Honda Civic Hybrid labeled a 'risky' purchase by Consumer Reports - Digital Trends
In its April 2013 issue, Consumer Reports raises some serious concerns over the long-term reliability of the Honda Civic across the model year board. According to the Consumer Reports 12-month survey, one in five owners of the 2009 model year Civic Hybrid needed to replace the nickel-metal hydride hybrid battery pack. Running anywhere from $2,000 to $4,000 per unit, the battery packs are a costly and vital part of the hybrid system. Depending on the state in which the vehicle was sold and the model year, some Civic Hybrids are covered under a 10-year/100,000-mile warranty, which Honda has extended to 11 years/137,000 miles after initial reliability concerns were raised. Interestingly, we just last week we reported that Honda began recycling these exact nickel-metal-hydride batteries for reimplementation into the hybrid market. Honda recently switched over from a nickel-metal hydride-powered Civic Hybrid to a lithium-ion-powered unit for the 2012 and 2013 model years. Since other automakers have had reliability success with lithium-ion, it’ll be interesting to see how Honda fares with the new batteries. Source: www.digitaltrends.com
