HONDA CIVIC THE HATCHBACK THAT JUST KEEPS ON GIVING

REPORT AND PHOTOS BY PAUL GIBSON

I’VE always been a bit of a Honda fan. Going back to the late eighties, anyone I knew who owned a sporty Prelude, Integra, Ballade or Luxurious Legend was at the top of my list to shotgun with.

I couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was I liked about Hondas, but even at my age back then, I knew they were reliable and always performed well. Moving on to the early ’00s, I jumped at the chance to review the newly released Civic Type R (in which I completed my advanced training course) and the soft top S2000 in bright yellow, which always turned heads.

More recently, Honda has grown up a bit but has certainly kept up with the huge advances in technology since the cars mentioned impressive when you compare that figure with its closest competitor. The VW Golf, Vauxhall Astra and such like all have less storage space. You’ll get a custom-fitted rubber mat so you can throw all sorts of rubbish in the boot without the worry of ruining the carpets and a funky pull-across, from left to right, integrated parcel shelf, which I’ve never seen in any other car.

It’s the manufacturer’s answer to range anxiety, which is the condition many drivers are now experiencing when purchasing electric vehicles. The e:HEV range of cars Honda now offers includes the ZR-V, CR-V, H-RV, Jazz and Civic.

With a 2.0 petrol engine combined with two electric motors, the engine acts almost like a generator for the electric motors — but when pushed, it’ll use petrol power, combined with electric power, to push the Civic to 60mph in around eight seconds which isn’t too shabby at all.

Around town, you’ll be using the power stored in the batteries generated from the petrol engine when required and the regenerative braking system, which allows you to drive using one pedal only when set to the strongest setting using the paddle shift on the steering wheel.

On the road, you’ll get an excellent ride with a bit more road noise than some other cars but nothing too offensive, and you easily get used to it. The almost completely silent driving mode when in town compensates easily for that.

You’ll have all the normal equipment inside the car you’d expect from a new model these days. Adaptive cruise control, LED auto beam lights and a fantastic MMI system which works extremely well with little lag and is compatible with Apple Car Play.

From the outside, the Civic is an extremely great-looking vehicle with nice creases down the side and a mesh-like grille, which extends to the dashboard and coupe styling from the side view giving the Civic a very modern stance appealing to a brand-new

What Honda has done here with the Civic is create an all-round vehicle which not only appeals to all age ranges, offers excellent economy (average combined 55mpg), gives owners a completely practical family hatchback and also offers peace of mind with a five-year, 90,000-mile warranty.

The Civic is priced from £34,995 and can be spec’d up to £39,795, which includes a Bose audio system, glass roof, heated steering wheel (an absolute must) and a 10.2-inch digital display, Your nearest Honda dealer is Yeomans Honda, on Willingdon Drive in Eastbourne.

Contact the team on 01323 383836 or visit www.yeomans.co.uk.