Gadgetory

all new sounds a bit dramatic as you look at the new 2012 Civic yet that's exactly what it is one of the best-selling cars in the world has become perhaps rather unnoticeable let's drive the 2012 Civic EXL with nav and check the tech an all-new Civic isn't like an all-new Mustang these are conservative car updates include a less doughy face up front a rump that appears to have been taken from a Dodge Neon an economy mode with a big green button a new 5 inch information screen and standard stability control to keep all of this right-side up first thing you notice when you get in the newly redesigned Civic is they've taken that Honda eyebrow - to a new level and I love it right in the center a big digital speedometer on the side of that 2 segmented bars it'll change color from either deep blue if you're driving like a pig Bluegreen if you're not too heavy on the throttle and green when you're driving like a Prius driver on the left side as a segment gauge for fuel on the right is your instantaneous mpg then you've got this new thing on the right which is a completely new idea for Honda this big LCD info gauge that ties into the left side controller here notice the theme big and readable the display also the controller this I button takes me through I think a combination of three screen positions this one here which is date and time the next one which is media and the third one which is kind of everything fuel economy media date and time all rolled into one that's the one I like the same rocker lets you control your media I go track to track or station to station if I hold the button down it seeks the station if I bump it once it goes to my next preset it's all very logical up and down gives you volume and again notice how all the graphics are very clear and easy to see at a glance this is some nice interface work and up here you've also got some of your basic vehicle setup menus on the right-hand side of the wheel is a similar controller for cruise control and then down here I've got my hands-free calling and my voice command button which still remains kind of separate in a Honda which never made any sense to me this also doesn't make any sense why the hell we have a huge tachometer in this car with an automatic get rid of it there's got to be something else we can put there maybe not because everything I care about is up on the eyebrow over here's the economy button this car has either a regular mode or push the green button and you now I've got a wimpy car it tailors back all of its driving responses to encourage you to use less fuel here's something else I don't care about this head unit I'm tired of it it's ancient the is completely now at odds with the rest of the interface where Conda has done this is the old school the kind of crunchy graphics the little tiny fiddly knobs the small typography on the legends this is like 2005 and this is 2011 this doesn't belong here anymore the navigation system is entirely serviceable it's just not any fun to deal with you do have live traffic here into the little tiny information button that'll show up as a list or on the map same dopey controller Honda's head for years but I think it's actually gotten smaller this little mushroom cap thing what's the point in a car your optical disk is up here and among your audio choices are that CD am/fm XM radio no HD radio and I've also got my USB pigtail down here auxilary analog is up here and once they get a phone paired up I have bluetooth streaming as well as hands-free calling audio output is straightforward 160 watt amp that's it no sobs no surround and no factory choices for an upgrade not even on this high trim car one transmission only on this EXL high trim car it's this 5-speed automatic relatively few gears for this day and age no rear view camera standard or optional on a Civic still no shifty thing no gates no paddles no nonsense this is not a race car it's been for getting around ok in the engine bay it's garden-variety classic Honda stuff which is a good thing this car is about getting around efficiently for like 300,000 miles this is the kind of motor that doesn't a not overstressed 1.8 liter inline-4 sitting sidesaddle driving the front wheels 140 horsepower 128 foot-pounds of torque gets this guy up to 16 about nine point two seconds which is not the point on a basic Civic mpg is they deliver there at 28 City 39 highway 39 highway one shy of the magic 40 that's got to be killing them now compare those mpg numbers to the outgoing 2011 Civic and you'll see their two to three miles per gallon better on a car with an automatic nice but nothing dramatic okay let's drive our eminently civilized Civic EXL again high trim car here but most importantly a civic is the transportation device the athleticism of this car isn't the point you get a civic SI for that now as I mentioned the five-speed transmission would appear to be a liability on paper and the economy button here is one of interest so let's see how those two work together the nearest thing you've got to a sport position is d3 if you do that you kind of drop out of economy mode the car automatically says you're not driving Greenlee so I'll leave it in D and I'll test it with and without this economy thing on here's an on-ramp it's gutless with economy off let's put it on feels the same you have to say this car feels more gutless than past civics I've driven I wonder if it's portable a master change in their tuning to wring the most mpg out of the car it's just got no snap at all okay now at freeway speed with the economy button on I definitely feel a difference in tip in on the throttle if I was trying to pick up some speed or jump ahead into a lane it definitely dials the response back from a car that's already kind of responsible I would definitely test drive a 5-speed manual if you're amenable to that the Civic is still a great everyday car with a refined ride and solid credentials but the Ford Focus the Hyundai Elantra and even the stodgy Corolla make the Civic less and less of a standout a 2012 Civic EXL is going to run you about twenty to seven out the door with destination this is the high trim model of course options on top of that are basically nav or none that it adds 1450 which is kind of cheap but not cheap enough for that unit I'm going to delete that and go aftermarket now your other tech options a dealer installed remote start for 500 bucks on by the way the lower trim cars are available with a 5-speed manual this guy's automatical