[Jeevith]

Originally Posted by Jeevith

Was wondering if anyone has seen the facelift being camouflage tested. Or would there not been a need for any, considering the changes are merely cosmetic?

Slow day at work, so did my own research...here are some pics of what the facelift might look like. Image source is http://magnoliahousebnb.com/sneak-pr...da-civic-2000/

[nitinhegde]

The one that was shown during the Auto Expo in India(& also posted here in videos, snaps) maybe the one that will be launched AS IS. Not sure they will do any facelift further.

[itwasntme]

Back from a Bangkok visit and among sedans, I am amazed at the popularity of the Honda City, Civic and Accord here along with the Toyota Camry. In India, both these manufacturers just dropped out of the D1 & D2 segments due to various reasons like the diesel vs petrol conundrum caused by policy flip-flops, then high subsidy on diesel, high import duties on CBUs, and of course ultra-slow and risk-averse internal decision making processes.

To think they both had extensive manufacturing, distribution and service setups across India, and they just ditched the Civic & Accord and provided step-motherly treatment to the Camry. For the last few years Honda's India flagship has been the City and Toyota with the Corolla.

Even today, Honda India is dithering on the Civic! Words fail me.

[nikipedia87]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

In India, both these manufacturers just dropped out of the D1 & D2 segments due to various reasons like the diesel vs petrol conundrum caused by policy flip-flops, then high subsidy on diesel, high import duties on CBUs, and of course ultra-slow and risk-averse internal decision making processes.

In India, the D1 and D2 segments are ruled by SUVs. Hence, the sedans in the segment are not faring as well as they would have otherwise. The previous generation Civic was also pulled out of India owing to low demand. Now with the plush new XUV and the Jeep Compass among others dominating the segment, it is to be seen how well the Civic will do once it is launched here.

Personally, though, I am looking forward to the Civic. City as Honda's flagship product in India doesn't do any justice to them.

[Wanderers]

With the price of top variant honda city touching 16 lakhs on road in delhi, civic will start somewhere close to 20 lakhs and go all the way upto 25-27 lakhs.

Question is how many people would buy at this price point and will it not lead to the same fate as its predecessor.
Answer could be big no, if we get hybrid version in the top variant.

[nitinhegde]

I think Civic has a big oomph factor going with it and probably will fill the void of a good Sedan in this D1/D2 segment. It is a big success worldwide. I will prefer Civic over Compass due to lacklustre Petrol AT of compass - hence, waiting for Civic. Maybe Kia motors may play spoilsport with their new SUV launch in 2019 - who knows!

[CarguyNish]

Honda introduces a 9-speed automatic transmission on the Honda Civic in Europe.

Honda Civic Gets A Diesel Automatic Option For The First Time.

Option likely to be offered on Indian Spec Civic.

The new generation Honda Civic looks stellar and has now become even more convenient with the option of an automatic on the diesel version. Honda has introduced a new 9-speed automatic transmission on the Civic diesel in Europe, the first time the company is offering the option of a diesel automatic on the sedan.

The new Civic diesel automatic promises to offer added convenience to the sedan. Until now, the sedan was offered with a manual and CVT gearbox options on the petrol, while the diesel only used a 6-speed manual.

The interesting bit however, is that the Civic is India-bound and our market just might get the option of a diesel automatic when it arrives here in 2019.

The 2018 Honda Civic diesel is powered by the 1.6-litre turbocharged, four-cylinder engine produces 118 bhp at 4000 rpm and 300 Nm of peak torque at 2000 rpm. The Civic diesel AT can accelerate from 0-100 kmph in 11 seconds, and records a top speed of 200 kmph. The performance numbers are slightly low, when compared to its petrol counterpart, while the fuel economy takes a hit over the 6-speed manual and is rated at 24.39 kmpl (68.9 mpg) on the combined NEDC cycle. The emissions rating is listed at 108 g/km

Honda says the 9-speed automatic offers linear acceleration. The wide-spread gears help boost efficiency with the very low first-gear ratio offering smooth delivery, while the high top-gear ratio ensures low engine speed while cruising. The 9-speed AT is also capable of skipping gears for quick response, and can shift down directly from 9th to 5th gear or from 7th to 4th gear depending on the requirement

.

The Civic will also be offered with a 1.8-litre i-VTEC petrol churning out 138 bhp, along with the diesel. India will get the Civic facelift that will make its international debut later this year.

