Are these cars actually reliable?

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I was a Honda Master Tech for 10 years and this was never the way it worked. Not sure where you got that information from.

Master Tech is the only one who's works on mine from the get-go at my shop.

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[TypeRD]

I was a Honda Master Tech for 10 years and this was never the way it worked. Not sure where you got that information from.

Really? Guess my experience (and things I’ve heard from others) is not normal or maybe I’m only partially correct. Either way, I would prefer to be corrected rather than just be wrong and not learn anything. Please elaborate.

They are supposed to call the tech line upon the 2nd occurrence of the same issue, right? That’s standard op, from my understanding. After that…I guess it depends on the problem and they may have to call the tech line a few times before a master tech is sent out?

 

[TypeRD]

Master Tech is the only one who's works on mine from the get-go at my shop.

Same. I guess who I’m referring to are regional, corporate, master techs who travel to area dealerships to help fix problems that are far beyond “normal.”

 

[Mobias]

We could call the Honda tech line on the first occurrence of a problem. There was no specific rule regarding when to call, unless it was something like the Odyssey transmissions that used to blow second gear or the civic motors with the porous blocks. In which case we needed the sign off from Honda tech line. I had jobs where I called on the first time it came in and jobs where I called on a subsequent visit, it really just depends on the situation.

Now as for the corporate master tech guys, in 10 years I only ever saw 1 of them. And it was specifically for an Odyssey that kept killing transmissions. All he did was take fluid samples and pictures. One of us in the shop had to do all the actual teardown and reinstall work for him.

It was very difficult to get a corporate guy to come out to the shop. I don't know for certain about this, but I wouldn't be surprised if there was even a cost associated with it. Now the district manager, he came around once a month. And he could sign off on stuff but he didn't know his ass from a hole in the ground in regards to mechanical work. Those guys might show up after a few repeats for sure. Usually just to yell at the tech for it not being fixed after a couple tries.

So you may have had a unique experience or at least a more streamlined experience than what I ever saw.

 

[CG13]

I'm biased, 2025., car has 6k miles and dealer cant fix a fuel cut issue that keeps popping up. The more I dig, I see many people have a variety of issues. I also notice that it overheats on the track for a lot of people..

The car does seem sensitive and will lock down into limp mode fast, but still , I dont think this Honda reliability is really true with the FL5 type r... seems like the engineers reach out distanced what they could grasp with manufacturing standards.

Going into limp mode on the freeway drops you from 80 mph to 30 mph in a few seconds, as i scuttle with my tail bw my legs over to the slow lane. This is dangerous and im sick of it. its happened after 4 times to the dealer now even after replacing hpfp and updates and what not.

What is your guys consensus?

As others have stated, overheating on track isn’t a reliability issue. It’s a design issue, depending on how hard it’s driven and the conditions.

 

[UCF120]

Owned Hondas my whole life. I’ve owned 3 different generation of Accords (99’ 4 cylinder, 05’ V6, and 21’ 2.0T) 2 S2000’s (1 of which I still currently own), 1 base manual 08’ civic, and now my FL5.

To be completely honest, I have found issues with every single one of them with the exception of my 21’ 2.0t accord. That car was a beast and never had a single problem with it. I sold it for the FL5. For the rest, Never had any issues to the point of complete failure leaving me on the side of the road. But issues nonetheless that affect driveability and overall enjoyment of the car.

First two accords had transmission issues, the 99’ had a transmission replacement. The transmission on my first s2000 didn’t shift right. The 08’ civic was a fucking rattle box to the point of driving me crazy with the amount of rattles it had. My current S2000 is a low mileage AP1 that’s amazing but I cannot get the thing to stop pulling to the right! No matter how many alignments, new wheels, new tires, new EPS steering sensor, doesn’t matter, always has a slight pull to the right.

Current FL5 is great also BUT it ain’t perfect. Has odd engine frequencies around 4k rpm ( seems normal as most seem to notice this also), transmission can shift odd (Amsoil fluid and a heavier shift knob has helped my shifts greatly though), and my last oil change at 6k miles, I noticed a small but still unnerving amount of metal shavings in the oil. What that means who knows. Never seen that before in any oil change I’ve done in any car. My 9k oil change is coming up so I’ll be keeping an eye on the metal shavings and sending off a sample to black stone for analysis. Car drives great, pulls hard, oil pressure is great, and no abnormal ticking sounds or knocking sounds. If the engine is having abnormal wear this early on in its life, I most likely will not keep the car which is a shame.

All that being said, every single car I have owned including non Honda’s have issues. Ive owned BMW, Toyota, Ford, and Chevy. They all have issues. People just choose to ignore them. Hondas have always been the best to me but I don’t think their reliability has gone down from years past. Just stayed the same and maybe other manufacturers have slowly caught up so it just seems like Honda’s reliability is going down.

my 2 cents for what it’s worth

 

[TypeRD]

Thanks @Mobias! I appreciate your insight. It’s really helpful. It sounds like it’s up to the dealership service managers and experienced/senior techs to decide how different situations are handled. Seems I’ve probably been lucky with regard to the Honda service depts I have experience with. This also brings to light how potentially bad some of the dealership service depts likely are too…especially given the fact that stuff that I thought was standard op actually isn’t. Yikes!

 

[atucker80]

This! When you take your car to the dealership for a reoccurring problem (2nd time it happens) they are supposed to call the Honda tech line for the fix. If it happens a 3rd time (same code / same issue), they send out a Honda master technician.

That's not how it works at all. The person that comes out is just approving the warranty work. I literally just went through this, and the person that came out on multiple occasions was completely inept.

