2020 Honda Civic - 5 things that impressed us

The Japanese car major, Honda has carved a niche spot in the Malay market. It is one of the popular and trusted car brands in the country with high credibility for all the models. While it has some new models up its sleeve, Honda Malaysia recently lifted the wraps off its updated Civic for the model year 2020. The model was first previewed in September last year, and pre-orders opened soon after, while the official launch took place in February.

As for changes the mid-life facelift features mild styling updates on the outside, and subtle tweaks are visible on the inside. With no change to the basic silhouette and overall design, Civic continues to charm with its contemporary looks.

Honda powers the executive sedan with its high capacity 1.8-litre SOHC and 1.5-litre engines, linked to its Earth Dreams continuously variable transmission. Moreover, it is one of the few Honda cars in Malaysia to benefit from Honda Sensing suite of driver assistance features. Speaking of 2020 Honda Civic price, it starts from RM 113,600, the price-break for the entire line-up is listed below. 

Variant	Price
Honda Civic 2020 1.8 S	RM 113,600
Honda Civic 2020 1.5L TC	RM 129,600
Honda Civic 2020 1.5 TC P	RM 139,600

Even though it is a mid-life facelift, Honda has spruced-up the model and here is our pick of five things that impressed us the most. 

New piano black grille 

The styling tweaks on the 2020 Honda Civic are mild, though one of the prominent additions on the face is the new grille featuring a piano black wing unit. It replaces the chrome trim in the previous version. The bumper in front also receives mild restyling with the lower section merged into the black trim. At the back, the boot spoiler and rear bumper garnish remain as is. 2020 Honda Civic colour options include Lunar Silver Metallic, Modern Steel, White Orchid Pearl, Crystal Black Pearl, and a new Passoin Red Pearl. 

Meaty alloys 

Moving to the side, there are new and larger 18-inch alloys on the new Civic, though it is restricted to the 1.5 TC-P grade. It comes wrapped to 235/40 profile tyres. The 1.5 TC, on the other hand, sports 17-inch unit fitted to the 215/50 series tyres. And the 1.8 S gets 16-inches equipped to the 215/55 rubber tyres. Other prominent exterior features have been mentioned below. 

• Auto headlamps
• LED headlamps
• LED daytime running lights
• Front fog lamps
• Side mirrors with integrated turn signals
• Chrome door handles
• Trunk spoiler 

Safety suite 

The new Honda Civic also joins the league of Honda models to pack its Honda Sensing suite of safety features which consist of auto high-beam, forward collision warning, collision mitigation brake system, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist system, road departure mitigation, adaptive cruise control and low speed follow. Aside from these, the 2020 Honda Civic specs sheet comprises the below-listed features. 

• Dual front airbags
• Side airbags
• Side curtain airbags
• Front seatbelt 3-point ELR
• Rear seat ISOFIX
• Vehicle stability assist
• Agile handle assist
• Anti-Lock braking system
• Electronic brakeforce distribution
• Auto brake hold
• Brake assist
• Hill start assist
• Emergency stop signal
• Front & rear sensors
• Multi-angle rearview camera
• Honda LaneWatch Camera
• Security alarm with immobilizer 

Automatic rain-sensing wipers 

While changes to the new Civic are subtle, it now comes with an automatic rain-sensing warning. Aside from this, it also gets 60:40 split-fold rear seats. The presence of rain-sensing warning makes driving hassle-free during monsoons as it comes into action automatically. This feature usually comes with premium models only, giving a miss to the mass segment. 

Powerful 1.5L engine 

Under the hood, the new Honda Civic comes with two engines, both connected to Honda’s Earth Dreams continuously variably transmission from the previous version. The 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder, 16-valve, DOHC VTEC turbo engine is more powerful than the 1.8-litre SOHC unit. In terms of power, the turbo engine makes 173 PS at 5,500 rpm and 220 Nm torque between 1,700 to 5,500 rpm. It takes slightly less time than the SOHC engine to sprint from 0 to 100 kmph at 8.2 seconds, while touching a maximum speed of 200 kmph. As for the 1.8-litre engine, it makes 141 PS at 6,500 rpm and 174 Nm torque at 4,300 rpm. Time takes to propel from 0 to 100 kmph is 10.4 seconds. The paddle shifters are restricted to the DOHC engine, while the other unit comes bereft it. 

Overall, the new Honda Civic improves mildly over the pre-update version with a handful styling exterior tweaks and some additional features. However, this impacts the new Honda Civic price, as it changes upwardly. Coming from the house of Honda, the new Civic is a charmer, packed with top-notch amenities and offering a comfortable cabin experience to the occupants. 

Also read: 2020 Honda Civic - First impression