Fair enough. Our experience has been totally different, as we've had four Hondas between my wife and I over the past 10 years. The only significant problem was the LED running lights crapping out within a few months of purchase on the 2016 Accord, which were promptly replaced within an hour at the dealership under warranty. Beyond that, as noted, the 2022 Civic had a head unit that took a few minutes to get Android Auto or Apple Car Play up and running, which may not seem like much but was very irritating when trying to use it to navigate and it's not ready as you drive away. The head unit updated itself via wifi, and the problem was solved.
The CVT is the cost of getting good mileage, as it's the best way to set up a motor for an RPM sweet spot, and then keep it as close to that in as many conditions as possible. The one in the 2016 Civic was a bit drony, the 2019 CR-V was better (though that was a very slow vehicle and underpowered), and the 2022 Civic has been a massive improvement. It's good enough that it's well worth the improved fuel economy for me, and rarely has that elastic band feeling that the older one did. As noted before, the only time I notice it now is in scenarios like merging back onto a highway after being stopped on the shoulder, where you get the odd sensation of accelerating while the revs stay pretty much flat. I'm not in the habit of stopping on the side of highways, though, so it's a non-issue for me. It's good enough that we keep it in 'Fuel Economy' mode most of the time, as the added pep of 'Normal' or 'Sport' is pointless in typical GTA stop-and-go driving. I only pop it back to 'normal' on country highways to help with passing.
As for your bodywork concerns, I suspect what you're seeing in the wheel wells is sound deadening felt, not the actual bodywork. There's no fibre in the car that's actually part of the body that I know of. I leaking lights and peeling windscreen sealant are definitely legit issues, though I'm not aware of whether that's a common issue model-wide or simply bad luck. That said, I never get the feeling the vehicles were built cheaply, especially the newer Civic which is a massive step up in interior finish from the older one...
