Honda Civic, Ford F-Series top Canadian car, truck sales in first quarter

by Greg Keenan

The perennial leaders in car and truck sales remain on top of the list after the first quarter of 2014.

The Honda Civic compact leads the car sales rankings ahead of the Hyundai Elantra and Toyota Corolla, while the Ford F-Series pickup leads the truck rankings and is the overall best-selling vehicle despite a 6-per-cent decline in sales.

Industry sales rose 1 per cent in the first three months of the year, slightly ahead of the record pace of last year. Canadians bought 358,392 vehicles in the first three months, compared with 355,212 vehicles in the same period a year earlier.

Data compiled by DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc. show that purchases of compact sport utility vehicles soared 20 per cent in the three months ended March 30, pushing that segment close to compact cars as the largest segment in the market.

“They are fuel efficient and are configured for optimum utility and are displacing some of the volume we normally see in the compact car segment which is down by 2.7 per cent,” analysts at DesRosiers said Wednesday.

Here’s a look at Canada’s top 10 cars and light trucks, year-to-date through March, 2014:

	Passenger Cars	2014	2013	% gain/loss
1	Honda Civic	12,407	11,287	9.9
2	Hyundai Elantra	10,373	11,337	-8.5
3	Toyota Corolla	9,162	7,881	16.3
4	Mazda3	8,286	8851	-6.4
5	Chevrolet Cruze	6,916	6,579	5.1
6	Volkswagen Jetta	6,179	7,024	-12.0
7	Ford Focus	3,900	4,734	-17.6
8	Hyundai Accent	3,885	3,764	3.2
9	Honda Accord	3,448	3,726	-7.5
10	Ford Fusion	3,339	4,398	-24.1

	Light Trucks	2014	2013	% gain/loss
1	Ford F-Series	24,383	25,870	-5.7
2	Ram Pickup	18,367	17,987	2.1
3	Dodge Caravan	11,130	10,055	10.7
4	Ford Escape	9,137	8,411	8.6
5	GMC Sierra	9,095	9,431	-3.6
6	Chevrolet Silverado	7,343	8,186	-10.3
7	Honda CR-V	6,764	5,785	16.9
8	Toyota RAV4	6,687	6,678	0.1
9	Hyundai Santa Fe Sport	6,194	5,711	8.5
10	Nissan Rogue	6,092	3,429	77.7

Source: DesRosiers Automotive Consultants

Source;
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-drive/honda-civic-ford-f-series-top-canadian-car-truck-sales-in-first-quarter/article18122769/

Driving.ca Reviews the 2014 Honda Civic EX Coupe AT

With outstanding fuel economy, a premium-feeling interior, and lots of high-tech goodies to play with, the 2014 Civic Coupe EX represents a big step up for Honda.

By John LeBlanc

Overview The 2014 Civic two-door continues Honda’s redemption act
Pros Excellent fuel economy; premium interior; lots of high-tech goodies
Cons Rivals offer more power and refined ride and handling
Value for money Excellent

What would I change? Less lifestyle “connectivity” for more on-road “connectivity”

After taking a ten-count knockdown punch from automotive critics with its half-baked 2012 Civic makeover, Honda has been coaxing its best-selling compact lineup up off the mat with a continual stream of tweaks and updates. And the latest have been applied to the 2014 Civic Coupe two-doors.

As you may already know, Honda was forced to perform what the automaker called “an emergency refresh” to its 2012 Civic sedan only one model year after its launch. The rush job included some quickie exterior touchups, suspension changes and a slightly redesigned interior. For the 2014 model year, Honda is continuing its Civic redemption act with upgrades to the front-wheel-drive, five-passenger four-door sedan and two-door coupes with revised powertrains and the addition of some big car luxury and safety features.

The two-door Civic’s interior is a big step up in regards to quality materials and fit and finish compared to the woeful 2012 models.

Despite the market moving away from small, front-wheel-drive coupes, the Civic two-door still has a few rivals. They include the Hyundai Elantra Coupe, redesigned-this-year Kia Forte Koup, Scion tC and Volkswagen Beetle. The 2014 Civic Coupe range starts with the $20,569 (all prices include freight and pre-delivery inspection fees) base model LX. My tester was a mid-range $22,629 Civic Coupe EX.

