A look at 2016 Civic

[AF News Desk]

Honda gave us a peek at the 10th-generation Civic sedan Wednesday night. The company is finally bucking the idea of building a market-specific model and moving to a common global platform. The new car is also the first of its breed to be developed entirely in the U.S. and is the first to feature a turbocharged engine. Honda says it will get “a few ticks above” 40 mpg combined.

There are five models of this Civic: sedan, coupe, five-door hatch, Si and Type R. Info about the Si and Type R will roll out in coming weeks. We’ve only seen a few of the models so far, but they all look a little buffer than before.

The new Civic will get either a 2.0-liter DOHC inline-four or the new turbocharged, direct-injection 1.5-liter inline-four. The 1.5-liter comes exclusively mated to a CVT on higher trims, whereas the 2.0-liter comes with either a six-speed manual or a CVT on lower models.

Drivers will sit lower in the new car and be treated to a redesigned front strut and multilink rear suspension. Honda says the sporty feel is back, showing pics of Civics past in its presentation. Torsional rigidity is up 25 percent, according to Honda, with more high-strength steel, and aerodynamic efficiency is also improved, helping with that 40-mpg claim.

The interior features more soft-touch materials than previous Civics and felt spacious when we dropped into the front seats. The people at Honda were referring to the C-segment sedan as being almost "C-plus" in size with the new interior packaging. In the back seat, though, the roof profile makes seating a little tight for people over 6 feet tall.

Much like the Accord, the Civic will have a handful of technologies stuffed inside. The 7-inch infotainment system will be prepped to run Apple’s CarPlay or Android Auto. Lighting is now all-LED, and a selection of safety features will help protect drivers from themselves.

Full specs and more info on the Type R and Si are coming soon, so be sure to check back with us.


Read more: http://autoweek.com/article/car-news...#ixzz3m0JmhJtc