Team-BHP - Honda Civic : Official Review

Excellent review as usual clap: being a owner of civic (not in India), things i like the most are its steering, body control on corners and the styling. Personally, I feel civic is more aggressive looking than its competitors. Things that I don't like much are the price, bad ingress/egress especially for elders, you gotta bend yourself to get in and out of the low seats, road and tire noise. I felt corolla to be better especially in the last two aspects, but in terms of driving - no no for corolla.

Overall I like Civic and Octavia in this segment, but I always choose civic, may be because of the childhood craze I had for the previous generation stupid:

Have always loved the Civic. It has that emotional connect but sadly this car just doesn't feel like a Civic. I always wanted a Civic but a visit to SL changed my mind. There are tonnes of civics over there and it just did not appeal to me. I went for the City instead. Coming to the car, Honda really messed up with the engine. How can you screw up the one thing that you are known for? I like the front and rear of the vehicle but the side view makes the Civic look like an elongated hatchback. Would I buy one if I needed a D1 car? Probably not.

A brilliant review as always. Thank you Blackwasp. 5 stars!

It’s just irritating that there is no car in the d segment that appeals to both the head and heart anymore.
It’s a case of either , the car is fuss free to own and reliable but dull to drive or the car is exciting and thrilling to drive but it’s an ownership nightmare.

I thought the civic would be bridging that gap. At the very least I was hoping they would launch a 156 bhp n/a 2.0 litre with a manual. They couldn’t even do that . Blast. :Frustrati

Contrarian view. What a car! And the T-Bhp review has done full justice to how Honda has tried to restore it's reputation as a car maker giving quality product, after its tin cans from 2012 onwards.

My summary of negatives from this review- (1) low ingress/egress (2) engine. It is the latter which is the big one, and the one which is going to keep the potential buyers away from this car. Otherwise what a fantastic product. For someone like me, especially someone keen on maintaining only one car in the garage, a Skoda does not even come into 'purchase consideration' because of you know what. I am sure many 'discuss' it- it's great to compare on paper and use as a beating stick for other manufacturers, but nothing more. If Honda provides a RS version of this car in 6 months time, they will get my cheque.

As usual, a comprehensive review :thumbs up

Some takeaways I had, after reading and looking at the pics :

Like :
- design has placed huge onus on aerodynamics (The entire shape is aero dictated, and there are even slats outer to the fog lamps to provide air-curtain to front wheels)
- NVH has been given due importance, thankfully
- underbody protection metal plate

Dislike :
- front seats gives lower back pain to the enthusiast (who doesnt get a manual with the revv happy petrol) & rear seats will make Mr.Sethji sit with kness up. Completely surprised that something as important as seats are compromised, in a 20 lac car.
- Imagine if it was the other way around, petrol+MT and diesel+AT - curious to know whether someone inverted the polarity of a logic truth table at Honda.
- hornpad is completely unergonomic. The steering controls are needlessly given too much real estate, making pressing the horn extremely hard. Women drivers with shorter thumbs will struggle for sure. In a country like india, the horn is body armour.
- center air vents cant open/close, how hard can it be ?
- in the manual car, looks like the small gap between dead pedal and C pedal is likely to cause left foot rubbing while engaging clutch
- maruti-800-esque brightness stalk for the console. :Frustrati
- what if the front passenger accidentally presses the 'eco' button while climbing up a steep ghat ?
- manual sunroof ? the whole point of a sunroof is to show it off like peacock feathers to guests in your car ; manual would mean the feathers have no colour.
- naked uncovered sheet metal inside boot is an eyesore in a 20lac car. Some felt sheet. How hard can it be ?

I'll be surprised if Honda sells too many of this car in India. They've clearly not done their HW:
+No Petrol MT?
+No diesel AT?
+No powerful diesel?

