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2013 Honda Civic Sedan 
The revised 2013 Honda Civic sedan lives up to the “Better” advertising hype. Then again, “Better” is not exactly a lofty goal or a proud boast from the top compact car in U.S. sales. Is chrome on the grille and trunk lid enough to banish the memories of last year’s poverty-spec Civic sedan? Despite being a total snooze to sports car enthusiasts, the Civic sedan packs the most diverse powerplant options of any passenger vehicle ever sold commercially, including: gasoline, hybrid and CNG This little econobox is singlehandedly preparing for the diverse energy mix we all have in our futures. The Civic’s hybrid system finally matches Toyota’s third-gen Prius for sophistication and economy, while the CNG option is looking more enticing than ever thanks to America’s natural gas revolution pushing prices to record lows. Additionally, Honda has taken a number of complaints about the 2012 Civic to heart, such as the unacceptable road noise and harshness, negative amounts of road style, and an interior full of unusual shapes jammed together like a losing Tetris game. Can the 2013 Honda Civic sedan pivot from mediocrity with blankets of NVH material, some LEDs and infotainment tech from the new Accord? Click past the jump for the full review of the Honda Civic Sedan. Full story
2014 Honda Civic Tourer
At the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, Honda unveiled a quite interesting Civic Tourer Concept and, of course, everyone was expecting a production version to follow shortly after. Today, after just one month since the concept made its world debut, the production version has been caught testing for the first time. As no surprise, the production version will look a lot like the concept, but Honda decided to fully camouflage it in an attempt to hide some design elements taken from the Civic hatchback. Most of the design elements borrowed from the standard version, like the taillight shape and the low roofline, will stay like on the concept. The new Civic Tourer will likely be unveiled in September at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show with sales to being in early 2014. The model will be produced at the Swindon plant in the UK alongside the Civic hatch. Honda is expecting the Tourer to make a total of 20% of the Civic sales. Full story
2014 Honda Civic Tourer ConceptDuring the 2012 Paris Auto Show, Honda has announced a few details on its future plans, and we sure like what we have heard so far. The company has announced that the new generation Civic will also receive a station wagon version and a more powerful Type R derivation. As proof of this statement, they have also unveiled a teaser image of the wagon model. A first concept version of the next Civic Wagon has been unveiled in March 2013 at the Geneva Motor Show, with the production version to arrive in dealerships in early 2014. The upcoming Wagon will look pretty much identical to the sedan version, except, of course, for a swooping roofline, bulging wheel arches, a roof-rack, and its capability to accommodate more luggage. The car will be built on the same platform and will be offered with the same engine line-up as the sedan, but we will also see a new 1.6 i-DTEC engine. A hybrid version could also be a possibility. UPDATE 03/07/13: Honda has unveiled new images and video for the new Civic Tourer Concept unveiled at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. Mugen Gives the Honda Civic a New Styling Package
The current-generation Honda Civic’s design has been much maligned by everybody, including Honda itself. The reception’s been so bad that even Honda tried to hustle through extensive interior and exterior design upgrades for the 2013 model. Fortunately, the Japanese automaker’s in-house aftermarket arm, Mugen, has come to offer some assistance of its own in the form of a new styling package for the Euro-spec Civic. The package is purely aesthetics, which actually is a good thing considering the amount of help the Civic needs to make it palatably desirable. Mugen’s new front spoiler and a revised grille are big bonuses to add a splash of aggression to the car’s front profile. Aerodynamic side skirts are also offered, as is a new rear diffuser, a carbon-fiber rearview mirror cover, a tailgate-mounted wing, Mugen badging, anodized aluminum oil caps in Champagne Gold, Silver Grey, Red, Blue or Black, and a choice of three different sets of wheels that can be had in a number of different finishes. If only Honda had Mugen design the Civic, then it probably wouldn’t be in the pickle it is in now.
New Honda Civic will Make its Racing Debut in Forza Horizon
Honda has announced its collaboration with Forza Horizon to promote their latest Civic Coupe. Along with the new model, gamers can also enjoy two additional Honda models: a 1986 Civic Si and a Honda Performance Development B-Spec Rally Fit. All three models will be offered in the new Honda Challenge Car Pack starting January 15th. Along with driving the new Honda models, the players can virtually race against Honda IndyCar driver Scott Dixon and try to beat his fastest time around the track in a 2013 Civic Si. The fastest racer will have the opportunity to meet the Indianapolis 500 winner in person and receive a custom Civic Si-themed Xbox 360 gaming console. Another contest will begin on February 15th, 2013. To enter the competition, you will have to submit a photo taken in-game of the 2013 Civic Si. The best photo will be featured on Honda social channels and on the Honda website, and the winner will receive a custom Civic Si-themed Xbox 360 gaming console.
