2012 Honda Civic soon to roll out

The 2012 Civic is to start rolling off assembly lines in Alliston, Ont., and Greensburg, Indiana, in April, and it’s obvious that fuel economy will remain a calling card of this Civic, even in non-hybrid versions. Its base 1.8-litre engine will produce 140 hp, as well as fuel efficiency ratings of 7.2 litres/100 km city/5.0 […]

The 2012 Civic is to start rolling off assembly lines in Alliston, Ont., and Greensburg, Indiana, in April, and it’s obvious that fuel economy will remain a calling card of this Civic, even in non-hybrid versions. Its base 1.8-litre engine will produce 140 hp, as well as fuel efficiency ratings of 7.2 litres/100 km city/5.0 highway, a 12 per cent improvement over the miserly current Civic four-door.

But this time Honda is also dropping a notably larger 2.4-litre engine into the Si versions of the Civic, which is bumped up to a peak of 170 lb-ft versus the current model’s 139 lb-ft  for sedan and coupe especially on the American specification.

So the top-line performance Civic will not require as much redline-screaming for quick passing, although a new six-speed transmission for Si models may still encourage such others for fun. Even with the increased displacement and torque, fuel economy is said to be increased by 2 per cent. But don’t expect the hybrid here in Nigeria. There is a likelihood it may not really sell since petrol still remains affordable likewise diesel.

But until it arrives, we will see how good it will be for us.