7 Reasons to Love the Fresh Honda Civic
Honda have just launched their star-child, the tenth-generation Honda Civic, in Cape Town. With twenty three million units sold globally, Honda must be doing something right. Here are AutoTrader`s reasons for loving it.
The exterior of the fresh Civic evokes an emotional reaction. For a sedan, previously very popular amongst more senior folk, it is earnestly sexy. Low-slung and sleek, its profile is more Coupe than an everyday sedan. The swept-back, elongated headlamps surrounded with glossy piano black detail (on Sport-variants) gives it a sports car feeling and appearance. The rear-end of the Civic shows Honda`s daring side. It`s aggressively styled indeed, but everything looks flawlessly proportioned. I`d feel pretty smug to be seen driving a Honda like this.
The Civic may look like a Coupe, but boasts dimensions of roominess similar to the two thousand thirteen Honda Accord. And a more spacious cabin translates to less whining on long road-trips. The front seats are spaced further away from each other, and in the back, there`s 55mm more space for knees and slew more elbow-room too. The now-gigantic 420-litre boot is up in size by twenty percent. Overall, the wheelbase has grown with 30mm, and the total length by one hundred nine mm.
We are so pleased that Honda voted ‘Yea` for turbo technology! It was much needed in the Civic, and it`s even more potent than I expected. It`s only a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine, but it`s good for one hundred twenty seven kW and two hundred twenty Nm and goes like the clappers. It`s fuel-efficient too: On the way back to Cape Town International Airport from Franschhoek, our journey computer displayed 6.Two litres per one hundred km, and we weren`t exactly on a Sunday drive. (Honda`s figure is Five.9 litres per 100, so they`re not far off).
The fresh Civic won`t be available with a manual transmission (sadly), but the fresh Continuous Variable Transmission unit is refined, relatively quiet and sleek. It works well with the compact turbo-engine for a more linear response, and further helps you save fuel. In all honesty, most people won`t even notice that it`s not a conventional auto.
The fresh Civic is built on an all-new lightweight, high-rigidity platform, which is twelve percent ultra high-strength steel. It has shed twenty two kg`s, and is twenty five percent stiffer than before. Metaphorically, it`s the youthfull and bouncy replacement to your 43-year old spouse. Steering feel has been greatly improved and feels decidedly German. Honda calls it ‘Dual-Pinion Variable Ratio Electrical Power Steering`. It feels sporty, not over-assisted. Rail and stability are better than before.
Hondas have always been very high tech, yet user-friendly, hence their popularity with the seniors. The fresh Civic has a 7-inch touchscreen that`s effortless to read from any angle. And you don`t need to access menus and submenus to get to basic things like air-conditioning – there are dedicated buttons for that.
Honda`s are super-safe, and their crash-test scores reflect this. Every fresh Civic has Vehicle Stability Assist, an emergency stop signal, daytime running lights, hill-start assist, six airbags, ISOFIX child seat anchorage points and seatbelt pretensioners. A switch roles camera and rear parking sensors are standard on every Civic but the base model.
It`s hard to find fault with the fresh Civic. I can totally imagine a life with the Civic as our trusty, safe, and spacious high-tech steed.