New Honda Civic Thailand to be launched in November

[observer]

Teman2, ada beberapa hal yang menarik dari artikel di Bangkok Post tgl 28 Oct 05, yaitu:
1 Belum ada versi Hatchback, hanya sedan;
2 Ada 2 varian, yaitu 1.8L dan 2.0L. Sedangkan yang 1.3L hybrid akan diimpor dari Jepang
3 Di Jepang, harga 1.8L diset kurang lebih 10% lebih tinggi dari 1.7L sebelumnya. Hal ini mungkin juga akan diberlakukan di THailand
4 Dimensinya makin mendekati Accord, yang akan diikuti Honda City generasi baru yang akan makin mendekati dimensi Civic sekarang, dan Honda Accord generasi baru yang akan lebih besar lagi


HONDA CIVIC

Striking the RIGHT chord

Honda's bread-winning saloon was never meant to be a driver's car. But it now has some of that appeal, plus the ever-present merits of performance, packaging and interior comfort

Richard Leu

The Civic was always an important model for Honda. Ever since it was introduced in 1972, global production has reached 16 million units, with cumulative sales of one million in Asia alone. In other words, without the Civic, Honda would have been known only as a maker of two-wheel motorcycles.

Which was why Honda wasted no time in launching the eighth-generation Civic in Europe and the US recently. And just last week, the Asian version made its debut in Tokyo and officially goes on sale in Thailand next month.

The Civic isn't your ordinary compact saloon now. It has grown in size in which Honda now calls it a mid-sized sedan. Good proof is the wheelbase length of 2,700mm which is longer than in any other rivals in the Toyota Corolla class; Ford's just-launched Focus included.

Practicality should just be as good. The boot is spacious and its loading area can be increased by folding down rear seats that can split 60:40 like in the Focus and Mazda 3.

So it isn't a surprise that the Civic is the most spacious car to sit in. The successful flat-floor design used in the outgoing model has been carried over into the new Civic and works marvels for rear passengers. There's a great sense of airiness inside. Comfort is enhanced with new seats that are cushy to sit in.

What really is revolutionary in the new Civic is the driver-oriented dashboard which gives a wrap-around feel to the person holding the eye-catching, compact and good-to-hold steering wheel.

There's a two-tier instrument panel, the upper part displaying the digital speedo and the lower part the tachometer. It works well ergonomically, but only after you have adjusted the driving position properly as the top part of the steering wheel visually divides the panels.

Because of this, Honda has made sure that the seating position is as flexible as possible. There's 50mm of height adjustment for the seat compared to 25mm in the older model, according to Honda, while the steering adjusts for both reach and height — a feature usually seen only in European counterparts, and that just made its way into the Focus and 3.

First impressions in the Civic are a relaxing driving position. The controls are within easy reach, and the quality of the materials like the rubbery dashboard surface, sturdy sun visors, chunky gear lever and steering wheel give more upmarket feel than before. But there are some areas such as the door panels that don't feel solid enough to match the quality elsewhere.

While the cabin is hugely improved over the previous Civic, the exterior seems only a mild evolution. It appears that Honda was content with the design theme of the old sedan, unlike the European hatchback that underwent a radical makeover to woo the young generation.

The basic silhouette of the saloon remains, but via a slightly sleeker profile. The grille is more accentuated than before, while the head and tail lights have flame-like lines a la BMW.

Due to the increased dimensions in body size, Honda claims merits in dynamics. The Civic rides on a new platform that uses struts up front and the so-called reactive link at the rear like in the Accord, its bigger brother.

Thanks to a 35% increase in body rigidity, Honda has managed to make the Civic a sportier car to drive than before. As a result, the Civic isn't a soggy handler like before where all the car had to boast was low-speed ride comfort.

After a quick drive in the Civic at Honda's proving grounds in Tochigi, Japan, it is fair to say that the car handles and rides in a much better fashion than in the preceding model.

The steering is noticeably quicker and beefier when driving off, while the suspension feels more taut than before. Push the Civic hard into corners and handling remains tidy, even though there's a whiff of understeer which isn't uncommon for a front-wheel-drive car positioned in this corner of the mass-selling market segment.

We definitely can't say more about the Civic's handling/ride balance as the testing grounds in Japan hold little relevance to driving conditions in Thailand. Which is why engineers were quick to say that Thai-spec Civics may get a plusher set-up to cope with the poorer road surfaces in this country.

