A friend is visiting and made the remark ¨I don´t think Hondas are worth it. I bought a Dodge Neon for 10K in 1999 and I feel it is a better value.¨

I responded that a Civic will probably last longer, but I wonder if that is true? I met a mechanic recently who has had his Civic since 1987 and it still runs great.

But I wonder how long the Civic Hybrid will last with proper maintenance. I am guessing that a Civic EX can last for at least 200K but I don´t know exactly. Civic Hybrid also has new technology in it.

Most notably, the battery which may need to be replaced somewhere down the road...

I owned a 1987 Honda Accord until I traded for my HCH. It was still in good shape, but I did not take as good care of it as I should.

As for the batteries in the HCH. I have seen estimates of 10 years to 200000. Personally I am hoping for failure prior to the end of the warranty, then I know I will get to keep the car as long as I did my first one! :-)

This is a very timely subject I'vebeen giving a lot of thought to. My '04 HCH warranty will expire (36k miles) in a week or so. The Honda extended warranty costs ~$1000, and will cover me until 100k miles - which will be in a year and a half. Yes, I rive a lot on my daily commute. I sold my '90 Accord with 170k, and it now has over 300k, with no major issues.
My question to all of you is: Is it worth the $1000 'gamble' to NOT get the extended warranty? What will break in the next 1.5 years that will cost $1000 or more? I hope nothing. A few rattles aside, the car is fine now. I'm still getting ~43mpg, even in the 10F weather here.

Decisions, decisions...oh, and who has $1000 in their pocket to dish over to Honda for a bet? I don't.

<sigh>
Mike

I have owned or leased about 13 cars in the last dozen years. The TWO TIMES that I allowed warranties to expire, I had $1400 of service required in both cases. Both times, I had to trade the car in because I did not have access to $1400 for the repairs.

This has taught me that in regard to Extended Warranties,

"It is better to HAVE IT and NOT NEED IT than it is to NEED IT and NOT HAVE It."

I paid $1500 for my 100K warranty when I bought my used Honda Certified HCH.

I had one on my Saturn and it was a waste. I had an opportunity to fix something on it once but guess what: There was a $100 deductible on it.

I think that with a manufacturer like Honda it is probably not worth it to get the extended warranty. If you care for your vehicle well and get maintenance I do not think you will recoup the cost of it.

I would prefer just to keep my HCH for as long as I can, so if it runs for 15 years plus then that is a very good thing...

If it isn't a Honda factory extended service plan - forget it.

Duane

Getting back to the original thought in this thread, I wondered myself if buying a cheaper car would be more beneficial.

With respect to the '99 Dodge Neon, I think it's all in your opinion. If I look on epinions.com and look at the reviews of the '99 Dodge Neon, there's not a lot of positives there. As been the experience of several co-workers here, once you get past 5 years or so, the car falls apart, not to mention that it's much louder and less comfortable than even a regular Civic.

Although the civic is more expensive, it's more refined, and often lasts longer with fewer repairs. Even without the repairs, it's probably a wash as far as cost. For example:

'99 Dodge Neon depreciates quickly. Owning it for 7 years (and that's a stretch!), it probably won't be worth much, if anything. Conversely, a 7-year old Civic holds value fairly well. Therefore, for about the same $10K, you can drive a nicer car. (I'm taking the original price - selling price after 10 years.) To me, I'd rather have the Civic. Plus, after 7 years, it's probably still got lots of life left in it.

So, is the Neon a better deal? Maybe. Depends on how you look at it, I guess.

Mark

A $10K Neon has its own market, and the HCH has a completely different market.

If you want to potentially save $$ then a $10K auto might be the answer.
But don't expect as much. You get what you pay for.

Will the HCH last 200K pr more?
Chances are very likely, given Hondas good reputatioon and track history.
When I sold my Dodge Spirit it had 160K and poor condition. Also take into account that I drove it hard. AC pipes and compressor went at 110K miles, bad springs made it ride crooked, and it left me stranded 3 times. Original paint came off in sheets at 80K miles, and was repainted twice.

I keep my cars for 10 years. Last year I drove 30K miles, and after 10 years I'll have over 300K. I'm not concerned about it.

Honda extended warranty:
I bought mine for about $1k. I see it nothing more than an insurance policy.
For me, this peace of mind is money well spent.

Efficient drivers do it better.
1003 miles a tank personal record. 74MPG calculated. HCH1 CVT

Good point. If you know you will throw it away in 6 years regardless you might not think that 20K is worth it. Of course is is 20K for the hybrid which has more benefits. Just think of how much gas you could save.