The 2006 Honda Civic was launched today at the KL Convention Center. This would be the 8th edition of the Honda Civic here in Malaysia since it’s introduction here back in 1977. The Civic started out as a compact car for the masses, economical, clean and affordable. It’s definitely come a long time since then. I was there first person at the launch this morning to bring you the latest details on this beauty.
The new 8th generation Honda Civic was unveiled in a cloud of mist.
Civics have excellent 2nd hand value in the market here in Malaysia, with demand for the EK and even the older EG chassis still high because they can host the venerable B16 VTEC engine.
Hot girl, hot guy, and hot car.
The JDM Honda Civic which was targetted at the Asia market had some input from Malaysian customers. Honda did a survey back in May 2003 to find out what potential customers expected out of the Honda Civic. These requests have been incorporated into the new Honda Civic. It carries elemants of a good driving experience, comfort, spaciousness, fuel economy and safety.
Honda’s development and management team
Exterior Looks
The new 2006 Honda Civic comes in 2 forms, the 1.8S and the 2.0S. From the exterior, you cannot really tell the difference between the 1.8S and the 2.0S other than the badges at the back of the car. Both comes with 16″ alloy rims (205/55/R16), fog lamps and dual tail pipes. But the 2.0S has signal lights on the side mirrors and HID headlamps for better driving visibility at night.
The wiper blades on the car look interesting. The fulcrum is positioned at opposing edges of the windscreen instead of one at the side and one at the middle like conventional wiper positions. Honda’s excellent attention to technological detail ensures even the wiper blades are designed to be aerodynamic. This reduces wind noises giving you a quieter ride.
Interior
As for the interior, the 1.8S has a beige interior with cream coloured seats while the 2.0S has a blue theme with blue leather. Interesting choice of colour there, as normally one would use a grey and black colour scheme for a sporty feel. The steering wheel has a smaller diameter by normal standards, though not as small as those OMP or Momo sports steerings. It has both telescopic and tilt adjustments to suit your driving position. For those who don’t know what that means, it means you can adjust it up and down in a 40mm range, and further and nearer to your chest also in a 40mm range.
The seats are height-adjustable within a 50mm range. Both the interiors comes with what Honda calls a Multiplex dashboard, with important controls that need to be monitored at the top desk and everything else at the bottom deck. The meters are of the self-illuminated type, like Toyota’s Optitron, the new Honda City’s and the Honda Accord’s. The shift lever and the strange yet practical Z-shaped handbrake are pretty small sized and take up little space and is pushed towards the front of the cabin to make additional storage space in the center console area.
The dashboard with Multiplex dashboard
Shift-lever and Z-shaped handbrake
In-car Entertainment
Both the 1.8S and the 2.0S comes with a 6-speaker audio system. The 1.8S comes with a single disc CD/MP3/WMA player while the 2.0S has a 6-disc in-dash CD-changer. The 2.0S also has audio controls on the steering wheel for volume and track control.
The integrated CD player
Safety Features
As for safety, both the 1.8S and 2.0S models have dual SRS airbags, while the 2.0S has an additional side airbag with Occupant Position Detection System. All models also feature an Active Headrest system, where the headrest moves forward in the event of a collision to provide support for your head.
Other safety features include anti-pinch safety power windows for the driver’s side, an immobilizer alarm system, Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA), Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD), Anti-lock Brake System (ABS), and Brake Assist (BA). These are available on both models. VSA can be disabled with a button on the dashboard for a more crazy on the edge driving experience whenever you need it. The 1.8S is equipped with a hydraulic power steering while the 2.0S gets an Electronic Power Steering.
Driver, passanger and curtain airbags for the 2.0S model.
Storage
Boot size is pretty respectable at 450 litres, though nothing that could cause your jaw to hit the ground like the Honda City’s 500 litres. The interior has ample storage compartments. There is a console in front of the gear lever, as well as a sliding shutter in between the two front seats which unveils yet another storage space. This storage space contains two cupholders. To suit your ergonomics better, the armrest slides forward and backward in a 80mm range. Lifting it reveals a console box with storage for 27 CDs. The rear passengers also has a fold-down armrest in the middle with two cupholders integrated into it.
