Inspection: New Civic Pickup

[ryanc]

Hi guys,

I'm picking up my Civic VTI 07 on Saturday morning (brand new). I'm a first car buyer and also know NOTHING about cars (just how to drive one.. at least I think I do)...

I've read that there are a few issues with the car which have affected some people such as boot lining, driver side stuff (dont know what this refers to)...

Could someone give me a list of key, specific things I should inspect for thoroughly in the car? Especially areas where there are known problems, or you yourself have experienced problems with when picking up your 07 (or even 06) civic...

Thanks!

[Shimian]

Those problems can be resolved later. When i first picked up my civic, i went around the car with my eagle eye checking for any flaws in the paintwork. I brought along a few people to help me look. Check everywhere, even if you have to go on ur knees to look. I even took a strong flashlight to reflect off the paintwork. Next i inspected inside. Since mine is a sport, i checked every millimetre of the leather.

[ozR18]

1.Check if the driver door shuts properly...without slamming it harder.

2.Inspect the dashboard properly(around the A-pillar)..make sure no obvious big gaps between the plastic joints.

(rest of the door seems fine for me except the drivers)

[ryanc]

cheers fellas :)

if anyone else knows any other obvious issues please let me know!

also what does everyone use for waxing / washing? and how often do you do so?

i'd like to keep my beautiful new civic looking nice and shiny but not sure how often i'd need to clean or what products to use

[smoetyjim]

first car buyer? and ur getting 30+ k car...

[RyDC5S]

cheers fellas :)

if anyone else knows any other obvious issues please let me know!

also what does everyone use for waxing / washing? and how often do you do so?

i'd like to keep my beautiful new civic looking nice and shiny but not sure how often i'd need to clean or what products to use

If you have issues or niggles, jot them down and raise them in your first month service.

[IAMVTEC]

What colour is ur car? if its black forget trying to maintain it since its going to get swirl marks and light scratches anyway. Just give it a wash often and it'll still look fine.

So far people with Civics I know all have the common issues(the drivers side window) but that can be fixed by Honda. otherwise the only issue is the fit of the dash plastic. Some other civics I know have the plastic pop out on occasion so check everything is firm in place.

[Zdster]

If you have issues or niggles, jot them down and raise them in your first month service.

Also raise them at the time of pickup. No matter how small the concern make it noted as it could save hassle in the future. If there are issues also try to get the dealership to put them in writing to have them fixed before taking ownership of the car.

Before you pick the car up make sure you have insurance organised - nothing worse than taking it home, getting into an accident and not having insurance because you were going to organise it later.

Make sure you pick the car up during the day so you can get a better inspection done.

Just a few thoughts for now - will think of other things later.

[ryanc]

yes my first car purchase.. i had a toyota camry which was 'inherited' before hand so no...

thanks guys :D will make note of all the points you raised

yes insurance has already been fixed :) will make careful note of driver side door / window

[TurBIce]

my passenger side window has problems. when the door is open. u wind it up. it pops out. bit scary!

[chylld]

my passenger side window has problems. when the door is open. u wind it up. it pops out. bit scary!

crikey! is this a recent problem, or was it already happening back when we did aussiebuddha's car?

ryanc:

i concur with the comments made by the others... look for things wrong, and raise them as problems at the delivery. while you can wait until your first service (and indeed there may be problems that won't present until then) the dealers are usually much more keen to get your car out of the showroom when you pick it up, so if you raise an issue then, they'll fix it with more urgency.

a couple of things wrong with my car that i didn't care to raise at delivery:
- driver's door didn't close properly (the dealer actually drove the car out of the showroom for me with the door slightly ajar!)
- stain on the back seat

but most importantly, congratulations on your new car purchase! enjoy the moment, and try not to get too caught up spotting problems :)