Even so, it's safe to say that the new Civic will be a better to car to drive than before — even with the special suspension setting. Let's just hope that the old Civic's reputation of vague high-speed handling is minimised, if not eliminated outright.

There were two engines for Thai journalists to drive: the newly-developed 1.8-litre single-cam 16-valve i-VTEC engine and 1.3-litre petrol/electric hybrid. While the Hybrid only comes with the CVT transmission, the regular 1.8 comes with either a five-speed manual or automatic gearbox.

The 1.8-litre pot yields a class-leading 140hp and 174Nm that is some 10hp and 19Nm more than in the outgoing 1.7. Along with drive-by-wire throttle and smooth-shifting five-speed auto box, performance is responsive and linear.

The engine's reasonably refined. And while it doesn't sound like it will fall to pieces at high revs, it's still considered noisy at the redline.

The same goes for the Hybrid version. There's more than enough grunt at real-life speeds and performance is considered more effortless than in the previous Civic Hybrid. Still, the engine is too audible when pushed.

But when you consider the powertrain's combined outputs of 116hp and 226Nm, plus a claimed fuel consumption of 31kpl in the Japanese 10-15 mode, the Civic Hybrid is quite a compelling car to own.

While the Hybrid would have to come to Thailand as an import initially (see sidebar), the 1.8-litre version will roll off Honda's production line in Ayutthaya. Also slated to join the 1.8 during the Civic's launch is the existing 155hp 2.0-litre option, although we didn't get to sample this range-topping engine in the new Civic.

Since the two engines will be sitting close to each other in terms of performance, Honda is determined to keep the two versions as far as possible through specification and pricing.

While the new Civic is available with many smart technologies in Japan like automatic cruise control and braking system, features that should be made standard in Thai-spec Civic 2.0s are front, side and curtain airbags, plus other devices governing active safety like chassis and braking electronics. Specifications of the 1.8s will be toned down accordingly.

Although fitting the 160hp 2.4-litre four-cylinder motor used in the Accord and CR-V is a logical way to create more space from the 1.8, such a strategy is not being considered at the moment due to the restrictive 2.0-litre tax barrier.

As you may have read in our news pages last week, the Civic moves upmarket as a mid-sized saloon to allow the third-generation City due in three years to enjoy compact status of the old Civic.

The 2.4 engine could come when the Civic reaches mid-life in 2008. By that time, the Accord would have moved further away from the Civic with an all-new version in size and price.

In fact, the new Civic and current Accord is close together in size. Will sales be cannibalised? Civic project leader Shinichi Takasahi smilingly said: "That's their problem (the Accord development team)." How nice.

Honda Automobiles (Thailand) has not disclosed pricing yet for the Civic. In Japan, the 1.8 is roughly 10% dearer than the outgoing 1.7. Thai said, expect the range to be anywhere between 850,000 to one million baht for the top 2.0 that enters the vicinity of the baseline Accord 2.0.

Even if the Civic commands a premium over its rivals, it's going to be the saloon of this year to watch for.

Honda has made the Civic a better to car to drive, if not that great yet. But the usual credentials of performance, packaging and interior comfort should be enough for the Civic to retain its lofty position in the Thai market.

[conan]

In fact, the new Civic and current Accord is close together in size. Will sales be cannibalised? Civic project leader Shinichi Takasahi smilingly said: "That's their problem (the Accord development team)." How nice.

[pinoh_boy]

Yeah..........yeah..........yeah................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[observer]

Teman2, new Honda Civic sudah dilaunched di Thailand pada tgl 16 Nop.


Bangkok Post
Honda says new Civic will lift its share and redefine segment

Santan Santivimolnat


Presenters show off the eighth-generation Civic at a press event staged by Honda yesterday. — Weerawong Wongpreedee
The new eighth generation Honda Civic was introduced yesterday in Thailand, the first market in Asia for the car outside Japan.

"The completely redesigned car with a muscular, sportier look and major advancements in almost every aspect has raised the bar against which every other compact car in the world will be judged," said Satoshi Toshida, senior managing director of Honda Motor Co.

Sales in the first year are anticipated to reach a record 26,000 with a further 15,000 vehicles planned for export, primarily to Australia due to the free trade agreement.

"We are hugely optimistic that the new Civic will catapult our share in the compact segment of Thai automobiles up from 21% to 30%," said Hiroshi Toda, president of Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co.

The company expects about 1,000 bookings for the new Civic at next month's Motor Expo 2005.

