Honda was supposed to unveil a new Civic all the way back in 2009. They had gone so far as to build early prototypes when, all of a sudden, they killed it. Scrapped the program. Went back to the drawing board.
Why? They told us it was because the economy tanked, and people who would have been buying larger and more expensive cars started to look at compacts like the Civic — so they wanted to design one that would meet the expectations of a more demanding group of buyers. That might be true. We wonder if they saw what new small cars like the Chevy Cruze and the upcoming Euro-spec Focus had to offer and decided they needed to bring a better game. Whatever the reason, they dropped the redesign in 2009 and started over.
And built this. It’s the 2012 Civic, set to appear in April.
The exterior is clearly an evolution of the current car, with the same pronounced-wedge shape, but a little of the gaping mouth of the CR-Z added in. We like the pipe, and hope it stays, but it does look like a show car detail they’ll scratch before production, doesn’t it? Inside, we’re told, it’s roomier and more luxurious than the outgoing model. But that’s just what we’re told…Honda hasn’t let anyone see the cabin yet.
Honda officials tell us we’ll get drivetrain details, a look at the interior and a chance to drive it in April. They expect to keep a version of every current Civic, so we expect four-cylinders with and without sticks, a hybrid, that quirky natural gas version they still sell, and yes, a high-test Civic Si for the tuner crowd.
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