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08-044 cracked engine block

120K views 146 replies 77 participants last post by  07santiago07 
#1 ·
ok so whats the deal with this the engine blocks on the r18 06 thru 08 wtf? and the solution to this problem is replace the short block with another pos block? doesnt make any sense at all im concerned about this and so are many others i guess its just a matter of time before the **** hits hondas fan and theres a class action lawsuit lol
 
#9 ·
You would think that it would happen in the first couple years, but I just read someone that had a cracked block at 140K. I mean, my extended warranty won't even cover that. That's just S.O.L. I guess if it was prominent enough, there would be a recall and not just a TSB. Any one have an update with a VIN range or is it possibly ALL of them?
 
#21 ·
there is no VIN range it applies to all 06-08 Civics except gx, hybrid and si (all r18's)

even though its out of warranty it still might be covered based on a "goodwill consideration" by the service manager. so if you get all your work done at the dealer there shouldn't be an issue

here are some pics of where the cracks form, for anyone's reference
exhaust side:

-


intake side:


. . . . .................
 
#11 ·
I can't find any info to how many were effected, but:
Honda Problems.com - Honda Civic Problems & Complaints

shows 2006 civic had the most complaints, 2007 second, ... and a few 2008s. Whether it's because Honda fixed the problem in the latter years or if 2008 owners just haven't caught up in terms of mileage and age is unknown.
I don't mean to scare anyone; maybe it is one in every thousand, maybe it's every R18 is destined the same fate. But seeing this many claims on the internet in a 3 year span is alarming.
 
#13 ·
8th website threads state they have an R18, and the car complaint site are all EX, LX, and a few misc like ES (I assume those are typos or a non US trim). I havent seen anyone making this claim with the k20/ si, so the problem seems to be exclusively all other civics.
 
#55 ·
The Thai built R18's have no problems at all.
Sorry to revive this and bring back everyone's paranoia, but is this true? Does this mean the R18's built in Thailand are not susceptible? After looking on carcomplaints.com and seeing over 800 complaints for an 08 Accord brake issue and only 70 complaints for 06 Civic blocks, and 14 for both 07 and 08 Civic blocks, I think it's safe to say a very low percentage will be affected. Agreed?
 
#17 · (Edited)
My local dealership (a great set of guys, many of whom autocross) said they have done about 6 thus far.

My trusted asst. service manager said that relative to the number of 8th Gen Civics sold since late 2005, this is but a handful, and that I shouldn't worry. I know what he meant by that as he and I have known each other over 12 years so I didn't take that as dealership BS.

Yet, somehow, I am not feeling too confident right now. I think I'd feel better knowing that the R18A1 is now the R18A3, representing a change in design and should the work need to be done, at least it's an updated design. But it's not. :(

Suddenly, I have an urge to get the TDI Golf or the MINI Clubman.

Anthony "Mario" Crea
NNJR-SCCA
 
#33 ·
I think I'd feel better knowing that the R18A1 is now the R18A3, representing a change in design and should the work need to be done, at least it's an updated design. But it's not. :(

Anthony "Mario" Crea
NNJR-SCCA

This is what I truly think needs to be done.

Although the fuel delivery, heads (number of valves/VTEC/nonVTEC), and other aspects were different, the D15 was relatively the same specification wise (bore/stroke/CR) through many different iterations. Yet, there was a...

D15B
D15B1
D15B2
D15B3
D15B4
D15B6
D15B7
D15B8

Am I implying that a B8 (70hp - CX) was better than B7 (102hp - DX,LX)?

No. But why so many iterations? Perhaps someone could enlighten me.

Anthony "Mario" Crea
NNJR-SCCA
 
#19 · (Edited)
p.s. This doesn't seem like a statistically significant issue.
Agreed.

But, while I'm OK with some of the small creaks, rattles, etc. from some interior components such as the glovebox or sun visors I expected the Honda motor / trans to be bulletproof (barring any outright abuse or neglect).

The R-Series is supposed to be the new D-Series. The workhorse. Bulletproof... And I think that's what's bothering me. A major design flaw like this shouldn't be tolerated... I never thought I'd have to type these words.

Anthony "Mario" Crea
NNJR-SCCA
 
#30 ·
I asked my friend Jeff (jasyatz), who worked for Honda for over a decade as a service advisor, quality control technician, then service manager for two Acura dealers for his input. He said what we all know.. Nothing is perfect. He told me stories of H-Series, J-Series, and even K-Series issues he encountered over the years (we didn't even have to mention the 5 speed automatics in early TL's).

I asked him if he felt, in his professional opinion, if he thought the Japanese brands still learn from their mistakes or are they becoming lackadaisical like their American counterparts did for a long time. He believes they still learn from their errors. He said, why not get a 2010? Many of the issues of my very early 2006 (built in Sept. 2005) would be resolved and I'd have a warranty again.

Who knows?

I really do love this car and everything about it. However, I don't want to get in every day thinking if today will be the day the crack develops because as I told Jeff tonight, what first drew me to the R-Series was the fact that many high-end techniques were implemented on this engine.

Anthony "Mario" Crea
NNJR-SCCA
 
#32 · (Edited)
^ true that. is there a worse kind of non-dangerous defect than a cracked block?? I give some credit Honda for warrantying people with new blocks (even a couple people that were beyond warranty- they goodwill'd them anywhere from 50-75%), but what is DIFFERENT about the new block? are these not gonna crack up? And like like honda93 said: I don't want to always be thinking "is today MY day?"
 
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