The Honda Civic 2.0S rear seats can be pushed down like the Honda City’s UltraSeats. Why this is not offered on the Honda Civic 1.8S strikes to me as strange. Honda’s target market for the 2.0S are young entrepreneurs or young men from rich backgrounds in the 25 year old to 35 year old range. The 1.8S’s target audience is the 35 to 45 year old professionals with families. Surely someone with a family would find foldable seats more useful than a young man. This was the exact same rationale they used in removing UltraSeats from the facelift City VTEC. Strange.
A goodie bag in the boot for scale.
Passenger seat glovebox. I didn’t like the feel of it. Seemed hard to get the latch to hook when it closed. Maybe it was a defect on that particular car.
Rear seat cupholders integrated into the centre armrest
Performance
Let’s go to the engines. I’ve already posted about the new i-VTEC SOHC 1.8 engine before, but let’s have a recap. The 1.8 i-VTEC engine in the 2006 Honda Civic 1.8S is a single camshaft 4-cylinder engine with Honda’s i-VTEC system. It uses a timing chain instead of a timing belt. It makes 140hp at 6300rpm and redlines at 7000rpm. Max torque is 174Nm at 4300rpm. This is mated to a 5-speed automatic transmission. Which is nice, because normally 5-speed autos have only been available on more upmarket models with larger engines. Honda claims this 1.8 i-VTEC engine has the fuel consumption similiar to 1.5 litre engines but has the performance characteristics of a 2.0. From the figure sheets, the latter claim looks to be true.
The 2006 Honda Civic 2.0S is powered by a 2.0 litre DOHC i-VTEC K20 engine. It is also timing chain-driven. It makes a higher 155hp at 6500rpm, redlines at 7000rpm and makes 188Nm of torque at 4500rpm. Like the 1.8S, it also has a 5-speed automatic transmission but the 2.0S has a paddle shift option. What you do is you shift the gear lever to the S option. Then you can control the gear changes with paddles at the back of the steering wheel. Left paddle for downshift, right paddle for upshifts. Honda calls this S-matic. Feels much more natural than the strange Steermatic buttons on the Honda City where upshift and downshifts are on both sides of the steering wheel. Paddle-shifts instead of button-shifts are so much more F1-style!
The K20 2.0 DOHC i-VTEC engine
Honda’s new 1.8 litre i-VTEC engine
Suspension
Both the 1.8S and the 2.0S has ventilated discs for the front and solid disc brakes at the back. Suspension systems MacPherson Struts for the front and Independant Double Wishbone for the rear. I don’t think much lowering is necessary for this car as the gap between the wheel arch and the tyre is already small.
Gap between wheel arch and tyre not overly big, for that lowered sporty look. You can lower it somemore if you want but it would be overkill.
Other stuff
As for dimensions, the new 2006 Honda Civic is 4540mm long, 1755mm wide, and 1435mm tall. It has 2700mm wheelbase, and 155mm ground clearance for the 1.8S and 150mm ground clearance for the 2.0S. Fuel tank capacity is 50 litres, which means a full tank with RON97 petrol for the new 2006 Honda Civic would be RM96 as of today. Shell V-Power would cost you RM107.50.
How big of a hole in your pocket?
Honda aims to sell 6000 units of the new 2006 Honda Civic this year, making up 20% of it’s total sales target of 30,000 units for 2006. The 8th generation Honda Civic is a CKD model assembled in Honda’s plant in Malacca. The Honda Civic 1.8S goes for RM117,800 while the Honda Civic 2.0S goes for RM131,800. Very competitive prices. I’m sure the 1.8S would appeal to the executive who has been given a RM120K company car budget with his new job. Delivery for the 2.0S will only begin end of April as Honda wants to concentrate on the 1.8S to ensure quality standards are met.
Colour options are Nighthawk Pearl Black, Habanero Red Pearl, Alabaste Silver Metallic, Bronze Silver Pearl and Bluish Silver Metallic. I’ll try to get a test drive and post what I think on the new Honda Civic’s drive and feel soon.
Test Drive:
2006 Honda Civic Test Drive – Part 1
2006 Honda Civic Test Drive – Part 2
2006 Honda Civic Test Drive – Part 3
2.0 sure have loads of additional stuffs. IF i got money, sure buy la! Saw the black one with Modulo skirts. Does Honda comes with the accessories? If its fiber, its sure a turn off. I know thailand are made with PU Plastic. Wonder when we can see a mugen version on the road?
The AUX port is located at the bottom of the built-in car player. I think it is located next to the Cigarette lighter. It is just your analog stereo input plug kinda of thing. Compatible for all disc/mp3/handphone that support this kind of connection.