 

[NoelPR]

Well overheating on the track isn't really a reliability issue. A classic "reliable" 2007 Civic will overheat too if you push it too hard on the track. I could see the argument that the turbo DI engine isn't as bulletproof as a port injected NA K20 or K24, or that all the extra electronic nonsense means there's more stuff to break. But I don't see any evidence for any of that to be true. There's always some lemons, sounds like you may have one or your dealer technician sucks.

And all those cars make less power too.
More power = more heat

 

[TypeRD]

That's not how it works at all. The person that comes out is just approving the warranty work. I literally just went through this, and the person that came out on multiple occasions was completely inept.

Yeah I know now. Someone else here (a former Honda master tech) already chimed in and clarified how things typically go.

 

[Samurai1225]

Owned Hondas my whole life. I’ve owned 3 different generation of Accords (99’ 4 cylinder, 05’ V6, and 21’ 2.0T) 2 S2000’s (1 of which I still currently own), 1 base manual 08’ civic, and now my FL5.

To be completely honest, I have found issues with every single one of them with the exception of my 21’ 2.0t accord. That car was a beast and never had a single problem with it. I sold it for the FL5. For the rest, Never had any issues to the point of complete failure leaving me on the side of the road. But issues nonetheless that affect driveability and overall enjoyment of the car.

First two accords had transmission issues, the 99’ had a transmission replacement. The transmission on my first s2000 didn’t shift right. The 08’ civic was a fucking rattle box to the point of driving me crazy with the amount of rattles it had. My current S2000 is a low mileage AP1 that’s amazing but I cannot get the thing to stop pulling to the right! No matter how many alignments, new wheels, new tires, new EPS steering sensor, doesn’t matter, always has a slight pull to the right.

Current FL5 is great also BUT it ain’t perfect. Has odd engine frequencies around 4k rpm ( seems normal as most seem to notice this also), transmission can shift odd (Amsoil fluid and a heavier shift knob has helped my shifts greatly though), and my last oil change at 6k miles, I noticed a small but still unnerving amount of metal shavings in the oil. What that means who knows. Never seen that before in any oil change I’ve done in any car. My 9k oil change is coming up so I’ll be keeping an eye on the metal shavings and sending off a sample to black stone for analysis. Car drives great, pulls hard, oil pressure is great, and no abnormal ticking sounds or knocking sounds. If the engine is having abnormal wear this early on in its life, I most likely will not keep the car which is a shame.

All that being said, every single car I have owned including non Honda’s have issues. Ive owned BMW, Toyota, Ford, and Chevy. They all have issues. People just choose to ignore them. Hondas have always been the best to me but I don’t think their reliability has gone down from years past. Just stayed the same and maybe other manufacturers have slowly caught up so it just seems like Honda’s reliability is going down.

my 2 cents for what it’s worth

Just to add to what you said about your 10th gen Accord. I had a 2020 Accord 2.0 and it was a beast. I had ZERO issues with mine. I also sold mine for the FL5 and a part of me wishes I would have kept the Accord and possibly bought a used weekend sports car. (i.e. S2000, MX-5)

 

[optronix]

Tell me about it, literally drove mine off the lot (its used but had 40k miles) and not even a mile before it looked like I was cooking BBQ under the hood lol. 0 issues suth the test drive so it was so confusing and makes ne feel like I got scammed. So many oil leaks with the engine because of Subarus shitty sealants. I think its still leaking/weeping some oil by the oil pump.

Already been back to the dealership like 3 times already for oil leaking. At this point Im just going to take it to the track and hope the engine blows up So frustrating going back and forth with the dealership, I did it with my Mustang for the first 3 years of ownership.

The fuel cut thing is annoying, overheating on track is debatable because I still think the data is skewed because there's a strong correlation between these overheating events and aftermarket intercoolers... but sounds like OP has a lemon.

 

[lilDumpsterRat]

As others have stated, overheating on track isn’t a reliability issue. It’s a design issue, depending on how hard it’s driven and the conditions.

i dont see the difference, if the oem design causes an issue, its a reliabillity problem. track or no, this car is not just a civic, they went to great lengths advertising this thing as the fastest FWD car around nurburgring, and on and on, so it should be able to do a few laps.

my baby may be a lemon.. they want to replace to LPFP now.

 

[optronix]

i dont see the difference, if the oem design causes an issue, its a reliabillity problem. track or no, this car is not just a civic, they went to great lengths advertising this thing as the fastest FWD car around nurburgring, and on and on, so it should be able to do a few laps.

my baby may be a lemon.. they want to replace to LPFP now.

This is where marketing shifts perception away from reality.

It really, truly is a Civic. You have to keep that in mind when you read how some people try to call it a "FWD GT3" or what not. That's just simply not how any of this works. Just note what an FL5 costs... then compare that to what a GT3 costs... and you have your answer.

That isn't taking anything away from the FL5, mind you. It's just simple reality. It's a great car, and IMHO a hell of a bargain for what you get. But it's engineered and manufactured to a price point, that's just inescapable fact.

 

[CG13]

i dont see the difference, if the oem design causes an issue, its a reliabillity problem. track or no, this car is not just a civic, they went to great lengths advertising this thing as the fastest FWD car around nurburgring, and on and on, so it should be able to do a few laps.

my baby may be a lemon.. they want to replace to LPFP now.

The car can be the fastest FWD car around a track and still eventually overheat on the same track. It’s not designed for sustained track driving with certain conditions (ambient temp, humidity, driving style, course layout, etc etc). I track mine and I’ve addressed those conditions to where it can meet my needs.

We have different definitions of reliability. I don’t know of any standards that would measure reliability for street cars in track driving.

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