Other than that minor problem, the new Civic is as tough as it can come. The IIHS crashed the new model anyway it knew best, trying to see what gives first, and ended up being more than satisfied with what the Civic can do.
Whereas up until recently the Top Safety Pick could have been regarded like not so accurate, the new testing procedures, which include a roof strength test, an Electronic Stability Control requirement and a higher bar for rear impact protection can give more confidence in the car the IIHS is testing.
The new generation Civic was presented to the Americans at the New York International Auto Show. For the local market, the car is being offered in four trim levels - Civic DX, Civic LX, Civic EX and Civic EX-L. A more special Civic Natural Gas version is also up for grabs, coming to the market with the title of the only manufacturer-built natural gas-powered car on sale.
The safety features embedded by Honda into the model include the Advanced Compatibility Engineering body structure, Vehicle Stability Assist with traction control, ABS, side curtain airbags, dual-stage, multiple-threshold front airbags and, of course, ESC.
Separately, Honda announced on Thursday that the Civic production in the US will continue to be affected because of part shortages resulted from the March 11 Japanese disaster.
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