Feel free to thank Hyundai-Kia Motors for my 2014 Civic Coupe EX being equipped like a small luxury car. To keep up with the value-packed Elantra and Forte, the Civic Coupe EX trim level has everything found in the base LX and adds such niceties as heated front seats, multifunction leather steering wheel and a huge centre dash screen that houses everything from an upgraded sound system to a rear backup camera to a new lane change safety system. The only option was a $1,260 continuously variable automatic transmission that replaces the standard five-speed manual gearbox.

If not as luxurious as the VW Beetle, the two-door Civic’s interior is a big step up in regards to quality materials and fit and finish compared to the woeful 2012 models (my sincerest condolences if you own such a vehicle). If Acura sold an ILX Coupe, my 2014 Civic Coupe EX model would be a good starting point. And the standard high-tech additions only add to the Honda’s upmarket appeal.

Honda’s LaneWatch is a camera integrated into the passenger-side rearview mirror that provides an image on the Display Audio screen of what you would normally see if you visually checked over your right shoulder.

Although it’s only seven inches in size, the Civic Coupe EX’s new Display Audio capacitive touchscreen is responsible for a lot of the car’s functionality. The sexiest bit is the introduction of HondaLink, an application-based platform that allows users to connect their smartphone with the car, allowing access to online and cloud-based content and information. And if your smartphone happens to be an Apple iPhone 5 or newer, you’ll be able to continue your virtual relationship with your hands-free Siri personal assistant.

The second significant new gadget in the EX trim is Honda’s LaneWatch, a camera integrated into the passenger-side rearview mirror that provides an image on the Display Audio screen of what you would normally see if you visually checked — like, using your own brain and eyes — over your right shoulder. It’s a cool idea. I guess. But I never trusted the image enough to not shoulder check, and I recommend you don’t either.

And if you do need even more luxury goodies in your compact two-door, the $29,003 Civic Coupe EX-L Navi adds leather seating, a navigation system and the CVT as standard kit.

A 1.8-litre four-cylinder gas engine soldiers on in all new Honda Civics (except the Si version). The mill delivers 143 horsepower and 129 lb.-ft. of torque.

While the tweaked-for-2014 Civic Coupe gets fresher front and rear styling and a few fancy new gadgets, Honda also applied the same drivetrain upgrades to the two-doors as it did to the four-doors. For all Civics except the high-performance Si, a 1.8-litre four-cylinder gas engine soldiers on. There’s only a single overhead, no direct injection or turbocharging. But a more free-flowing exhaust bumps horsepower up by three to 143, while pound-feet of torque creeps up by one to 129. Against the likes of the 179 hp Scion tC or the 236 lb.-ft. Beetle TDI turbo-diesel, that doesn’t sound like a lot of mojo emanating from underneath the Honda’s hood. But keep in mind that the Civic Coupe EX is targeted at buyers looking to save fuel. And that’s where the new CVT comes in to play as well.

Compared to the outgoing five-speed automatic, Honda says the new CVT is lighter, has a 22% wider ratio spread and less friction. The result is an improvement of 0.4 litres per 100 kilometres in the city for a 6.7 estimate — better than the Beetle TDI’s 7.2 rating. As well, the Honda’s 5.0 L/100 km highway rating is a titch better over the VW’s 4.8 number. For my week of primarily urban driving in the compact Honda Coupe, I saw an indicated average of 7.8 L/100 km.

More importantly, for day-to-day driving the Civic Coupe EX’s CVT doesn’t exhibit a gratuitous amount of whining or the high levels of noise found in comparable Toyotas and Nissans. The Honda even offers steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters to work your way through its “fake” gears. The rest of the small Honda coupe’s driving experience is strictly mid-pack. Its steering is decidedly light, its ride is a bit choppy over bad pavement and its handling is comfort-biased.

In the end, the 2014 Honda Civic EX comes across as a comfortable, fuel-efficient and well-equipped small two-door. I question the value of some of its newfangled gadgets, but the Civic’s overall premium feel, and Honda’s continuing fight to get the car back to its former top ranking means its worth a serious look.

