Head unit longevity?

[IDriveACivic]

Mine lasted about 6 months before having too many issues to list here. Been back three times and they still aren't fixed.

Yikes! Any debilitating issues? I don't mind relative slowness, as long as everything functions.

Debilitating as in I should trade the car in before the ticking time bomb blows.

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[mathdydx]

Yikes! Any debilitating issues? I don't mind relative slowness, as long as everything functions.

Debilitating as in I should trade the car in before the ticking time bomb blows.

There's an option in the settings to have your system refresh every time you turn on your car. Don't know if this actually does anything to make the head unit function better, but I don't experience too many problems with it.

 

[Rickmeister 48]

Yikes! Any debilitating issues? I don't mind relative slowness, as long as everything functions.

Debilitating as in I should trade the car in before the ticking time bomb blows.

Well, the screen goes black, loud popping noises out of the speakers ,the radio is playing sometimes with NO information displayed, it won't pick up HD radio signals most of the time anymore, sometimes it won't notify me a text comes through, other times it says there are messages on my phone when there aren't, its played the radio while usb is selected as the source.

 

[zroger73]

How does everyone feel about the tablet/head unit on the new Civics? I haven't encountered (*knocks on wood*) any issue that a periodic reboot can't fix.

It's not the fastest unit out there, but it does feel old already (Android 4.2??). I'm just afraid that as the car ages, if the head unit goes down it would be an expensive and necessary repair (radio, system info, and AC are all connected to the unit).

Any tips on keeping the head unit "healthy"?

In the late-1980s, Oldsmobile had a color, touchscreen CRT display in the Toronado that operated the radio, climate control, gauges, cellular phone, and vehicle diagnostics. Most of these vehicles wore out or rusted away and ended up in salvage yards before the touchscreen failed. Up until a few years ago, you could still have them repaired. You can still buy functioning replacements even after almost 30 years. You can still buy replacement navigation systems for Hondas made almost 20 years ago.

As is often the case with TVs, phones, computers, and (more recently) tablets, the technology becomes obsolete and the device itself gets replaced long before the device itself fails to function. Take computers, for example. They don't actually get slower as they age, but it seems that way because newer operations systems and programs require more processing power in order to do more. Given that Honda doesn't upgrade older systems, the vast majority of the touchscreens in our vehicles will continue to functions in 10-15 years or more the same way they do today.

In short, I wouldn't worry about it. Chances are you'll probably sell or trade the vehicle long before the touchscreen stops working.

No, AA is powered and updated thought the phone (I think). There's been several changes to AA since I got the car and I've never taken it to the dealer for updates

Unless the head unit merely acts as a monitor when AA is running, I'd assume it's a bottleneck processor.

That's precisely how Android Auto and Apple CarPlay work. All processing is done in the smartphone. The touchscreen merely serves as a display and an input device.

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