Paul, I've been waiting for this. I was trying to get out of my office but.. Thanks a lot!!
Yay!!! Paul, you got invited to the launching? Kewl, man!! The car looks great. Price tag is acceptable. But the choice of exterior colour is limited. Plus, the 2.0 only comes with dark blue leather seats. No other choices available (not even black or beige leather). Weird decision to choose dark blue leather, but it still looks good. Any idea when the first units for both 1.8 & 2.0 will be available for customers?
Honda claims its new 1.8L Civic sips petrol like a 1.5L. Don't know how true is it :)
Well everyone. Same as Paul, I am also decided to stop by Honda Showroom to check out the launch of the new Civic (both the 1.8 and the 2.0 version). Sadly, only the 1.8 version is available for test drive. According to the sales man (don't know reliable or not! ke ke ke!), most showroom only get 1 unit of 2.0 and they will most likely end up in the showroom instead of a demo unit. As for the 1.8 version, they have 10 units! sitting behind awaiting booking and sale!
Okie dokie.. back to the details.. the price that Paul mention is correct! I was there in the showroom around 11 am and the official price didn't come out until 1:00 pm. They are telling me that they are doing an official launch in KLCC.. not sure about that.
As for the details.. my first impression.
1.8S – RM117,800 (inclusive of Insurance RM3,225)
2.0S – RM131,500 (inclusive of Insurance RM3,589)
** EXTERIOR
16 inch alloy (nice design)
HID only for 2.0 (1.8 share the same headlight housing)
Automated side mirror (2.0 comes with signal light integrated)
Dual Tail pipe :-)
** INTERIOR
1.8 – No Leather seating. Fabric seats in Biege colour (Nope.. u won't be getting the various colours like what Honda Singapore is offering) Dual tone (Top Black and Bottom Biege colour settings)
2.0 – Leather seating in 2 tone (Black and Silver colour settings)
6-In Car Disc CD/MP3/WMA Changer with AUX input for Ipod :-)
(1.8 gets only 1 Disc CD/MP3/WMA player but with AUX input as well) :-)
6 speakers system
Glass printed antenna
No paddle Shift but 5-speed Automatic Box :-(
(an option for 2.0 only)
** CONTROL
No Cruise Control on Steering
No Audio Car Player control Steering
(2.0 gets all the above controls)
Leather wrapped Steering wheel
** SAFETY
Dual Airbags
No Side Airbags :-(
(2.0 only as well)
ABS, VSA and EBD Inclusive :-)
Immobilizer
Alarm with Ultra Sonic Sensor Built-IN :-)
No Hydrophilic Side Mirror (2.0 only as well)
** PERFORMANCE
1.8 SOHC i-VTEC engine (1.5 fuel performance with close to 2.0 performance)
Trust me ;-) I test driven it… the claim is real (at least for the performance), it is really close to my Civic 2.0 performance. I am really surprised how HONDA managed to get that much power out from a 1.8 powerplant. Upon further explanation from the Honda Engineer (Honda Racing) onsite, I sort of understand kua. When you first open the engine bay, you will be surprised to see something sticking out in the middle of the engine bay. According to the engineer, it is the catalyic converter sensor! YUP u r right, there's no external engine manifold like the old engine design. The manifold is built-in into the engine body. The manifold with directly connect to the catalyic converter located in front of the engine. WAU.. what a design. He claims that this kind of design is almost similar to Honda powerboat and Honda F1 engine. Irregardless, the compression ratio of this engine is 10.5
Max power 140 ps
Max torque 174 Nm (very close to the old 2.0 civic) Man.. this is crazy but I am glad that my test drive proves that Honda are not lying. This car is quite torquey.
Too bad, there's no Paddle Shift.. such a waste. The 5-speed Auto layout is the same as the old 2.0 Civic (R N D D3 D2). The 2.0 comes with a slightly different layout (R N D S). S stands for Sports Transmission and will activate the paddle shift. According to the Honda Engineer, in this mode, the REV meter will pull higher before shifting gears. Thus, more sporty! Too bad, I can't test the claims! :-p
1.8 Engine will have Hydraulic Power Steering (no EPS here). This is both PRO n CON. PRO, more natural feel. CON, engine will have to assist the Hydraulic pump and thus losing some slight power. My impression, after so long of driving my EPS Civic, the steering feel is neutral and natural but of course heavier la. But good also.