2014 Honda Civic Coupe EX

The Specs

Type of vehicle Compact, two-door coupe
Engine 1.6L SOHC I4 gas engine
Power 143 hp @ 6,500 rpm; 129 lb-ft of torque @ 4,300 rpm
Transmission Continuously variable automatic transmission
Brakes Front disc/rear drum with ABS
Tires P205/55R16 M+S
Price (base/as tested) $20,955/$22,215
Destination charge $1,674

Natural Resources Canada fuel economy (L/100 km) 6.7 city; 5.0 highway; 7.8 as-tested
Standard features Heated front seats; LaneWatch blind spot display; Display Audio System/HondaLink/Rearview camera/HandsFreeLink/Bluetooth wireless mobile phone interface; AM/FM/CD audio system/MP3/Windows Media Audio playback capability and 6 speakers/USB device connector; leather-wrapped steering wheel/cruise control; power moonroof; automatic climate control with air-filtration system; power windows with auto-up/down driver’s window; Smart Entry with Push Button start; and more.

Source;

http://driving.ca/honda/civic-cpe/reviews/road-test/road-test-2014-honda-civic-coupe-ex/

Autos.ca: First Drive: 2014 Honda Civic

January 28, 2014

Review and photos by Peter Bleakney

Orlando, Florida – You sure can’t accuse Honda of resting on its laurels when it comes to the Civic.

Less than a year after launching the ninth generation of its compact sedan in the fall of 2011, Honda hauled her back into the workshop to make a number of significant improvements. Call it planned evolution or an emergency makeover (most would pick the latter), the automaker was quick to address criticisms leveled at the 2012 Civic pertaining to its subpar interior quality, uninspired handling and somewhat dull styling.
And so the 2013 Civic sedan got a classier snout and derriere, while both sedan and coupe saw suspension upgrades, better plastics, colour-matching interior bits and a few new features.
Honda could have left it there. After all, this North American–only Civic does very well in the US, and up here in Canada it is currently celebrating its 16^th year as our county’s top-selling passenger vehicle.

But this is a super tough segment. The cars might be small, but they don’t play nice. The stylin’ Hyundai Elantra has been nipping at Civic’s heels in the sales race here for the past three years, and with all-new players like the impressive 2014 Toyota Corolla and 2014 Mazda3 on board, Honda once again sees fit to upgrade the Civic.

The mantra for 2014 is more power, more connectivity, better fuel economy, and in the case of the Coupe variants we drove in Florida, a bump from 15-inch to 16-inch rolling stock, suspension mods to improve body control and exterior styling tweaks.

But first we’ll look at the changes that affect both 2014 Civic Sedan and Coupe.

A freer-flowing exhaust system has netted three more ponies and one more torque – the 1.8L VTEC four now makes 143 hp at 6,500 rpm and 129 lb-ft at 4,300 rpm.

The biggest news for 2014 is a Honda-developed CVT (continuously variable transmission) that replaces the old five-speed auto. Coupe models get paddle shifters – the sedans don’t. While unavailable on the base DX sedan (a five-speed manual is the only transmission), the CVT is a $1,300 option on the LX and EX versions of both sedan and coupe, and standard on the top-trim Touring sedan and EX-L coupe.

The CVT is lighter than the outgoing auto and widens the ratio range by 22 percent. This bodes well for fuel economy. Strangely, Honda is only claiming economy gains in the city cycle (consumption drops from 7.1 to 6.7 L/100 km) while highway mileage remains at 5.0 L/100 km.

On the connectivity front, both the EX sedan and EX coupe get a new touchscreen interface dubbed Display Audio. Move up to the Touring sedan, Hybrid sedan, EX-L coupe or either Si performance variants and we get Display Audio with Navi.

A seven-inch capacitive touchscreen with slide, flick, pinch and multi-tap functions lives at the top of the centre stack. For those into connectivity it’s a boon. If you care about ergonomics, well…

The good old-fashioned volume knob, which most manufacturers still appear to deem essential no matter what, is AWOL here. So you’ll be using the steering wheel controls. Otherwise, your eyes must leave the road and follow the fingertip as it tries to hone in on the screen’s digital rendering of a slider. From which imprecise adjustments are yours for the poking.
At least the radio preset icons are pretty easy to hit, but it does take a fair amount of dicking around with submenus to find said stations in the first place. So once again, basic ergonomics are sacrificed on the altar of connectivity.

That said, Display Audio delivers most of the goods for those who live through a smart phone and need all that in a car. There is USB, HDMI connectivity and Bluetooth streaming. Various apps are coming online. Currently Aha, Honda Link (like GM’s OnStar) and a $59 navigation app if you just have the basic system sans built-in navigation. iPhone users can also chat with Siri. When the car is stationary, YouTube streaming is available.

No text-to-voice capability though.

