Author Topic: Test Drive: 2012 Honda Civic EX sedan (Read 22221 times)

Autos_Editor · « **on:** March 14, 2012, 05:05:14 am »

It may not be the class leader it once was, but the 2012 Civic is still a smart compact car choice.

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sailor723 · « **Reply #1 on:** March 14, 2012, 05:24:56 am »

I wonder, is the new Civic really that bad or is it that all the others in it's class gotten that much better?

JohnM · « **Reply #2 on:** March 14, 2012, 06:28:39 am »

A very fair review.

If the Civic did better than the other compacts, it did so in winter conditions with 4 snows whereas the Focus and Cruze were tested in warmer fall weather with all seasons.

So the Civic really delivers in fuel efficiency compared to those two.

Clearly, the Civic is walking a much finer line in the competitive race but initial disappointment with Honda's failure to deliver an absolute class leader seems to be changing to realization that it is still a pretty decent and competitive car. It would seem to still be the leader in fuel efficiency, reliability (ok tied for the lead) and now, given the aggressive pricing, a leader in value.

Not the most compelling proposition for gear heads but probably enough for most buyers.

Cheers,
John M.

Ex-airbalancer · « **Reply #3 on:** March 14, 2012, 07:53:02 am »

the review starts off little like a women's self-help book

a little too weird Mike

and a new civic in '96 to go to school, were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth

the last civic redo was over top , and I think people wanted that again, instead Honda probably listened to their customer and improved in some areas

it would be nice to see EPA numbers and a total number of km driven

SMMN · « **Reply #4 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:11:14 am »

No excuse for the crappy 1980s interior - what were they thinking?

tpl · « **Reply #5 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:15:10 am »

Quote from: airbalancer on March 14, 2012, 07:53:02 am

the review starts off little like a women's self-help book a little too weird Mike

and a new civic in '96 to go to school, were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth

the last civic redo was over top , and I think people wanted that again, instead Honda probably listened to their customer and improved in some areas

it would be nice to see EPA numbers and a total number of km driven

He said it was his friends civic. Anyway a civis is not a silver spoon... a new 3-series is a silver spoon.

D70 · « **Reply #6 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:27:19 am »

Quote from: airbalancer on March 14, 2012, 07:53:02 am

the review starts off little like a women's self-help book a little too weird Mike

and a new civic in '96 to go to school, were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth

the last civic redo was over top , and I think people wanted that again, instead Honda probably listened to their customer and improved in some areas

it would be nice to see EPA numbers and a total number of km driven

Looks like good value

real world figures

http://www.fuelly.com/driver/stanbo/civic

Mike · « **Reply #7 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:32:30 am »

Quote from: tpl on March 14, 2012, 08:15:10 am

Quote from: airbalancer on March 14, 2012, 07:53:02 am
the review starts off little like a women's self-help book a little too weird Mike

and a new civic in '96 to go to school, were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth

the last civic redo was over top , and I think people wanted that again, instead Honda probably listened to their customer and improved in some areas

it would be nice to see EPA numbers and a total number of km driven

He said it was his friends civic. Anyway a civis is not a silver spoon... a new 3-series is a silver spoon.

My friends mom was a teacher and his dad worked near her. His dad would drop her off as long as my friend would pick her up after school. That way we got the 1996 Honda Civic DX Auto for school. I always got a ride since he lived on my street

And yeah, I grew up in Markham and went to high school in the mid 90's. Half of us walked (or made weird arrangements with our parents to drive their cars), the other half arrived in brand new BMW's, Mercedes, Camrys, etc bought exclusively for these 17 year olds.

nlm · « **Reply #8 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:33:37 am »

Has Honda become the new Toyota? I find this vehicle so boring I couldn't even finish the article. Sorry Mike, it's not you, it's the car.

Mike · « **Reply #9 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:35:08 am »

Quote from: nlm on March 14, 2012, 08:33:37 am

Has Honda become the new Toyota? I find this vehicle so boring I couldn't even finish the article. Sorry Mike, it's not you, it's the car.

Well, it is more fun than the Accord EX-L Navi I am in now.

Jaeger · « **Reply #10 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:37:51 am »

Good review. Kind of confirms most of what I have read of the new Civic. I hope you guys get to test an Si one of these days.

Jaeger

CanuckS2K · « **Reply #11 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:41:40 am »

Quote from: sailor723 on March 14, 2012, 05:24:56 am

I wonder, is the new Civic really that bad or is it that all the others in it's class gotten that much better?

IMHO, it's because the others in the compact class have gotten better....much much better. Back in 06 when Honda released the 8th gen Civic I would say that the Civic was easily the class leader against the likes of the Corolla, Spectra, Elantra, Focus, Cobalt, etc. I couldn't imagine choosing any one of those competitors over the Civic back then. Today, that's not the case. Competition has stepped up their designs, their feature content, and reliability. The new Civic is not a bad car by any means. It's definitely not the class leader anymore though.

I've said for awhile now that Honda has lost it's way and has rested on it's laurels. They are no longer the innovative company that they used to be. My wife ended up choosing a new Civic simply based on the low lease payment. She loves her new car, especially for the price. Having said that, if the Elantra Limited w/Nav was the same lease payment as the Civic, the Elantra would be home in our driveway. Instead, the Civic was around $75 less a month than the Elantra. At least Honda hasn't lost it's ability to build a good driver's car. The Civic definitely had the best driving dynamics out of the cars we test drove.