** EXTRA
You get proper sound insulation all around the vehicle ie. Boot, Bonet and etc.
According to him, the brake pad/brake system are the same for 1.8/2.0 (don't know trust him or not) ;-)
But, sound insulation are really uprated, I can feel that the sound from outside are much better insulated.
This time, there's no more identical spare wheel. You are going to get the ordinary steel wheel (in black) for both model due to the space constraint behind the boot. But, please.. it is not the boot that is small, it is the extra space underneath the boot space. The boot is spacious, and the 2.0 version comes with 2 level to pull to let you laydown all your back seats (ie. City i-DSI).
** DIFFERENCE
Besides all the above, both car are pratically the same with a difference of 14k for the option. I asked why there's no option for 1.8 with HID and paddle shift, he said that Honda Malaysia feel that there need to be a market segregation for this 2 models. In Thailand, they have various models and various config thus making it harder for customer to make a decision. I agree somewhat. Well, I can gladly tell you that, the 1.8 is quite good in term of performance. If on budget, the 1.8 is not bad either (VSA is standard) and 16 inch alloy is standard as well. Besides, you can go and do your own HID afterwards using genuine HONDA parts for 2.0. They share the same housing anyway. :-)
Just my 2 cents. The rest of you can go and test it out to know further!
One more thing! I forget to say something about the 2.0 version.
I can tell you it absolutely rocks! The duo tone (Black and Silver) with Dark Blue leather sittings really gives you and very classy yet futuristic settings when you sitting on the Driver seat. The plastics feels really solid (both 1.8 and 2.0 are the same here).
But for the 2.0, if budget permits, will be my choice. The paddle shift is gorgeous. The feel is solid and you know that it will stand the test of time. The blue ambient lights really sends out this futuristic feel. This Civic is really the way forward for compact sedan!
For both models, there's improvement in the engine mounting infront. It seems that Honda develop some kind of mounting to keep the front body from flexes during acceleration. This in turn make the car feel more solid.
And this time, for the interior, you get an adjustable arm rest. you can slide it forward and backward to accomdate your arm resting position. Plus, the ejectable cup holders are all very solidly assembled. Feel so luxurious. Man.. I am drowning! Ha ha ha!
hey Paul, I saw the car on the road this mornin… it was the same color with trade plates, passed the Sunway toll heading to KL. bout 8am… awesomely nice…
KnightxForce, thanks for the info.
DEPAN MACAM SRM…INCL LAMPU
Is that RM117,800 for 1.8 is OTR price? if it is, I waaant one!!! I waant one!!
But then again, there is fine line between 'I want one' and 'I can afford one', unfortunately, only the former applies to me..
nose of the car looks exactly like the current model odyssey, they even have the same gear knob. thats the way honda is going with the styling of their cars.. even the interior has a similar look and feel. nicely done.
toyota will really need to step it up with the next generation corolla.
Razib: I think SRM lampu is like the Civic's, instead of the other way round.
I drive a City, and love it to bits, regardless of what everyone say about the looks.
Now, thanks to Paul, I get to see the pictures of the car, for the first time.
I AM SOLD!!
It's such a gorgeous car.
Change to 17 inch wheel, and it's perfect!
I love love love love the headlamp, the front and how to curves all closes nicely, unlike city.
But having said that, I will take a look at the showroom later, and hopefully secure a test drive hehehe.
Let's see..if sell city now…how much per month for the 2.0…..
K
Where is the AUX input ar? From my iPod, how do i connect to this AUX input? Can't see any connection hole on the CD.
Question: If you buy the car, do the girls come with it? With that price tag, it should.
i dont like it… :(
it seems that civic is straying away from its original concept..
anybody agree with me?
my last love with honda was the EK..
eh, the sales gal just called telling me 2.6% loan? issit true so low?
The whole time everyone was talking about the spy-shots all the way till this article, I have been thinking,
What is Toyota going to do with its Corolla (Altis)?
I think the Corolla really has some catching up to do, and it could very well drop the sucky 'Altis' name as well.
Forgive me for not being a Honda fan :p
laser_ampang said,
March 9, 2006 @ 6:31 pm
i dont like it…
it seems that civic is straying away from its original concept..
anybody agree with me?
my last love with honda was the EK..