Display Audio with Navi–equipped cars get a three-mode rear-view camera (normal, wide and top down).
On EX trim and higher, Honda’s LaneWatch, first seen on the 2013 Accord, presents a clever solution for lessening the chance of an “oops” with objects in your right-side blind spot. Turn on the right turn signal and a rear-facing camera on the wing mirror shoots up a clear image on the centre display. Especially good for checking for cyclists coming up on the inside when driving in the city.

Other interior changes include new seat fabrics and a black lower dash panel replacing the gray on some trims.

Overall, the Civic’s cabin looks good. Materials are of a high quality and you can’t argue with the functionality of the two-tiered dash with its super bright displays. Some of my colleagues here at Autos.ca find it all a bit garish, but I’m all for unimpeded delivery of information.

I spent all my drive time on this event in a 2014 Civic Coupe EX with CVT. It sported the newly available Modern Steel Metallic paint.
In a nutshell, it drives like a Civic. That is to say, nimble, buttoned down, solid and completely inoffensive – a winning formula that is not to be messed with.

The seats are good and the leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel is a quality piece. At highway speeds the Civic Coupe is quiet and composed with fine tracking. The tach shows a relaxed 2,200 rpm at 120 km/h.

And what about this new CVT? As we established with the 2013 Accord sedan that featured Honda’s first stab at a continuously variable transmission, these guys have a good handle on this technology.
Okay, when you really mat the throttle for highway merging the Civic’s modestly powered inline-four drones away while the car plays catch-up, but under most driving conditions you’d be hard pressed to know it was a CVT.

With the console shifter in D, a tug on either paddle calls up a temporary shift. Pull the shifter back to the S position and seven “virtual” gears are at your disposal. It’s pretty much full manual here, and this feature made the nimble coupe considerably more enjoyable on some of the winding back roads we encountered.

Not having a 2013 pre-suspension upgrade Coupe there for comparison, I can’t really comment on these “sportier” chassis changes. But I will say this. The 2014 Coupe shows a fine blend of body control and ride compliance. It glided over some of the more rough sections of pavement with impressive refinement.
Tempering the fun is somewhat vague steering. You’re not getting a real good sense of what’s happening down front.

After my drive, I jumped into a 2014 Mazda3 the Honda folks had kindly (bravely?) supplied for comparison. The Mazda’s steering is much better and the car feels more alert on the road, but the cabin looks blah and the central gauge cluster is small and dim compared to the Honda’s colourful digital array.

While the 2014 Civic Sedan and Coupe are on sale now, devotees of the hot Si cars will have to wait for the refreshed 2014s. The Si Coupe arrives March 12 and the Si Sedan right behind on April Fools’ Day.

A refined exhaust system for the Si’s 2.4L four sees power and torque jump four points respectively to 205 hp at 7,000 rpm and 174 lb-ft at 4,400 rpm. As before, only a close ratio six-speed manual is offered. Both Coupe and Sedan now ride on 18-inch alloys (up from 17s) and come fully equipped with all the new tech toys. There are now colour-keyed seat inserts to match the exterior hue.

The Si’s suspension has been tweaked to increase the front bump motion stiffness by 4 percent and rear roll stiffness by 42 percent. What does that mean to you and me? We’ll find out in a couple of months, but on paper it looks as though they’ve dialed out some understeer, which is always a good thing in a performance car.

Overall

3.5

Comfort

     

4/5

Performance

     

3/5

Fuel Economy

     

4.5/5

Interior

     

3.5/5

Exterior Styling

     

3.5/5

Honda has juiced up the Si Coupe’s visuals with a new “floating” rear spoiler, rear diffuser and a more aggressive front clip.

Pricing for the Si cars is up by about by $400 to $26,665, but Honda tells us there’s $1,400 in added value over last year’s models.

The 2014 Civic LX sedan, which accounts for just over fifty percent of Civic sedan sales sees a marginal price increase of  $195 to $18,440.

The Coupe commands a $400 premium over the Sedan in all but the Si variant.

So here we are at the top of 2014 with the Civic still king of the Canadian compacts. And these modest but meaningful mods can only help the Civic’s case. But are they enough to hold off the ascending Elantra? And what about the mercurial Mazda3? Can the competent Corolla come from behind and cut these mothers down?

