The top-line EX four-door comes loaded with standards, including a 1.6-liter SOHC four-cylinder engine that makes 127 horsepower and 107 pound-feet of torque, 185/65SR14 all-season radials, anti-lock disc/drum brakes, air conditioning, keyless remote entry, power windows/locks/mirrors, cruise control, 5-mph front/rear bumpers, three-way electric moonroof, and a lockable split/folding rear seatback. Our Cyclone Blue Metallic Civic EX automatic also had the security system, a CD player, and floor mats—extras that pushed its $17,080 base sticker to $18,083, including a $380 destination fee.

With no factory delivery program, that latter charge was still appplicable despite the fact that Mike “The Roadmaster” Collins picked up our vehicle as it rolled off the assembly line at Honda’s production facility in East Liberty, Ohio, and drove it back to MT headquarters in Los Angeles.

Average transaction price of the Civic EX sedans in our survey was $16,838, and just over one-third of the respondents paid between $17,000 and $17,999 for their cars. In 65.4 percent of the cases, the primary driver was a female; and 34 percent of all drivers were between the ages of 25 and 34.

As might be expected, those who took the more conventional purchase route had a broad range of reactions to their close encounters with Honda dealers—from outright ebullience to invective-laced eye pokes. The bottom line: Over 75 percent rated both the sales and service practices of their respective outlets excellent or good. That puts the typical Honda store right in the middle of the competitive rankings.

Overall quality was the main reason given by 79.8 percent of our buyer pool for purchasing a new Civic. This was followed by looks/style (60.5 percent) and resale value (58.3 percent). Fourth on the list was prior experience with Honda product (56.2 percent)—and nearly 60 percent of that extremely brand-loyal sub-group was composed of previous Civic owners.

Post-purchase upgrades were done by 16.1 percent of buyers we heard from, with CD players, alarm systems, tinted glass, and cassette players heading the list of aftermarket add-ons.

Numerous entries in our Civic’s logbook reflect favorable impressions with its basic interior styling and generous passenger space in all seating positions. By and large, the owners agreed. Comfort ratings—both general and specific to the rear seat—were skewed to the top two scoring categories, although “good,” not “excellent,” was the most frequent call in each case. Despite generally positive marks for ergonomics, there was one glaring anomaly. The CD player, buried low in the center of the dash just ahead of the cupholders, drew universal criticism. 

Despite fairly modest empirical test numbers—0-60 mph in 10.8 seconds, 0.77 g on the skidpad, 62.7 mph through the slalom, and a 144-foot 60-0-mph braking distance for our car—over 93 percent of survey respondents rated the performance of their Civics as excellent or good, the former category by a two to one margin over the latter. Fun-to-drive rankings reflected a similar split, with 87.1 percent of these owners placing their vehicles in the top two scoring slots. Logbook notes showed that our staff evaluators largely echoed those sentiments. There’s just something about the way Honda has tuned the Civic’s full double-wishbone suspension and weighted its power rack-and-pinion steering that makes this delightful little sedan feel better than one would expect under virtually all driving conditions.

One editor capsulized that reality by noting: “This is a 90-percent car—it’s perfect for 90 percent of the people 90 percent of the time.” The undeniable truth of that observation was decisively supported by our owners, whose top response to the “Specific complaints” question was “No complaints,” and prime reply to the “What changes would you like to see?” query was “No changes.”

Those observations notwithstanding, holding down a solid second spot in both the “complaints” and the “changes” categories was a plea for more go-power, an entreaty with which we, too, heartily concur. Honda’s 16-valve VTEC-equipped four is eager enough, happily spinning to its 6900-rpm redline. Even when fitted with the four-speed autoshifter in place of the sportier five-speed manual gearbox, the Civic can confidently negotiate the most daunting rush-hour traffic and effortlessly cruise the open road for hours on end. However, banzai charges up freeway ramps and high-energy passing maneuvers are a different issue. Another 15-20 ponies and an equal bump in torque output would work wonders here. Are you listening, Honda?

Two other powertrain-related gripes appeared on several surveys, as well as in our logbook. The first involved suitable detents—or lack thereof—on the gear selector, which permitted a driver inadvertently to engage the “D3” rather than “D4” position when shifting through Neutral. The second complaint related to the Civic’s cruise control, which regularly allowed an initial 4-6-mph dropoff from the selected target speed and failed to prevent a similar level of velocity gain on sustained downhill runs.

After all the glowing praise most owners showered on their Civics, we were surprised to find a relatively high 24.5 percent of our survey cars experienced problems. Within that group, only three items appeared with double-digit frequency: non-specific brake troubles (a portion of these, no doubt, related to the 161,000 Civics Honda recalled last year to service an improperly lubricated brake booster check valve), assorted wind noises, and sunroof leaks. Our car was on the opposite end of this spectrum, proving completely trouble-free throughout its first 15,000 miles. Total cash outlay was $131.93 for a pair of routine scheduled maintenance appointments and $2.25 for one quart of oil midway through that service run. Shortly thereafter, the ratchet-locking device on the car’s emergency brake lever failed, but it was repaired at no charge under warranty.

Save for its original cross-country sojourn, most of our Civic’s remaining miles were run up locally. That factor, plus an endless cadre of lead-footed drivers, yielded a 27.0-mph average fuel economy for our long-termer, about 10 percent under the 29.9-mph figure logged by the survey cars. 

The ultimate arbiter of success for any vehicle is the potential for a repeat purchase. In the case of the Civic EX sedan, 95.3 percent of our owners said they’d buy another Honda, and 94.4 percent would recommend the Civic to a friend. This is a bit lower than the respective replies from Odyssey owners we reported on back in February, but still above average. One owner from Austin, Texas, summed up the Civic by saying, “Although it does not excel in any one area other than value, it’s without a doubt worth every penny.” Another from Hiawatha, Florida, spoke for several respondents when he opined: “Dollar for dollar, it’s the best car on the market.” A final, equally powerful endorsement comes from one of our ad salesmen—himself an ’89 Accord owner—who is currently negotiating with Honda to make our long-term Civic part of his personal fleet.