Mike, that was a very good non-biased article. I can't say that I disagree with anything you wrote.

Mike · « **Reply #12 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:45:39 am »

Quote from: Jaeger on March 14, 2012, 08:37:51 am

Good review. Kind of confirms most of what I have read of the new Civic. I hope you guys get to test an Si one of these days.

Jaeger

We had one when we put together the buyer's Guide. It was a blast to drive

redman · « **Reply #13 on:** March 14, 2012, 08:55:57 am »

It's known that new younger consumers no longer carry the flag for any car company as there fathers might have, there loyalty lies with value and not so much make of the car. That being said Honda and with other car companies are finding out that the "build it and they will come" attitude no longer rings as loudly as it once did.
Every model now gets a fairer less biased assessment by the consumer. I think that Honda and a few others are resting on their past sales and have dropped out striving to be number one...the best, as evident by this latest civic, which already has a recall as well as some other issue that has lowered Honda's dependability ratings.
The big Japanese companies are becoming as slow to react as the American companies were decades ago to product and market change. Subaru and Mazda (smaller Japanese Co.) are reacting faster and offering more value in their cars.
With the Koreans taking leap frog jumps it's only a matter of time before we see them do to the Japanese what the Japanese did to the U.S. car companies.

How is a Civic with less options and higher price still considered a better value to the writer vs other comparable models i.e. Elantra ?

Ex-airbalancer · « **Reply #14 on:** March 14, 2012, 09:29:18 am »

And yeah, I grew up in Markham and went to high school in the mid 90's. Half of us walked (or made weird arrangements with our parents to drive their cars), the other half arrived in brand new BMW's, Mercedes, Camrys, etc bought exclusively for these 17 year olds.

I know the feeling, went to Etobicoke CI , in Toronto , Royal York & Bloor, and since it had a tech wing all of us low lifes from the Queenway
We use walk to school about 3km, and you would the kids in their MB driving up , no civic back then

opg210 · « **Reply #15 on:** March 14, 2012, 09:58:29 am »

Good review Mike, very fair I'd say.

I think a lot of us gearheads remember the days when a new Civic launch was a big deal, and the new model blew away the old one and everything else. Now it is indeed a tougher job to stand out from the crowd.

However, Honda seems to agree they've at least partially lost their way. I read a recent article about how the spirit of Soichiro Honda seems to have been lost, where he'd wander around screaming at engineers that what they were working on just wasn't good enough and he didn't want to hear cost excuses. Honda has apparently given two fairly senior guys a separate operation where they evaluate new products, even quite advanced ones, and will shoot them down if they aren't great enough. The article I read said they'd done just that a few times including something on the next Accord.

Sounds like they might get back on track. I look forward to reading about future Hondas that shock everyone with greatness like they used to.

Canadiain · « **Reply #16 on:** March 14, 2012, 10:03:01 am »

Ive had my new Civic EX since the start of March, Id say Mikes review is right on the money. The competition can beat the Civic in some areas, but none offer the same overall package for the money.

I have the 5 speed manual box and so far my real world economy on blizzacs is 7.4l/ 100km. Its suprising to me how having the blue/green fuel nanny in your face does alter how you drive, I find I change up gears earlier in town, and dont tend to drive with quite as heavy a right foot as a result of seing the guage change. Mine has the light beige interior which I think doesnt seem quite so bad to look at, and I had the dealer put in heated seats.

Mike · « **Reply #17 on:** March 14, 2012, 10:11:57 am »

Quote from: Canadiain on March 14, 2012, 10:03:01 am

Ive had my new Civic EX since the start of March, Id say Mikes review is right on the money. The competition can beat the Civic in some areas, but none offer the same overall package for the money.

I have the 5 speed manual box and so far my real world economy on blizzacs is 7.4l/ 100km. Its suprising to me how having the blue/green fuel nanny in your face does alter how you drive, I find I change up gears earlier in town, and dont tend to drive with quite as heavy a right foot as a result of seing the guage change. Mine has the light beige interior which I think doesnt seem quite so bad to look at, and I had the dealer put in heated seats.

It's crazy that the dealer has to do it. Maybe Honda will include them with the next refresh.

5 Wheel Drive · « **Reply #18 on:** March 14, 2012, 10:20:48 am »

I finally got to check the new Civic out for myself at the Toronto Auto show a few weeks ago so I could see for myself what all the fuss was about. Personally, I didn't find the interior as cheap as it had been made out to be. I think it's just the material that's used on the top of he dash and doors. Honda could go a long way to improving the interior my changing it to something a little softer. I've always loved Honda's, and had many of them, but the interiors of the new Elantra and Focus are much nicer. Still, can't go wrong with buying one.

dirtyjeffer · « **Reply #19 on:** March 14, 2012, 10:24:20 am »

i don't mind the Civic, and don't really get all the flack it gets...as has been said, the competition has really stepped up its game, but the Civic is still a great car...5 years ago, you would really have to convince yourself NOT to get one...now, it is one of many great choices out there.