said:
Hi,

I'm looking at changing my car, I'm unhappy with the bodywork other than that all it needs 4 new tyres before the end of next month, thats not an issue as all cars need tyres but worth considering when thinking of changing

I'm also unhappy with the suspension which is very crashy especially as the roads seemingly get worse it gets more annoying. I've had it four years this month, its a 2009 1.8 Civic and want something a bit more modern
If I was to keep it I would spend some money on it, bodywork, wheel refurb, 4 tyres, windows tinted as baby on the way

I really like the engine, its the main thing I like on the car other than the reliability, I also know a very good ex Honda mechanic with his own business and servicing is cheap and easy, seeing as though there isnt anything that interests me out there other than the Toyota Auris Hybrid Estate which are out of my price range I was considering just getting another 1.8 Civic due to the large 470L boot, reliability and all the kit I need for £11 to £12k there are a few available locally

My main concern is the value will drop rapidly over the next few years due to people seeing the engine as a "large" engine thats normally aspirated, the engine was first released in 2006 so getting on but its still quite good in terms of performance MPG and reliability, it was also updated in 2013 making it slightly more frugal and better emissions but I dont think a lot of people will see it that way in 4/5 years time

There is the Auris 1.2 Turbo Estate in my price range but I'm concerned the small petrol Turbo engine wont like short journeys over time which I do quite a lot of plus servicing will be more expensive, other than that there isnt anything else I like, I've ruled out the Octavia BTW, reliability is important to me and there are too many horror stories out there that put me off the TSI engines

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
The auris 1.2t is a thirsty car. I struggled to get near 40mpg in mine and that was doing 60mph on dual carriageways to try and increase efficiency.
 
hawker1986 said:
TBH I would question the value in changing from a Mk8 civic going to a Mk9 (I presume on that budget it will be?).

I have done this exact thing recently when our 2009 was written off we bought a 2014 model to replace it. The ride is certainly better and less crashy but the steering is vague and the engine is more eco focussed so doesn't seem to pull quite so well to me, overall while the ride is better I enjoy driving the new car less. I also preferred to dash layout on the older car. Don't get me wrong I like the civic very much and we test drove a load of other things and decided we wanted another civic for the exact reasons you are doing it but I expect you will look back on the decision and question why you spent £7k+ on what is basically much the same car.

In terms of the engine I expect as everyone has said it wont be a big issue.
Click to expand...

My wife has a pre facelift MK9 but its a 1.4, I know what you mean about the steering but I would be willing to put up with that in exchange for the better interior, equipment and ride. Sad to hear that about the engine though, I know they added a balancer shaft and ECU tweaks in 2013 but didnt think it would make it more mundane but that does remind me that when I test driven my current car I driven two at the same dealer and the other car which was exactly the same apart from the wheels felt slower I never did understand why that was.

I could hold out for an estate as that would make even more sense for me but it'll be even slower and in the spec that I want I might as well put the lottery on because I'll have better luck

WorTortle said:
The auris 1.2t is a thirsty car. I struggled to get near 40mpg in mine and that was doing 60mph on dual carriageways to try and increase efficiency.
Click to expand...

Thats interesting to know thanks
 
To update I bought a civic estate a couple of weeks back after looking at a few that weren't the spec I wanted at main dealers for around 11.5k

There was one in the spec I wanted just 17 miles away but wasn't from a main dealer and was on Irish plates which at first put me off but after another week of looking and research into buying an Irish plated car which means nothing it turned out to be immaculate so I bought it at 9.5k saving a nice bit of change in the process.

It's been fine and really pleased with it, it's slower than my old 1.8 hatch but that's to be expected, what wasn't expected is it seems to be better on fuel, loads of kit too Inc heated leather and electric seats, dual zone climate and plenty of other little touches I didn't expect like remote window close and wing mirrors, adjustable suspension etc
 
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