every day useage...general advice

[biggbn]

..seriously considering a honda beat...i currently own a fiat coupe 20v turbo, a smart for two, a cinq sporting and a classic range rover, but the rangey is hopefully going this week....

..sooo...can a beat be used every day??..iv owned loads of hondas over the years and love em, but the wee car would have to cover about 300 miles a week in all conditions....possible??..anything i specifically should look for when buying....just how rare are they??..id like a standard car with no performance mods or bodykit...what kinda mpg does a beat get used in ordinary mixed driving...my smart gets around 50mpg and can keep up with traffic no problem (its a 599cc lhd model..).....

any advice would be welcome......

[old'uns]

don't know whether i'd use one every day,remember these are high revving motors although you can pootle about in one,def not if i'd got choice of cars. i insure 4 cars & drive 'em all at various times
mixed driving 40ish to the gallon possible but i thrash mine whenever possible, when you hear one you'll know why still get close to 40 though & no problem keeping up with traffic..ask the smart roadster driver who just about passed me going up hill at 70, bloody astra est. meant i had to back off!

[Mylee]

Also you must remember that most Beats are approaching 15 years old, so they aren't a 'new' car. Don't think I'd use mine everyday, yes it is reliable, fun to drive, but it's just not built for the British weather. Most suffer with leaky roof seals and ECU problems aren't uncommon. Servicable spares are readily available although some other spares can be hard to find. Proof of a cam belt change is essential. No one knows exactly how many are in the UK as all are grey personal imports, but it's been said that it could be as low as 150.
Have a good look around the website and gain all the valuable knowledge you can before taking the plunge.

[LawrenceHarding]

My wife's Beat had a new Honda hood fitted about 3 years ago. It lives outside and only leaks a little in driving rain. She uses it for everyday (and night - on call for the local hospital) transport unless the weather is very severe or icy. Total approx 7 - 7500 km/year. This is made up of journeys of about 6.5 miles and we have an islandwide speed limit of 35 mph. Our local Honda dealer which maintains our Beats has so far been able to get all the bits that have been needed in 3 to 4 weeks of ordering sometimes faster. Hope this helps.

[Andy V]

My missus uses our Beat for a daily round-trip commute of about 25 miles in all conditions. Sometimes I use it for my daily round trip of about 50 miles (and thoroughly enjoy it when I do ). Those journeys include peak and off-peak traffic, dual carriageway and country lanes.

I've never properly measured the fuel economy but it seems pretty good, although perhaps not quite as good as your Smart. Obviously much will depend on the way you drive it.

No problem at all keeping up with the traffic, the Beat is a zippy little car and can also cruise perfectly well at motorway speeds.

In general I'd also agree with the other responses made so far.

[marcair]

Re daily use: I bought the Beat intending to use it for local errands - parking in the beach area. Immediately discovered the 'fun factor'. I frequently drive it 18 miles to the office, 80% of which is at highway speeds of 80mph +. No issues. Even pushing the evelope daily till the speed limiter kicks-in, I see upwards of 40mpg. I don't really focus on the efficiency. All I know is that it's better than Caddy. If I didn't have to argue with Ca Reglatory agency for 5 months to tag it, I would buy all available. Damn Detroit paying for the lunches of the State regulators -we lose. Amazing, I can buy a 3 ton SUV and write off the costs on my taxes but I have to access overseas websites for cool efficient cars and just look. Ya Ya, I'm venting.

[biggbn]

Also you must remember that most Beats are approaching 15 years old, so they aren't a 'new' car. Don't think I'd use mine everyday, yes it is reliable, fun to drive, but it's just not built for the British weather. Most suffer with leaky roof seals and ECU problems aren't uncommon. Servicable spares are readily available although some other spares can be hard to find. Proof of a cam belt change is essential. No one knows exactly how many are in the UK as all are grey personal imports, but it's been said that it could be as low as 150.
Have a good look around the website and gain all the valuable knowledge you can before taking the plunge.

iv driven such things as series 3 lwb diesel landy with no overdrive and old beetles with no heaters every day over the years, winter or summer.....i reckon i could put up with the hardship!!!..im keepin my eyes open for a suitable car, but tbh, im a huge honda fan and have gotten used to honda being a by word for reliable..so the thought of that contradiction in terms, an unreliabel honda, does bother me a bit......

[Andy V]

I wouldn't say that Beats are unreliable, far from it in my experience.

The cam-belt thing is a sensible precaution with any vehicle, although admittedly the recommended renewal frequency is more often than most vehicles. I don't know much about ECUs, but, over time, surely they detioriate in all vehicles too?

[biggbn]

just seems most people damn them with faint praise, and they are not as 'bullet proof' as most mainstream hondas..there again, my main cars, the smart and coupe fiat aint exactly known for their supreme reliability either!!!

[Wh1teLeopard]

Well he's a story from me lol

I bought my Beat in 2004 and it was my only car. I paid Honda £360 to change the cambelt and to service it as I had no history. I used it to go to work 35miles away everyday and I used it for local runs.

I experinced no problems for 2 years.

In 2006 we worked out the head gasket had gone. It cost me about £250 in parts and we did it our selves.

1 year later I blew an exhaust valve, cost me about £290 to replace all of the above again and a new set of exhaust valves. 2 months later same valve went again. Was about £150 in parts to sort that out again.

Had the injectors cleaned for about £35.

Then in 2007 we were confident the piston rings had gone. Ended up being the bore. Cost me about £600 in parts and £200 in re-bores and machining.

All of the problems I encountered were down to the rusted bore (caused by low mileage and poor care) and lack of maintenance.

You could get a Beat like Jurek's that's never needed any work. Or you could end up with one like mine that ends up being a money pit.

I don't mind though. I've loved learning so much about beats in the process.

But then, my smart blew up on the motorway 2 weeks ago and is still in bits on the drive waiting for parts.

So whatever you buy you've got no garentee.

I will say what I always say. The first beats were made in 1991, that's 17 years ago now. They're highly strung engines and if they haven't been looked after you will have to nurse it back to health which won't be cheap or easy. The big engine rebuild took 9 months to complete.

I'm not trying to put you off, I'm just telling you like it is.

[biggbn]

my smart has about 65k on it..usually the troublesome time..it does however have a fsh, which i intend to keep up....my fiat, well it has a fsh and is turn key reliable...i am however about to spend about a grand on it getting the clutch, water pump, thermostat and camblet done....none of these things actually NEED done right now, but the clutch will need doing in the next 6 months or so, so it seems sensible to do the lot whilst i have the cash....

...iv had 'bullet proof' cars like golf gti going pop on me, and owned cars like citroen xm's with 330k miles up and still running sweet as a nut.....its all in the care and servicing....

..if i do take the plunge for a beat, it will be paramount the car has a fsh..mileage, to me, matters not a jot....its the servicing that is the seed for mechanical longevity....

..thanks one and all for your sage wisdom on this matter, il be sure to keep ypu posted....gbn

[Jennifer]

When mine was last on the road I used to use it all the time, back then I had the beat for just over 18months, now that was a few years ago lol!! But during that time petrol was good, changed the brakes and sorted some rust out but nothing out of the ordinary.

I say if it is just a town car, back lane blaster then you will love it, motorways and dual carriage ways are not a problem either