In 2016, Honda Civic comes of age

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Published on Friday, September 23, 2016

Over the years, Honda Civic has remained the nation’s favourite compact car, due to its combination of quality, reliability, value, low running costs and a more involving drive than most.  However, in order to maintain its place at the top of the compact class, Honda released an all-new 10th generation 2016 Civic at the end of 2015 with the intention of addressing the model’s shortcomings compared to its competitors. (Photo by Ben Castle)

By Ben Castle
The Banner

This time last year, I tested the “old” 2015 Honda Civic and concluded that it remains the nation’s favourite compact car due to its combination of quality, reliability, value, low running costs and a more involving drive than most.  However, despite having only been around for four model years, newer rivals have usurped it in terms of style, power, efficiency, driving experience, refinement and space.

In order to maintain its place at the top of the compact class, Honda released an all-new 10th generation 2016 Civic at the end of 2015 with the intention of addressing these shortcomings.  With over 38,000 units sold so far in 2016, it looks like Honda are going to have a bestseller for an 18th year in succession. So, have Honda done enough to ensure the continued dominance of their biggest success story?

Five trim levels

The Civic sedan is available in five trim levels: DX, LX, EX, EX-T and Touring.  

DX, LX and EX come with a new 2 litre i-VTEC four-cylinder engine with 158 horsepower and 138 pound foot of torque paired with a six-speed manual transmission or a CVT automatic transmission (EX is auto only).  EX-T and Touring models get a smaller, but more powerful, 1.5 litre direct injection four-cylinder engine with turbocharging, putting out 174 horsepower and 162 pound feet of torque.  This engine is only available with the CVT transmission.  They are rated at 5.8 litres per 100 kilometres and 5.5 litres per 100 kilometres highway respectively.

So, Civic isn’t quite the value-leading bargain that it used to be, but you do get a lot more car for your money and it now feels less economy car and more luxury car. (photo by Ben Castle)

The Civic DX starts at $16,155 and comes with 16 inch wheels, body-coloured door handles, power locks, windows and heated mirrors, rearview camera, folding rear seat, Bluetooth, projector-beam headlights, tilt and telescope steering wheel and ECON mode with ECO assist. The Civic DX is manual transmission only. For $2,900 more, LX trim adds an upgraded 180W stereo with eight speakers, audio controls on the steering wheel and 7” touchscreen, split rear seat, automatic climate control, heated front seats, automatic headlights, cruise control, body-coloured door mirrors and the option of the CVT transmission ($1,300).  An extra $2,400 for EX trim adds standard CVT, 16” aluminum wheels, dual-zone climate control, Honda LaneWatch blind spot display, power moonroof, proximity entry, push button start and remote engine starter. A $2,300 option on LX and EX models (CVT models only) is Honda sensing technologies.  This encompasses forward collision warning, collision mitigation braking, lane departure warning, road departure mitigation, adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assist system.  For a $2,400 premium over EX trim, EX-T gets the more powerful turbocharged engine plus trunk spoiler, 17” aluminum wheels, fog lights, leather-wrapped steering wheel and Honda sensing technologies as standard.  Finally, for $2,000 over the EX-T, Touring trim gains a 450W stereo with 10 speakers, HD and XM radio and navigation, leather seats with heaters in the rear, LED headlights, power front seats, wireless cellphone charging, auto-dimming rear view mirror and chrome door handles.  Civic is also available as a two door coupe in LX, EX-T and Touring trims.  Expect to pay around $400 more than the equivalent sedan, but you do get standard aluminum wheels on LX Coupe and steering-wheel mounted paddleshifters on turbo models.  In 2017, a hatchback bodystyle will also be added to the Civic range.

Bold look

My tester supplied by Forman Honda in Brandon was the $27,155 Civic Sedan Touring with the CVT transmission and more powerful turbocharged motor.  Honda has gone for a bold new look, which means that it looks very unique compared to the competition.  I was unsure about this departure at first but having lived with it for 24 hours, I now think it looks crisp, modern and the sleek, fastback profile should stand the test of time well.  Perhaps the styling is a little colour-sensitive but in the bright Aegean blue of our tester and in sporty Touring trim, I think that it looks great.  The C-shaped taillights are a particularly nice feature and the whole car looks a lot more grown up than before. 