Source

[bhpfaninblr]

The Civic with a 1.6 L 120 bhp diesel engine will be under-powered compared to the VW Jetta. They needed to get the twin turbo diesel engine to India

[Waspune]

Originally Posted by bhpfaninblr

The Civic with a 1.6 L 120 bhp diesel engine will be under-powered compared to the VW Jetta. They needed to get the twin turbo diesel engine to India

The Civic might still do fine but a bigger issue is that the same engine is going to come in the CRV as well which will cost more and weight more as well.

[shashanka]

The Civic was a great Honda flagship when launched in India. Its major drawback (as told to me by two friends from Gurgaon who opted for the model) and one which they never stopped grumbling about was its abysmal ground clearance - with the car scraping the bottom at least once during an outing. Till they learned to crawl diagonally over the mildest of rumblers.

If Honda has put paid to this issue then the new Civic should do well - once the bad after-taste of the earlier Civic has worn off.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by bhpfaninblr

The Civic with a 1.6 L 120 bhp diesel engine will be under-powered compared to the VW Jetta. They needed to get the twin turbo diesel engine to India

Jetta is anyways discontinued in India, with the new generation not going to be introduced either. So that leaves us with the Octavia only.

The 1.6 120hp engine doesn't sound bad for the segment considering the Elantra - those who want sheer performance might get the Octavia, but others will not mind going for the Honda / Hyundai.

[hiren.mistry]

And let's not forget the 'mighty' 1.4 88BHP powerhouse that is the Toyota Corolla Altis. In that light, 120 BHP is big jump and with the correct gearing which I assume the 9 speed gearbox will have, should provide decent acceleration.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Back from a Bangkok visit and among sedans........Honda India is dithering on the Civic! Words fail me.

They needn't, actually. The earlier Civic had left a bad taste with the Indian buying public because of its astonishingly low G.C., which caused it to scrape bottom in a well-laden car on almost every outing. If Honda has rectified this tooth-ache, there is every reason for it to succeed in its new avatar. Honda has a huge & successful racing pedigree (F1) and is well known for having gone on record and saying - with deep pride - that "we build engines". The nit-pickers & carpers can continue with their smile-inducing criticisms.

The one thing mfrs - at least the sensitized ones! - keep in mind is that India is a highly "price sensitive" market. In other words, they are highly VFM-conscious. Civic is in the D-segment ball park, rubbing shoulders with the likes of BMW & M-B, mostly RWDers. Whereas the Civic is a large FWD sedan. This is an inherent disadvantage which savvy, prospective buyers in this segment are well aware of, and hopefully Honda will keep it in mind when doing their sums.

[Acharya]

Well, if I was in shoes of Honda Management, I wouldn't bother launching Civic in India.
Lets first look at potential market size of D segment car, it is not even 1000 cars a month. Secondly, roads in India are not suitable for low GC cars, it also explain the general shift towards SUV/psedo SUVs in the country.

Furthermore, certain big car makers in India have ensured that car industry remains highly cost conscious, at the cost of overall quality, at times.

Eventually, when a manufacturer puts bets in such difficult market and take serious risks, it should have at least a potential for big success. The most positive outcome that Honda can think of, is 1k car per month. It's not reward enough to put management efforts and waste company time.

Perhaps, Indians want either Maruti/Hyundai cars or German cars (as shown by their consistent growth in last decade), rest in between can barely survive in India.
Toyota is an exception in this equation, but it also failed to crack the mass market with Liva/Etios.

I know it sounds very negative in an Auto enthusiast forum, just my opinion.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Acharya

Perhaps, Indians want either Maruti/Hyundai cars or German cars (as shown by their consistent growth in last decade), rest in between can barely survive in India.
Toyota is an exception in this equation, but it also failed to crack the mass market with Liva/Etios.

Honda India is the 4th largest in terms of sales in July, much ahead of Toyota. The Europeans like Skoda you mention above sell a fraction of the numbers Honda does.

So if Octavia can exist in the market without any value concerns - don't see why the Civic can't either. If nothing else - it will help bring the aspirational value back into a brand that has lost it big time in the recent years.

For the numbers - they can always bet on the HRV, which will also bring a lot of profitability to the Civic in terms of part sharing. Don't see why that cannot happen either. If a failed company like FCA could make a blockbuster out of the Compass - Honda could have done it long back without any worries.