Manual Virgin

I"m pretty much in the same situation. I've had my license for 17 years and now I'm "this close" to trading in my Santa Fe for a Civic LX 5Spd. I never drove a standard before until last night. A friend let me drive his (2012 civic) around an empty parking lot. 1st gear is a lot harder then what it looks like in those "How To" Youtube videos. After about 20-30min i was doing pretty good. I am little hesitant about hills at that time, taking it in baby steps. I did take it around town for about an hour or so. While i know the gear changes were still sloppy he did admit he was amazed it was going so good considering I had no experience driving a stick. Those manumatics do not do it justice. They are good to give the basic principles but actually changing gears and not just flipping a switch is totally different.
 
Wytwolf said:
I"m pretty much in the same situation. I've had my license for 17 years and now I'm "this close" to trading in my Santa Fe for a Civic LX 5Spd.
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Don't short change yourself. Get an Si!
 
Wytwolf said:
Wish I could. We went from a one car family to a two car family so the gas guzzling AWD SUV had to go. When the kids are all grown I'll get one then...
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If you aren't hammering it too often, you can average 30 mpg out of an Si.
 
Wytwolf said:
Wish I could. We went from a one car family to a two car family so the gas guzzling AWD SUV had to go. When the kids are all grown I'll get one then...
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Try not to let gas milage be a reason to get an LX if it's manual. I have an '13 EX manual and part of me wishes I would have saved for a bit longer and purchased an Si instead (I couldn't because my old car broke down and needed immediate replacing). The gear ratios of the manual are different than the automatic so you won't get the same gas milage (you won't get 39mpg on highway), not even considering the urge to shift at red line on occasion. With my EX, I'm getting gas milage compared to what a lot of people are claiming with their Si's. The LX is going to be more fuel efficient than the Si, sure - but if you factor in the depreciation rate of an Si compared to an LX manual, it's more economical to choose the Si even with the slightly higher fuel consumption.

I don't want to say "Don't get the LX because it's a bad car" because it's not - it's a great car. But the Si may be a more economical choice if you're going to get a standard transmission. I couldn't get an Si because I couldn't stretch my budget that far. There is a huge part of me that wants to trade in my EX for an Si right now because I can now cover the difference :)
 
Like I said in my first post. I have never owned an import car and a manual before. So I figured if I'm going to give it a try figured go big or go home.
 
TattooedJp75 said:
Do it!! I did....went from 2011 lx coupe to 12' Si
Haggled with the salesman a bit, kept my payments the same :thumbsup:
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It's so tempting! I paid cash for my '13 EX and it's in great condition, what do you reckon I'd have to pay to upgrade to a '13 Si after trade in? I've actually considered getting a '13 with a previous owner and <5,000 miles in order to get a better deal. I don't think I'd drop to a '12 Si though - the interior of the '13 Si is much more appealing to me, personally.

Sorry to derail the thread :/
 
Velox said:
It's so tempting! I paid cash for my '13 EX and it's in great condition, what do you reckon I'd have to pay to upgrade to a '13 Si after trade in? I've actually considered getting a '13 with a previous owner and <5,000 miles in order to get a better deal. I don't think I'd drop to a '12 Si though - the interior of the '13 Si is much more appealing to me, personally.

Sorry to derail the thread :/
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Go to a dealer(s) and start talking to them. Depending on mileage and condition of your car, you may get a good price for it. I would expect to take at least a 2k hit on sticker price though.
 
I got a pretty good deal considering they are 31k+ in Canada. And the final price was 27k but I wanted to keep the payments low so I went with 6 years finance. 0.99%. I went from $367 monthly (my current EX) to $397 (SI).
 
JTan24 said:
I got a pretty good deal considering they are 31k+ in Canada. And the final price was 27k but I wanted to keep the payments low so I went with 6 years finance. 0.99%. I went from $367 monthly (my current EX) to $397 (SI).
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So you traded in your EX for an Si or you are just stating the monthly payment pricing?
 
stormtrooper said:
So you traded in your EX for an Si or you are just stating the monthly payment pricing?
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I was gonna do it but honda finance didn't approve the loan -_- and I need a cosigner. Kinda bummed out about it :( looks like it's not happening anymore guys
 
Did the dealership offer other finance options? You could go with a higher apr and re-fi in a year.
 
bobshur said:
Did the dealership offer other finance options? You could go with a higher apr and re-fi in a year.
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Yeah I chose 6 years finance 0.99 and only paying $30 bucks more than my current ex $367. I don't get it ....they just told me I need a $6900 down or a cosign.
 
I got my auto loan through a local bank/credit union. Figured the dealer finance people were wanting a really high interest rate.
 
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