{"id":28388,"date":"2021-12-02T12:37:41","date_gmt":"2021-12-02T16:37:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=28388"},"modified":"2021-12-02T18:38:57","modified_gmt":"2021-12-02T22:38:57","slug":"payne-honda-civic-si-is-a-manual-shift-value-meal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2021\/12\/payne-honda-civic-si-is-a-manual-shift-value-meal","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Honda Civic Si is a manual-shift value meal"},"content":{"rendered":"

Simi Valley, California<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 Some performance cars fit like a glove. The Ford Mustang HiPo, Porsche Cayman, Volkswagen Golf GTI. They are intuitive to drive. Instantly familiar. Balanced.<\/p>\n

Put the 2022 Honda Civic Si on the list.<\/p>\n

\"With<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

This is Honda\u2019s driver\u2019s car. Manual gearbox only. Rev-matching downshifts. Limited slip differential. Charging though the twisted canyons of Simi Valley north of Los Angeles, the Civic Si never put a foot wrong. The sedan rotated effortlessly for a front-wheel-drive car, summer tires sticking like flypaper. Rowing the box, I stomped the throttle and turns flew by.<\/p>\n

Call it Si-mi Valley. This is where Angelenos come to escape suffocating traffic, cramped apartments, insufferable celebrities. It\u2019s the playground of sports cars, hot hatches, sport bikes. The Civic Si is proof you can have it all in one car.<\/p>\n

Honda took the compact class by storm in 2015, unveiling an ambitious 10th-generation Civic baselined to an Audi A4 and fine-tuned at the famed race track in Nurburgring, Germany, for goodness sake. The Civic boasted best-in-class fuel economy, rear leg room, smartphone connectivity. I dubbed it King Civic, the compact by which all others must be judged. Si and Type R performance models followed, each better than the last.<\/p>\n

For its encore, Civic hasn\u2019t rested on its laurels. The standard Civic introduced earlier this year won rave media and reviews with generous features, affordable sticker\u00a0and sleek fastback variant.<\/p>\n

But for enthusiasts like me, a Civic lineup isn\u2019t complete until the performance models come along. Remarkably, Si is better in nearly all respects from the last gen. Let\u2019s go inside out.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Engineers have sweated the details. The stick shift goes to the head of the class, rivaling Porsche and Mazda for short, notchy throws. In more mundane\u00a0stop-and-go urban commutes, owners will appreciate the easy clutch.<\/p>\n

Speaking of clutches, heel-and-toe downshifts are a snap (much improved over the previous gen, where even my size 15 clown feet struggled to blip the throttle on downshifts). Not that you\u2019ll need it. Honda is also throwing Si drivers the same rev-matching convenience as the last-gen Type R track rat. Whether in the LA canyons or GingerMan Raceway in west Michigan, the digital feature makes downshifts wonderfully efficient.<\/p>\n

Toggle the drive mode rocker to SPORT and Si tenses for action. I rode shotgun with Honda IMSA racer Ryan Eversley for a spell and he sung the praises of the heavy steering and sticky rubber. They are natural outcroppings of a Honda racing culture that\u00a0spans everything from Eversley\u2019s TCR racer to IndyCar.<\/p>\n

All of this mechanical goodness is wrapped in Civic\u2019s upscale interior \u2014 a major leap from last gen\u2019s plasticky, too-busy interface. So appealing is the signature\u00a0honeycomb dash that Honda\u2019s High Performance Division kept it in the upcoming Si TCA race car \u2014 while stripping out the rest of the interior for light-weighting and rollbar.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

The production cockpit features a sunroof and all-digital instrument\/console displays (standard on the base Civic), with Si bringing a 9-inch version with one of the most intuitive infotainment layouts this side of Jeep\u2019s UConnect 5. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity beats many luxury cars to market, and Civic \u2014 true to Honda\u2019s obsession with detail \u2014 even makes sure directions from Google Maps translate\u00a0to the instrument display so you never have to take your eyes off the road. BMW does that too \u2014 for $50,000.<\/p>\n

