Test drive Honda Civic sedan 2006 - 2008 sedan

The eighth cosmic

As a child, I liked to leaf through magazines like science and the life and technique of youth. It was to leaf through the majority of articles that seemed in an inaccessible abuse, but there quite often drawings of cars of the future imagination of students and junior researchers flickered there.

These cars had a bewitching look: chopped or drop-shaped shapes, wing doors, transparent caps, huge wheels and very small wheels from the magazine pages, they looked very confident, it seemed that there would be very little time, and this unearthly technique would flood the streets, parked under residential buildings . But the years were five, ten, twenty years old, and all the same sedans, hatchbacks, and station wagons continued along the roads. Something changed in their appearance, but still he remained terribly far from those images that had grown into my soul, which were created without regard to the market conditions and competitors.

Meanwhile, we missed a bright extraordinary design, on emotional cars. Of course, the appearance of supercars and concepts is wonderful. But how many such solutions have you met in a golf class? Honda was the first to wake up. Japanese designers, having overcome the field of gravity of stylistic banality, showed the world of the eighth -generation Civic.

Have you seen the European five -door Civic only in the photographs? You have not seen anything! And I examined everything in the details of a small, almost single -volume silhouette, two horizontal chandeliers of lighting equipment (in front, where there is usually a false radiator grille, a battery of mirrored reflectors), hidden rear doors, everywhere sharp corners and triangles, I tapped the fingers along the side, sounds like a metal, like a metal. But in fact, this is the material of the future compressed emotions.

The interior of the sedan is interesting, but the hatchback is even more interesting. And richer. The decoration uses a more expensive soft plastic, new lotions have appeared. For example, a large tachometer in the center is now made in the form of a protrusion on a plane with a secondary thermometer and fuel, and in the center of the dial is again a voluminous graphic display of the on -board computer. It looks luxurious. The already mentioned secondary devices became analogue, and their place in the upper digital sector was taken by two indicators, one signaling with red bulbs about the approach of the motor revolutions to the maximum permissible value, the other green about reaching the most economical mode of operation. Antipodes neighbors.

Here, unlike the sedan, there is also such a fashionable button for launching the motor. It is located like on racing cars, under the left hand at the driver. However, before using it, you need to insert the usual key into the usual lock and turn.

Under the visor in the center of the front panel, a large monochrome display appeared, which is divided by an audio system and climate control. They are also organized not in the same way in the four -door Civic: pens and buttons responsible for the microclimate are in the internal (closer to the driver) ergonomic circle, for music in the external. You might think that all this footurama is low -functional, but this is completely wrong, on the contrary, it is convenient and pleasant to use everything, only numerous glare on displays in sunny weather annoy. Fresh scratches on the transparent plastic of the dashboard were also alerted. It is necessary to care for this coating very carefully.

Perhaps the most amazing in Civic is that he is practical. Searn back doors with mowed frames and deeply conspicuated handles embarrassed me. It turns out that when landing in the rear seat, they do not create absolutely any problems. Even glasses fall completely!

The sensations on the back sofa are unusual: the window is small, the window line is high, on the side of the head of the body is spacious, but it is spacious (the new Civic is wider than the previous one by 65 mm), and only tall people will not have enough space over their heads (Civic lost 35 mm in height of 35 mm ). And here is a surprise when folding the seat, the pillow drops to the floor, and the back covers it. In the usual position under the sofa is free space! Correctly there is no gas tank there, it is under the front seats. There are no sparelights under the trunk floor instead of it a huge additional compartment and a spray can with a sealant. The designers responsible for the layout conquered 415 liters of useful volume for baggage!

But they conquered it from a multi -leaf independent suspension, which was equipped with the previous generation Civic. And the current bunch of hi-tech has an elastic beam behind, that is, a semi-dependent suspension. And such a car claims the title of Drivers Car?

I admit, even if Civic rode like a cart with a sick donkey for a harness, I could forgive him for this. Just because it is. But he rides excellent. Civic Hatch is undoubtedly one of the most driver in class.

