2009 Honda Civic Hybrid consumer reviews

I am a huge fan of Honda and have had several over the years. I bought the Hybrid to save gas, trusting the Honda brand name. Here is what I have experienced: the dealer won't leave me along trying to repurchase my car; the car dealer mechanics always seem to find some $100-200 thing to fix along with my oil changes; the car only gets about 34,000 to 40,000 (on the highway) which is much lower than what they advertise...I paid more for a Hybrid and am not seeing the benefit at all. I'm going to keep this car because it is paid off and I hope to take i for a good long time, taking it to another mechanic. I have been a loyal Honda girl but that will probably end after this car.

I bought this 2009 in 2010 and have driven 2 sets of tires off of it. at first I was skeptical about the mileage but I would easily get 40-41 MPG all day long, I did have issues with the battery and it has had 3 in it all provided under warranty. when it hit the oil change at 98K I had the transmission serviced, at that time they installed an upgrade to the firmware and WOW what an upgrade, I replaced the air filter and took it on a 3 hour tour and I clocked 42MPG. So I brought it home and put new brakes on the front. This is critical as these are the first pads and rotors I ever put on the car.. Not bad 100K from Brake pads. I never really had issues at all with it. regular service, When I first got it for some reason the DVD for the nav got damaged by the head unit and they said it ws the head unit so it was replaced at about 25K and thank goodness for that as that beast is a $5000 item. I just received a letter from Honda stating that due to issues customers have had they extended the IMA system warranty to 150K. I bet I will be selling it by then but nice to know they will cover issues. I will add I have an awesome Dealer that services it here in Kansas CIty.

Car was great. Bought with 40,000 mile and put another 30,000 on it before battery went out. We bought an extended warrenty that covered it, but the re-programing put the miliage at 31mpg in the city and 35/37 on the road. Way down from the 39/40 city and 41/45 on the road. Dealer said they had to re-program to extend the battery life. xxx. DO NOTBUY. BATTERY LIFE ZERO. ONLY GOOD FOR 100,000 mile, or less. We had 72,000.

Going into this, I knew that the Civic Hybrid is no sports/pony car. But I didn't expect the CVT (continuously variable transmission) to be so sluggish that even older, smaller, less expensive cars would easily zoom past me, especially when starting from a complete stop at the traffic light. Also, the interior lacks some very basic features such as a simple 8-point compass and a garage door opener. There are a few other design elements of my previous car that I miss in this Civic. Yet, the feature I like the most about the Civic Hybrid is its high gas mileage which was the topmost reason I bought it in the first place. I get around 45 mpg in all-city driving conditions. I am often pleasantly surprised at the pump when the actual gas mileage I get turns out to be 2-4 mpg higher than what's displayed on the dashboard panel. The gas mileage is also extremely sensitive to the driver's driving habits and the driver gets instantaneous feedback about the impact of his/her driving habits on the gas mileage. Cost-conscious drivers will be delighted that even simple improvements in driving habits will go a long way and the savings add up really fast. Simple math will show that the hybrid premium paid upfront is recouped within the first 3-4 years of ownership. This is definitely a car for the cost-conscious and the environmentally-conscious drivers. Just pray that the CVT or the hybrid battery doesn't go out on you or it will be a royal shaft in the pocketbook ($7K and $3K respectively).

I bought this car new 3 years ago. For the first year it was lovely. As time has passed the mileage has plummeted to 28 mpg. the power and acceleration, once perky are now poor. When I takeit to the dealer for servicing they act like nothing is worng. Just get a regular civic if you want this car.

I purchased a 2009 Civic Hybrid new in 2009. It was an excellent vehicle for the first year. I took my vehicle in for service in 2010 and had the hybrid system software updated. From that point on the battery discharges fully after turning the vehicle off, every time. I park the car with a full battery and come back an hour later to start it. The battery will then go from full to empty within 2 min. During the summer the battery is almost useless. It takes forever to charge and discharges quickly. The result is very poor gas mileage due to not having any electric assistance at all and having to use only the tiny gas engine. Just to get the vehicle moving with only the gas engine takes pushing the gas pedal to the floor. Even then, the traffic around the car will blow by. Merging onto the highway also requires flooring the vehicle just to keep up with other cars. If more than two people are in the car it become so slow and sluggish that it really is dangerous. The seats are only comfortable for short trips, anything extended will require frequent stops to get some relief. There is almost no useable room for traveling. Two people will have to pack very conservatively for a weekend trip if they want to fit everything in the car. The car is good looking and has good features. It is mechanically reliable, however, the transmission would just rev from time to time with no forward movement of the car (felt like it was slipping). For the extra money, the hybrid Civic isn't worth it. A regular Civic will get nearly as good of mileage for a lot less. There won't be a battery issue either with a regular Civic. Having to wonder if the battery is charged enough to merge or pass is no fun. I averaged 44MPG on level ground in Florida before the hybrid system software update. Since then my average was 34 and to get that I had to be very careful with how I drove. If I drover normal I would get 26-29MPG. Also, to achieve decent mileage Honda uses a low rolling resistance tire. To replace these expect to pay a few hundred dollars more than what normal tires cost. Due to never knowing if the batteries were actually going to be charged and work I traded my car. Really, just save yourself a lot of time and worry and avoid the Honda Civic Hybrid.

I bought this used with 6000 miles.Why someone got rid of this with low miles I'll never know. I took a 150 mile trip and my fuel economy average is 49.9, some hills some flat , 85% highway! I should have bought this years ago!

I bought this car new in May 2010. Even though it is a 2009, it only had 200 Kms on it. I traded my 1998 Honda CRV in for it and wish that I would have waited. This car is going in to get its IMA battery changed. It was getting 23 MPG and the auto stop never comes on. I was getting better gas mileage with my CRV. If this new IMA battery doesnt make a difference in my gas mileage, I will definitely trade it in for something else that just uses gas.

I purchased the Honda without comparing it to the Prius. I just couldn't announce to the world that I was kooky and offbeat and somewhat nutty. I want the engineering toys without the circus. The Honda takes some training - and if you aren't willing to learn how to use it, don't try. You have to have a lead foot then back off as light as a feather. Once I learned to gun it (!), get momentum and then shut down the engine, I quickly moved my average gas mileage to 44.6mpg. Don't baby this car and it will give you quick starts, fast acceleration and fantastic mileage. When my spouse tickles the gas pedal, I have to explain the process - I know it is counter-intuitive. But it is a great system. The best part was getting it for $4,000 under list. The worst part was not getting anything thrown in. No free oil changes. No car washes. Well, I did get a key-chain. Love the car. Love the comfort. I've driven from KC to New Orleans in a single day on three trips - and was as comfortable as could be for the 14 hours on the road. Plus, it was really, really nice being able to make the trip with only one fillup on the road. I made the trip in a Vibe last year and had to stop every 300 miles. I don't like the matchup of the Cruise Control with the CVT transmission. Like with all automatics on cruise, it guns the engine unnecessarily. Other than, that, it's a homerun.

We've had it for a year and have never had a problem!! Great on gas, Looks great. We have averaged 44+mpg on the freeway>