Mr Toda said the car would also help redefine the segmentation of the Thai automobile market.

"While still in the compact segment, the roominess, ride and fill of the new Civic makes it now more like a mid-size sedan," he said, adding that rivals in the mid-size sedan segment would have to offer other motorists "more for their money" to stay competitive.

The compact segment includes the Honda Civic, Toyota Altis, Chevrolet Optra, Nissan Sunny and Mazda 3, accounting for about 35% of total passenger car sales, estimated at 132,000 in the first nine months of this year.

Product market manager Pongsak L.Wattanavong said Honda was investing about 100 million baht to market the new Civic, mainly aiming at independent young men and women aged 25-35 years.

The car is available in four major versions with two different i-VTEC engines: a 140-horsepower, 1.8-litre engine and a 155 HP 2.0-litre engine. The top-of-the-line Civic 2.0 EL is priced at 1.068 million baht.

[calvin99]

ini ada gambar2 buat teman2 semua....

[calvin99]

hmm... kira2 kapan masuk sini yah??
bisa nyaingin altis gak yah?

[WP]

kalo masuk sini estimasi harganya gimana?

apa tambahin 10% dari harga Thai, trus hasilnya ditambah 5% lagi dari angka hasil tadi, sehingga dapat harga sebelum keuntungan HPM?

[calvin99]

lanjutan gambarnya.........

[calvin99]

ditambah modulo bodykit.........

[handling]

wah thanks banget pict nya bagus2 bos calvin99

[handling]

desain tape mobil civic ini bisa bikin bingung lagi bagi yg mau ganti tape standarnya.....kayak accord sekarang aja....pusing kalo mau ganti tape...hikshiskhksss...s.

[Naruto]

Dashboardnya cakep ya. Innovative banget. Kalo tampang luar sih udah lumayan ok. Tapi kalo dah pake modulo, jadi keren banget deh.

[WP]

cepaat banget keluar dress-up-nya Modulo ya? Mugen aja belum kali ya? Full Bloom? Buddy Club? Kent Style?

[ween]

koq sekarang trend sedan jadi tinggi2 yah? menurut g kurang proporsional.........seperti van/stream yang dipaksain jadi sedan.....

sama seperti avensis verso yg jadi altis

dan yang paling jijay itu aerio yg jadi baleno next-g........jijay bajay deh......bentuknya norak bgt

[indy]

Kok desainnya ajaib gitu?? Bagian belakangnya naik-turun gitu...?? Tapi interiornya OK tuh!!

[boilers]

Interiornya keren ya, kapan ya kira-kira masuk ke Indonesia ? Iya, design mobil sekarang jadi tinggi , mungkin karena mengejar kelegaan interior ya. Mungkin karena itu juga design civic baru ini juga seperti cab-forward design, hood mesin dan trunk pendek dan interior panjang.

[conan]

koq sekarang trend sedan jadi tinggi2 yah? menurut g kurang proporsional.........seperti van/stram yang dipaksain jadi sedan.....

sama seperti avensis verso yg jadi altis

dan yang paling jijay itu aerio yg jadi baleno next-g........jijay bajay deh......bentuknya norak bgt

Setuju sekali. Tapi jangan kuatir, tidak semua sedan. Accord tidak, kan, dan Camry baru tingginya hanya 1470 mm, 6 cm lebih pendek dari versi sekarang.

Accord, Camry masih proporsional.

Altis, City dll sudah berantakan..

[WP]

koq sekarang trend sedan jadi tinggi2 yah? menurut g kurang proporsional.........seperti van/stream yang dipaksain jadi sedan.....

sama seperti avensis verso yg jadi altis

dan yang paling jijay itu aerio yg jadi baleno next-g........jijay bajay deh......bentuknya norak bgt

Hey... Avensis Verso itu basisnya Avensis, or Ipsum or Picnic..

Yg sebasis sama Corolla Altis itu Corolla Verso...

Zaman sekarang jadi tinggi gitu ya buat ngejar kelegaan interior yg pastinya, kaya Civic sekarang yg bebas gundukan di tengah kabin belakang...

[DigitALL]

Wow! Keren tuh Civic yg dikasih bodi kit Modullo. Koq jadi ngiler yak ? Hehe

[ahbeng]

rencana masuk indo kapan ya? harga ? spec? cantik juga lama2 diliat ^^ (mirip acura apa gitu yg di canada)