————————————————————
I think the styling trend world wide for these type of cars have recently changed. Before, the trend was to be sleek and sporty. Now the trend is to bulk up, looking more muscular with loads of cabin space. The new BMW 3 series has bulked up. The Audi A4 has bulked up. Now civic bulks up (it has bulked up since the previous model). Initially I hated this trend, but looking at loads of the 3 series and A4 here on UK roads, the design has grown on me and I think I kinda like it now. Would love to see the civic in real life.
nice car……………….futuristic exterior as well as interior, but can't afford, so ……..can just admire!!!!!!
pity…….
Just came back from a test drive.
Let's say it was rather awesome. If only money is not an issue.
1.8 is very torquey. Floored the accelerator and the car pulled like mad, too bad road not long enough to see it go further. I would prefer if the engine scream lesser when being pushed, but heck, this is not honda's top of the range, so cannot complain too much.
Insulation is very good, cabin is silent.
Thinking back about the test drive, I can say the car hugs the road really hard. Maybe its the tyre or the suspension but it seems to accentuate bumps on the road.
Having said that, the drive is so pleasurable you will overlook that.
2.7% interest, AM Bank until end of this month.
1.8 delivery 2 to 3 months
2.0 begins production in June, so expect your car much later.
If you specify the color you want, you may wait a lil longer. Else faster.
Read from above someone mentioned styling for newer civics are straying from original concept. I'd say, come on man, what is design evolution if it stays the same every release?
Take a look at the new civic, I have no idea how can anyone say its an ugly car. City maybe ler…civic..no ler.
K
I would.
Kidding. To be frank, it isn't ugly, but it isn't a svelte beauty either, is it? And if I'm honest, it sort of looks like an upsized City (the facelifted one). In certain angles it really does remind me of the City, especially in profile. I'm also one of the guys who has a dislike for the current trend of cars getting fatter and fatter. If I want a big saloon, I'd buy an Accord, ok. If I want a compact saloon, like what the Civic is supposed to be, then gimme a goddamn compact saloon. That's supposed to be the frickin' idea.
Anyway, Honda builds good cars. Reliable, practical, economical (relatively speaking) and decent enough to drive. This Civic is more of the same. I'm surprised they gave this version double wishbones for the back. If I'm not mistaken the Europe ones has a torsion beam setup instead. Engine options sounds good, fairly good performance figures (not ground breaking stuff, ok. Some of you are pratically wanking over it, geez). Personally, I'm not a fan of electronic power steering. They feel artificial and sometimes awkward. Don't know how the setup on this one is. Need to get a test drive soon.
Got no complaint over other parts of the car which is quite well sorted. Apart from the number of colour options, which is poor.
great report!! seems like you got 'jalan' to major car events now Paul. nice!!
Hm… Seems that there were no shots of the car's rear. The taillights are so huge and downright ugly for me, even uglier than the old City's before the ZX facelift. Seems like Honda will never learn how to make the rear part of a car right.
Personally I'd rather go buy a facelift City. See the specs, and you'll wonder about how will a car with a 5.8 M TURNING RADIUS (!) have good and agile manueverability (compare that to the previous Civic's 5.4 m and CR-V's 5.3 m). The City's turning radius is only 4.9 m, so go imagine. I need to steer a bit wide to take a U-turn with the CR-V, compared with if I was riding a City. With the new Civic you would have to steer way wide from the U-turn before you can turn and not hitting the pavement. The CR-V is even 25mm longer than the new Civic and the City is only 150mm shorter.
If you give me the money to buy a new Civic, I'll just go buy a new City instead and put some mods on it (HID and other stuff)… nuff said.
i agree that the civic today is no longer the civic of the past. it ended with the EP series. cars today are not only bulking up, but there seems to be a mad rush for manufacturers to increase the size of their cars. at over RM100,000, the term compact saloon doesnt seem to match it anymore. Its starting to look more like executive saloon than anything else. The civic today is probably larger than the accord from a few years back.
When the new civic was designed, the didnt look at the existing model. They started from scratch.
Very nice car indeed ! Still not my kind of a car. RM 130K for a small car ? Just a little bit too expensive i guess.
Anyway well done job Honda ! You've made people think twice before investing in their….Altis, Sentra, Accord, Optima, etc. What a boooom!
Sure sales will sky rocket now. If I have the money i will surely go for it. Nothing much to say …..all the best once again to a Honda Civic !
Bravoooo !
Wahlaueh…
Blue Chaos,… regarding the turning radius, i think CIVIC become longer because of the wheel base length & wheels size. City sure have shorter wheel base length & wheel size so it can make shorter turn. This is the pro & cons of the design. If Honda put smaller wheel on the civic, sure they will tune it to have smaller turning radius. Car manufacturer has control the turning radius to prevent over turning.
