![]() The 128-pound-feet torque peak still arrives at a high 4300 rpm, but there is slightly more twist available at lower revs in the interest of fuel economy. This time we get a carry-over 1.8-liter, SOHC four-cylinder that makes the same 140 horsepower as it did before. Every previous generation added a bit more power through piston displacement or technology. As a result, the Civic returned an impressive (for us) 33 mpg.Ī philosophical shift seems to have taken place in the minds of this Civic’s creators. We found ourselves obsessively monitoring gas consumption and striving to keep the dash lights glowing verdantly. Lest you think Honda is not triple-serious about this fuel-economy thing, there’s also a button labeled “ECON,” which tailors the throttle, the transmission, and the climate-control system to maximize mileage. ![]() ![]() Speed (no one wants to get a speeding ticket), fuel efficiency, and lights that encourage fuel efficiency get top billing. It’s telling what info Honda chooses to display most prominently to the driver. To the right of the speedo is a digital bar graph displaying instantaneous fuel economy. New for 2012 are two columns of lights that frame the speedo and glow green, teal, or blue, depending on how gently (green) or roughly (blue) you treat the throttle pedal. The tachometer is visible through the top opening in the steering wheel, which designers call the “banana.” Perched above the steering-wheel rim, where your eyes naturally fall, is a digital speedometer. Like the last Civic, the new Civic has a two-tier instrument cluster. Opting for this trim level rather than the $2900-dearer SEL means forgoing the option of leather seats, self-parking, and MyFord Touch with navigation, a system that endlessly irritated us in the earlier comparo. The Focus in this test is a well-equipped SE model, MSRP $22,840. The ’12 Focus is a global car: Its design gestated in Germany, and it is built at factories throughout the world (the American-market Focus is built in Wixom, Michigan, in a plant that used to churn out Town Cars Honda builds the Civic in Indiana and Ontario, Canada). This example of the top trim level lacked only navigation and leather seats. Unlike our last comparison that had a $25,000 ceiling, this time we chose to keep the price below $23,000. Unfortunately, the new Civic, a perennial sales champ in the class, wasn’t introduced until after our test. We couldn’t help but wonder how the 2012 Honda Civic would have fared. Ford snatched the small-car trophy from the sporty Mazda 3 by delivering more refinement, style, and value than the grinning Mazda, while nearly matching the 3’s handling and performance. It also dispatched the newbies: Hyundai Elantra, Chevy Cruze, and Volkswagen Jetta. In that comparison test, Ford’s new Focus, in SEL trim, emerged victorious over the previous champion, the Mazda 3. As recently as our May 2011 issue, we scrutinized five compact four-doors. Another, perhaps more useful way of coping with high gas prices is to consider replacing your current pump-addicted ride with something smaller and more fuel efficient.
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