Honda

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Finally, I discover the Honda Civic has an ECON button that cuts out any performance!

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Lordy! After four days in the saddle with the Honda Civic Sport I’ve just realised the ECON button is on.

Obviously the delivery man was on an economy drive because I had no idea. It’s hidden behind the steering wheel and there’s no indication that it is active, once it’s been activated.

This might explain why the Sport is so flat-footed. The system reduces the throttle response and limits the time the air conditioning runs for.

So, without ECON on, the Civic does feel like a lukewarm hatch! No wonder I couldn’t get any satisfaction from the 1.8 petrol engine for the last few days…

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Want a sporty Civic? Just wait for the new Type R…

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The Honda Civic Type R is imminent – it’s due here any moment but don’t go thinking this Sport we have on test is anything but a lukewarm, if not cold, alternative.

If you you like your hatchback’s hot then stick your money in the bank and wait for the 2.0 turbo version. It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since the last generation model was in the UK.

It’s Bank Holiday Monday and I’ve just driven back from London across the Cotswolds on a surprisingly quiet road – just right for a ‘sports’ car. Just not the Civic Sport!

Aesthetically, this new model does look the part but that’s the end of it. This Civic simply doesn’t have the performance, handling or sharpness to be credited as a sporty car…

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The Civic Sport is just a lamb dressed up in wolf’s clothing

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I can understand why you might buy the Civic. It isn’t shaped like your average hatchback, this new Sport model we have on test looks moderately cool and, therefore, it marks you out as slightly different.

But I still have a problem with any car labelled ‘Sport’ having no sporting edge whatsoever. It’s as vague on the steering as the standard car and has absolutely no extra poke.

There is a hint of hothatch ‘Type-R’ about it – especially with the sleek body kit that looks great. Sadly, it’s a lamb dressed up as a wolf. Thus to me is as criminal as creating a chunky SUV with only two-wheel drive.

What’s the point?!

If your manly ego needs an extra shot of performance then you’re only kidding yourself buying a Civic Sport. Within a minute of sitting in the cabin, you’ll know you have been rumbled.

Much better buying a lesser model and speccing it up with the money you save. Makes a lot more sense…

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The Honda Civic no longer looks like a dumpy vacuum cleaner

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2014 Civic

I suppose I should cough up from the start. I wasn’t a big fan of the latest generation Civic when it first appeared and I’m still not sure now.

The squat front end and bulky backside isn’t a good look for man or car. It looks more like a vacuum cleaner that a practical hatchback.

But in recent years the Civic has been revised. It’s a bit more conservative now and for once, I think that’s done the trick. A styling overhaul earlier this year has really given the car a sense of purpose.

TheSport model may not be the best driving car in its class but the Civic is still a decent all-rounder. Besides, if you want power, go for the Type-R version.

After a just a few miles on my favourite potholed road I can tell you the Civic rides well and in 1.8 guise has decent acceleration too. A lukewarm hot hatch that doesn’t break the bank…

 

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Thursday – Red Zone

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I don’t mind blending in with the crowd sometimes. The CR-V may be unremarkable to look at but it has the sleek, angular looks of the rest of the current Honda line-up.

Our test car, in a light metallic, looks especially good from the rear. The small back screen may make reversing tricky but the SR model parked on the driveway features a reversing camera to help out.

Unfortunately, the previous driver had turned off the audible warning while in reverse – so I nearly ploughed into another car when slipping into a parking space yesterday! It just shows how much we have come to rely on such features in modern cars.

And there’s something else remarkable about the i-DTEC CR-V too – it does, eventually, run out of fuel! After a week and 450 miles of hard driving, the needle has finally hit the red zone. Time for a new car…

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Wednesday – Greenest CR-V Yet

 

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The greenest CR-V in the fleet is also the lightest. The 1.6 i-DTEC diesel is 47kg less than the 2.2 diesel and removing the four-wheel drive system cuts the weight by an additional 69kg. Impressive.

