The reveal of the 2016 Honda Civic Coupe at the 2015 LA Auto Show is of particular interest, for a handful of reasons.

For starters, by now most are aware that the Civic has been Canada’s bestselling family car for over a decade now, so any time a new model is released well there are a lot of interested parties.

Secondly, while we Canadians have always had to turn to the coupe for our sporty Honda vibes since we haven’t seen the hatch version since the ’05 SiR, the hatch is coming back, so the Coupe has some in-house competition in North America for the first time in a while.

Finally, the new Civic sedan is such a departure on the styling front from the last model, the Coupe will need to work that much harder to stand out from its four-door brethren.

So, has it done the trick?

Well, yes and no, I’d say. The Coupe shares its front end with the sedan, but everything back of the A-pillars is unique to the Coupe. The result is a car that’s a little more hatchback-like than the last model, and the look from the rear three-quarter perspective is a good one. From the side, however, the profile is a little too close to the defunct Hyundai Tiburon, even if it does get a longer wheelbase (+74 mm) and is wider overall (+48 mm) than the sedan.

That rear fascia, though – the wrap-around tailamps, decklid spoiler and twin exhaust outlets all add purpose to the new car – and they haven’t even revealed the sporty Si variant yet! Having said that, both the wing and those sparkly wheels you see are actually accessories, and not standard kit.

Catch Up on All the LA Auto Show News Here

Inside, the space can really be felt, especially in the back seats. Aside from the snug headroom (just look at that swooping roofline; what’d you expect?), I could fit my 6’3” frame back there no problem. Three – or perhaps even four – adults could fit comfortably back there. Otherwise, the interior accoutrements are the same found in the sedan, meaning you’ve got one of the biggest optional touchscreens in the biz, and some nicely damped knobs and responsive buttons.

Power comes from the same to engines the sedan has; a 2.0L naturally aspirated four (158 hp, 133 lb-ft of torque) and – for the first time in a showroom Civic – a 1.5L turbo four, good for 174 hp and 162 lb-ft. So until the Si arrives (it hasn’t quite been confirmed, but there were plenty of winks and nudges at the launch), that’s your sporty choice if you can live with the CVT – your only choice with the 1.5 for the time being. Sounds like a manual option is in the cards, though.

Expect pricing announcements closer to launch in Summer of ’16.

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