Hi I have 09 Civic LX and use it for daily office commute which is 80 miles round trip. I bought the car Oct 08 and have about 21k miles on it. It started giving loud noise while breaking on Sep 30 '09. I took it to the car dealer on Oct 3rd Saturday as It is difficult for me to go during the week. The Honda mechanic told me the car break pad has vanished and that it was metal to metal and my rotors disc were not salvageable by resurfacing. Hence would require them to replace it. They estimated the amount at $561 for new rotor disc and break pad change on 09 Civic under warranty.

They maintained that I can't use the warranty as the issue happened because of the break pad wearing off. I have been going through the servicing on every 5000 miles and my last service was on 17500 miles. Hence according to them the car break pads worked well for 17500 miles and then suddenly went off in less than 4000 miles. The service rep did not budge and initially was reluctant to let me talk to his supervisor.

On persisting he let me talk to his supervisor who looked up the service records and found that I had what they call a A1 maintenance (Honda Standard maintenance number it comes up on car mileometer when servicing is due) at 17500 miles which should include break check which the previous mechanic had not undertaken, hence we never found out that my car break pads were low.

In light of this detail they internalized the rotor replacement charges and I could have my car repaired in around $233. Bottom line is that if we are doing our homework of getting the car checked every 5000 miles once service is due we should never have parts worn out beyond salvage. If they do then most probably the service mechanic missed something . Also your service mechanic need to make you aware if any part is nearing its life and might need replacement in like next 5000 miles.

Thanks Micheal(the complain above this one) for his entry gave me background to fight back with the Car dealership

I have brand new 09 Honda Civic LX-S bought only 3 months ago with under 2500 miles. 2 days ago I started hearing rubbing sound form driver side front wheel. It sounds like something is scratching the rotor every time the wheel turns. But the car is not doing it all the time. It is on and off. So, I brought to the service center and the car stop making that sound when Honda tech guy is checking it. He insisted that because the car is at factory standard they couldn't do anything about it. However I finally could persuade that guy to ride with me for a while and the car started making that sound on the way back to the service center. Thanks to God, he got convinced and agreed to look at the car. On that evening I got call from honda and was told the car was ready to pickup. They said the problem was something about brake shoe touching rotor. I tested the car for a few miles and it went nice. But next day when I start driving the car, that sound came back. But it went away after driving a few hundred feet. Since then, the car is doing like that and I just don't know what to do. I can't believe a brand new car is giving such a head ache. Shame on you Honda.

I bought a 2009 Honda Civic because I drive alot of miles with my job. I have owned Hondas in the past with no major problems so I felt pretty comfortable buying a new Honda Civic. I have been told Hondas are no longer the quality cars they used to be since they are being built in the US but I am not sure. My brakes started making a loud noise and I took the car to the dealership. They told me the brakes were "metal to metal". The car only had 6700 miles on it at the time. The dealership was going to charge me to replace them but did replace them "under warranty" after I complained. Later, at less than 16000 miles the brakes were gone again. The dealership refused to replace them and wanted to charge me over $200.00. I called the customer service at Honda and the word "customer service" no longer exists at Honda corporation. Honda customer service did not really seem to care that I was having the problems with my brakes.

Besides the brakes, the front seat broke. I heard a poping noise and the axle had to be replaced (now I am hearing a popping noise again). The tires have worn very rapidly and will need to be replaced soon (with 17775 miles now on the car). I am disappointed and sad that I have had all the problems with my civic. I really thought Honda was one company that you could still depend on for quality, value, and customer service. I guess I was wrong and will no longer be a customer of Honda. It is my opinion that no one should spend hundreds of dollars making repairs to a brand new car but be prepared if you buy a new Honda. The dealership said it was the "way I was driving". However my driving habits have been the same over the last 29 years and I have not had problems with my brakes on any other car in the past. If you do your research you will find many others are having problems with the brakes on new Hondas. Honda customer service will refer you back to the dealership and they will charge you for the repairs even if it is a brand new car. I have been told this is how the dealership makes most of it profits.

I purchased a 2009 Civic GX in November of 2008. I purchased the extended warranty as well. By April, the car had 8,000 miles on it and the car shuddered when the brake was applied from most speeds above 40 miles per hour. My mistake was waiting for the 15,000 mile service to take it in. Honda said that the rotors were warped and needed re-surfacing and the brake pads needed replacing. They stated that this was normal wear and was not covered under the warranty. We also drive a 2003 Honda Pilot whose brakes need to be changed very infrequently, something around 50K miles a change. None of my other cars have ever had this problem which leads me to believe that this is a defect in the car they sold us. I went to 2 different dealerships and to Honda America. I am waiting for a verdict from them. If they do not make it right by taking care of this defect, this will be the last Honda I ever buy,