The restyled and re-engineered 2013 Honda Civic has finally made its GCC debut after facing serious heat from the public and journos alike.
The new car is a handsomer chunk of metal. Exterior revisions include a new hood and trunk lid, a new open-mouth lower bumper with a horizontal chrome accent and a sportier, a black honeycomb mesh grille and integrated fog lights on EXI and VTI grades. Also, the grille is flanked by new clear-lens side turn lamps.
At the rear, the Civic gets revised bumper design with integrated reflectors and new rear trunk lid with horizontal chrome trim, much like the Accord. The new taillights now flow into the trunk face. The rear also gets a new diffuser panel finished with a honeycomb mesh vent. The new car rides on 17-inch 5 twin-spoke alloy wheels, at least on the VTi models.
The revised interior changes include the addition of soft-touch materials on the instrument panel and upper door treatment; and subtle silver accents. The seat fabric have also been upgraded.
The 2013 Civic is powered by a 1.8-litre, i-VTEC, 16-valve, 4-cylinder engine that puts out 139 bhp and it is mated to a 5-speed automatic transmission. It also gets reworked Electronic Power Steering, stiffer front springs and a thicker front stabilizer bar with new Teflon-lined mounting bushings. The MacPherson struts and rear multi-link suspension setup has also been tweaked with.
The 2013 Honda Civic will be available in LXI, EXI and VTI grades. The standard car plays host of many a premium feature, like keyless entry, power windows, cruise control, AUX jack, center console with armrest and digital multiplex meter, to name a few. The EXI grade include additional features like 16” alloy wheels, fog lights (optional), sunroof (optional), Bluetooth® HandsFreeLink®, Bluetooth® Audio, rearview camera, color i-MID display, USB/iPod® interface, steering wheel audio controls, outside temperature gauge. The VTI adds HID headlights, chrome door handles, 17-inch alloy wheels, climate control and leather interiors.
The standard safety features include front dual SRS airbag system, ABS, EBD, VSA and whiplash protection front seat headrests. The VTI grade gets side and side curtain airbag systems. The car has also been re-engineered, incorporating Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ II (ACE™ II) body structure that improves passenger protection in case of frontal collision and helps disperse crash energy better.
Two new exterior paint schemes have been added namely, White Orchid Pearl and Kona Coffee Metallic.
The 2013 Honda Civic is covered by a 3-year/100,000-kilometre warranty and prices start at AED 75,000.