This upmarket feel continues inside with comfortable, supportive seats, a more attractive dashboard design and nicer quality materials.  Honda has ditched the controversial two-tier dash and the still digital speedometer is now integrated in the centre of the analogue TFT tachometer display.  Also new is an electronic parking brake, which means much more storage in the centre console.  

Technology fans will love the capacitive touch controls for volume and ventilation on the steering wheel and touchscreen, as well as Honda’s unique LaneWatch blind spot display (standard on EX and above), which gives you a wide-angle camera image down the passenger’s side of the car. It’s an excellent and potentially life-saving feature.  I am also happy to say that Honda has integrated the camera much better into the exterior mirror design than on the previous Civic.  My only gripe is that the steering wheel is now a little button “heavy” and as a result, the functions are not quite as easy and intuitive to use as on my 2013 Civic.

If you enjoy shifting gears, you’ll either need to go for the DX or LX with the six-speed manual transmission or the Coupe with the turbo engine, which does come with paddleshifters for the CVT transmission.   It’s a little clichéd but the cabin feels very cockpit-like and you sit hunkered down in the driver’s seat, rather than on it, which gives you a greater feeling of security and the whole car feels a lot more substantial than the previous Civic.  

The steering has a bit more weight, which gives you more feel of what is happening at the front wheels and encourages you to exploit the excellent chassis, while the view over the sculpted hood allows you to place the car on the road very easily.  The suspension copes with bumps very well and is just on the sporty side of comfortable.  I noticed a bit more road noise in the turbo, probably due to the larger 17 inch wheels, so if you value refinement over performance and looks, then you may prefer the two litre models, equipped with 16 inch wheels.  

This upmarket feel continues inside with comfortable, supportive seats, a more attractive dashboard design and nicer quality materials.  Honda has ditched the controversial two-tier dash and the still digital speedometer is now integrated in the centre of the analogue TFT tachometer display. (photo by Ben Castle)

Contrary to the official figures, I averaged 8.7 litres per 100 kilometres in the turbo, which was a little disappointing and 7.3 litres per 100 kilometres in the two litre, which was pretty good.  However, I was not driving the turbo for economy and I have no doubt that the highway figure is achievable on a longer road trip.

Servicing costs should remain low thanks to Honda’s oil life monitor, which allows you extended service intervals. Peace of mind is offered by a three  year, 60,000km bumper-to-bumper warranty and five year, 100,000km powertrain warranty.

All versions recommended

For once, I can honestly recommend all versions.  Prices are a little higher than the outgoing Civic, but for the kit offered (typically more than the competition), all trim levels offer good value.  Most people will want a minimum of LX trim for climate and cruise and manual transmission fans are limited to DX or LX spec. On balance, you can’t really go wrong with EX trim, as with either engine it offers some nice additional features for a modest outlay.  Choose EX for refinement and EX-T for performance and sportier looks.       

So, Civic isn’t quite the value-leading bargain that it used to be, but you do get a lot more car for your money and it now feels less economy car and more luxury car.  More power, more efficiency, better ride and handling, a higher quality interior with the availability of premium car features, such as Honda sensing technologies and one of the roomiest interiors and trunks in its class.  Along with its bold new look, Honda have really raised the benchmark and ensured Civic’s continued success and status as the go to choice in the compact class.

Thanks in part to a longer wheelbase, Civic now has class-leading levels of interior space for rear passengers and at 428 litres, the trunk is both deeper and over 20 per cent larger than the old car.  The middle rear seat passenger will not suffer much intrusion from the centre console but the flat floor of the previous Civic has now gained a small transmission tunnel.  I expect that this has been done to lower road noise and stiffen the structure of the car.  Impressively, despite being larger, the new Civic is now on average spec-for-spec 2.5 per cent lighter than before.

How is it to drive?

So how is it to drive?  I was fortunate to be accompanied by Darren Frederick of Rivers and his 2 litre Civic LX sedan, also equipped with CVT transmission (the dark-coloured car in the picture on page B06), so I was lucky to be able to try both engines.  Even the lesser two litre engine has around 10 per cent more power than the old 1.8 litre and still feels strong.  Both engines have a very smooth, linear power delivery with the CVT transmission, which masks the turbocharged nature of the turbo engine very well and only when you require more power for overtaking will you really notice the extra torque available.  In the turbo, the transmission felt a little sluggish around town initially, but once acclimatized, it’s very responsive and makes the “Sport” mode a little redundant.  Unusually, this transmission has no manual override.