Reliability of 2003-2005 honda hybrids? Used car shopper here.

Hi,

I just had my Echo t-boned, and I noticed a few Honda hybrids in my
area being sold in the ~100k miles and 2003-2004 range.

One I'm specifically looking at is a Civic Hybrid, 2003, with 9x000
miles, for $7888.

Am I setting myself up for a few thousand dollar battery replacement
and maybe a transmission?

Or is this a decent car?

(I'm wondering the same about a 2005 Accord hybrid with 105000 miles.
For just under 10k)

Thanks,

Jon

 

I've owned a 2005 Accord hybrid and now a 2008 Camry hybrid.

If I was on your budget I would buy a non hybrid rather than a vehicle with
so many miles on it.

 

Yes the 2003 HCH is a "decent car". I've had a 2003 model HCH
for 7 years now (bought it shortly after it first came out
in 2002). It's got around 170,000 KM (107K miles) on it, and has
averaged about 47 miles per US gallon (including winter driving).
Mind you, my driving might be described as "granny style".

There was a transmission/clutch problem on the early models,
and my transmission was replaced under warranty. I think they
later concluded that generally only the clutch need repair,
not the whole transmission.
(I'm assuming you are looking at the CVT (automatic), I don't
recall any problems being reported with the 5-speed manual).
Ask if the clutch or transission was replaced for the
"judder problem".

To check for the problem, stop the car on a slight uphill grade,
and then proceed forward under light/moderate acceleration.
Listen/feel for a viberation/shudder. (A young musiciaon friend
described it as a "low bass note").

If the problem is not there now, it is not likely to appear soon.

I'm still on the original big battery, so I can't say that
you are likely in for a bettary replacement. There is a
guy in New York that does battery refurbs (replaces some cells
etc.) for much less than a full replacement.

Most of the battery problems with Honda hybrids have been
reported on early manual transmission Insights where there
was much more possibility for driving style to overstress
the battery. CVTs (Insight or Civic) have had far fewer reports.

 

I have a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid, about 101,000 miles.

There was a problem with some of the CVT transmissions, and Honda extended
the warranty to 150,000 miles on it. I don't have a problem, although I do
have a delay engaging reverse, which I read about in one of the first road
tests long ago, and I don't think the effect has changed at all on my car
over the years.

I asked the dealer about it, and he suggested that even if I do detect a
problem, I should wait until nearly 150,000 miles, as the fix is to replace
the transmission with a factory rebuilt, and I might as well get as many
miles as possible.

I get around 53mpg on the highway, 47 in a mix of city/highway, and about
43-45 around my house, in very hilly country, with few freeway miles any
more. I have hit 62mpg, with cruise control at 50mph on a hilly country
road on a 60 mile drive. A/C, even for defrost in the winter, is probably
a 2mpg penalty. 80mph on I-5 for several hours gave me 42mpg.

I expected that would be true before they started needing replacement.
It's just a lot of D cell NiMH. I priced it at about $600 for just the
cells on the Internet, in a higher capacity than the originals.

There was a problem with the quality of a single soldered connection on the
Insights, as I recall, that would cause the pack to fail.

Just by eyeball, the IMA battery is as good as it ever was. I still have
original brakes, due to regen working so well. I did replace the tiny
little 12v battery, that the auto parts lady thought was from a motorcycle,
but I think the problem was actually a cable clamp that was somehow
mysteriously loose on the post, even though the bolt was tight.