"Honda's i-DTEC 1.6 engine is a very pleasant surprise even for a professional driver. The Civic driving experience is now supported by beautifully low fuel consumption." This year, Honda introduced the Civic with a 1.6-liter i-DTEC engine. In addition to pleasant performance, it offers extremely low consumption, which during our test did not exceed 5 liters per 100 kilometers on a combined basis.
Despite the new Civic's aggressive exterior, it only has a 1.6-liter engine under the hood. That's a big step down from the 2.2-liter current variants. But whatever the paper specs, this one-and-a-half-liter diesel is still capable of squeezing passengers into the seats while still maintaining excellent fuel economy.
The current appearance of Honda Civic vehicles has become closer to the average customer who has no taste for sci-fi design. The previous generation, which caused a stir on the European market, is typical of this. The current one maintains its avant-garde position, but now also takes into account the conservative customer. The interior of the Honda Civic has remained practically the same, it is downright futuristic, with a noticeable amount of plastic revealing lower production costs. However, this plastic does not have the character of a cheap material - the surface of the plastic modules is modified so that it does not look cheap and provides the driver and passengers with a high level of comfort. The seats are firm, comfortable, with significant lateral guidance, and we appreciate the extensive position adjustment options. All three levers designed to adjust the position are easily accessible and their functions are obvious from the first use.
The technical equipment of the interior in the tested version of the car included 2-zone air conditioning, simple cruise control, LED daytime running lights, automatic lighting mode, USB connectivity of the music system, literally futuristic design of the information panels behind the steering wheel and a color display. We must also praise the "one-click" engine START/STOP function, good sound of the built-in audio system, very well-adjusted parking camera with excellent image even at night. The headlights, which are already typical for Honda, also deserve praise. The 5-speed manual transmission is excellently graded, the course of torque action is balanced and the turbo starts to engage at about 1500 rpm.
The price for the new Civic starts at just over 13 thousand euros. At this price, it is necessary to take into account that the engine of this car really has the potential to save you money on fuel every month, with a luggage space of 477 liters you will not have problems even when picking up friends at the airport from a long vacation and last but not least, you should think about the 5-star rating of the car in the Euro NCAP safety tests.
We would like to thank Honda Motor Europe Limited Slovakia for lending us the vehicle.