The Honda Civic has been a recommended car to drive for over a decade. Blending good styling with good performance, efficiency, and good handling as well, its not hard to see why the affordable Civic was on everyones radar. But something happened with the latest 2012 Civic, not only was the car given a dull redesign, but it seems as though Honda has watered down the cars driving dynamics, and perhaps even cut costs with cheaper materials. Consumer Reports magazine recently dropped the Civic from it's recommended list, but is the Civic really that bad or did the competition simply come out with a better product?
The 2012 Civic uses the same engine as the previous generation, although this time it has been tuned for fuel efficiency, all though it produces the same power. A 1.8L 4 cylinder SOHC 16 valve VVT-i engine produces 140 hp and 128 lb-ft of torque. Some auto critics have written that the Civic just does not handle the way it used to, and also its not fun to drive like previous generations were. There is also an ECO button which when activated, it tones down throttle response, modifies the transmissions shift mapping, and also reduces air conditioning effectiveness, all in the name of fuel economy. It averages 7.2 L/per 100 KM city driving and 5.0 L on the highway.
New cars coming from America and even Asia are much nicer when placed alongside the Civic. The Ford Focus, Kia Forte, Hyundai Elantra, Chevy Cruze, and Mazda3 are all much more dramatic and better looking cars, with fuel efficiency and good handling dynamics to boot. Thats not to say the Civic fails in every regard. It is a smooth vehicle, quiet, comfortable, safe and solid. What puts the competition above it is the fact that the interior materials are lower in quality, the steering feel is numb, the exterior style is dull, its cannot handle corners the way previous generation Civics could. And even the Hyundai Elantra gets better fuel economy than the Civic. Then there is that terrible "2 level" dashboard design with the tachometer where it belongs, although its all by itself because the digital speedometer is in the middle of nowhere on top of the dash, sticking out like a sore thumb. That style works for some people, but not for most.
Despite these shortcomings, the Civic still is not an ugly car (only on the inside), its still very good on gas, still has decent power for safe highway operation, still safe, still reliable, and still solid. The Civic remains very roomy as well, and also in the back seat area the floor is flat (no transmission tunnel) which aids backseat comfort better than the competition. It also offers SatNav in the upper trim levels, which some of the competition does not giving the Civic an edge. Features such as bluetooth, leather seating, digital readouts, and a trip computer that judges your driving and coaches you to drive more fuel efficiently, should help keep customers walking through Honda's doors. If only this car was styled in a more modern fashion, with better driving capabilities (like in previous generations) it could have stayed on top of Consumer Reports recommended list. Hopefully Honda will quickly realize the error in their thinking and get to work on a top selling, highly recommended vehicle that will woo consumers once again - and soon too!
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