We recently pruchased an '06 Civic LX sedan to replace my wife's '95 Accord LX. Her driving impression of the new car were prettty much the same as mine- the car understeers and leans in hard turns and quick lane changes, despite the low profile rubber. The new Civic also seem to wander a bit more than normal, as if it is out of alignment (steering wheel is straight).

In all fairness, I did put Suspension Techniques sway bars on the older car, but even before I did that the Accord handled nice for a stock car. I'm a bit disapointed in the handling- hopefully some aftermarket swaybars will improve this situation. Anyone else notice this?

Geno

 

I drive a Civic in New Zealand (1.8-S), but I guess since the cars are pretty similar, I can reply to your thread...

Yeah, I noticed the increased body roll as well, compared to my 96 accord. I was wondering whether it's because of any repositioning of the fuel tank. Just a bit more roll when going around roundabouts, and tight turns. Still all right though, so I'm not too fussed...

BUT, the alignment seems wrong. Brought it back 2 times to the showroom, they were real professional about it, checked it over twice free of charge, even tried swapping the front tyres over. STILL a lean to the left. I'm abit disappointed in that, but since they assured me that they could find nothing wrong, and the alignment laser tests don't indicate otherwise, well, what can I do?

So yeah, abit disappointed with the handling, but down here, it's one of the most value-for-money cars, same price as the toyota corollas and cheaper than the europeans, but lots more goodies, so I'm overall satisfied with it...

 

There are many problems with this check the other boards, there is a fix for it honda11 found it ......mine so far has no issues....mostly out of the allision, canda plant. where was yours made?

 

Our '06 LX was assembled in the East Liberty, OH plant- don't know if that has anything to do with the problem.

As far as the alignment (or lack thereof) goes, I'm going to have the camber and toe-in checked at my mechanic. He's a GM master mechanic, but he also does imports and is a performance guy, so I'm sure he can put the settings to where the car will feel less darty on the freeway.

I'm hoping Suspension Techniques will hurry up and get their Sway bar kit out for the '06 civics- I know that will go a long way towards eliminating the lousy body roll. I'll probalby get some new struts for the car as well, as the factory units ride a bit stiff.

Despite the handling problem, the car is otherwise a typical Honda- well built, good design features and ergonomics, and very cool looking. I'm sure once I fix the handling, get rid of the Goodyear RS-A's and put some 17's on it the car will carve the turns up. Too bad they didn't get it right before they released it [:@].

Geno

 

I'd agree that under certain, specific circumstances, the steering in my ‘06 LX (auto) sedan is, how can I describe it? Squirrelly...yea, that's it. For example, one time when I accelerated the '06 Civic to a rather high speed (near 80 MPH), I noticed upon going into a favorite corner that the steering felt overly touchy, or sensitive. The car actually felt as if it was somewhere near the edge of going out of control when I fed in just the slightest amount of steering-wheel correction. In my recently-traded 1996 Civic hatchback (manual), I could go into the same corner running near 80 MPH (for just a short time), and never, ever, felt the car was not "with me" all of the way.

In the '06 sedan, I feel the car's speed-sensitive steering stays "too light" at spirited speeds (i.e. needs to feel "heavier"). Granted, my antics probably rule out 90% or more of your "average" Civic drivers, and the car is plenty of fun at lower speeds. That my '96 Civic hatch was far more "behaved" in the same situation causes me to wonder about the '06 sedan's handling-related engineering, however. Perhaps the 2006 Civic sedan is just too "soft," suspension wize, for such antics.

P.S. Mine is a Canadian-built car, but that should be unrelated to how the car handles at speed. Yes, a good car for the money. My only other complaints are paint that seems to scratch too readily, and the drivers seat is a bit too firm (in the butt) for us thinner guys. ;-)

Regards,
Glenn in CT

 

The new Civic also seem to wander a bit more than normal, as if it is out of alignment (steering wheel is straight).

For your issue of wandering, which is different than my issue with high-speed handling, see this thread: alignment issues You may find his issue is similar to yours.


Regards,
Glenn

 

the steering in the last gen civic was poor as well. I only test drove a 1.6 but i managed to catch out the varied assistance steering loads of times on the test run, and it went really heavy when i was gunning it round a big wide sweeper. I dont want it heavy i want it to feel good. Weight in the steering doesnt mean good steering, you want it light, weighing up a bit naturally on turn in, with loads of feel, like my old mini, or the new mini for that matter - awesome drive

 

I have the same problem, but mine pulls to the left. It seems very twitchy at 80 MPH, borderline dangerous. Took it to the dealler already, said there was nothing wrong, of course. Went around a rough corner at about 25 mph the other day, and it was clear that the tires did not stay planted, it felt like I was loosing control. There HAS to be a recall on this model once more people complain about it.[:@]