Consumer Report says....too low to be recommended

[spdandpwr]

According to consumer reports, the civic is one to avoid...

Honda Civic

For years, the Civic has been an iconic small car. But Honda took too many shortcuts in its latest redesign. The Civic is still one of the more reliable and fuel-efficient cars in its class. But the current model suffers from a choppy ride, noisy cabin, vague steering, and mediocre interior quality. The Subaru Impreza, Hyundai Elantra, and Mazda3 are better small cars with similar or better fuel economy.

for more info: http://autos.yahoo.com/news/five-popular-cars-to-avoid-20120807.html

 

[webby]

Cue the 2013 redesign. Could be about a month away now.

 

[mongoose221]

i can't stand the new elantra, i drove one, hated it.
also, the focus is a much more expensive car, heck so is the mazda3 at the top of the line.
do they offer more features? sure. do they cost more? yes.

same goes with the SI vs the ms3/focus ST... the SI really is a niche itself... a quick, sporty, affordable NA high revver that returns good fuel economy and comes in a sedan or coupe variant... the ST is hatch only, as is the MS3 (which i like, but some dont), also they are turbos, some people don't want that.
same goes for the GTI and WRX, both turbo, which some folks don't want.

probably one of the main reasons the SI hasn't been significantly "improved" is 1) it was so far ahead of the competition a few years ago, they've merely "caught up" and only passed the SI slightly, if at all in some cases... and 2) nothing really competes directly against it

heck even the Veloster turbo, which hyundai takes a straight shot @ the SI in their press release a few months back, is a turbo.

i'll name the top cars under 30k in the "hot hatch/pocket rocket" category (no particular order)

1) subaru wrx - 25k base, reaches 30k+ loaded - turbo - 4dr hatch/sedan - low to mid 20's fuele con
2) mazdaspeed3 - 23.5k base, 26k loaded (i think, too lazy to look) - turbo - 4 dr hatch only - low to mid 20's on fuel econ
3) vw GTI - 25k, 30k+ loaded - turbo - 2dr/4dr hatch - high 20's to low 30's fuel
4) vw GLI - 25k, 30k+ loaded - turbo - 4dr sedan - high 20's to low 30's fuel econ
5) mini cooper S - 25.5k base, well over 30k loaded - 2dr hatch - turbo - high 20's to low 30's fuel econ
6) hyundai veloster turbo - 22.5k base 25k loaded - 3rd hatch - turbo - high 20's to mid 30's fuel econ (i refuse to believe hyndais claim, as real world are getting mid 20s)
7) focus ST - 25k base 30k+ loaded - 4dr hatch - turbo - high 20's to low 30's fuel econ
8) civic si - 23k , 25k nav (only option) - 2dr coupe/4dr sedan - NA - high 20's to mid 30's fuel econ (slightly better than GTI)

honestly, while they are all direct competitors of the SI for comparisson sake, none are NA engines, which some people prefer, which is why i think the SI has become semi "stagnant" in it's progression, though i'm extremely satisfied with mine!!

any other vehicles i missed in that range let me know (v6 mustang/camaro don't count, they aren't generally cross shopped in the FWD [awd for subaru] hot hatch/pocket rocket segment)

 

[trdb]

I don't understand where all the hate is coming from with consumer reports regarding the 2012 civic... My parents own a 2006 civic coupe and my aunt owns a 2008 sedan, most recently I own a 2012 coupe si. I thought that the '12 was way above the '06-'11 generation in terms of refinement (road manners, steering, etc.). The interior... well IMO the dash is made of better matierials on the '06-'11 model years but seriously... who would recommend or not recommend a car based on the quality of the interior materials. As long as it dosen't creak or rattle or look absolutely awful I don't get it. The dash is something that you don't touch that often and the materials I do touch are fine by me, radio controls feel great, windshield wiper stalk and lights stalk on the steering wheel even have a soft-touch finish to them, the climate controls are soft rubber with a faux chrome ring.... The gauge cluster is miles ahead of the pervious gen... I could go on, but I don't get paid for my opinions.

Both my aunt and parents are head over heels in love with the new '12. So apparently they're misinformed as well.

As an aside... my girlfriend owns an '11 elantra and while it's miles ahead of the previous gen it's still miles behind this gen civic. Creaks and rattles aplenty, the suspension is an absolute mess IMO and the car just does NOT feel as solidly put together. Looks can only get you so far and sadly I think that's what consumer reports is now basely all of their recommendations on.

Test drove a focus as well - opinion was good acceleration (in comparison to non-SI model civics and elantra) but cramped interior with awful center stack and hard to read gauges

 

[Ian Robertson]

This just seems to be turning into a feud between Honda and Consumer Reports. I can't even really take the consumer reports review seriously anymore because it's so drastically below a reasonable score. If they dropped it 5 points and made some legitimate criticisms I'd respectfully disagree but understand. Instead they give the car the full broadside for not being as showy or sporty as some of it's competitors. CR is a great resources, but sometimes they really miss the mark on their reviews.

I drove the Elantra and the Focus. I had to pass on both. The elantra looks good in pictures, but it's sort of like walking into a show house. They've done a great job of making it look expensive, but it lets you down even harder when you realize how cheap it really is. The Civic is a modest interior in comparison, but the modesty is fitting for an economy car in this price range. The Focus had typical over the top american chromed out "bling" interior that looked awful and had weird ergonomics. Even after some adjusting I didn't feel truly at ease driving it but I'll admit it was the manual version so auto drivers may not have felt that way. My friend who got an elantra has already had some issues with it. Broken interior parts from regular use, cruise control stopped working, and her dash rattles. Don't know anyone with a focus, so who knows how that would've been.

All in all I'm very happy with my civic. It's been a great little car since I've had it, and the gas mileage is ridiculously good (hit 45 mpg avg over a 9 hour drive last time i went home). It never feels underpowered, and for such a light car its suprinsingly stable on the highway. The manual tranny is crisp and the gearing is dead on.

EDIT: I drive an LX with the 5-speed transmission, FYI

 

[hotshot]

You gotta take what these mag writers say with a grain of salt. Chances are, they're well paid and all drive $60k SUVs to work

 

[Schaef]

I love my car, but I bought it before Consumers Reports released their review of it. Good thing too, I probably would have ended up with a Mazda 3 and simply ignored the Civic with a review like that
In all my test drives (Civic, mazda 3, jetta, golf, etc.), the civic seemed the most refined drive feel, the best at highway speeds, and I absolutely fell in love with the dash layout

Honestly, the only thing that worries me about CR's review is possible resale implications. People may ask what car to buy, I can see it now, and they'll say "get a civic, but avoid the 2012"
Although, I like this car enough to keep it my dd for as long as it will allow me