Motor Trend: 2012 Honda Civic Si Sedan Review

December 22, 2011
By Carlos Lago Photos Michael Shaffer

Two hundred dollars won't buy you an iPad. It won't even pay for a half-decent coffee maker. But in the case of the Civic Si, $200 pays for two more doors, an easier-to-access trunk, and more passenger and cargo volume. Most importantly, those extra doors and enlarged capacities of the 2012 Honda Civic Si sedan come without sacrificing the fun-to-drive nature found in the Si coupe, or the performance. It's the same fun, now comfortably seating four.

In its transformation from coupe to sedan, the Civic Si grows 1.8 inches longer and 1.5 inches taller. Interior dimensions, as you might expect, grow most notably for rear passengers. Rear seat headroom expands to 1.9 inches, legroom to 5.4 inches, and shoulder room 1.1 inches. These increases mean little to overall weight. On our scales, the Si sedan weighed in a negligible 13 pounds heavier than the 2012 Civic Si coupe we tested, and its front/rear weight balance, at 61/39 percent, remains the same.

Also identical is the sedan's figure eight lap time. At 26.4 seconds, it matches the best lap we've seen from the Si coupe. Disappointingly, the sedan also retains the same understeer. During limit handling, the Si doesn't offer many choices; its rear tires resolutely follow the fronts. With lateral acceleration at a 0.88 g average, grip is admirable, but we found ourselves longing for some personality. Once the front starts plowing, your only option is to sit and wait for the understeer to end.

And that's with the summer tires. If you enjoy driving (and of course you do, you're buying a Si), avoid the all-seasons. During a back-to-back test with both tires on our figure eight, the Michelin Pilot Exalto summer rubber turned a 0.4-second quicker lap time than the all seasons. That lap time difference may seem slight, but the difference behind the wheel was most telling. The all-seasons exacerbated the understeer, squealing too easily and barricading you from fun.

Buy this car with summer tires, even if you don't plan on racing around two skidpads as fast as possible all day. Under normal driving, on city streets, the Si is an agreeable car to drive quickly. Its steering, though light, feels nicely precise. The clutch engages positively, and the gearbox slinks between gears as fast as you want it to. The absurdly short 4.76 final drive means you get to row that delightful shift knob frequently. The gearing also pays dividends in acceleration, where the Si sedan reaches 60 mph in 6.4 seconds and the quarter mile in 14.9 seconds at 94.8 mph. Lugging around town, you can get into fourth as early as 25 mph, something rare for performance-orientated Hondas. When approaching intersections, I frequently shifted into second when I should've shifted into third.

While the shifter is tidy and quick, we can’t say the same for the engine. This 2.4-liter mill hangs on to revs every time you depress the clutch between shifts, as if it were suspended in zero gravity. So you have to wait (and wait some more) to engage the next gear, which makes smooth shifting difficult. Honda says it is the result of chasing smooth deceleration when the throttle is lifted, an attempt to minimize torque shock. But to us, waiting for the revs to fall is frustrating because it is so at odds with the attitude of the rest of the car.

There's another oddity: You can't option summer tires with navigation, as you can with the coupe. Word from Honda is that the take rate on that combination in the previous generation was too low. At $24,675, even the most expensive, nav-equipped Si sedan costs $3590 less than a comparably equipped GTI and $2255 less than a comparably equipped Mazdaspeed3. That difference easily covers a set of wheels and summer tires. Those all seasons? Save 'em for winter.

The Si sedan encapsulates the same things we enjoy from the coupe (and the things we aren't particularly fond of) without diminishing any of the performance. Understeer at the limit and rev hang notwithstanding, the Si sedan still delivers the driving satisfaction we've come to expect from the badge. For $200, we're still hunting for a downside. And a better deal.

Source;
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedans/1112_2012_honda_civic_si_sedan_first_test/

MotorTrend: Comparison: 2010 Honda Insight vs 2010 Toyota Prius

Here's a little snipet of the article, btw, it's a really good read even if you're not thinking of buying one.

"But which is the more important hybrid? That leads us back to the issue of price. Although the Prius will eventually entail such far-reaching technologies as lithium batteries and possibly plug-in capability, that's in the future. Not now. And when these two go on sale, the price spread is likely to be at least $3000.

Starting at just over $20,000, the 41-mpg Insight is the first hybrid that's simultaneously within the reach of just about every pocketbook and also a solid business proposition for its builder. Amazingly, it delivers nearly identical mileage as the current Prius at about 85 percent of the price. The incremental value of 50 mpg versus 41 mpg -- whether you judge it by gasoline cost, greater national security, or CO2 reduction -- seems dwarfed by the benefit of its potential sales volume. It's a milestone that can't go unnoticed.

1ST PLACE HONDA INSIGHT

An imperfect car, loud and coarse-riding, and also perhaps the most important hybrid ever built.

