The Honda Civic, like the larger Accord, is one of Honda’s bread-and-butter vehicles. The latest Civic comes to Australia at a very attractive price, due mostly to it being built in Thailand and benefiting from the free-trade agreement between Australia and Thailand.
Only sedans are being brought into Australia at this stage, and it is thought that the European hatches would be pretty expensive here.
Styling is good, but the forward setting of the windscreen creates significant blind spots at the A-pillar. Rear-seat headroom is slightly restricted by the sloping roof so tall adults should try it for size. The 'double-deck' instrument layout has upper gauges including a large digital speedo that minimises the length of time you take your eyes off the road.
Considerable effort has gone into making the new Honda Civic smoother and quieter than the old, but there's a fair bit of tyre noise on coarse-chip surfaces. Propulsion is somewhat hampered by the five-speed automatic, which tends to upshift quickly at lower speeds.
Handling is good, with plenty of road grip and predictable feedback through the electric power steering. It doesn't have quite the superb European feeling of big brother Accord Euro, though.
Build quality was generally good on the Civics, but the occasional one might have an irritating rattle. Perhaps the Thai factory isn't quite up to the very high standards of the Japanese one. Like its big brother the Accord, the Civic represents the middle of the road in almost every aspect.