It has to be good because if the Honda is going to compete with the ubiquitous hatchback, it has to be worth the £27,000 price tag too. So, what else can the CR-V offer, above the excellent fuel economy?

The boot space is best in class, with back seats that are simple to fold with one pull and a low loading lip. Rear headroom is plentiful, although rear visibility is restricted by the small back screen.

This is also the best CR-V to look at – a big step up from the previous model which looked overweight and dull. You will also find the dashboard lay-out first class, especially the high-mounted gear changer, which is perfectly placed for easy use, flicking through the six-speed gearbox.

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Tuesday – Learning A Lesson

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Oh dear… No sooner had I stated that an SUV doesn’t need four-wheel drive to be a decent car than the worst happens! A quiz night in the Cotswolds usually involves a pub and a car park – but not this time.

The marquee for this fund-raiser was on the side of a hill and although metal tracking had been put in place to help cars slip up the slope, our two-wheel drive CR-V made a complete hash of it.

What made it especially painful was that an old Saab 9-5 estate seemed to cope with the include better than we did. There was an air of oneupmanship as the Land Rover drivers looked and questioned why a CR-V – usually a four-wheel drive machine – was struggling so badly.

What I discovered the hard way was that just because a two-wheel drive SUV looks like it has 4×4, it doesn’t mean it will do the same job in the dirt. Lesson learnt.

 

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Monday – Chris Who?

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Why is it that when motoring writers become famous they seem to forget about the cars that 99 per cent of the rest of us have to drive?

Clarkson is a great comedy act, Top Gear pure light entertainment. Yet when I read Chris Evans’ road test of the CR-V in the Mail on Sunday (eek!) it just smacked of a guy who is completely out of touch.

He may have grown up doing a paper round but having a garage full of exotica doesn’t exactly lend yourself to writing about, well, ‘normal’ cars.

‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ read the headline. I doubt he wrote that but branding the CR-V dull, lacklustre and joking at the great fuel economy seems a bit bizarre.

So, if you’re a Mail reading, web surfer I apologise. The CR-V is a great family car that Chris Evans hates – which is another good reason to buy one.

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Sunday – Earl Grey Without Milk

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The D-TEC is the first SUV that has convinced me you don’t actually need four-wheel drive in a multi-purpose vehicle. Just like Earl Grey without low fat milk, porridge without honey, it’s actually OK not to have the complete package sometimes.

Provided you think of the two-wheel drive CR-V as a roomy estate with all the benefits of a raised seating position, it works exceptionally well. And besides, living in the country, there have only been a couple of times in the last 12 months when we’ve actually needed four-wheel drive.

With this particular model, the CR-V is all about economy. The vast majority of the CR-V range is four-wheel drive – the 1.6 i-DTEC just offers the maximum miles per gallon and a lower tax band too (C).

I can’t say I noticed much difference in performance either over the best-selling 2.2 diesel unit (48mpg). The 1.6 lacks a little overtaking power but it doesn’t feel stretched on the motorway and remains quiet and refined in the cabin.

SUV looks without the extra cost? Try this one – it’s excellent.

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Saturday – Honda’s Super frugal CR-V

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I find fuel economy runs a complete nightmare – and more dangerous than tootling along at high speed because you are forced into unnatural driving techniques. Let’s face it, nobody drives for hundreds of miles trying squeeze every last drop out of a gallon.

Honda recently persuaded two motoring writers to see how far they could get in an MPG Marathon. Although the new i-DEC engine is meant to top out at 60.1mpg, they achieved an impressive 77.8mpg.

Now, don’t try that at home, whatever you do. But at least this shows just how SUVs have managed to change their image in 2014 are strive just as much for fuel economy as they everyday hatchback.

After two weeks driving lumbering 4x4s around Australia, the CR-V is so refreshing! It may not have the grunt or road presence of a Land Cruiser, but it’s a great drive, highly capable and easy on the eye too…