Honda Civic

Easy on the eyes, easy to love. We miss the Civic’s effortless nature. “Our Civic just carried on stretching our smiles, with the same effortless ease

When you have a car as good as the Civic to evaluate over the span of eight months, you expect some of that sheen to fade. You expect a slow, but distinctly noticeable reduction in overall appeal, as the newness wears off and familiarity sets in. This, after all, is true of any long-term relationship. So we waited, and waited and waited. And then waited some more. But the Civic just carried on stretching our smiles with the same effortless ease.

Still, there were a couple of things about the Civic we would have had different, so let’s get them out of the way before we tell you why we think the Civic is one of the best cars available here.

The Civic’s low-slung look gives it a unique identity, that’s for sure. But it also means the car’s passenger cabin is lower than most others. This means lots of bending to get in and out, avoiding whacking your head on the low sill as you step into the rear seats, hearing odd creaks and groans from kneecaps and lower backs. We got these complaints mainly from elderly passengers. The Civic’s other weakness is also associated with the word low. The car’s low ground clearance, in conjunction with its long wheelbase, mean the Civic is particularly susceptible to scraping its underbelly when getting in and out of steep driveways, especially when fully loaded. But for the most part we gladly overcame, or drove around these irritants.

Smooth, well-built, effortless and capable of great bursts of speed — that’s the easy description of our Civic. We were looking for the right stuff and our 2006 Car of the Year had it in spades. For a start, there’s the eye-grabbing profile; a shape that can be described with a single sweep of a Japanese calligraphy artist’s brush, the low nose, the cabin-forward passenger area and the rear flow in a single arch. People often commented on the sharp-edged-but-just-right detailing, like the headlights, the manner in which the fenders of the car dropped away from the bonnet and that concave rear end. “Wow, it looks so futuristic”, they said. Easy on the eyes, easy to love. The one thing we weren’t gaga about was the wheels, the alloys looking too ordinary for the rest of the design. And then there’s Honda’s own unique brand of quality. The cars may not have that much sought-after, tough European build, but there’s something special about Honda’s precision fit; as if it was cut with a laser. Hondas may feel light in comparison to the Europeans, but the quality feel stayed with us as the weeks rolled on. The slick manner in which the door handles function, the friction-free steering, the precise automatic gearbox selector, the effortless seat adjustment, all augmented by that totally smooth and silent motor.