(no subject)
My old faithful 1998 Integra developed an engine problem mid-november. Uncertainly expensive engine problem for a 13-year-old car with 260,000 miles on it. Even if I got that fixed for a reasonable price, what would go wrong next? So I sold the car, and bought a new one. A Honda Civic SI. It's got the same engine the Acura had, with 13 years of development. It's a sedan, so I can carry the whole family comfortably. And it's a 6-speed.
I've frequently found myself cruising along at speed, and thinking I really wanted a sixth gear to shift into. Now I have it. The second day I had the new car, I took the Bay Bridge S-curve at 63 mph without a hint of drifting out of the middle of the (slightly narrow) lane. The Acura wasn't that steady at that speed. Not recently, anyway.
About that six-speed: They didn't add a gear at the top, they added it in the middle. The speed at which I go into 6th is only a tiny bit faster than the speed I'd switch into 5th in the Acura. In the Acura, 5th gear was 22.5 mph/1000 rpm. In the Civic, 6th gear is 23.5/1000. So while the Civic does cruise nicely at 84 mph, I have, on a couple of occasions, found myself looking for 7th gear.
But what about the gas mileage? For a car with way more room, and which I'm driving a little faster, I'm getting 26-27 mpg. I was getting 28-30 with the Acura. One of the displays in the Civic has a running fuel-use meter. It's pegged at 50 quite a lot while I'm cruising. But every acceleration brings it down to 12 or even less. I kind of wish it read in gallons per 100 miles - I could see it cruising along at less than 2, then jumping up to 8 or 10 when I hit the gas.
I just discovered that I can play music from my phone through the car's sound system using bluetooth. Even though there's an aux plug and a couple of USB plugs available, too. The sound is reasonable, though I should fiddle with it some more. But some of the weirdness is definitely the selection of tunes I have on my phone, and the phone's sound system may not be all that, either.
I've frequently found myself cruising along at speed, and thinking I really wanted a sixth gear to shift into. Now I have it. The second day I had the new car, I took the Bay Bridge S-curve at 63 mph without a hint of drifting out of the middle of the (slightly narrow) lane. The Acura wasn't that steady at that speed. Not recently, anyway.
About that six-speed: They didn't add a gear at the top, they added it in the middle. The speed at which I go into 6th is only a tiny bit faster than the speed I'd switch into 5th in the Acura. In the Acura, 5th gear was 22.5 mph/1000 rpm. In the Civic, 6th gear is 23.5/1000. So while the Civic does cruise nicely at 84 mph, I have, on a couple of occasions, found myself looking for 7th gear.
But what about the gas mileage? For a car with way more room, and which I'm driving a little faster, I'm getting 26-27 mpg. I was getting 28-30 with the Acura. One of the displays in the Civic has a running fuel-use meter. It's pegged at 50 quite a lot while I'm cruising. But every acceleration brings it down to 12 or even less. I kind of wish it read in gallons per 100 miles - I could see it cruising along at less than 2, then jumping up to 8 or 10 when I hit the gas.
I just discovered that I can play music from my phone through the car's sound system using bluetooth. Even though there's an aux plug and a couple of USB plugs available, too. The sound is reasonable, though I should fiddle with it some more. But some of the weirdness is definitely the selection of tunes I have on my phone, and the phone's sound system may not be all that, either.