Jump into Civic Si and it will recognize your phone\u2019s Google Maps directions (look\u00a0Ma, it\u2019s wireless!) and chart your course. So much fun is Si to drive, you\u2019ll get there early.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Add in Honda\u2019s standard Safety Sensing suite of adaptive cruise control, blind-spot assist, auto-rear braking\u00a0and laser night vision (kidding about that last one), and Si stickers at $2,000 more than the outgoing car.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s one of the best $28,315 bargains in autodom.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a Golf GTI missionary \u2014 VW\u2019s iconic, FWD\u00a0stick-shift hellion \u2014 but to get the same features on the GTI (base price\u00a0$31,000) I\u2019d have to shell out a cool $35,290. Ouch.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

That\u2019s a lotta coin for the V-dub\u2019s hatchback and 272 pound feet of torque (vs. Si\u2019s 192). The Honda knows its niche, and sets the bar for sub-$30K\u00a0pocket rockets.<\/p>\n

Golf\u2019s advantages expose the Si\u2019s weak spots. Since the screaming,\u00a0201-horse\u00a02006 Si (I still own one) the car\u2019s numbers haven\u2019t budged, while Golf GTI has increased by 25% to 240 ponies. Sure, the torque band has fattened as Honda went turbo power, but my right foot wants more. Blame federal bluenoses \u2014 and Honda\u2019s target of 30 mpg-plus \u2014 for holding the numbers back.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Out back, I would prefer Si with a hatchback, like that offered on Civic\u2019s $29K\u00a0Sport model. The hatch brings utility and design character \u2014 but at added engineering cost.<\/p>\n

After the far-out design of the 10th-gen Civic (its boomerang taillights right out of a comic book), Generation 11 is mercifully more conservative, with styling that will endure for years like my similarly spare 2006 model. The \u201922 Si does gain cool\u00a0black\u00a018-inch wheels, a honeycomb front grille (echoing the dash)\u00a0and Blazing Orange paint to help separate it from the rest of the brood.<\/p>\n

Honda says it\u2019s saving the hatch for the Type R.<\/p>\n

The 2022 Civic\u2019s return to more austere styling comes as the Hyundai Elantra N muscles its way into the segment. The Elantra looks like it was penned by an ex-pat Lamborghini designer, with more jagged surfaces than a broken mirror. Nice to have choices.<\/p>\n

\"Driver's<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

I tested the Civic Si after the Los Angeles Auto Show and it was a breath of fresh air after the nonstop gloom-and-doom press conferences pushing morally correct\u00a0electric SUVs with the sex appeal of a granola bar.<\/p>\n

Si is what automobiles were meant to be since Henry Ford terrorized Grosse Pointe. It\u2019s a sedan designed to seat four and fetch the groceries. But it is also built for freedom \u2014 a car that can transport you to the joys of the open road.<\/p>\n

For lead foots who want a little more from their ride, Si\u2019s an engaging date for an autocross or a track day at GingerMan. Just be sure and bring a spare set of tires. It\u2019s so much fun to drive, you might wear the summers to the bone.<\/p>\n

2022 Honda Civic Si<\/strong><\/p>\n

Vehicle type: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger\u00a0sports sedan<\/p>\n

Price: $28,315, including $1,015\u00a0destination fee\u00a0($28,910 with summer tires and Blazing Orange paint as tested)<\/p>\n

Powerplant: 1.5-liter turbo-4 cylinder<\/p>\n

Power:\u202f200\u00a0horsepower,\u00a0192\u00a0pound-feet of torque<\/p>\n

Transmission:\u00a06-speed manual<\/p>\n

Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.4 seconds (Car and Driver);\u00a0top speed,\u00a0135 mph<\/p>\n

Weight:\u00a02,952\u202fpounds<\/p>\n

Fuel economy: EPA, 27 mpg city\/37\u00a0highway\/31\u00a0combined<\/p>\n

Report card<\/p>\n

Highs:\u00a0A joy to drive; manual shifter from the gods<\/p>\n

Lows:\u00a0Bland face for such a fun car; no hatchback<\/p>\n

Overall:\u00a04\u202fstars<\/p>\n

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Simi Valley, California\u00a0\u2014 Some performance cars fit like a glove. The Ford Mustang HiPo, Porsche Cayman, Volkswagen Golf GTI. They are intuitive to drive. Instantly familiar. Balanced. Put the 2022 Honda Civic Si on the list. This is Honda\u2019s driver\u2019s car. Manual gearbox only. Rev-matching downshifts. Limited slip differential. Charging though the twisted canyons of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28388"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28388"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28389,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28388\/revisions\/28389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}