MARKHAM, ON – When the September 2011 edition of ‘Consumer Reports’ hit the streets last year, few expected such a fall out from the venerable magazine’s position that the MY12 Honda Civic would not be on their annual recommended buy list.

“YONKERS, NY —The highly anticipated redesigned Honda Civic LX, whose predecessors have often been Consumer Reports’ highest rated small sedans as well as Top Picks in five of the last 10 years, now scores too low to be recommended by the leading automotive testing organization.

The redesigned Civic LX’s score dropped a whopping 17 points to a mediocre 61 from the previous generation’s very good 78. It scored second-to-last in CR’s ratings of 12 small sedans, followed only by the recently redesigned Volkwagen Jetta. Consumer Reports’ testers found the 2012 Civic to be less agile and with lower interior quality than its predecessor. It also suffers from a choppy ride, long stopping distances, and pronounced road noise. On the positive side, the Civic provides decent rear-seat room, and it achieved 30 mpg overall, which gives it the second-best fuel economy in its class—behind only the Toyota Corolla’s 32 mpg.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement.

Now I did attend the 2012 Civic launch in Washington DC earlier in the spring of 2011. Personally, I did not get myself as worked up as some; after all, this was a Civic. Not a luxury family sedan, but a compact vehicle intended to be used as an above average mode of every day transport. At that time the wave of enthusiasm (no pun intended) for other Asian-built autos had yet to crest. True, the interior was a little ‘lacking’ and the overall value-added proposition a little lacklustre (comparatively), but again, it was a Civic – a car that had, up to that point in time,  for 13 consecutive years been the number one selling car in Canada.

In fact, in spite of a trifecta of natural disasters in 2011 – an earthquake and tsunami last March and by the floods last autumn in Thailand, which disrupted assembly plants and supplies of components, the Civic finished on top in sales for Canada for the14th year.

Regardless, judging by a brief introduction to the MY13 Honda Civic at their Canadian headquarters a few weeks back, complacency is a word that does not appear in this manufacturer’s lexicon.

Honda has obviously listened to customers, dealers – even automotive journalists and made significant improvements to the Civic. In the most competitive category in the car segment, compacts, this radical move occurred during a model year. Honda could have easily rested on their collective laurels and done next to nothing until the next scheduled make over. But no, they chose to invest additional time, resources and of course money to bring the Civic up to – and perhaps beyond its competitors – and all in one year – not a full model cycle.

Interesting enough, at time of writing, the Civic was leading the number two best selling car in Canada at the end of October 2012 by a significant and likely insurmountable number. 15 years as the top selling car in Canada is a virtual certainty.

Initial impressions? The exterior appears a little more aggressive, perhaps even sportier. Length is the same as MY12, but certain features present a car that seems to sit a little lower – and confidently too. On the Touring Sedan model driven that day, larger and sportier alloys were quite apparent.

Inside the cabin the differences were immediately obvious; not as cheap-looking or heavy plastics. Softer, contoured edges with the instrument panel and controls being angled/curved slightly towards the driver, making for a more pleasant experience while driving. Peripherally, all could be seen clearly. And when driving, things were quieter. I was not overly enthusiastic about the electronic power steering (EPS), but again, being in the car for a scant 20 minutes is hardly enough time to warrant a more clear opinion. Seats too were improved with better fabric than before – and of course, for our climate, ubiquitous heated front seats were present.

Overall, things did seem to be hitting the familiar Honda benchmarks. A longer road test is in the works and we will report on that in the near future.

It would appear that given the tremendous loyalty to the brand and improved design and engineering, Honda will continue to lead the category for a few more years. The gap will, however likely diminish – unless Honda produces a category-leading game changer. We shall see.

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