… Honda Civic 1.6 i-DTEC ES-T …
Like everyone else, Honda is downsizing. Engines that is. And even though they were one of the last car manufacturers to adopt diesel engines, they’ve caught the oil-burner bug. In the case of the latest ninth generation Civic, out goes the 2.2 litre i-DTEC with 110 g/km and in comes the new 1.6 litre i-DTEC unit with just 94 g/km.
The trouble with downsizing is perception. Most folks think smaller means less power and torque, and that’s true, but the boffins behind the plan have produced a more efficient, smaller capacity 4 cylinder diesel engine which produces 118 bhp compared to the 148 bhp of the 2.2 litre unit.
That also means torque is down, from 350 Nm to 300, so yes it is less powerful and slower, but the engine is lighter in weight and much cleaner.
Top speed is down from 135 mph to 129 and it will take 2 seconds longer to reach 62 mph from a standing start. But you know what, anyone who buys a diesel engine is not looking for ultimate performance. They’ll be at the other end of the price list looking at the Type R.
Honda claims that the new Civic will achieve 78.5 mpg on the Combined cycle but those are the standard Euro test figures. In reality, owners should expect upwards of 55 mpg in the real world, but this will still only affect the high mileage drivers as the petrol cars are around 1200 quid cheaper to buy in the first place.
There is little to distinguish the previous Civic from this one in terms of driving and comfort. It’s quiet, well mannered and the six speed gearbox is a delight to use. There is just one wee niggle though and that’s down to the steering column. Either it needs more height adjustment or the seat need to be able to be wound down lower. That would make it perfect, it’s just too ‘Gordon Shedden-ish’ at present for my taste.
The only thing that really stimulates debate is the styling, but that’s a personal thing, although the design does have one drawback. The rising waistline to the rear and the light bar across the rear window does restrict visibility when reversing, but that’s a common complaint with modern cars these days. It’s just that the Civic will better suit those used to reversing on mirrors than those who throw their left arm over the passenger seatback, twist and look out the back window! Fortunately, the test car had a reversing camera.
On the other hand, the rear ‘light bar’ does have one redeeming feature. It helps to blank out the glare from those bampots who tailgate you and who forget to dip their headlamps, or have those eye searing bi-xenons flooding your own car’s interior. And yes, I know all cars have dipping rear vision mirrors now but some car manufacturers have just gone over the top these days with how much light they can produce and project. It annoys me. Big time. But in the Civic, it helps just to sit lower or slightly higher in the seat and the light bar across the rear window does a pretty good job of obscuring the worst of the brightness. In fact, maybe more cars should adopt the idea.
The Civic is a good diesel car made better – and cheaper to run, without sacrificing comfort and performance. Yes, it’s slower, but then the maximum speed limit in this country is 70 anyway, so it’s as fast as any other car on the road if everyone sticks to the national speed limits.
Would I have one? Absolutely. It’s got Honda build quality, goes and drives well and it looks different.