Tune in this time next year. My money’s on the Honda.
Pricing: 2014 Honda Civic Coupe EX
Base price: $20,900
Optional equipment: CVT $1300
A/C tax: $100
Destination charge: $1629
Price as tested: $23,929

Source;
http://www.autos.ca/first-drives/first-drive-2014-honda-civic/?all=1

2014 Honda Civic Goes On-Sale Today with a Restyled Coupe, Higher Tech, Better Fuel Efficiency and an Improved Driving Experience (US PRICING, NOT CANADIAN)

12/04/2013 - TORRANCE, Calif.

• Coupe styling changes accentuate the Civic's sporty and youthful appearance
• Available technology additions include a 7-inch touch-screen Display Audio system and next generation HondaLink™ connectivity
• LaneWatch™ blind spot display comes to Civic line-up
• All-new CVT option increases performance and fuel efficiency

The significantly enhanced 2014 Honda Civic goes on-sale today with a manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) starting at $18,190¹ for the Civic LX Coupe and $18,390¹ for the Civic LX Sedan.

Extensive fresh and dynamic exterior styling updates on the Civic Coupe and premium interior refinements to all models further enhance the Civic aesthetic appeal. New available features on the 2014 Civic include the 7-inch capacitive touch-screen Display Audio, LaneWatch™ blind spot monitor and Smart Entry with Push Button start. The 2014 Civic also marks the introduction of the HondaLink™ Next Generation connected-car technology. HondaLink™ is an application-based platform that allows a seamless integration between a user's smartphone and the car, providing access to online and cloud-based content and information.

An all-new CVT is available on the gasoline only powered Coupe and Sedan. The CVT enhances responsiveness by providing quicker and smoother acceleration and due to its wider ratio range and reduced internal friction, the CVT helped the LX Coupe and LX and EX Sedans to an improvement of 2 mpg city and 1 mpg combined for EPA fuel economy ratings of 30/39/33 city/highway/combined².

The Civic Coupe is available in LX and EX trims with a 5-speed manual transmission or the new CVT and EX-L and EX-L Navi versions with CVT. The Civic Sedan comes in LX 5-speed manual or CVT and EX, EX-L and EX-L Navi with CVT. A Civic Sedan HF with CVT is also available. View, build and price at 2014 Honda Civic at automobiles.honda.com/civic.

TRIM	MSRP1	EPA Fuel Economy Ratings2 (city/highway/combined)
Civic Coupe LX 5MT	$18,190	28/36/31
Civic Coupe LX CVT	$18,990	30/39/33
Civic Coupe EX 5MT	$20,290	28/36/31
Civic Coupe EX CVT	$21,090	29/38/33
Civic Coupe EX-L CVT	$22,540	29/38/33
Civic Coupe EX-L Navi CVT	$24,040	29/38/33
Civic Sedan LX 5MT	$18,390	28/36/31
Civic Sedan LX CVT	$19,190	30/39/33
Civic Sedan EX CVT	$21,090	30/39/33
Civic Sedan EX-L CVT	$22,740	30/39/33
Civic Sedan EX-L Navi CVT	$24,240	30/39/33
Civic Sedan HF CVT	$19,940	31/41/35

For More Information
Consumer information is available at automobiles.honda.com/civic. To join the Civic community on Facebook, visit https://www.facebook.com/Honda/Civic. Additional media information including, pricing, features and high-resolution photography of the 2014 Honda Civic is available at hondanews.com/channels/honda-automobiles-civic.

¹MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price) excluding tax, license, registration, $790 destination charge and options. Dealer prices may vary.

²Based on 2014 EPA mileage ratings. Use for comparison purposes only. Your actual mileage will vary depending driving conditions, how the vehicle is driven and maintained, battery pack age/condition and other factors.

Source;
http://www.hondanews.com/channels/corporate-headlines/releases/2014-honda-civic-goes-on-sale-today-with-a-restyled-coupe-higher-tech-better-fuel-efficiency-and-an-improved-driving-experience

2014 Honda Civic review: An almost-HUD without the $1,000 upcharge

by Bill Howard of www.extremetech.com

The Honda Civic advances the state of the art in dashboard technology with an almost-head-up display that costs nothing instead of the usual $1,000-plus for a HUD. Honda relocates the most important gauges to a cluster at the base of the windshield so can see your speed, fuel efficiency, and navigation prompt just by glancing down. Either way, high-end HUD or Honda Civic upper cluster, technology minimizes driver distraction.

