It’s halfway through 2024, which means that the first crop of 2025 vehicles are already hitting dealerships. One new Honda Civic customer was surprised to see the check engine light come on after just 100 miles.
As a highly respected auto manufacturer renowned for its reliability (along with Toyota), it might come as a surprise to many that a brand new Civic needed to get sent to the shop. TikToker and auto tech Julian Le (@kuro.auto) documented the meticulous process he underwent to try and diagnose just what was wrong with the Civic.
However, he prefaces his whole clip by noting this may be a recurring chorus that many drivers have been noticing with newer model vehicles. And they’re all uttering the same hackneyed phrase that appears to ring true regardless of how played out it is. That is, they just don’t make them like they used to.
Diagnosing the 2025 Civic
“I got a 2025 Civic 2.4 liter, with a check engine light, only 100 miles. Ugh … these new vehicles man,” he says. He focuses his car lens on the check engine light that’s illuminated on the car’s dashboard.
The clip then cuts to him looking at a sheet of paper that appears to list various diagnostic codes. The codes can help him to assess just why the brand-new 2025 model Honda Civic is already having engine troubles. He points to a line on the sheet that reads, “Confirmed DTCs,” and then to the specific code he presumably received while performing his scans. “P0741 Torque converter clutch circuit performance…or stuck off,” he says, reading the text on the document.
The mechanic then expounds a bit more on the error. “I’ve seen this code on Pilots and I think Ridgelines,” he says. “We replace the torque converter usually. … [Let’s] see what it is for the Civic.”
Noticing something strange
The clip transitions to the Civic’s engine shield on the floor. It’s in pristine condition, which is understandable given the shiny new nature of the car. However, upon removing the shield, he says that he noticed something strange immediately. He holds a nut up to the camera. The mechanic states that it just plopped out onto the floor right when he popped the cover off.
He says, “So I took the shield down, this fell out. I don’t know what this goes to, doesn’t look like it’s used yet. It’s just been hanging around I guess,” he says. The clip then cuts to him at a computer terminal with a list of suggested steps one should take to properly diagnose the code.
Underneath the car, the story doesn’t seem to get much better. “As I’m testing, this is great. It’s already leaking,” he says, looking at what appears to be fluid seeping out from the bottom of the Civic. “There’s 100 miles on the vehicle, I’m pretty sure that’s trans fluid, leaking already.”
Checking the transmission
Back at the computer, he has his list brought up again. Unfortunately, it seems like there’s something going on with the transmission itself. “All right, I thought I was gonna test the correct thing. But, apparently, you click on this. For some reason, I thought it was like this first thing. But no, it’s actually all the stuff inside the transmission. So, unless I actually take apart the pan, I can’t actually test anything. So I’m gonna have to call tech line actually,” he says.
The tech line informs the mechanic that he should use some dye to thoroughly assess what’s probably wrong with the vehicle. He begins this portion of the clip holding up a small bottle of dye to the camera. He says, “[The tech line] wants me to add dye to the transmission, let it run until it leaks, and then we’re gonna go from there.”
As he stands above the pristine engine bay of the new vehicle, he states that after the dye leaks throughout the vehicle, he will, indeed, have to take the transmission apart. Unfortunately, the dye solution and trans request came at the end of his shift. So he tells his viewers that he’s going to have to get to work on that the following day.
Quality of newer vehicles
It seems that a lot of mechanics are complaining about the way more modern vehicles are being built. There are even auto techs who’ve put together lists of vehicles warning consumers that if they own any of these cars they should sell them before they hit the 60,000–mile mark. Or else, they’re just going to become way too costly to own, operate, and repair, they argue.
And while a lot of people would argue that folks should just buy a Toyota, regularly maintain it, and call it a day, because it will more than likely outlive you and become a whip you pass down onto your kids, there are some who’ve argued that even this JDM brand has “dipped” in recent years. Just don’t say that to this woman who has no plans to ever give up her 2013 Corolla.
Others say that the “dip” in Toyota isn’t necessarily in its reliability or mechanical soundness, however, but rather in the infotainment, electronics and additional features being offered by the company. According to News Nation, the reason why so many modern whips are having issues are because of these complex infotainment and electrical systems.
That doesn’t explain why some manufacturers seemingly opt to make inferior engines to the competition. This is evinced by this one mechanic who showed the difference between modern Nissan and Toyota motors. If you ask some of the folks on this Quora post, they’ll probably tell you that the problem is straight up planned obsolescence.
Viewers weigh in
And if you’re a Honda fan, you probably aren’t going to be too enthused to read what some of the folks are saying in the comments section in response to Le’s video. “Acura tech here and all I can say is Honda dropping the ball badly on all new vehicles ( including Acuras ),” one person wrote.
Another said, “so crazy how bad the quality control has gotten, Honda used to be such a pioneer with their bulletproof cars.”
One TikToker remarked that it’s videos like these that tarnish a historically lauded manufacturer’s reputation for reliability. They wrote, “Honda is losing its status of being reliable.”
There was a customer who said that they were scared of purchasing a new car after seeing this video. “30k for junk. I want a new civic, but I’m terrified of these new cars from every manufacturer,” they wrote.
Le explained that he believes the build quality from the cars actually manufactured and shipped from Japan is the way to go.
“The only one you can trust is the one built in Japan, and only the TypeR is built in Japan lol Everything else is made in America,” Le said in a comment.
@kuro.auto Customer purchased and drove it for 2 days before coming back for the check engine light. . . . . . #honda #ホンダ #fyp #fypシ #civic #hondacivic #mechanic #technician #mechanicsoftiktok #cartok #carsoftiktok ♬ Cafe music, corporate VP, comfortable(1277239) – zukisuzuki
The Daily Dot reached out to Honda via email and Le via TikTok comment for further information.
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