Honda Jazz or Civic?

[Freyathecatt]

Hello

Baby no 1 is due in 5 weeks and i just passed my test, hurrah. I'm very keen to get our car asap so i can get used to it before baby arrives.

We're keen on the idea of a Honda because of their track record for reliability etc etc. We have a budget of £3k and are looking at the Jazz or Civic. if you have either of these cars please could you explain why you love it or hate it, and if you're the rare breed that might have had both which would you recommend?

Thanks very much.

I love my jazz. It's an 04 reg and nothing serious has ever gone wrong with it. I think I've only had new brake pads and tyres and perhaps spark plugs.
Tax is £110, group 4 insurance I think, it does around 48-50 mpg on a motorway trip but I admit urban fuel consumption has dropped recently.

We can fit travel cot, pushchair, high chair and luggage for a long weekend in the boot thanks to the amazing folding seats.

My only gripe? The windows steam up when it's wet.

We have an 06 civic, its a new style civic. It has a massive boot for the class of car which is good for storing buggy etc. one slight drawback is the rear doors are small and makes getting carseats in and out a little tricky, but manageable. My friend has a jazz and I don't like it at all, it just feels cheap compared tot he civic.

Oh dear God - neither please!! If a Jazz pulls out in front of me I did inside as they are driving so unbelievably slowly and a Civic is a bit chavvy really. Can't you go for a VW Polo or Golf? The safety records are more important than reliability IMO when talking about an already very reliable car. Always go German when buying cars!

I agree with veetor. Don't go for a Honda. We had a civic max and it was horrible to drive.
A nice polo or a golf (or anything from the VAG group), reliable, comfy and much, much nicer to drive.
At the moment I'm driving a seat Leon and its a lovely driving experience, unfortunately it's too small.

You've obviously never pulled out behind me then!

The Jazz has been top of it's class in the What Car/ JD Power owners satisfaction survey for the last 10 years.

I can't load the survey right now but go take a look. Before I bought my first car, I had a good think about what I wanted in a car - cheap to run, reliable, 4 doors. I think I also considered the Ford Focus, Mazda 3 (?) and the Nissan Note. The Nissan is quite new though so I don't think you'll get a 2nd hand one for that price.

A quick search on autotrader reveals you can buy a pre-2003 Golf within your budget.

Jeezo, there are chavvy cars now!! I'll get back in my box then!

Blimey, thanks for the v quick responses ladies. 3 for the jazz, 2 for the civic and 2 for VW type cars. Quick squizz at autotrader....

Another question, which would you compromise on, age or mileage?

Thanks again,

...Civic is a bit chavvy really. Can't you go for a VW Polo or Golf?

So the Civic is chavvy, but you suggest a Golf?! Hahaha, best laugh all morning. VW themselves had an advert about all the shitty boy-racered Golfs.

A nice polo or a golf (or anything from the VAG group), reliable, comfy and much, much nicer to drive.

The reliability thing is not true as PolterGoose pointed out. Check out the Warranty Direct reliability indices, Audi and VW are quite low down the list.

Reliability Index article: Honda Jazz is in the top 10 (along with Honda HR-V) and no VAG models; VAG have three models in the bottom 10, including the most unreliable car.

www.reliabilityindex.com/top-100: HR-V and Jazz as mentioned, the first VAG car is at 12 (Skoda Fabia); Polo is at 37, and the Golf doesn't even make the top 100!

Previous company car was a VW Passat, current one is a Honda Civic - I would say I prefer the Civic out of the two - great engine, enough space for a hatchback (the Passat is cavernous, but obviously not what you're after) and the gearbox is one of the smoothest I've ever used.

Personally I'm not too fond of the Civic's styling, it looks OK from some angles but I think it's quite dated now. If you're looking at £3K models I assume it's pre-2006, and personally I think they still look good. I would expect boot access will be better than my model too.

DH & I love my civic. It's 2009 and is reliable, comfortable to drive and be a passenger in, has some great features including loads of space, back seats go down flat or go up to give lots of room for transporting things, back doors open 90 degrees for easy access, economic fuel wise and has little lights to encourage more fuel efficient driving. My SIL loves the boot for getting her buggy in and out of compared to their car.

I was tempted by a Golf when looking to buy my current car and they just didn't compare; were expensive with fewer features and not as comfortable to drive.

I had an old style Civic and I loved it. The boot size was brilliant and it had lots of handy cubby holes for storage in the front. It was ultra reliable and when it was serviced the mechanic even said what a great car it was.
Then it got written off :( I would have bought another one without hesitation but was looking for a newer car which meant the new style civic which I think is horrible and it doesn't get nearly as good reviews, so I got a Focus instead, which just isn't as nice.

I was given a Jazz as a courtesy car and it was just a bit small and cheap feeling compared to the civic.
One thing to be aware of with the civic though is that it's restricted in the car seats it can take as the seat belts are on straps which mean there is potential for buckle crunch.

My dp has a civic, and it feels a really well built car. He's been through lots of cars since I've met him, but loves this one, and having had it for 6 years now is in no rush to change it.

My mum has a jazz, which feels a lot more cramped, especially for leg room in the back, and was hard to fit my baby car seat in as I'm quite tall. It also feels very sluggish and is quite noisy.

If you can afford it, I'd definitely go for the CiviC

polter mine was 2004, don't know if that makes any difference. The straps were definitely quite long, not like my Focus where they're practically set in the seat. The guy from Halfords hummed a lot before finding a seat that would work. I can't remember why we didn't use isofix

I have a new style civic and love, love, love it. Big boot so good for shopping and haven't found the doors too small in the back. The rear doors open very wide. Only downside is visibility isn't great from driver's window because the windows aren't very deep, I have rear parking sensors so not a problem parking. Would recommend!