How does the new Si compare to an 8th Gen Si?

[AUGM1]

Been looking to replace the 2007 coupe that I wrecked over 4 months ago, and the new Si has been on my list.
I could buy a car way more expensive, but the Si seems to be the best bank for the buck as far as an everyday driver.
Think the new one is as good or better than the old one?
Have there been any reliability or quality issues with the new ones?

Sponsored

 

[Weeks]

About my only real complaint with my new 19 Si is that the paint is fragile as all hell. I wish I'd budgeted PPF and Ceramic right off the bat, but unfortunately that's gotta wait a bit, meaning it'll need paint correction beforehand, making it even more expensive when I get around to it. *sigh*

The rev hang is annoying occasionally, but I don't usually drive it hard enough for it to be a major issue. I haven't noticed any significant oil dilution problems just yet, but I'm only at about 1800 miles. Other than that, it's a wonderful place to sit and enjoy a drive.

 

[TheKevinlyFather]

Best coupe out there in the price-range right now, IMO. Going other routes always costs you a sacrifice of some kind. Some coupes have more power, but are heavier and eat more gas. Some might be cheaper, but have fewer features. Also, with the TSP Stage 1 tune alone you can get some nice power out of this thing. For $500, you can bump the Si into a whole other level of performance.

I think if you expand into the realm of hatches or sedans, the choice might not be as clear cut. You'd want to (potentially) look into things like the Focus ST or a WRX.

You're on a forum for tenth gens, we all like them so you are going to get some rather biased reviews. Even when I try to look at it from a non-owner's perspective, though, there's not another $25k coupe that I can see as a better option than the Si. Outside of the weak-ish clutch, there aren't too many things we can really gripe about on our cars.

 

[charleswrivers]

IMO, the 8th gens were a huge step up from the 7th gens. The 9th gens were kind of lackluster. The 10th gens were then a huge step up from the 9th gens. You're going to miss that old high revving K20Z3 a little... but there's substantially more power in the midrange than even the K24s offered... so you won't have to wring out the engine as much for daily driving, and you can expect a ~5 MPG bump in economy. Z3s took to bolt ons much better than the Z7s... but you'll find a Ktuner and basemap can give as much as what intake/downpipe/Hondata (I don't remember Ktuner being big on RSXs... and am not sure they're in the 8th gen game. I know they were in on the 9th gens) and a reflash.

Now… regarding the chassis... the 10th gen is substantially better with regard to handling. It's larger on the inside for the rear passengers without feeling like a big car... though it definitely doesn't feel small. You'll gain more creature comforts that are expected on cars made this decade. Instrumented tests will put them pretty even... though the 10th's braking and corning are better when the 8th gen or 10th gen are both equipped with the OEM summer tires that were offered at the time.

Regarding paint... since Honda had to recall bad paint on a slew of 8th gens... I'd say the 10th gen paint sucks no worse than 8th gens… many of which look pretty bad now that they've got some age on them.

IMO the downsides are 1) parts availability as 8th gen parts are cheap and plentiful at this stage in their life. 10th gens are getting fixed up and being resold with salvage titles vice going to junk yard to make a good parts pool... so used spares are expensive and harder to come by. 2) NA power... which would be made pretty fun with reflashed raising the rev limit higher. Stock power is ok but if you were modded… 200+ whp NA power is pretty fun. The new car isn't going to be as rev happy and it might be missed.

Honestly, I think the 8th gen was kind of a special car...and while it kind'a of faded away as time wore on... and was replaced by the meh 9th gen, it was initially met with a lot of fanfare when it came out. The 10th gen has kind of recaptured a little bit of that in the present market... and has managed to hold it's ground well in 3 years.

 

[gearhead222]

Been looking to replace the 2007 coupe that I wrecked over 4 months ago, and the new Si has been on my list.
I could buy a car way more expensive, but the Si seems to be the best bank for the buck as far as an everyday driver.
Think the new one is as good or better than the old one?
Have there been any reliability or quality issues with the new ones?

