Honda’s eleventh generation Civic (which is about ready to celebrate turning 50) has just arrived at dealerships across the United States and Canada, and we’re about to get overwhelmed with reviews trying to find out if the latest is also the greatest. So, let’s kick off the proceeds with help from the Canadian guys over at TheStraightPipes channel on YouTube.
Interestingly, the “baby Accord” 2022 Civic has been subjected to the test in a stylish Touring trim while the Toyota Corolla was dressed up in the sporty-looking Apex edition. That was the compromise they had to pay for getting both the Civic and Corolla in sedan form out for review. Thus, it’s a fight between the flagship Civic trim and the sporty-looking, but lower-powered (180 to 169 hp) Corolla Apex.
Also, the two cars don’t have the same transmission choice, as the Honda exclusively relies on the ubiquitous CVT (sorry, the stick shift action will be available on the Si later). Meanwhile, the Corolla Apex was equipped with a six-speed iMT (intelligent manual transmission) for some rev-matching fun.
With these considerations in mind, the design chapter kicks off at the 3:20 mark after the duo enjoys a few quick launches that yield different results based on the level of grip and the driver’s skills. Anyways, they quote low to mid-eight-second results as entirely achievable... but with a one-foot (30 cm) rollout.
As far as the styling is concerned, the Civic is a bit more stylish while the Corolla Apex looks way cooler, so we’d probably call this a tie until someone pits the Civic against a regular Corolla. More importantly, there’s also an exhaust soundcheck from the 5:25 mark to see that it doesn’t make that much of a difference if the Corolla has a sport-tuned system or not.
The interior chapter starts at the seven-minute mark and includes just about everything one would like to know about these two cars, from the driving assistance systems to the knob-equipped infotainment systems and even a suspension test over train tracks (at the 12:55 mark). The win goes to the Civic, who is now approaching the elevated levels of Hyundai’s Elantra and the Mazda 3.
No review would be complete without a little bit of handling fun (starting from 15:50) and thus the conclusion only comes after a little bit of cornering and a second bump test that solidifies the Civic as the overall victor in this test.
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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