Hi all, i have a honda civic1.4 i 1998 ,the drvers door mirror is heated and stays on when the swicth is off what could be the problem be, also i have noticed when the key is not in the ignition the brake lights still operate when you press the foot brake is this normal for a honda civic.One more question how many mpg should i be getting on a 1.4i thankyou.

 

The brake lights are supposed to work with and without the key turned to ON(II).

What is your gas mileage and do you live where it is currently winter?


Sounds like a bad defogger switch. Here's how to test:

 

Hi ron i am from the uk, we did have bad snow for a couple weeks but now its clear . My question about the brake lights when the keys are out of the ignition,i found it strange because all my other cars which were mainly fords never done this.The vehicle has done over 90,000 miles cheers.

 

To my recollection, for all cars that I have owned, the brake lights work without the key on. I know that the Civic was designed this way because power for the brakes comes directly from the hood fuse box not through the ignition switch.

Note that cold winter temperatures will always reduce your gas mileage because the ECU predetermines a very rich fuel mixture until the engine is fully warmed. Cold winter temperatures greatly lengthen the time required for the engine to heat up. What is your current gas mileage?

 

To tell you the truth i dont know how many miles per gallon i am getting, just wondering what the average should be thanks

 

the brakes are normal. ive never driven a car that they dont work even with the keys off unless the brake pedal switches are bad.LOL and then you have no brake lights at all.
its a safety feature just like your headlights. like if your car breaks down you can still see down the road and people behind you can still see you. the same with hazard flashers.
but from the year 98 id guess about 26-38mpg depending on driving style and manual or automatic transmission. your driving style matters ALOT with MPG. to figure out your milage simply fill up the gas tank and reset the trip miles meter on the gauges and next time you fill up a full tank of gas simply divide the number of gallons of fuel put into the tank to the miles youve driven, and thats your mpg on that tank! and try to change up some driving habits for a whole gas tank and see how much you can improve the MPG!!!! most people can get 2-3mpg more by just driving better and by better i mean slower take offs, longer coasting to a stop sign/red light you see down the road or know its there, and of course obey speed limits
when i have alittle to much fun in my truck i can kill the mpg by about 3-4mpg just by going over 65mph and taking off hard. which is typically how i drive 60% of the time.