Team-BHP is comparing Hyundai Elantra's petrol with the Civic? Damn it Honda, Hyundai have upped their game and you haven't. Such a shame as Honda were always known for their superior petrol engines. D1 segments have another formidable competitor in India- the Innova Crysta and other SUVs. If car makers can't launch products with distinguishable features, Well, good luck! Honda shouldn't have even taken the effort to launch it.:Frustrati

Great review @blackwasp clap:

I am seeing a few more new Civics in BLR now, and I must say, this car looks really nice in real life, sure it lacks the elegance of the Octavia, but the car does stand out in traffic.

The fit and finish are excellent and I really like the front nose and those delicious alloys.

Honda really messed up a great chance to bring some life back in the D segment sedan market with innovative pricing for the Civic.

This was a real opportunity for Honda to price the Civic competitively and destroy the competition.

What's a few bucks in profits when the brand is facing death by a thousand cuts?

The Civic will likely be on life-support by the same time next year.

It takes real talent to squander the 'gold-plated' reputation built by the 8th generation Civic, Honda has gone ahead and done just that.

What a shame, that this very accomplished automobile and a historic nameplate will be a market flop thanks to the greed of its parents.

Great review - thanks for sharing!

Everything about the car is fine, except the decades-old 1.8L petrol engine and sluggish CVT. That's really taken the Civic off the radar for BHPians. When you spend 20 lakhs on a sedan, you don't like compromises. Even when it comes to diesels, the Civic is at the back of the pack (only the Corolla 1.4L is behind it).

Honda's strategy has left me scratching my head. First, they dented their reputation with all the cheapening of the mass-market models (e.g. Mobilio, City niggles). Now, they're goofing up in the premium segments. The overpriced Accord Hybrid has disappeared from the market (0 sales for a long time). The overpriced CR-V has been selling an average of 60 units / month for the last 3 months. And now, the Civic with its mediocre engine + gearbox combinations.

Also sharing a pic of a Civic with an after-market spoiler which doesn't suit it one bit!

Honda Civic : Official Review-20190713-11.46.03.jpg

To quirky and to expensive middle of no where product.
It runs like your fathers old sedan but looks like a boy racers futuristic ride . Not to mention, seating comfort is nothing to write home about and trust me when I say this, getting in and out of that rear seat is just agonizing. Pricing is the cherry on the cake.
The game has moved forward Honda.

All these days I was searching to see one in Bangalore roads. Yesterday found one red one. The back looked like a chopped duck without feathers, all reddish!, and the left with that side cam on the mirror looked like some extra growth on the duck :uncontrol

It never was evident it was a Civic from a distance.

So road presence and an identity like the old one is also lost!!

Looks are subjective, its my opinion, who lived with 8th gen for over a decade, and looked forward to next gen!

Despite the lackluster engine Honda Civic is topping the sales chart! This means the mass has accepted the car. For one 1.8L mill is quite refined if not best, secondly this is probably the best bling car in the segment which is important criteria for the masses. I believe a 1.8 MT will make wonders for Honda and will also attract some enthusiasts!

Stonker of a review! Rating it top 5 stars as soon as my browser stops being clumsy and lets me rate!

I have seen the red Civic in person almost daily now up close and simply couldn't like it. Somewhere Honda and Toyota have lost their aesthetic and design experts. I wont be surprised if they are all found at Suzuki. Its unbelievable to see that Suzuki, the smaller of the Japs actually makes very sleek, proportionate & European looking cars now while Toyota and Honda are both somewhere in a time warp trying to get attention for next Transformers reboot!!
8th gen was a looker, and the latest one makes the older one look ever so better. Timeless that one.

The tail lamp cluster when i first saw it, made me feel like a tree branch fell squarely on a Jazz's derriere stamped it into a coupe Civic rear!! It looks exactly that way. Such lack of imagination is unacceptable really from Honda for a 2 million car.

And who on earth approved those lights on the extreme edges of bumper/fender on the front sides :Shockked:
Only 1% cars in India don't scratch/brush that area against other vehicles and pillars in tight parkings. Those lights will surely be the highest sold spare part from Honda authorized parts bin. Simply stupid not to change it for Indian practical scenario.

I won't talk at all about the engines. This car is going to increase sale of the excellent Octavia. There will be smiles at VW-SKODA surely.