Dear People-I owned a 274K 1994 Civic EX Coupe, a 161 K 2008 Si Coupe and now own a 2004 Civic EX Coupe with 121K on the odo. I have bought so many parts from my Honda dealer that I get the jobber discount on all parts and repairs. I chased ALL of the parts for my 1963 Falcon Tudor Sedan and owned her for 19 years before selling her on Hemmings a couple years ago. As much as I like Honda cars, my 2004 Civic Si Coupe radiator support was bent UPWARD due to the previous owner installing hard low profile tires when it was bought new until I bought it from him. The mechanic discovered this when he tried to close the hood and the stock adjustment would not work! I put about 11K on her, after having the headliner replaced (the glue goes in hot climates), window tinting, all fluids changed, new tires, discs turned and a few other preventive mnt. work done that the previous owner had not done. I also spent $400.00 to have MOST of the damn Rev Hang taken out of the car computer with Hondata software, something that my dealer later acquired for customers . Fast forward to Austin, Texas I-35 morning 6:00 AM rush hour bumper to bumper traffic. I accidentally bumped into a flat bed trailer going no more than 10 mph behind it. The air bags DID NOT inflate, but the car was TOTALED, as the radiator support crumpled like paper in the wreck. I realize that ALL later production (2000 at least) unibody cars have crush zones designed into them, but my Si was simply built TOO CHEAPLY with WAY TOO THIN sheet metal. The rocker panels under the doors had dents from people and the body panels would get dimples wherever hit, as opposed to just paint chips, which happens on my 2004 Civic! Long story short, the guage sheet metal used on my 2008 Si was just too thin and the overall unibody structural ridgidity/integrity just SUCKED! I must mention that I owned a 1967 Mustang Convertible in the 1970's that had such bad structural rust that my Dad designed an angle iron /plate steel exoskeleton and I had two buddies tack weld this exoskeleton to the torque box area, the rocker panels and all the way back to where the leaf springs hook up behind the rocker panels. Brought the lack of QA up to my Honda service manager and all he could say was that "that's how they build them now" I call BS and may never buy a newer Honda AGAIN. I realize that the government is putting all sorts of demands on auto manufacturers, but I still believe that Honda cut WAY TOO MANY CORNERS on the 2008 Civic Si Coupe. Sorry for the long rant, but as a maintenance technician these QA issues are severe to me and I HOPE are not endemic to other Hondas, but I have my doubts-John in Austin

 

[AUGM1]

Just want to add I'm also looking into a BRZ, or possibly a "fun" crossover like the new RDX.
Not sure I want to spend $45K+ on the RDX, though.

 

[davemarco]

Just want to add I'm also looking into a BRZ, or possibly a "fun" crossover like the new RDX.
Not sure I want to spend $45K+ on the RDX, though.

I was actually going to suggest looking at an 86/BRZ. If you enjoyed the higher revving N/A feel of the 8th gen SI, then the BRZ will be a closer transition. There's nothing fun about an RDX though.

 

[Swank]

Having gone from a 2007 Si coupe to a 2018 Si coupe I would say I was disappointed that there had not been 11 years of improvement between the 2. I miss the high rev power of the 8th gen but also love the mid range turbo power of the 10th, it should have come stock with the 19.5/23 ktuner map (and upgraded clutch to support it) so the sport button actually does something significant and places the Si closer to the middle between the Sport and CTR. I'm happy to finally have bluetooth and USB, but now have a useless CD collection haha. The 10th feels like a bigger car, there are spots I used to park my 8th in that I just can't with my 10th. The stock sub in the 10th is much improved, the 8th might as well not have had a sub in there. The 10th looks more sophisticated, almost like the 8th grew up. I miss the dual level instrument cluster of the 8th but was relieved to still have a digital speedometer in the 10th. This being my first turbo car I had a lot to learn, it would be interesting to drive my old 8th Si now and see how that feels now that I think I know how to get the most out of the stock power on the 10th gen.

 

[KhennP]

My si with only tsp stage 1 and prl sri race maf runs toe to toe with a focus rs. If youre after power its pretty cheap to do so. Im sure i could easily beat a focus st. Handling feels great and much better than the 8th gen. 86/brz is also a good choice but feels too slow for me even with a flash tune. Gapped a 2018 brz with a flash tune when i was only on ktuner base map but 86/brz has way more after market support though so thats something to take into consideration as well. Goodluck with shopping, it can be tough choosing your next toy.

 

[davemarco]

My si with only tsp stage 1 and prl sri race maf runs toe to toe with a focus rs. If youre after power its pretty cheap to do so. Im sure i could easily beat a focus st. Handling feels great and much better than the 8th gen. 86/brz is also a good choice but feels too slow for me even with a flash tune. Gapped a 2018 brz with a flash tune when i was only on ktuner base map but 86/brz has way more after market support though so thats something to take into consideration as well. Goodluck with shopping, it can be tough choosing your next toy.

Did the RS know that you were racing it at the time?

 

[KhennP]

Did the RS know that you were racing it at the time?

Yes hes my friend. We have done lots of rolls against each other its in my insta @khenn.p

 

[jakdotdot]

Overall, the 10th Gen is a significantly better car.

Going for the 8th,

• K20 - A great little motor, but stuffed in not so little of a car. It also has great mod potential, but N/A is way more expensive than turbo, hp per dollar.
• Engine and exhaust note
• Clutch
• Steering wheel
• Shifter
• Seat material
• Door card and arm rest material

Pretty much everything else goes to the 10th.

Better brakes, suspension, better seats, better ergo, better seating position, more sound deadening, way better fuel economy, etc

 

[JDMpo0kie]

I was actually going to suggest looking at an 86/BRZ. If you enjoyed the higher revving N/A feel of the 8th gen SI, then the BRZ will be a closer transition. There's nothing fun about an RDX though.

Stick to an Si over a BRZ. Slowest cars ever

 

[davemarco]

Stick to an Si over a BRZ. Slowest cars ever

True, they are slower. But if he want something as close in feel as possibly to an 8th gen SI, the BRZ is it. Stock 8th gen's were fairly sluggish themselves.

 

[JDMpo0kie]

True, they are slower. But if he want something as close in feel as possibly to an 8th gen SI, the BRZ is it. Stock 8th gen's were fairly sluggish themselves.

Oh feeling wise yes i can understand that

Sponsored