Honda civic or seat leon

zee34

Hi all,

I am looking to buy a new car soon, i am looking for an automatic, 2019 or newer car with really good reliability record. 
The top 2 are honda civic and seat leon so far. I do like a nippy engine too and some sportiness but reliability is most important. Other than normal maintenance i really dont want to be a regular visitor at the mechanic like i am now with my Vauxhall. 
I do mainly town driving but on the weekends do love to drive long distance. 
So which car is better? A honda civic 2019 or a seat leon 2019 or newer?? Or are they about the same? 
I am not fussed about technology much, as long as I have gps and parking sensors/camera I am happy and max I am looking to spend is 20k. Thanks 

Grumpy_chap

Of those two, it would be a CIVIC for me.  That is just a personal choice, though, not based on any science or reliability factors or similar.

If I went for the VAG group and that size, I'd opt for an Octavia rather than Leon.

prettyandfluffy

You need to test drive them.  If you have back problems, you may find the Civic too low and/or the suspension too firm.  My OH had one and loved it but I couldn't get on with it for those reasons, and other people have said the same. 

mgfvvc

For reliability, I would back a Civic against any VAG brand equivalent. Having said that, it's a long time since I last had a Honda.

photome

either, we have both in our family, both are reliable, test drive them both

if you like sportiness look for a 2 litre ( 190hp)  auto leon from 2019, the last year of the old model, that would be my preference over the current shape leon where all the controls went digital and the engine line up changed

we have a 1.4 150hp 2016 leon , have had it since new with no issues

photome

mgfvvc said:

For reliability, I would back a Civic against any VAG brand equivalent. Having said that, it's a long time since I last had a Honda.

from our family experience both are reliable

from a fleet perspective, we had a fleet of Leons about 6 years ago.  drivers loved them as they were so reliable

Goudy

I take it you'll be buying petrol?
If so I beg to differ with the Honda, normally I would lean towards one but not the 1.0 Turbo Civic with the CVT gearbox.

The CVT isn't anywhere near as good to drive as the later DSG in the Seat.
Also the 1.0L engine has a wet timing belt and has been known to suffer similar problems to Fords wet belts, ie it breaks up, clogs the oilways, takes the turbo out and snaps ruining the engine.

Even if you get a good one, like most timing belts they needs changing every 5 years/75k but due to it being a wet belt in oil the job is massive and so is the price to change it.
Last time I checked it was around £1200 + VAT, so a 2019 model isn't far off a rather big service bill.

Like most cars, your Seat and other similar VAG models aren't perfect, but most problems are well known and catered for.
There are always plenty of VAG specialist about locally that are well versed in them and under cut the dealers on labour charges.

Early dry clutch DSG's in VAG products could be problematic but the later wet clutch ones tend to be more reliable and drive much better, though they do have a service interval of around 40 thousand miles (a fairly cheap oil change).

daivid

I'm not sure you'll get a nippy engined civic unless you go for the type R. The bigger non turbo petrols had plenty of power but you have to work the gears to get at it (not sure how that would work with auto), the smaller turbo petrols may feel nippy with minimal load but my understanding is performance suffers when loaded up.

MEM62

I have had both.  The Civic is more entertaining and fun to drive.  I also found the Civic cabin a more pleasant place to be. In terms of reliability there was not anything to choose between them but both of mine were new.       

Indout96

Civic all day long, I have a 2018 1.5 Prestige (CVT), 182 BHP adaptive suspension, radar cruise control and lane assist that works. average around 40 mpg around town and mid 50s on motorway.
0-60 says 8 sec but most motoring mags seem to get 7.5 sec 
Had it 2.5 years and its a great car so far. 

Now the bad bits
1.0 engine the cam belt cost around £1800 to change and needs doing every 5 years so the 1.5 is a way better bet as its chain rather than belt. there has been some talk that "some" Honda garages have dropped the price to around £1300 but not all.
Check the Aircon, its a very well known weak point BUT Honda have now extended the Air Con warranty to 10 years so it should be a free fix. Unfortunately for me at the time mine went they were still denying the problem so I got it done by an aircon specialist for just over £400, been absolutely fine ever since.

zee34

Yes i did read about the timing belts in a honda civic so i would deffo look for a 1.5l with a chain.