The engine is the same as on the sedan, a 1.8-liter 140-horsepower. From below and up to 4000 rpm, he has a flat thrust, and after (when the i-VTEC changes the moment and the degree of valve opening) there is a pickup of up to 7000 rpm. The pickup is accompanied by a change in the tonality of the sound of the exhaust, which is menacingly divorced in two triangular pipe. For all the militancy of the motor, the low fuel consumption in urban mode pleases it rarely exceeded 10.5 liters per hundred. But the sound insulation of the motor compartment could be performed a little more thorough when driving along the highway at high speed, the engine sound presses by ear.

Thanks to the 6-speed manual, the hatchback is more dynamic than the sedan, in acceleration to a hundred plays out of it as many as 2 seconds! Hatch's maximum speed is more than 7 km/h.

The car has a rather large diameter of the turn 11.7 m (Audi Q7, for example, takes 12 m). There are problems with visibility to see who moves from behind, the spoiler interferes, which is creeping on the back glass in the most unsuccessful place. In addition, he deprived the glass of the janitor. But with these disadvantages you can put up with advantages anyway.

It is pleasant, for example, to work as a lever of the gearbox. The electoral mechanism is perfectly tuned in the lever easily and clearly throws from one invisible pink to another. However, in order to switch without jerks, you need to carefully handle the clutch, it triggers sharply.

The Civic Sedan pleased with an acute character of a short steering wheel, sensitive gas, a hard suspension. The hatchback is even more sharp as a razor. The steering wheel from the stop does less than two with a quarter of revolutions. This means that already at speeds above 120 km/h, to make a maneuver, it is enough to apply only a slight effort to the rim. When the speedometer arrow rises to the mark of 180, the car turns into a tense nerve. Some behavior will seem too sharp to someone, requiring too high concentration. Indeed, when you go at high speed for a long time, it tires somewhat. But in ordinary modes, sharpness and responsiveness can significantly brighten up the routine of the trip, turning it into pleasure.

The fears about the degradation of the suspension were not justified, it is configured with a clear accent on an aggressive ride. But not without prejudice to comfort to any irregularities, Civic is quite carefully, reacting rigidly to small and large fossils. On the other hand, it is naive to expect that the car on rubber with a dimension of 235/40R18 will go without noticing the pardon. Of course, he likes the smooth asphalt of the landfill more. It is a pleasure to grab on Civic through a bunch of turns, it passes them without delay and with minimal rolls. When the adhesion properties of the tires are exhausted, the stabilization system will delicately pull, and without its help Civic will smoothly slip out and also smoothly gain stability after corrective actions. The electric power steering does not resist them simply, the legend for it is spelled out meticulously in the middle of a clear zero, an excessive and pleasant increase in effort depending on speed. One of the best examples of settings. ABS, on the contrary, works quite clumsy, with large vibration on the pedal, but in most cases you can do without its intervention.

Perhaps I am too generous with compliments and the risk of being suspected of biased, but I was not going to hide my sympathy Civic. Highly. Perhaps today it is the brightest car in its class, and maybe not only in its own.

As usual, for the opportunity to stand out, you need to pay a five -door Civic in Russia costs from $ 24,900, which is an average of $ 5,000 more than a sedan. Let me remind you, however, that Dennis Tito once laid out $ 20 million for a flight into space. So, he overpaid $ 19 975 100.

The car was provided by Honda representative office

We thank the administration of the shopping center three D for help in organizing photography

Honda Civic prices and equipment

Civic five-door hatchbacks are offered with one 1.8 liter engine, but with two hand transmission variants or robotic 6-speed mechanics (with steering wheel switches). In the first case, the cost of the car will be $ 24,900, in the second $ 25,900. Civic with a robot can be with a glass roof, which will raise the cost by another $ 1400. The list of standard equipment has a stabilization system for all hatchbacks, ABS+EBD, 6 airbags, alloy wheels with rubber 225/45R17, steering wheel power power, central locking and alarm, climate control, electric grinders, fog lights, CD residents with MP3 support and MP3 support, and control on the steering wheel, seats with mechanical adjustments and fabric upholstery. Optionally offered the mentioned glass roof, 18-inch wheels, a decorative body kit.
 
 

Source: Motor magazine [June 2006]