Usually a big turning radius is attributable to the car having a very quick and direct steering rack. Could be the case for the Civic, because the Honda engineers wanted it to be a good drive.
Jay said,
Anyway well done job Honda ! You’ve made people think twice before investing in their….Altis, Sentra, Accord, Optima, etc. What a boooom!
—————————————————————–
If I could afford an Accord, I'd still buy an Accord.
BTW, has anyone seen the facelifted Sentra in the flesh. I think it looks brilliant. It's got real presence with the new bodykits. Almost looks more expensive than it actually is. If I were to choose between the Altis, Civic or Sentra now, based purely on looks alone, I'd go for the Sentra. Not that I can afford one.
oh… fall-in-love again!
This is the most attractive car models i shall say. With the "nice" price tag some more, it's going to be killer model for Toyota Altis, Sentra, Camry and even its own Accord. I doubt who can challenge it for recent 3 years…
Hi all,
Test driven the 1.8l car during yesterday's launching.
My Thoughts are:
1. very quite engine and interior, engine start totally not noticable
2. gear change ultra smooth, comes standard with 5 gears auto. apparently the auto version is more efficient than manual (17km/l on auto, 16.2km/l on manual). 2.0 DOHC version comes with paddle shift.
3. dials and controls at optimal reach. the dual clusters is a bit wierd but apparently practical.
4. fuel peddle using the the mercedes type
5. seat spacing excellent, with the driver seat fully backwards, still got ample space at rear.
6. ride and handling fantastic, steering response and accuracy promising plus uses smaller steering wheel as standard, makes getting in and out of car even easier.
7. engine comes 140ps as standard for 1.8l version. when WOT on highway the civic went to 150km/h effortlessly even with 5 ppl in the car.
8. ride comfort fantastic. when vtec not engaged car interior is ultra quite and smooth even at 150km/h. but when vtec kicks in the vtec roar is lke music to the ears.
9. interior ammenities throughout the car; slidable centre console acts as armrest, two concealed compartments at centre console etcetc.
10. 2 litre version comes standard with HID.
How does it fare with others?
This Civic is in a totally different league than the rest of the civic. I myself drive a EK3 Vi-RS. The adrenaline feeling is totally in a different class of its own. It is like driving an Accord but you will definitely forget that u are driving a civic.
to sum it up this baby rocks. the total overall packages matches or exceeds Accord quality.
i saw this car yesterday at honda showroom. have to…i LOVE it. awesome. i wish i could have one. but what to do. i can't afford it. so only can dream it hehe. about the prize, it's really expensive consider that our neighbors in thai can buy it for RM 71k only. waaaaaaaaaaaa why G take so much for excise duty? we need to pay around RM 35k for excise duty alone. that is too much! with that amount of money, it's more than enough for us to pay our education's loan. wtf.
I WANT ONE.
kthxbai.
The K20 2.0 DOHC i-VTEC engine really can take tiz civic "fly" …
the meter looks nice, i also want 1…
overall okay..
just wished that Honda will be able to offer more choices of interior and exterior color…
Still prefer black and dark grey interior…
More sporty…
Why Singapore can get more options?
What make them so special?
Anyone notice our model is missing one button on the key?
Wahlaueh…
P1!!! i curse on you…. pls close down…. because of P1,….. many of us cannot afford the new Civic…. sad story for us as Malaysian poor people. i think 10 more years, P1 also cannot achieve what Honda present to us now.
you can see more of interiors on www.motortrader.com.my
Saw the Toyota sales personnel in Honda showroom yesterday, their faces looked "pucat"!. The Toyota sales girl just called me today to inform that Toyota is offering Altis 1.8 with 2 years free service for parts and labour on top of the RM4888 discount, and higher than market rate trade in for my 12 years old proton iswara. Do you guys think I should go for the new Civic or the Altis 1.8 for the better value for money?
Its not the usual Civic anymore. The niche for this car has shifted. It's with the Accords now. For us the City is considered the niche replacement for Civic. If you have a City u pop into the Civic you'll know what I mean. Cannot use City to compare this Civic liao let alone Comparing the previous version with this one as the older one was based on lower budget niche.
The price tag of 120K already put ppl off. The type R probably will be on the high side of 200K lol.
