Honda Problems

If you like the idea of the Honda but don’t want such a physically large package, take a look at the Honda Jazz. Yes, it’s probably one size down from your current Focus, but its interior is very spacious for its external dimensions. It’s also the car that has probably the most versatile interior in terms of flexible seating arrangements with a rear seat that folds, slides and tumbles. It also has normal ride height (as opposed to the jacked-up stance that SUVs boast) so your dog may find it easier to jump in without hitting anything. Beyond that, you really need to visit dealerships and check for yourself that rear doors, rear seats and general layout suit your very specific canine requirements.

It’s nice to see that the worldwide web has put Carsguide in touch with people in the USA and that they’re prepared to ask for advice from half a planet away. Meanwhile, if safety is your number one priority, then you really need to find a vehicle with all the latest driver aids such as autonomous emergency braking, lane-keeping assistance and rear-cross-traffic alert. These are the new safety must-haves now that air-bags, stability control and other systems are considered par for the course.

The catch with your situation (from our point of view) is that the vehicles we assess and test in Australia don’t necessarily correlate with the North American buying experience. The specifications of Australian-delivered cars don’t always line up with those of a USA-market vehicle, and that can mean that the safety kit fitted here isn’t mirrored by the same make and model sold on your side of the pond. Don’t forget, too, that some makes and models (Hyundai and Kia are good examples) often feature Australian input into the suspension and steering settings to make them more palatable to an Australian audience. As a result, the same car without that input (such as the version sold in the US) might drive very differently.

The engines in these Hondas are considered pretty solid and reliable performers. But as with any car now celebrating its 15^th birthday, things can go wrong that can affect performance. With that in mind it could be time to give the engine a comprehensive once-over and a full service. Having the car electronically interrogated would be a good idea, too, as any faults noted by the on-board computer will have been logged and could tell you a lot about that’s going on under the bonnet. Just because the car hasn’t illuminated a dashboard warning light, doesn’t mean that the computer hasn’t noticed something strange going on.

The problem is obviously an intermittent one (or the car would never run properly) and that really does point towards something electronic. That said, a good mechanic will also go back to first principles checking things like fuel delivery, ignition timing and even engine compression.

Any information you can gather when the problem occurs will help enormously, too. For instance, does the engine blow smoke or make any odd noises when it loses power? Does the car shudder or suddenly start using more fuel when the problem occurs? The more observations you can pass on to a mechanic the better idea he or she will have of where to start searching. Fundamentally, you could be looking at anything from a collapsed catalytic converter or muffler, a faulty fuel pump or injector, a damaged spark-plug lead or literally any one of about a thousand other things.

Inertia-reel seat-belts have saved lots of lives by ensuring that they’re always adjusted correctly on whoever is wearing them. They work by being able to mechanically detect sharp forces (such as would be expected in a crash) and locking instantly, limiting the movement of bodies in the process. In the meantime, they offer a huge degree of convenience by allowing you to move around in your seat without being squeezed by the belt.

But they can suffer problems with the inertia mechanism which can jam and lead to the problem you currently have. This is often because the car is parked on an angle, causing the mechanism to `think’ that the car has pitched violently and locking the belt as a precaution, even though it’s standing still. So test the seat-belt with the car sitting on flat ground. To be honest, inertia-reel belts are more likely to refuse to unravel to allow you to fasten them than they are to fail to wind-in or retract, so maybe there’s a small manufacturing flaw in the belt in question.

The good news is that your car is still under its factory warranty, so a trip to a Honda dealership should be able to sort the problem quickly and simply and at zero cost to you. The quickest, safest fix would be to simply replace the whole seat-belt unit and that’s probably what a dealer will do.

The problem you refer to affected the very first Jazz models sold here up to 2008. Any car made after that date should not exhibit the same problem as Honda made running changes to fix it back in the day.

The problem was actually traced back to the wrong transmission fluid being used in the CVT unit. These modern transmission are very particular about what fluid they use, especially with regard to the complex brew of additives that make up the fluid.