2ND PLACE TOYOTA PRIUS

The world's best hybrid has become more solid and refined, yet has somehow upped its fuel economy as well. It's an engineering triumph for the textbooks.

Source;

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/alternative/112_0905_2010_honda_insight_vs_2010_toyota_prius_comparison_test/index.html

Motortrend's Car of the Year, Class of 2009

Judging for 2009 Motor Trend Car of the Year -- our signature award -- is underway. We're in the midst of our exhaustive evaluation process, which features intensive performance testing and flogging at the Hyundai/Kia testing facility in Mojave, California, with each of this year's field of 17 contenders. The field is then whittled down to 10 finalists, and then we evaluate them further on a demanding road loop. From econoboxes like the Toyota Corolla to midsize sedans such as the Mazda6 and Audi A4, to the Nissan GT-R supercar, this year's field is one of the strongest in some time.

As with all of our OTY contests, Car of the Year is not a comparison test. It's open only to all-new or substantially upgraded vehicles that have gone on sale in the 12 months from November 1, 2007. We do not revisit vehicles that have been on sale for the past five years.

Each COTY contender is being evaluated against three simple criteria:

1. Superiority. We look at engineering excellence, advancement in design, utilization of resources, and safety. Vehicle concept and execution are important, as are use of materials, packaging, dynamics, styling, and fuel consumption.

2. Significance. How well the vehicle does the job its maker intended and impacts its particular market segment, influences consumer perceptions, and transforms product-development trends.

3. Value. How each vehicle compares against its direct rivals. A vehicle with a low sticker price might not be as good a value as a more expensive vehicle that delivers outstanding performance, quality, and functionality.

Below is this year's field. What do you think? What's your pick as the early favorite? The folks in the MT.com forums are already having their say, and you can check out what they're thinking BY CLICKING HERE. Stay tuned to motortrend.com and check out the January 2009 issue of Motor Trend for the complete story and more on this year's field, our testing process, and the vehicle that will take home the Calipers.

THE CLASS OF 2009:
Acura TL
Acura TSX
Audi A4
BMW 1 Series
Dodge Challenger
Honda Fit
Hyundai Genesis
Jaguar XF
Lincoln MKS
Mazda6
Nissan GT-R
Nissan Maxima
Pontiac G8
Pontiac Vibe
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Matrix
Volkswagen CC

Source;
http://blogs.motortrend.com/6301350/car-of-the-year/2009-motor-trend-car-of-the-year-the-contenders-are-revealed-whats-your-pick/index.html

Next Gen Honda S2000 Speculation, The Honda S3000?!?

A typhoon of rumors has been swirling around Honda's headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, about the company's next generation of sports cars. While we have already seen spy photos of the future NSX, we have not seen anything about the next-generation S2000. A source close to the company revealed that Honda is indeed in the process of building such a car, but wouldn't disclose specific details.

The OSM (Open Study Model) concept car definitely raised some eyebrows recently at the London show, but that car was just a convertible version of the CR-Z hybrid sports car shown at the Tokyo Motor Show last year. The OSM was penned by Honda's European design team, and our people tell us that the real S2000 successor will have much more influence and input from Japan. Also, the CR-Z and OSM have been engineered as front-engine/front-wheel-drive models, and the S2000 successor will no doubt be a rear-wheel-drive car. So apparently the OSM has nothing to do with the S2000 successor. Or does it...?

There's the possibility that the OSM may very well be a design study of the next S2000, wearing the veil of an open-top CR-Z to throw us off. There was also a sighting of a mysterious prototype sports car near Honda's R&D headquarters in Japan that seemed to share the OSM's proportions, yet looked completely different. Could this be another design study of the S2000? We think so, so we took pieces of that car, melded it with the OSM and came up with this image, a handsome car with an Audi R8-esque face, a long hood and a profile reminiscent of the current S2000.

As for what will go under the hood is still unclear. There have been rumors that Honda may equip the car with a V-6, perhaps a new 3.0-liter or the 3.5-liter in the Acura TL, thus the name S3000. In the U.S., this makes sense because it would give the car much more low-end torque (something we Americans love), not to mention improved smoothness and quietness for freeway driving.

With such an engine, you can expect power to be in the 280- to 300-bhp vicinity, enabling a 0–60 run in the sub-5-second range. The more probable choice is a 2.2- to 2.5-liter inline-4. Honda, which has traditionally shied away from big-displacement powerplants, may feel that a 4-cylinder engine makes more marketing sense in this age of high gasoline prices. There's also talk of a simple hybrid system.

Only those directly involved with the next-generation S2000 project know for sure what the car will be like. We'll know for sure in 2011, after Honda releases the NSX and CR-Z.

Source;
http://www.roadandtrack.com/article.asp?section_id=10&article_id=7109