Honda Civic Sport
Honda Civic Sport VTEC Turbo £22,000 (ish)
WE SAY: EARLY DRIVE OF PRE-PRODUCTION CIVIC REVEALS A MAJOR SHIFT FROM THE OLD CAR…
The new Civic, already? Yes, we’re driving the quickest one, until the new Type R arrives next year. It’s a Civic Sport complete with a major body kit, 17in rims, the 179bhp 1.5-litre engine and centrally mounted tailpipes. It’s a much bigger car (130mm longer, 30mm wider and 20mm lower) than Civic MkIV. Still got a wing across the back window? Yup, but other trademarks have gone. The fuel tank has crawled from under the front seats to hide beneath the rears. So you lose the folding “magic” seats with their cinema-style flip-up bottoms, but the front seats’ hip point drops 35mm lower. Matt Neal BTCC fantasies ahoy.
Honda has binned the two-tier dash, in favour of smart digital instruments in the usual place. And though overall cargo room has swelled by one token litre to 478, there’s no longer a cavernous cellar below the generous boot’s floor. Why not? Because centre-mounted exhausts and better rear suspension. Honda wants generation Call of Duty more than Call the Midwife. Any good inside? A mixed bag. Honda insists the materials are premium quality, but they’re not, and there are still too many contrasting surfaces and weird clashing angles.
The driving position is better sorted than the old Civic’s but the infotainment touchscreen is sluggish. Rear visibility is pinched, and the roofline eats headroom, so any advantage from the 95mm extra wheelbase is lost. And you no longer get versatile acrobatic seats as a pay-off. Is it fast? Wind it past 4,500rpm and there’s a palpable surge. That’s the VTEC kicking in. It’s exciting, even though you’re not going any quicker than say, a Seat Leon FR. The gearshift is typical Honda – a peach. Does it do corners? We’ll need a longer drive to really chuck the Civic around, but it makes a strong first impression. It’s agile and keen, which is surprising given how enormous it’s become. The steering is quick and accurate, and on German roads, the Sport rides pliantly. For car-liking folk, that’s applause-worthy.