Webtekie,
If you've only been in the civic for 9 mths, you may find yourself upside down (you owe more than it's worth) if you decide to trade it in. I think Honda's do have a higher resale value, than American cars, so you may
not be extrememly upside down.
Just be careful because they might roll the negative equity into the vehicle you want.
Go to sites like
www.carpoint.com or
www.edmunds.com and they will give you the trade-in value of your civic.
If you want to put in the effort, selling it yourself will help you save money and you won't have to bicker it out with the dealer.
I recently traded in a smaller vehicle for a better sized one, plus lower payments. I was upside down in my old vehicle, but due to lifestyle changes I needed a lower payment. So the car I bought was used and low priced, and with some money down I was able to get lower payments.
Good luck!