10th gen Honda Civic debuts in Los Angeles

The 10th generation Honda Civic made its debut in Los Angeles.

While its design may not appear as futuristic as the one that we had in India, it still looks very modern, wearing a typical Honda face - wide LED headlamps (LED DRLs) and a chunky chrome grill with the Honda logo sitting in the centre. The character lines on the sides, coupe-like sloping roof, large alloy wheels and the C-shaped LED tail lamps add to the car's sporty appeal.

The interiors are as new as the exteriors. There's a multi-function 3-spoke steering wheel, a full-colour TFT instrument cluster, soft-touch dashboard material, piano black and silver inserts all around the black interiors, 8-way electrically adjustable driver seat, 4-way electrically adjustable passenger seat, heated seats and mirrors, 60:40 split rear seats etc. There's a new 7" HD touchscreen infotainment system which supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The interiors have grown in dimensions too and Honda promises better visibility due to slimmer pillars.

It will be available with 2-litre, 16V, DOHC i-VTEC, 4-cylinder engine mated to a 6-speed manual transmission or CVT; and a 1.5-litre turbo, 16V, DOHC, inline-4 mated to a CVT. The car has 25% improved torsional rigidity. Aerodynamics have improved by 12% due to a full under-body cover.

Some other unique features of the Civic include driver assist technologies like collision mitigation braking, road departure mitigation, adaptive cruise control with low-speed follow, 4-wheel disc brakes etc.

Whether or not this car makes it to India is still a question mark. Considering that Honda has shifted its focus to mass market cars and the fact that demand for entry-level D-segment sedans is diminishing, there is a slim chance of this car being launched in our market.