COVER New Honda Civic
Official pictures and details as new hatch gets sporty look
FOLLOWING months of teaser images, concept cars and spy shots, the allnew 10th-generation Honda Civic has finally been revealed. The five-door hatchback goes on sale in the US this week, before UK sales start in early 2017. It will make its world debut at next week’s Paris Motor Show.
Honda claims the all-new Civic represents a significant step forward for the brand, with the new car benefiting from the largest single model development programme in the company’s history.
At launch, the Ford Focus rival will be offered with a choice of two all-new turbocharged petrol engines, although initially there’s no diesel. Honda predicts the best seller will be the 127bhp 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo, paired with either a six-speed manual or CVT automatic box.
A more powerful 180bhp 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine will also be available with identical transmission options. Performance and fuel economy figures will be announced closer to the car’s on-sale date next year. As the Civic will be sold across 70 global markets almost unchanged, Honda will initially focus on the two petrol engines. However, by the end of 2017 buyers will also be able to spec a heavily revised version of the current 1.6-litre I-DTEC diesel. We expect it to offer improved fuel economy plus a boost in performance thanks to the option of Honda’s efficient nine-speed auto box.
Speaking with Auto Express, chief operating officer Katsushi Inoue admitted Honda is also considering adding a hybrid model to the range to compete with the Toyota Prius.
He said: “After the [Volkswagen] emissions scandal, we have to think about it. We are big on hybrids in Japan and the US – we have that technology.”
Engineers are also claiming major advances in comfort, handling and refinement for the new Civic. According to project leader Mitsuru Kariya, the new car has “heavily revised suspension” featuring a complex independent multilink set-up at the rear, plus four-stage adaptive damping on highergrade models. The all-new platform is 16kg lighter than before, while torsional stiffness has been improved by 52 per cent. That should help make the car more responsive and more engaging from behind the wheel.
As for the Type R hot hatch, bosses say it has been engineered alongside the standard car from the outset for the first time, but we don’t expect it to launch until next September. A concept version is likely to join the standard hatch on the stand at Paris, however.
The new Civic is lower, longer and wider than any of its predecessors. Visually, it’s almost unchanged from the Civic Prototype seen at the Geneva Motor Show back in March – even the dual exhausts have been carried over to the Sport-spec version you see here. Lesser models will get a softer design with less aggressive bumpers. In terms of style, this Sport is designed to act as a halfway house between entrylevel cars and the forthcoming Type R.
Despite the lower roofline, Honda claims there is more room inside than before as
“Despite the lower roofline, Honda claims there is more room inside the new Civic than before”
the wheelbase has been stretched by 30mm. The repositioned fuel tank does mean Honda’s clever Magic Seats and flat rear floor have been sacrificed, but there’s a compact parcel shelf that slides left to right rather than back to front. With the rear seats in place, Honda claims boot capacity of 478 litres, which is just one litre bigger than the outgoing car, but still significantly larger than the 380-litre boot in the VW Golf. A more spacious Civic Tourer estate model is at least 18 months away.
As well as the exterior styling, the interior has been totally overhauled. Quality has taken a big step up, while a new electronic parking brake switch on the centre console has allowed designers to incorporate a sliding armrest and deep central cubbyhole.
The conventional dials have been replaced by a TFT screen that can be customised to show everything from fuel economy to the sat-nav. Honda Connect now comes with Apple Carplay and Android Auto, too, plus the Honda SENSING upgrade includes collision mitigation systems such as emergency braking, lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control and traffic sign recognition with intelligent speed assist as standard. The Civic is expected to gain the full five-star rating from Euro NCAP.