Civic Si vs. RSX vs. Tiburon

kompressornsc · 10-06-06, 11:33

Okay, wife wants a new car. Based on looks / price range, she's narrowed it down to these three. Haven't driven any of them yet. Figure some other people have been comparing these three, any thoughts? Pros? Cons?

ebpcivicsi · 10-06-06, 11:38

Si sedan will be out by the end of November--not sure if that interests her.

Si if you want the new car, RSX if you want the dealer service--Tiburon would not be on my personal radar.

lamyun · 10-06-06, 11:47

Anything other than the Tiburon

kompressornsc · 10-06-06, 12:13

Her preference, without driving them, is for the Tib (probably the least favorite of mine). That's based purely on looks. Did I mention this is for my wife?

I guess the Si's are pretty much special order, although my dealer did just get one in that someone is not taking, so there is one available. He said they only get two a month. My first car was an Ingegra ('86- first year of Acura), and I have a Honda now, so I am partial to those two to begin with before even driving them.

And she definitely wants a Coupe. It's replacing an '00 Ford Focus 4-door.

ebpcivicsi · 10-06-06, 12:33

If you can put up with the Honda service (perhaps it's just poor in my area??), and can buy the Si without dealer mark up/the HFP BS, the SI will be the clear winner after driving.....*I* think.

SDCJ · 10-06-06, 12:39

I loved my RSX-S and the service was always great. I have a Honda S2000 now and have not had any service issues as of yet. I am looking for a second car and have narrowed down to a similar set as your wife. Right now though the new GTI is leading for me followed by another RSX and Si in 3rd. Is she against the hatch?

kompressornsc · 10-06-06, 12:44

Basically, she wants something small & sporty - she's tired of the 4-door & @ 33 years old feels it's a last ditch effort to get away with driving something 'young'. (okay, just realized I can't let her read this thread!)

No kids, no large pets, and I have a truck so hauling anything isn't an issue. We want to spend somewhere between $20-$23.

SpoiledMan · 10-06-06, 01:26

I'd go for the RSX-S. No "S" then it would be the Si.

martinager · 10-06-06, 01:30

The new civic si is very nice. It won Motor Trend car of year for this year.

Not to mention the manual with an LSD, sounds like a fun car to drive around town to me

04LemansZ · 10-06-06, 01:40

I thought I had read at one time that the RSX was being discontinued...could be wrong though.

JohnnyDaJackal · 10-06-06, 01:43

Tiburons styling are very nice, I actually read a rumor that the newer designs 03+ we're designed by Ferrari. I found them a little small though, and I'm not sure how they are reliability wise. Someone at work was just telling me Hyundai is 3rd in reliability behind Porsche and Lexus from JD Powers.

I own an 02 RSX base and I'm very happy with it; but it's far from perfect. The cabin noise on highways (50+ mph) is very annoying, as well as the 1,945,590 dash rattles in the colder months. Those are my two main compliants with the car though, and I've learned to live with it.

I can't say much about the Civic Si. I'm not really a fan of the styling, but that's up to your wife. The RSX-S and Civic Si are extremely similiar so it would come down to styling and preferences to make the decision.

I would make sure to give whatever you get a good test drive on the highway and city streets without any music and annoying salespersons.

paradigm · 10-06-06, 01:44

i owned a 2003 tib briefly before my 2003 rsx-s...the tib was fun to drive...just much different than the rsx-s. out of those three:

--Tiburon is a larger vehicle..."feels" fast from the V6 torque...but still slower than the other two. best warranty of them all.

--rsx-s ...most expensive...conservative styling...probably best interior of all three.

--Si ...get this if you want an rsx but don't want to pay for the rsx-s (and definitely if you are considering the base rsx model)

my choice would be the rsx-s again. great motor...fun to drive...and you may get a good price on it since it's going out of production. acura service has been excellent in my area as well.

.02