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The 2017 Honda Civic VTi sedan is affordable and inoffensive. But is there a catch?Read the full review
| LIST PRICE | Fr $22,390 |
| CARADVICE RATING | 8.0 |
| FUEL ECONOMY | 6.4/100km |
| SEAT | 5 |
Front-wheel drive has been part of the classic hot-hatch formula since the genre was ignited in the 1970s. The layout would dominate any all-time-greats list for the category, featuring the likes of the Peugeot 205 GTI, Renault Megane RS, and of course Volkswagen Golf GTI (Marks III and IV excepted!). Yet, there have long been exceptions, of course...
For all the hoo-ha about booming sales of SUVs, the so-called 'small car' segment remains the market's most popular, still accounting for almost 20 per cent of all new vehicles sold in Australia. Of this, the majority are hatchbacks instead of three-box sedans, which draw people in based on their improved practicality and generally less conservative design approaches...
Two new-generation hatches, hugely important for each brand both in simple number terms and, more importantly, making a strong argument for the attentions of increasingly savvy buyers in the small-car market. One of these cars, the new 2017 Honda Civic, boasts a pedigree nearly 50 years old, with the same name and with a very well-regarded history of solid engineering...
The last time we took a close look at the small sedan segment in the form of a comprehensive three-way comparison, the new-generation Honda Civic stole the cookies from the previous segment leader, the Hyundai Elantra and a slightly more left field combatant, the Skoda Octavia...
It was only July when the Honda Civic VTi-S outshone both the Skoda Octavia Ambition and Hyundai Elantra Active. Here though, we have just two rivals going head-to-head: the 2016 Honda Civic RS and 2017 Hyundai Elantra SR Turbo. And, based on their most recent individual reviews – the Civic RS scoring 8/10 from Mike Costello, the Elantra SR Turbo scoring the same from Matt Campbell – this has the potential to be a rather close-fought little battle...
Demand for small sedans has been a little stagnant of late, with people increasingly drawn to hatchbacks and crossover SUVs. Nevertheless, the battle for sales supremacy in this traditional part of the market is intensely fought, and there is no lack of quality options...
Update: We drove the new Toyota Prius for three months. Read our experience with the car:Prius Review Long Term I often get criticised by some of my ‘greenie’ friends about polluting the environment with my day job. So I’ve thrown my lead-foot towel in for a fortnight to figure out what the deal is with this Hybrid malarky...