Honda’s superior display presentation benefits Honda as well as the user. The Civic has long been a compact car sales leader but others have caught up in performance and desirability, particularly the Mazda 3, Ford Focus, and Hyundai Elantra. The easy-to-read instruments may help keep Honda number one in compact car sales, around 350,000 this year. If Honda brings Apple iOS mirroring to the dash in 2014, replicating the Apple display on the car’s LCD, that will help the Civic’s popularity, too.

How Honda’s almost-HUD works

Honda splits its instrument panel into the traditional instrument cluster seen through the steering wheel spokes, and a row of gauges and displays set back against the base of the windshield. The top row comprises a gas gauge that is a long horizontal strip, economy indicators as vertical bars, a digital speedometer, and a color LCD that can display navigation, phone, entertainment, or fuel economy information. The traditional instrument cluster is reduced to a big tachometer and warning lights. There is also a 7-inch color LCD in the center stack providing more detail on infotainment.

Every time the driver looks away from the road, it’s a distraction, and there’s a brief period of re-acclimation when the eyes return to the road. To read the center stack display, the driver looks both over and down; to read the instrument panel, the driver looks down.

A head-up display is projected onto a mirrored film at the base of the windshield and the information appears to be floating just above the hood of the car, so it’s always in the driver’s line of sight. Honda’s top row of gauges is only a little farther down in the driver’s line of sight than a HUD. If the driver’s main focus drops to the HUD or Honda’s gauges, action on the road can still be tracked.
 
The focal point for a HUD and Honda’s gauges is farther from the driver’s eyes than an instrument panel. A driver whose eyes call for reading glasses to resolve what’s on the instrument panel 18 inches away may be able to focus better on a HUD or Honda’s row of gauges that are 24-36 inches away.

With fewer gauges and indicators in the traditional instrument panel, there’s less around the edges that can be obstructed by the steering wheel. All this adds up to Honda’s top shelf gauge package being a reasonable alternative to the head-up display seen on BMW, Cadillac, Lexus and other premium cars, especially since it’s free.

2013 to 2014: A quick redesign of a redesign, but with more tech

The ninth-generation Honda Civic came out in the 2012 model year. First reviewers said handling was too soft, cockpit materials were too cheap, and overall it wasn’t much of a changes from the eighth generation. Buyers didn’t much notice and in fact made the Civic the fourth best-selling car of the year, ahead of two other competing compact cars in the sales top ten, the then-aging Toyota Corolla and the tech-heavy Ford Focus. But the early reviews stung and Honda whipped out an altered 2013 Honda Civic, which I tested.

On the 2013 Civic, you get standard Bluetooth, a USB jack, Pandora radio, a rear camera, text messages from your smartphone read aloud, and electronic stability control. The cockpit got better materials than the 2012 and a firmer suspension that is still not harsh. Honda continues the low-to-high model range of LX, EX, EX-L and EX-L Navi. Honda typically ties navigation into its costlier trim lines, ignoring people who want a simpler car but still want navigation.

Apple iOS mirroring coming in 2014 Civic

While Honda already announced specs for the 2014 Civic that comes available in December, one 2014 Civic feature was being held for early December announcement: Apple in the Car or Apple iOS mirroring. Honda appears poised to expand beyond Siri Eyes Free, which is the ability to talk to Siri using the car’s push-to-talk button and get spoken responses. With iOS mirroring, the iPhone display is replicated on the new center stack LCD. The touchscreen could control many of the phone’s applications with likely lockouts for video or games.

More than a dozen automakers support or will support Siri Eyes Free. Honda would be a pioneer with iOS mirroring, starting with the 2014 Civic. It remains to be seen how Honda and Apple handle potentially distracting apps, particularly texting and e-mail. Apple’s general description of iOS mirroring notes features already available on virtually all cars (play music, make phone calls, download phone book) and features that would be new. Apple says, “If your vehicle is equipped with iOS in the Car, you can connect your iPhone 5 and interact with it using the car’s built-in display and controls or Siri Eyes Free. Now you can easily and safely make phone calls, access your music, send and receive messages, get directions, and more.” That suggests text messaging would be part of iOS mirroring, along with navigation (“directions”), but no mention of e-mail. The screen and buttons are locked on a phone controlled by the car, so if there’s a feature that isn’t passed through to the car, the only way to access it would be to disconnect the phone.

In a conference call with investors over the summer, Apple CEO said, “Having something [iOS mirroring] is very, very important. It’s something that people want.”

