Auto enthusiasts the world over could be forgiven in thinking that Honda had all but forgotten their fans and followers even existed. Over the course of the past decade, the manufacturer has undeniably turned further and further away from so-called ‘drivers’ cars’ and instead focused on Toyota-like hybrids and fully functional though rather uninspiring people movers. The S2000, NSX and so on are indeed things of past, therefore hope has once again been placed in the hands of the 2012 Honda
Civic to once again breathe a little life into the currently rather lack-lustre catalogue. The most noticeable and highly debated aspect of the new
Civic so far is the fact that the car redlines at 7000 RPM rather than the previous 8000, resulting in a decidedly different character. Acceleration has been slightly improved, allowing zero to 60 in 6.5 seconds. Braking and fuel economy have also seen slight improvements, but the worry across auto-fanatic circles is that such benefits have come at a price- that being a small piece of the
Civic’s soul.
So far, sales of the 2012
Civic Hybrid have been rather sluggish (Honda reports that sales hit 389 through the end of May). That's due in part to the vehicle's limited availability because of quake-related supply issues. However, with a sticker price that starts at $24,800, the 2012 Civic Hybrid is $1,920 more than a base Prius