Over time, the fluid in the affected Jazzes would start to break down as the additives became depleted, at which point, it wasn’t doing the complete job necessary. Specifically, the depleted additive package suddenly allowed the starter-motor clutch to remain engaged. Essentially, you had the transmission trying to drive the car and the starter clutch dragging at it, effectively trying to slow it down. Which is when the car would start to shudder.

The solution was to switch to a new, reformulated transmission fluid which was added to the drained CVT, the car driven for a certain distance, the new fluid dumped and refilled and then the ECU reset to recalibrate the transmission. Problem sorted.

Plastic interior components in Japanese and European cars were once very susceptible to early failures in terms of cracking, peeling, discolouring and warping. The problem was that the manufacturers from these markets had an utter lack of understanding of Australian levels of UV radiation and heat cycles and, as a result, their plastic interiors soon disintegrated. Things soon changed for the better, however, and modern cars have very resilient interior fittings.

However, that makes it even stranger that your car should be exhibiting this problem. I’s not something that we’ve seen across a wide cross-section of CR-V vehicles, so maybe it’s a one-off manufacturing fault. Perhaps the plastic trim piece you refer to was damaged when it was fitted at the factory and has gradually become worse with age. Either way, it should be a simple warranty repair for your local dealership. Replacing the trim piece with a new one is the answer as the damaged part probably can’t be repaired economically.

The best Honda CR-V engine oil will depend on which engine your car is fitted with. From 2007, Honda used a 2.4-litre four-cylinder and, even though the model was facelifted in 2012, the engine stayed the same. In that case, the oil you need is a quality (from a recognised brand) 5W40 either synthetic or semi-synthetic. From 2012 to 2017, the CR-V was also available with a two-litre petrol engine option, and that unit requires a 0W20 as the first choice but a 5W30 is also allowable for engines that size.

If your car is the later model, things get a bit more complicated as there were new engine options including a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel which needs a diesel-specific 0W30 synthetic oil. If you have the later 1.6-litre turbo-diesel replacement which arrived here from late 2015, the same 0W30 oil is appropriate, as is a 5W30 synthetic. These `light’ (low viscosity) oils are typical for high-tech engines such as the Honda’s with its variable valve timing.

Honda made continual changes to the CR-V range over the years, including some model and specification revisions for the 2016 model year, but none of these affected the range of engines (or Honda CR-V oil type) we’ve just discussed. Late model CR-Vs with a petrol engine require five litres (or slightly less) of oil, while the turbo-diesel models need 4.7 litres.

Just as there’s a correct Honda CRV oil, the correct Honda CR-V oil filter should also be fitted at the same time to avoid putting clean oil through an old, dirty filter. For the 2.4 petrol, the correct filter is a Ryco (or equivalent) Z411, as is the filter for the two-litre petrol. The 2.2-litre diesel requires an R2767P filter while the 1.6 diesel uses a Z690.

There are no mysterious trade secrets about how to change oil on a Honda CR-V, but you do need to know the basics. Changing oil and oil filter at home is a great DIY project and a good way to save some money and gain some satisfaction. The best advice is to obtain a workshop manual specific to your car and take it step by step. The manual will also include all the information and specifications you need to tackle other DIY service and maintenance jobs including checking power steering and transmission fluid. The manual will also give you information on how often to change the oil as well as the check and service intervals for the car’s other systems. That way, you won’t be relying on a warning light on the dashboard to tell you that action is needed.

If you have any doubts, there’s always the option of taking the vehicle to a service centre, but even talking to a family friend who is a mechanic might give you the confidence to give this task a go. Changing a car’s oil is not tricky, but there are things you must remember, including disposing of the used oil in an environmentally responsible way.

This car was not universally panned for its poor ride quality, but comfort is a very subjective thing and if you’re felling the bumps, then you’re feeling them. And you’re not alone, because many owners of SUVs have experienced the very same thing.