On the road: calm ride, little excitement

The Honda Civic represents transportation more than lifestyle. Driving around town and also on a long highway trip, it was pleasant for driver and passengers. I tested the top-of-the-line Civic EX-L with leather trim and navigation. The 140 hp engine and five-speed automatic provided acceleration more suited to keeping up on freeways than passing on two-lane roads. I got mileage around 33 mpg in mostly highway driving; you might get 35-plus mpg on the highway with more conscientious driving. The car was quiet except when struggling to accelerate quickly. The back seat was spacious, but then the current Civic at 179 inches long is bigger than the first generation of Honda Accords.

Highway cruising was especially pleasant with the row of gauges always within my peripheral vision. The speedometer was a good size. The LCD display or i-MID (intelligent multi information display to Honda) would switch from the audio or phone display to a navigation arrow when a turn came up, so I didn’t have to look over and down to the center stack LCD display. The horizontal fuel gauge, 20 illuminated segments in a long row, wasn’t very helpful because the eye can’t tell at a glance if there are 7 or 11 segments still lit; a semicircle would have been better, that or replacing the blank segments with empty, framed segments. The vertical fuel economy indicator can be useful or distracting, depending on how concerned you are about fuel efficiency. The i-MID is controlled by buttons on a steering wheel that is approaching button overload. The tachometer seemed almost too big and too colorful.

Everything about the car was okay: navigation display, controls, seating comfort, fit and finish. Nothing was spectacular. This is transportation, well done. The 2013 Civic lacks high-tech driver aids that are filtering down to the compact car class: adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, blind spot detection, forward collision warning, and automatic parking assist. Adding satellite radio is a costly $367 dealer option, plus installation. For 2014, the Civic sedan gets half a blind spot warning system, on the passenger side. To be without a fuller suite of Civic driver assistance features will hurt Honda after 2014. Honda can’t wait for the next Civic cycle in 2017 or 2018.

Should you buy? First, shop around

The Honda Civic is one of the better choices among compact cars but it may not be the best. You need to look also at the Mazda3, Ford Focus , Hyundai Elantra and similar Kia Forte, Chevrolet Cruze, Subaru Impreza, and the recently redesigned Toyota Corolla. The Civic’s upper row of gauges makes it easy to see your speed or the distance to the next turn while still keeping the road and traffic in view.

The majority of buyers opt for the gasoline-powered Civic sedan. There is a two-door coupe with the option of a manual transmission. Honda also sells a natural gas Civic with just 110 hp and even gentler acceleration, a Civic hybrid with more power than the mainstream Civic and a 46 mpg EPA combined rating, and a high-fuel efficiency Civic HF with low rolling resistance tires, extra aerodynamics, and 35 mpg EPA combined fuel economy. If you need more power, look to the Civic Si sedan and coupe with a 205 hp four-cylinder engine. The Civic Sedan sells for about $19,000-$24,000 including freight for the 140 hp model.

Wait for the 2014 model if you want blind spot detection (passenger side only) via Honda Lane Watch, a rear-facing camera on the side mirror that was introduced with the current Honda Accord. The right side view looking backwards appears on the center stack LCD when you flick the right turn signal. The automatic transmission for 2014 will be a CVT (continuously variable transmission) and fuel economy will be up 1-2 mpg to 33 mpg (combined EPA rating). The 7-inch center stack LCD on all models except the entry LX is now a capacitive-touch pinch-tap-swipe Display Audio screen you can manipulate like a tablet and the radio volume knob is now an up-down button. The 2014 Civic will be the first Honda with HD Radio.

As for used Honda Civics, the 2012 model that kicked off the current generation isn’t as desirable, so you should expect it to be discounted a bit more than most year-old cars. It does have stability control. The previous generation of Civics, 2006-2011, is a good deal with one important exception: Only high-end Civics offered stability control. That’s an important safety feature, it can’t be retroffited, and if the Civic is being used by a newer driver, ESC is something you really want.

Bottom line: The Honda Civic will likely continue as the sales leader among compact cars. It has few weaknesses. But shop the competition, too, even if they don’t have the unique gauge packaging of the Civic and the possibility of iOS mirroring. The smaller Honda Fit and larger Honda Accord are class leaders in desirability and sales where the Civic leads in sales.

Source;
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/171812-2014-honda-civic-review-an-almost-hud-without-the-1000-upcharg