After years of dormancy, the Civic is back and better than ever. It is the standout choice in the compact segment. And Honda’s hatched a product portfolio around it that includes something for everyone with graduated flavors of sport that take the Civic all the way to Type R. The accolades keep rolling in for the new Civic and if you’ve driven one for yourself you understand why. It’s one of the most popular vehicles in America and has supplanted the Accord as Honda’s best-selling car. So the variations keep rolling out and the latest is this 2017 Hatchback. More audacious, additionally versatile and a tad spicier under the skin, this new bodystyle also comes in a flavor the sedan doesn’t: Sport. Stylized with an aero kit, fog lights, dual-outlet center exhaust and 18” wheels, this lower-end Hatch trim is big on personality and low on price. $22,175 gets you this exact car and let me tell you; it’s one heck of a drive. And the drive is what you must appreciate here because there’s little else to entice you to the Sport. Note, there is a top-of-the-line Sport Touring trim but, and it’s a big but, you miss out on this sweet-shifting 6-speed manual. Yes, the CVT is an option but it costs an extra $800, is less economical believe it or not, and can’t match the fun afforded by this wonderfully engineered stick shift with its determined, precise motions accompanied by a solid click into gear and easy to modulate clutch pedal. And it’s working this eager 1.5-liter 4-cylinder with direct-injection, variable valve timing for both intake and exhaust camshafts and a mono scroll turbo that’s been designed for a combination of immediacy and refinement. Here in the sport, it uses premium unleaded to extract the greatest performance, bumping horsepower from 174 to 180 and more tangibly torque from 162 pound-feet to 177. You can squeal the front tires through the first couple of gears on the way to 60mph in the mid 7s. But it feels about a second quicker from behind the wheel. But the piece de resistance with the Civic is the chassis – it’s what makes it so much fun to drive. The Hatchback gets a specially tuned version with an uprated front stabilizer bar producing impressive turn-in and flatter cornering. Plus, these ContiProContact all-seasons do a wonderful job of mitigating understeer and providing exceptional grip. With the benefit of Agile Handling Assist which brakes the inside wheels during high speed cornering, the Hatch brilliantly hides its front-drive underpinnings. You will feel the road here but it’s never punishing. When I first drove the sedan over a year ago, it was evident that this stellar new platform was just the beginning of great things for Civic. Despite it only having a CVT at the time, it was still an immediate all-star. And now, in the more expressive Hatch Sport form with an addictively good 6-speed and a little more power, this car continues to exceed expectations. It’s the most fun behind the wheel $22k can buy. You will love driving this, whether to work or for play. Just one thing; if you like stuff, this Sport trim will leave you wanting. The price is low but so is content. Honda’s parting with nothing here, keeping all the good stuff for higher trims and that’s too bad. No smart key, no sat radio, no power seats, no side blind zone alert. Plus, this is the worst sounding head unit I’ve heard since the early 2000s. It looks and feels of quality, the seats are comfy and sport appropriate, forward visibility is video game good, it’s relatively quiet and rear passengers enjoy plenty of space. But this isn’t the kind of car that’s going to impress your ride along friends. Unless you’re helping them move stuff that is, where the Hatch provides over an additional 7 cubic feet of cargo volume in Sport trim. Non Sport models gain even more. Fold the seats flat for even more…enough to hold a bike. And then there’s this reversible tonneau cover which doesn’t have to be removed to stay out of the way. Yes, the Si and Type-R are on their way but the Hatchback Sport provides intermediate raciness that’s perfectly placed in the growing Civic stable.