By raising the ride height of a hatchback to create an SUV or cross-over, manufacturers suddenly find themselves with a vehicle that has a higher centre of gravity. That means that the car tends to roll more heavily in corners. The solution to keeping the car a tidy handler is to make the springs (suspension) stiffer and, therefore, reduce the amount of body-roll that is felt. But that’s often at the expense of ride quality. And that’s probably what you’re feeling in your Honda.

You can change the springs for a softer set, but you’ll be dramatically changing the car’s dynamic responses and could even find this change throws up all sorts of ABS and ESP anomalies as well as making the car technically unroadworthy. But all is not lost.

The other thing that has a dramatic affect on a car’s ride quality is the wheel and tyre package fitted. As manufacturers charge more for each hike in trim level, they also tend to fit tyres that are wider and have a smaller sidewall profile, for a sportier appearance. But here’s the problem: The smaller the tyre’s sidewall (it’s profile) the fewer bumps that tyre can absorb before it passes that bump on to the suspension and, ultimately, into the base of your seat. I’m tipping your car is an up-spec HR-V with 18-inch wheels and tyres and these, in fact, are the cause of the choppy ride you dislike so much.

The solution might be to fit the 17 or even 16-inch wheels and tyres from a lower-spec HR-V. You might find a Honda dealer who will swap your wheels and tyres for another set or even another HR-V owner who wants to upgrade to your 18-inch tyres in exchange for their 16-inchers. Opting for a smaller tyre with a higher sidewall is where we’d always start when attempting to improve a vehicle’s ride quality.
 

You don't need to spend $30,000 to get a great small car to run around town in. A Suzuki Swift GL Navigator from $17,690 plus on-road costs ($1000 more for the auto) makes for an excellent choice, with a surprisingly roomy interior, a refined, frugal and lively engine, great handling and superb reliability. Great value for money, in other words.

Moving on from there, to the next size up and in our order of preference, are the Mazda 3, Ford Focus Active, Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Corolla Hatch, Honda Civic (turbo only) and Subaru Impreza. All are quality small cars that should fit the bill perfectly.

There's also merit in considering a small SUV, chiefly because their higher roofline and loftier seating positions make them easier to get in and out as well as see out of. Our value pick is the Kia Seltos S with Safety Pack. The Mazda CX-30 and Toyota C-HR are also high-quality and refined choices, though they're right at the cusp of your budget so you may have to search for a discounted demo model. Going small SUV does  mean extra outlay, but they do generally offer better resale value, as their popularity seems endless.

As you can see, there's lots of choice, so take your time, drive the ones you like the look of, and see which feels best. Out of scores of alternatives, these 10 are our top recommendations at under $30K.

ZS pros include cheap pricing, an easy driving experience and a comparatively spacious interior compared to other direct rivals like a Mazda CX-3. The dash is pleasant, there is a decent amount of equipment and the controls are all simple to use. It should also be fairly inexpensive to run and service, though earlier ZSs like yours require six-monthly rather than 12-monthly service intervals.

There are two engine options - a 1.5-litre four-cylinder model with a four-speed auto on the base Excite, or a 1.0-litre turbo three-cylinder version on higher-specification Excite Plus and Essence grades with a six-speed auto. Note that the latter powertrain is more expensive to service.

Plus, there's still a fair chunk of the manufacturer's warranty left, which is seven years, while capped-price servicing is also offered.

But the ZS does not offer AEB Autonomous Emergency Braking, so only rates a four-star ANCAP crash-test rating.

Additionally, the ZS's suspension is on the firm side in terms of dealing with road bumps, which might upset some occupants, yet there is not much of the 'fun factor' in regards to steering and handling finesse that rivals like the CX-3, Suzuki Vitara, Honda HR-V, Hyundai Venue, Holden Trax, Ford EcoSport and Hyundai Kona offer in spades.

We've also heard complaints about the interior's perceived quality being sub-par, cabin storage isn't generous and Android Auto isn't supported (though Apple CarPlay is).

Finally, the ZS' resale value trails all of the aforementioned competitors by a significant margin, meaning it's on track to be worth less when the time comes to on-sell it.