2013 Honda Civic CoupeThe 2013 Honda Civic Coupe made its world debut at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show. Sporting significant changes to the exterior and interior, the Civic Coupe aims to impress the younger buyers that are seeking an exciting 2-door coupe on a budget. "Our industry has never been more competitive or fast changing, and a significant refresh of Civic, America’s best-selling compact car, just one model year after its debut as an all-new model shows true speed to market," said John Mendel, American Honda executive vice president of Sales. "Our corporate direction is to provide our customers with great products with speed, affordability and low CO2 emissions. There is no better example of this direction than today’s introduction of the 2013 Honda Civic." With strong words like those, Honda is obviously adamant on continuing Civic ‘s success in the U.S. market. For the success of any vehicle, the design, powertrain and the price must impress buyers – lip service just won’t do. Does the Honda Civic Coupe impress us? Click past the jump to find out in our review. Full story Video: Honda Gets You Ready for the Holidays With its "Happy Honda Days" CampaignIt’s that time of the year again. The holidays are in full swing and seemingly every company is launching its holiday commercials. Car companies are particularly "spirited" this year, as the U.S. automotive crash is on its way up and they are all trying to capitalize on folks that would like nothing more than a new car this year. As always, Honda has gotten itself in the holiday spirit with the unveiling of its yearly "Happy Honda Days" campaign. This year, Honda has launched six new commercials as part of the campaign and each spot opens with someone thanking Honda for giving their friend or relative a great deal on a new car. For example, Laura is very happy with her new Civic, Nancy loves her son Steve’s new Pilot, while Pete is grateful for his Dad’s Accord. Hit the jump to watch everyone’s story with Honda. So, while you’re stuffing your face with turkey, or whatever you fancy on Thanksgiving, allow these videos to get you all amped up for the rest of the holiday season. Yes, even the craziness that will be "Black Friday." Click past the jump to see the remaining videos. Full story
2013 Honda Civic SedanJust like with the recently announced Honda Accord, the ninth generation Civic also received its first update and changes include a completely revised front and rear exterior styling, improved interior, while the 1.8-liter 16-valve four-cylinder engine remains unchanged. The model made its world debut today at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show and will be put on sale on November 29 at a stating price of $18,165. On the exterior the 2013 Civic has received a more youthful and premium styling with an an all-new hood, updated grille, a new rear bumper design and new rear trunk lid. The interior has also being revised with soft-top materials and new technologies, while the list of safety features is being more impressive than ever and will include as a first in the compact segment standard Forward Collision Warning (FCW) and Lane Departure Warning (LDW) systems. While under the hood the engine remains unchanged, Honda has added a new high fuel efficiency "HF" version that delivers an impressive fuel economy of 41 mpg on the highway. Hit the jump to read more about the 2013 Honda Civic. Full story
Honda Mulling Over a Return to F1 Recently, the World Motor Sport Council approved the proposed change to F1 engines. This new change requires all cars to switch from the current 2.4-liter V-8 setups to a smaller 1.6-liter 4-cylinder turbocharged setup. Interestingly enough, this just so happens to be the exact engine that Honda developed only months ago to run in the WTCC. This drew suspicion that Honda might be interested in doing more than just run in WTCC with its new boosted 4-cylinder, which is also widely expected to grace the engine compartment of its upcoming Civic Type R. Autocar had a sit down with Honda’s head of R&D, Yoshiharu Yamamoto, about the engine and the possibility of Honda using this engine when F1 begins enforcing these new laws, which is scheduled for the 2014 season. Yamamoto didn’t outright say Honda would return, but was quoted as saying “On a personal level I love racing, but there is a lot involved when you are in F1 – it is the very top of auto racing and that requires a large commitment. But it is true that we do look up at those races and hope that one day we can take part again.” He the added “I do not personally think we can just go straight back immediately, but there is potential for the rules to change and attract us. I follow the rules, certainly, and if they present an opportunity then it would be nice to go back.” He was later grilled again on the topic and made Honda’s intentions more clear by effectively saying that if the 1.6-liter turbocharged engine has success in the WTCC, there is a chance that Honda will look into creating variants for other racing series. We all assume that one of those racing series would almost have to be F1. So for now we have an “eh, maybe” answer about Honda getting into F1 again, but the pure fact that F1 passed the rule about using a 1.6-liter turbo engine, then Honda released the exact same engine just seems too much of a coincidence to us. We’ll keep an eye on this, as Honda continues to retest the racing realm again.
Honda Confirms the Civic Type R for 2015 and Shooting for Fastest FWD on the Ring The Honda Civic Type R is one of those cars that import tuners – regardless of their make preference – would give just about anything to get their hands on. We knew that Honda was working on an all-new Civic type R, thanks to a few savvy spy photographers, but the details were still rather sketchy on when and where it would be released. Well, with a news release that Honda sent out today, we have found out that the Civic Type R is a certainty and that this beast will hit the market in 2015. Unfortunately, this model will remain a fabled unicorn for the U.S. market, as Honda also announced that the Type R will be developed specifically for the European market – what a bummer. According to Honda, the Civic Type R will apply technologies developed while preparing for the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC). Given its WTCC roots, Honda has huge expectations of its 2015 or 2016 Civic Type R, as it also announced that it is aiming to make the Civic Type R the fastest front-wheel-drive car to ever lap the mighty Nürburgring. That 2-year-old record is currently held by the Renault Megane RS Trophy and the time to beat would be 8:07.97, which is about 54 seconds slower than the Porsche 918 Spyder popped off the other day. Rather lofty goals indeed, Honda, as the Megane RS Trophy is no slouch, pumping out 256 horsepower, 360 Nm (265 pound-feet) of torque. Reports are showing that the Civic Type R will arrive with between 220 and 230 horsepower, putting it far short of the Renault. Plus, if Honda is planning to use its aging i-VTEC technology, there is simply no way the Civic Type R can produce the torque required to navigate the `Ring fast enough to beat the Renault’s time. The only way that Honda can expect to pull off this feat is to add a little boost to its VTEC engine to pump up the bottom-end torque and top-end horsepower, or simply create the most ridiculous power-to-weight ratio by deleting half of the body panels… We’ll keep an eye out for more. | Honda Civic latest reviews:Honda Civic tuning:
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