The 11th-generation Honda Civic sedan to go on sale summer 2021
The redesigned 2022 Honda Civic sedan. (Photos courtesy of Honda)
Acompletely redesigned and re-engineered 2022 Honda Civic sedan goes on sale this summer with a “thin and light” body design. With new materials and technologies, the carmaker hopes the new model will be a “breath of fresh air” in the segment.
Civic competitors included the Hyundai Elantra, Kia Forte, Mazda 3, Subaru Impreza, and Toyota Corolla.
Four-door cars are declining in interest today, but the Honda Civic sedan is and has been a bread-winner model for Honda.
“Despite auto industry new vehicle sales being almost 80 percent light trucks (CUV, SUV, pickups) and last year being very negatively impacted by COVID-19, we still sold over 260,000 Civics in 2020,” said Honda spokesman Carl Pulley in an email.
The interior styling follows the “Man-Maximum, Machine-Minimum” approach. (Honda)
As Honda’s longest-running automotive nameplate in the United States, more than 12 million Civics have been sold since 1973. That legacy makes it one of the top three best-selling passenger cars in America, said Dave Gardner, executive vice president of National Operations, American Honda Motor Co., in a statement.
Since the launch of the 10th-gen model in 2015, Civic has been the No. 1 vehicle in America with first-time buyers, millennials, Gen Z and multicultural customers, Gardner said. It has had more than 1.7 million units over the last five years.
High-touch areas feature quality materials that are fingerprint and scratch resistant. (Honda)
New Honda Civic sedan features
- First all-digital LCD instrument display in the top-line Touring;
- Standard 7-inch color touch screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto;
- First Bose premium sound system with 12 speakers and wireless charging, for the Touring;
- New front air bags are designed to reduce traumatic brain and neck injuries. Rear seat side air bags are a Civic first;
- Updated Honda Sensing system with a front wide-view camera. The Touring model gets new Traffic Jam Assist and Low Speed Braking Control.
The design
In designing the 11th-generation Civic, the stylists and engineers focused on the original Honda design approach of “Man-Maximum, Machine-Minimum.”
The new styling seems to represent a coming of age and appears more mature, uncluttered and upscale than the previous styling.
Key to the exterior design was moving the bottom of the windshield pillars rearward by nearly 2 inches. The revised design elongates the hood for a premium silhouette, Honda said in the release. It is a subtle design element that emphasizes its wheels and tires for a stable, planted stance.
The redesigned dash incorporates a series of mesh panels to create a clean, continuous look. (Honda)
The pulled-back windshield pillars, low hood, flat dashboard and hidden windshield wipers enable a windshield with clearly defined corners for a panoramic view.
The Sport trim adds matching gloss-black side mirrors, 18-inch wheels and a chrome exhaust tip. (Honda)
Dimensions and body structure
Sizewise, the 2022 model is 1.3 inches longer (184 inches) but the same width and height, 70.9/55.7 inches, as before. Curb weights are up 106-114 pounds across the trim levels. And trunk space was trimmed by just 0.3 cubic feet, but still large at 14.8 cubic feet.
The body structure is the most rigid in Civic history, Honda says. It was improved by 8 percent in torsional rigidity and 13 percent in bending rigidity. It also reduces road and wind noise in the cabin.
The stiffer structure aids ride quality and sharpens suspension response for better handling. A slightly wider rear track (0.5-inch) also enhances stability.
As before, the Civic continues as front-wheel drive with no plan yet for AWD.
Interior
Inside, the styling follows the “Man-Maximum, Machine-Minimum” approach, Honda says. The treatment emphasizes “exceptional visibility, intuitive ergonomics, extraordinary passenger volume and driver-focused technology,” Honda says.
High-quality materials are used throughout the interior, especially on touchpoints. Special attention was given to the operation of switchgear and controls. And all trim levels have a new front seat design to firmly hold the body and enhance comfort on long drives.
Materials were also chosen for practicality, such as the new center console trim that is designed to hide fingerprints and smudges.
In Sport mode, the 10.2-inch digital gauge array turns red. (Honda)
Digital displays
For the first time, all Civic sedan trims have either a partial or full (Touring) digital instrument display, with larger standard and available color touch screens.
LX, Sport and EX trim levels have a 7-inch color LCD instrument display. An all-digital speedometer and tachometer are on the left side of the display, with a physical speedometer dial to the right.
Touring models also get the first all-digital color instrument display for a Civic. The 10.2-inch high-def panel is customizable from the steering wheel and features several modes. The array can be configured to show traditional round gauges or bar graphs, flanking the left and right of the screen.
There also is a new multimedia 7-inch color touch screen in the LX, Sport and EX trims. It is “the largest standard screen in Civic history, Honda says.” Functionality was improved by adding a power-volume knob and a tuning-selection knob.
The top-line Civic Sedan Touring debuts a new 9-inch color touch screen. It features a physical volume knob, easy-to-recognize icons and a simplified format with fewer embedded menus.
The touch-screen systems have wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration. Only the Touring has Qi-compatible wireless charging.
Tire sizes range from 16- to 18-inches, with gloss-black wheels on the Sport trim (shown). (Honda)
Honda Civic sedan Powertrains
As with the outgoing Civic sedan, two four-cylinder engines make up the powertrain. The standard engine is a naturally aspirated 158-horsepower 2.0-liter. The EX and Touring trims use a 180-hp, turbocharged 1.5-liter. Both engines run on 87 octane gasoline.
Both engines are paired with an updated continuously variable automatic transmission. The CVT now gives early downshifts during braking with revised programming to simulate gear changes under hard acceleration.
Power delivery, engine sound, overall refinement were improved. And EPA fuel economy ratings of both engines are up by 1 or 2 mpgs, Honda says.
EPA fuel-economy ratings for the 2.0-liter in the LX are 31 mpg city, 40 highway and 35 mpg combined. The Sport trim has ratings of 30/37/33 mpg.
The more powerful 1.5-liter engine (up 6 hp from last model year) has mileage ratings of 33/42/36 mpg city/highway/combined.
Honda Civic sedan safety features
The 2022 Honda Civic sedan can boast what Honda calls the world’s first application of front driver and passenger air bags. The design will better control head motions and reduce conditions associated with brain injury, Honda says.
The driver’s air bag is donut-shaped to cradle and hold the head to reduce rotation. The passenger-side air bag uses a three-chamber design for a similar result. In total, there are 10 air bags.
Side impact protection has been improved throughout. There are stiffer structures in the roof and doors, side sills and door pillars, rear wheel arches and rear window pillar.
More than 12 million Civics have been sold since 1973. (Honda)
Pricing
Official pricing will not be released until just before the on-sale date. But expect the 2022 Civic sedan to cost about the same as the outgoing 2021 model. It has starting prices of $22,245-$29,295, including the current freight charge of $995 from Greensburg, Ind.
There is a financing incentive on 2021 Civics (except Type R) that will run through July 6, 2021. That is likely the cutoff date before the 2022 model goes on sale. Qualified buyers can take advantage of 1.9 percent APR for 24-60 months or 2.9 percent for 61-72 months, with a 10 percent down payment.
The outgoing 2021 Civic sedan. (Honda)
Industry sources say the new sedan will be followed by the Civic hatchback, sporty Si and high-performance Type R.
