Shed Civic's intro
written fairly soon after its purchase in early May, there's rather a lot to catch up on from the past few weeks. And I'm pleased to report the news is largely positive.
Stickered up; still looks a bit OAP though
The only maladies that have struck so far have been both the CV boots and the nearside CV joint. Given it's a 15-year-old car and pizza delivery is often endless manoeuvring on full lock, it was only to be expected. But other than that and a couple of parking scrapes, we've been ticking along nicely.
The Conti PremiumContact 2s have been on the front axle for a few weeks now, although their dry-weather advantage over the budgets isn't as marked as perhaps expected. However, their purchase in the wet is great, giving real confidence as well as outright grip.
Having decent rubber is especially beneficial given the Civic's rather naff steering. For a start, the wheel itself is far too large, even though the thickness is fine. But the self-centring action is overly aggressive which makes smoothly winding off lock from corners a challenge. These issues are compounded by a complete lack of feel through the rim; as the diff apportions power it does weight up, but any information about the road surface is notable only by its absence.
Here's an engine swap we'd like to see
But it's accurate enough, and just means that fast driving becomes about different facets of the dynamic experience. Like that engine. With the Focus, it was all about the corners, with its steering and balance making every curve a joy. In the Civic, whilst it's not a shabby handler, the most exciting part of the corner is leaving it, diff tugging away and catapulting you towards 8,500rpm once more.
There have been criticisms of the VTI's overly long gearing; it could do with six shorter ratios but five are workable, just. Basically, to get it spinning back in the next gear beyond 6,000rpm, near enough every rev is required from the previous ratio. It's a lost cause in first, as it will drop out of the VTEC regardless, but second and third are okay. Fourth might have to wait for a track day...
And if chasing revs sounds like hard work in dual-clutched, turbocharged 2013, that's because it is. But commit to the cause and the rewards are there as the VTI really takes on a raw edge over the last 500rpm. Having spent some time recently in the PH MiniClubvan, I was soon craving another VTEC hit. Sad, but it's true.
Cheap VTEC fun, but it's out of favour now
When it's not being driven by a BTCC wannabe, R471 WLW has even returned 37mpg on a long motorway journey. Moreover, it completed a 500-mile round trip to Manchester airport with three passengers and their luggage faultlessly. But if it sometime feels gutless one-up, you can imagine how it struggled with an extra 200kg or so...
With the cambelt and water pump changed too, Shed Civic was proving superb fun and I was looking forward to the summer in it. Then the permanent PH job came along and it's in danger of becoming neglected. There's already been surfeit of press cars and long-termers that have pushed the pongy Honda further down my list of priorities. In an ideal world, it would be a keeper and gradually upgraded to fast road/track spec. Whether I possess the wherewithal is another matter though! Watch this space...
Fact sheet
Car: 1998 Honda Civic VTI 1.8
Run by: Matt Bird
Bought: May 2013
Mileage: 87,200
Purchase price: £795
Last month at a glance: The Civic takes abuse in its stride, now vying for attention with shiny new cars