Honda knows they’ve got a good thing going with the new Civic so they’re offering it in more flavors than ever before; sedan, coupe, hatchback, stick shifts and automatics and now not 1 but 2 high-performance variants. If the mighty Type R is more than you need than this new Si could be the perfect match. Everyone agrees; this 10th generation Civic is a big winner. After a period of cost-cutting moves sapped the Civic of its driving pleasure and high esteem, this new one has returned with a vengeance, spawning an exciting array of choices in Honda’s showroom. And now, I’ve got my time with the new Civic Si – an enthusiast’s variant with a history that dates back over 30 years. Understated styling has been kicked to the curb. A larger, high-flow turbocharger pumps up the boost. And an advanced adaptive damper system adds premium-level sophistication to the ride and handling. First impressions lead me to believe this was a $30,000 car but I was wrong. As it sits, the MSRP is under $25k. Manual transmission devotees can rejoice; the Civic Si can‘t be had with an automatic. And this short-throw shifter is a good one. Compared with the regular Civic, the Si gets a revised linkage and shortened stroke for a sportier feel, though on a cold morning this aluminum ball is like grabbing an ice cube. It’s a 6-speed working through a torque sensitive limited slip differential coupling the front wheels to each other the harder you push it providing more confident traction. The issue I had at times was getting this torquey motor’s power to the pavement. It was below freezing and my tester is fitted with the optional summer-use Goodyear Eagle F1s, so I had to warm these up before taking advantage of their more responsive handling benefits. As the day wore on, the Si felt more connected. And you can stop your crying about the 205 horsepower output being the same as the previous Si because with more low-end accessible earlier on pushing a lighter, nimbler car, the 1.5-liter turbo-4 is a nice fit, providing spirited enjoyment AND returning 38mpg highway. With a reported 0-to-60mph time in the mid 6s – nearly impossible for me to replicate with this much wheelspin – the Si feels even more eager than that from the seat of your pants, where on your favorite 3rd gear kind of road the power is delivered decisively…just enough to push you back and without torque steer. 192 pound-feet starting at 2,100 RPM in a car weighing less than 3,000 pounds is plenty. There are some fun toys in here, too like the specialized Si meter display and most of all, Sport mode. This car really comes alive once you push into Sport. That’s the moment it truly feels like a Si. Acceleration becomes more effortless, the steering firms up considerably and the suspension kills the body roll. The engine matches the car really well with an on demand sensation in most every gear, and the stick shift is topnotch with a reassuring click into gear and an easy to work clutch pedal. Dollar for dollar, the Civic Si is a tough ride to beat. Dual personality cars typically cost much more but the Si offers a highly versatile, frugal, comfortable every day driver with the ability to reach into highly-engaging sport fun. These more supportive Si sport seats perfectly hold me in place while cosseting my lower back. And the sounds are muted but entertaining through the freer-flowing exhaust. Though I’d love to see more tactile buttons for the touchscreen HondaLink system, I appreciate its high-end look and inclusion of satellite and HD radio, CarPlay and Android Auto, and a controllable app. No built-in navigation but your smartphone easily rectifies that. And the 450-watt 10-speaker sound system is quite impressive. Like all Hondas, the cabin just feels right and not overwrought; comfortable with heated front seats and relatively quiet. And the rear seats are totally adult-friendly with lots of legroom– just don’t look for any accoutrements because there aren’t any. Honda knows how to produce drivers’ cars, even at the budget level, and at $24,975 this Civic Si is going to make many owners very happy.

I haven’t driven a Honda product with a Type R badge since the late 90s Acura Integra. The R stands for Racing and for the past 2 decades, the hardcore Civic Type R has been left out of Honda’s U.S. lineup – until now. Based on the 10th generation Civic, this all-new 2017 Type R is a front-wheel drive, high high-performance hatchback with track-ready capabilities. A tuned and turbocharged i-VTEC 2.0-liter 4-cylinder with up to 22.8 psi of boost pumps out 306 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque mated to a 6-speed manual making this Type R the fastest Honda production automobile ever offered in America with a top speed of 170mph. A driver-selectable rev-matching feature smooths high performance upshifts and downshifts, and Launch Control helps optimize off-the line traction for maximum acceleration. And to help put the power to the ground, a helical limited-slip front differential is standard. The Civic Type R features a specially designed high-flow exhaust system with a unique triple-outlet design centered in the rear of the car - a key factor in the sound of the exhaust note in the interior. According to Honda, the system is engineered to offer a stirring exhaust note under acceleration, coupled with quiet cruising at low power settings. Gas mileage is rated at 25mpg in combined driving on premium fuel. A special 3-mode Adaptive Damper System helps the Type R transition from the street to the track, with Comfort, Sport and +R settings. This Civic also uses the most aggressive wheel/tire combination ever fitted to a production Honda with all-new 20” Continental SportContact 6 summer-use rubber. Brake-based torque vectoring is used to improve initial turning response and overall cornering ability as evidenced by the Type R’s claim as the fastest front-wheel drive production car in the world after recently setting a Nurburgring record. Available in a single trim with the only option being body color, the Civic Type R Touring carries an MSRP of $34,775.