honda civic ex

So, what should one expect at the introduction of Honda’s seventh-generation Civic? A completely different car? No, of course not. The Civic evolves, it does not reinvent itself. Predictably, then, the claims for the new Civic range are mainly unsurprising.

After intense research into the needs of existing Civic owners, the car’s interior space has been enlarged. The Civic moves from the EPA subcompact-category borderline safely into the compact category, with 2.6 extra cubic feet of interior volume and almost two extra inches of rear legroom. There are improvements in efficiency (all models are Ultra Low-Emission Vehicle certified), and improvements in performance (the new engine is up from 1.6 to 1.7 liters in size, thanks to a 4.4mm stroke increase, yet weighs less and takes up less space).

In DX and LX models, power increases from 106 to 115 horsepower, while torque increases from 103 pound-feet at 4600 rpm to 110 at 4500 rpm. In EX models (like the coupe you see here), which use Honda’s VTEC-E engine, power remains unchanged at 127 horsepower at 6300 rpm, but the torque improves from 107 pound-feet at 5500 rpm to 114 at a more usable 4800 rpm.

Of the various changes made to the Civic range, the most surprising is Honda’s adoption of a strut-type front suspension. The engineers say it helped them shorten the nose (by enabling them to raise the steering gearbox) and also improve impact-absorption performance. Good reasons both, yet we feel slightly disappointed at the disappearance of Honda’s elegant and nimble double-control-arm setup. The 2001 Civic’s trailing-arm, multilink rear suspension remains unaltered in principle, but its shortened trailing arms do without their forward-mounted locating links in the interest of space, making possible a flat, tunnel-less floor.

Article Source:caranddriver.com