But thinking about tyre replacement will already kill the drivers. my 215/45/R16 Direzzas' are already at 300 plus each. Probably be the same or more for the 205/65/R16 on the new civic.
wow, i still like tat mugen civic website…
http://www.mugen-power.com/street/civic/
oh.. my.. now i'm in dilema.
should i wait for new camry or should i go for this one?
s****! i'm about to dispose my wira and this thing comes in before the camry.
headache!
always tot the civic was meant to be a volume seller,more like a budgets man's honda , bt at that rediculous price….nt even close…or may be its only here that its way over priced
haha y not u wait for the camry then test drive both lol
let your adrenaline level decide.
the camry is a decent car but the civic has an angelic body with a sinful engine kekeke
For those who are currently driving the previous 2.0 civic, I think this is the right time to get the current one and trade-in your car to me…he!he!he. I'm thinking about some mods on the previous 2.0 civic. Would be very interesting ya….
Honda claims this 1.8 i-VTEC engine has the fuel consumption similiar to 1.5 liter engines
what 1.5cc engine are they comparing with, are they compare with City 1.5iDSI ??
can we have a better reading, example in km/liter.
one hell of an upgrade from its predecessor. definitely gonna get the 2.0S to replace my mazda3. damn you honda!
Is it logic having a 1.8 i-VTEC engine with a fuel consumption of 1.5 liter but performance of 2.0? What is this?….. Are they trying to compare tht this model is better thn previous Accord?.. With fuel consumption of Wira's? Can someone explain this situation!
guys, it's a pity that Honda's not bringing in the hatchback version of the Civic into Malaysia… I'm sure then that those who commented that the EK was their ultimate Civic would drool at the first sight of the hatch Civic – can't wait to get my hands on one…
see the UK honda site: www.honda.co.uk
i dislike the rear light n design of tis civic. albeit the good performance, and space but i thik it looks abit too bulky to my liking.
i really love the civic hatchback SI concept. the saloon SI concept has the same rear design as tis one i think.
im not sure if the SI concept civic hatchback will be available in msia or asia. u shld check it out.
someone mention tht tis civic has quite similar head light design like the odyssey ,not quite id say, not the below headlight design but if u really love odyssey headlamps, ull get it perfectly in civic SI concept, n great butt design too. performance wise, i think its naturally born powerhouse roadrunner.
refering to my previous post, great butt is the hatchback version, the saloon one is ugly too. xD
additionally, its a 2 doors. another dream car to own. currently, owning a Mar05 siler vtec city and loving it to bits. upto today, i wash it myself weekly to fortnightly ,nvr wash outside. washing car nvr been so fulfilling and satisfaying…..uhm,sry if i m alittle carried away.
I think this car is OK but they seem to be contradicting themselves –
1) City VTEC has fixed seats & dark interior to be sporty, i-DSI with beige interior has ULTRA seats to appeal to family man.
2) Civic 2.0 i-VTEC has fold-down seatbacks and blue leather upholstery to have sporty appeal, and the 1.8 has beige interior and FIXED seats??
Frankly speaking, their Melaka plant quality is not so good. I noticed huge gaps in the door panels, and the front cowl top to glass gap is huge. Furthermore the inner door handles look so cheaply painted. I wonder if they spent so much money on design, that the materials themselves became cheap-cheap.
actually, i did a test drive for the 1.8 at the 3S centre near my area…
i've typed the entire impression drive on my blog…
if you wanna know another opinion before considering buying, you might wanna take a look at my blog… :P
juz click on my nick to go there.. haha
Hahahahaa… got a test drive. and my conclusion , put an altis beside and you'll be seeing an old man walking along his grand son. wow!
Get a booking? i'll rather wait for the new camry first. Then final decision'll be done. Hey! toyota!still snoring?
hemmmm…… it's nice and look very sleek… but for that price, i would go for a 2nd hand bmw E39.
electronic power steering can be quite ok when u're used to it. it increases in weight as speed increases. and when parking, it's a blessing. the Juara comes with it… our family owns one, it's really nice to steer :D
I think it's fair to say that Honda has upped the ante in a previously boring Malaysian automotive industry.
Let's see how Toyota will respond to the new Civic. I have never been a Toyota fan but nevertheless IMHO, it would be really nice to see Toyota bring in the UK Corolla Avensis.
As for Nissan, sorry, no comment.
paul,
sooner or later car manufacturers are going to notice that this blog is quite popular and influential in car purchase-decision making. They'll tempt you with money to write only good things about their cars. Please don't. If the glove box is hard to close, just say it's hard to close!
But then, they might offer you one unit for each good review…wah..bestnya..forget what i said and take them cars.
burn: that's exactly what i did in the post, don't worry. :)
I was in the dilemma of waiting for the new Camry or getting the Civic and I'm a big fan of Toyota. I ended up getting the Civic 2.0 and made the booking last Friday. The reasons are:
– No estimated date for Camry
– I figured that I don't need a big car like Camry since most of the time it is only me and my gf on the road. Why waste gas on carrying the extra "metal" around?
– I believe the specs for Civic 2.0 will be better than Camry 2.0 and I cannot afford Camry 2.4.
and lastly….
– My Waja cannot "tahan" that long.
Just about time la Paul. My dad was just talking to me about selling the C5. Since he's about to retire. It's about time for the car to go too. And I've proposed to him this Civic as I've been drooling over it since I read your post sometimes ago. Even showed him the pics. And he think this car looks nice too. (Pretty hard to impress that old guy when it comes to cars. I still wonder why he bought that C5 though…LOL!).
And I get to see it closely last week when two of the delivery trailers stop by my hometown on their delivery to the East coast. Made me drool even more. Damn! Good looking car overall.
Btw Paul. Great post! This is a great improvement on your post. Keep it up! Bring us more news like this! You'll remain my favourite blog for a very long time. =)
being a civic fan for a while, i'm not entirely impressed. even more so with the 2.0 version, here are my not-impressed points
HID lights – nice, but not so nice coz the rest of the lights clutter is not white, but yellow. looks like a boyracer who only has enough to change the main lights, but not the foglights or the intermediate lights
roof insulation – or lack of. the sound you get from knocking on the top is the same as from the bottom of the roof. and not to mention it's kindda soft.
2.0(A) – what? no manual? m'sians can't drive a stick anymore?
155bhp – only, from a k20 engine. b18 engines are already giving 170hp. the 1.8 engine is better in this sense, imo.
RM138k – pricey. this is a civic.. bring back the 2dr hot hatch!
Taiwan and China will launch the new Civic in April. The price tag for 1.8 is equivalent to RM 75000 – 80000. So, we pay 35000 more taxxxxx…And this extra taxxxx was not used in road improvement. Penangites have been waiting for the outer link expressway and the second bridge to ease traffic jam for years. But no action talk only. Why we have to bear the extra tax?? Are we being robbed??
Yes we are being robbed. In fact around RM 45,630.00 ! That is the difference of pricing comparing Peninsula (RM 117,800 to Langkawi RM 72,170).
That's enough to buy a national car…
Nice piece of machine compare to previous Honda Civic…. But as other told before, the tax included in is too high… What to do? We are in Malaysia. We need to pay extra for better car. IF not, buy proton then… poor malaysian…
yeah, agree with u alamak…RM 45,630 for excise duty..it's really cruel. our G so cruel to us, rakyat malaysia. they just care about their P1 and their cronies instead of us, their rakyat. WTF to our G!!!
After close viewing of new Civic, I still believe it cannot compete the Altis.
Altis is so elegance. Comparing power to weight ratio, Altis is still better.
Altis drives like a whale. It is unresponsive, to get from 80km/h to 120km/h on highway to overtake lorry with Altis 1.8E is like slow motion acceleration… unless you floor the pedal 100%, all the way, then only the engine wake up abit…
Elegance? it's a car, not a ballet dance
paul.. normally how much our income to get a loan to buy this 1.8 civicc?? quite a big price..aiyaa… hey..did they give option to buy 1.8 and with leather seat like 2.0?
this is the car i waiting so long…really2 love the shape especially the front head lamp n round shape lamp at rear. But i still consider between this honda civic n toyota celica which is the best for money value? i actually can afford to get one…i can decide myself because i really like both them.
I'm driving a 1.8 version since Apr 2006, when i driving, it feels like driving a supercar as it made (makes) head turns even after 1yr, so much has been said about the car. fuel consumption not really impressive 8.5km/l in short a full tank can only last around 460km. (RM90). If possible, go for the 2.0 version. as you get all tons of stuffs like leather seat, HID, Paddle shift, cushion air bag, side mirror with indicator and not to mention the BHP……lastly no matter 1.8 or 2.0 it is still a great car to own.
A proud civic owner…………