2008 Honda Civic Review

Specifications

So I finally was getting a chance to drive one. When the 8th gen Civic Si rolled out in 2006, I was immediately smitten with it’s aggressive looks—the sloping beltline, culminating in the rear with a spoiler that would do most aftermarket tuners proud, the sharp split-spoke alloys that belie the sporting nature of the car and that giant oval-shaped exhaust pipe peeking out from under the bumper, all details that I’m not ashamed to admit had my mouth watering.

Gone was the disappointing Si 5-door from the previous generation, as well as the earlier coupe that looked little different from its non-Si brethren. The 2008 Civic Si, on the other hand, seems almost like a model unto itself, even though it shares its coupe framework with its DX, LX, EX and EX-L siblings. Sure, many other manufacturers have performance derivatives of standard models, but all too often the only visible cues are a couple of well-placed badges and maybe some slightly bigger wheels. With the Si, however, even the all-I-need-a-car-for-is-to-get-me-from-A-to-B-quickly crowd would have to admit that the car wants the world to know that it has Germany and North America’s best firmly in its sights when it comes to cars you can have the most fun with, and at the lowest price. Yes, for some it may seem a bit boy-racerish, but this, after all, is what the manufacturer is gunning for with this car. Anyone who has the slightest interest in the “import scene” as it’s so often called can tell you that at any meet, the ratio of Civics to any other car is at least 5 to 1. That being said, rarely have I seen a suped-up version of Honda’s latest incarnation of their iconic best-seller, and I can only assume it’s because owners of the new Si don’t see the need. Why change the intake and exhaust manifolds when the car comes stock with almost 200 horsepower? Why lower the suspension settings when the car already runs on MacPherson struts so stiff you’d be hard pressed to justify giving your mother a ride in your shiny new Honda? Why add decals when the only one that’s needed sits so proudly on the rocker panel just fore of the rear wheels (the “i-VTEC” logo, I mean)? Why change the rims when… never mind. The car (especially when painted in intense Rallye Red like my tester) has nothing to hide. It’s a sport compact car, and that’s it. With the Si, I must say Honda has done a very thorough job.

The image changes little when you swing open the solid (thanks to heavy-duty I-beam reinforcement), if not a little long, front door. The interior, for the most part, keeps the good impressions up, but I am still a little unsure about the space-age two-tier dash. Granted, its vast expanse allows for some great forward visibility (I even forgot at one point that the car had A-pillars), but I find the enormous digital speedometer readout just a little techy for the sake of being techy. Plus, the sharp red tachometer gauge is so attractive, why not have a speedometer to pair it with? But hey, the first thing that passengers mentioned when getting in the car was undoubtedly how aesthetically pleasing the high-techery of the dash was, so I guess Honda achieved what it wanted when it came to eye-catching interior design flourishes. Also, in a car that is so, well, easy to drive quickly, maybe it’s nice to have a clear view of exactly what speed you’re doing. But once I got past the strange speedo, I appreciated the rest of the technology-packed interior. All 2008 Sis come standard with Honda’s Premium 7-speaker sound system with tweeters, a subwoofer, a 6-disc, in-dash MP3/CD player and an auxiliary input, as well as steering-wheel mounted audio controls. Safety-wise, there’s a new–for-2008 tire pressure monitoring system and dual front, side and curtain airbags as well as Honda’s LATCH system for child seats—the back seats also split 60/40, which, accompanying the cars surprisingly deep trunk, provides a healthy 11.5 cu ft of cargo volume, enough for a full bag of hockey equipment and a pair of goalie pads. While this is all well and good, the aforementioned pronounced rear spoiler can make parking a little more difficult than it should be for a car made to be tractable around town, until you learn to use the wing as a reference point for rear-end placement. Even though you can tell by looking at it, a lift of the tiny hood shows just how short the front end is—I had to make frequent use of the “watch yourself park in the shop windows” technique in order to determine just where the snub nose ends. Needless to say that during most parallel parking maneuvers, my front end ended up further from the car in front of me than usual.

Still, as far as ergonomics go, I have to say that the interior is top notch. That vast dash translates into an equally large center console. All the buttons and dials are easy to reach and just as easy to read, while quirky design elements abound, whether it be the S-shaped (and very short) handbrake lever or snappy shifter which, for 2008, now features red stitching on the boot, adding an extra flair of sportiness. Also helping the feel are the supportive seats, with exposed red-stitching (an Si staple) and proudly emblazoned with “Si” on the seatbacks. The EX-L is available with leather-trimmed seats, but I wouldn’t trade the grippy suede-like nylon items that are the Si’s only options, for anything. Along with the great rib and hip bolstering, the seats keep the driver neutral when digging deep into the Si’s seemingly infinite well of grip. Si drivers do get the chunky leather-wrapped steering wheel with perforated leather sections and mandatory red stitching, and it does its part to communicate exactly what the car is doing from bend to bend. But more on the Si’s handling aspects a little later. Let’s talk about that manic engine that is the focus of this article’s tagline.

In even their most basic of forms, Hondas have always had the peppiest four-bangers on the market. Even my daily driver, an older Civic sedan with a tiny 1.3-liter unit, needs to stretch its legs once in awhile—perhaps thanks to Honda’s Formula 1 efforts, there seems to be a strand of motorsport DNA in many of its vehicles. All it takes is one dash up to 9,000 rpm in an S2000 to see exactly what I mean. Like that car, my Si features an i-VTEC equipped engine. Down 0.2 liters on the S2000 to 2.0, it makes 197 horsepower and 139 lb-ft of torque, which is good for a 0 to 60 mph romp of just over six seconds. I am glad, however, that the Si features a close-ratio 6-speed gearbox, because the car really demands to be revved hard if you expect to reach the meat of the power band, and be ready to downshift with aplomb if you expect to fully exploit the Si’s somewhat meager 139 lb-ft of torque when tackling the twists and turns of your favorite driving road. Acceleration rates are fairly tame at first, but have patience. Once the white tach needle sweeps past the 6,500 mark, VTEC kicks in and everything changes, from acceleration rates to the engine sound as it morphs from a metallic yell to a guttural howl that must really be experienced to believed, accompanied by an adrenaline rush that must be felt to be believed. Accompanying the sound is a thrust that I liken to an almost turbocharger-like boost, as forward motion quickly increases and you’re thrust back into the deep sports seat.

On a worldwide basis, mind you, the Si still plays second fiddle—when it comes to power figures, at least—to the Type R models available in Japan and Europe, but there were few times where I felt I needed more power during my time with the car. Plus, this being a front-wheel drive machine, torque steer is always a concern, and I have read that those Japanese and European spec models have almost too much power for their chassis. I never found this to be an issue with my test car, as it features a helical limited-slip differential that keeps the front wheel firmly on the straight and narrow even if you floor the go pedal. I just wish Honda engineers could have found a little more torque, as the time it takes for the Civic Si to reach VTEC is just a little on the long side for my liking, and led to a few hair raising passing moments. But that howl and thrust when the VTEC finally engages is so intoxicating that all is forgotten, until the very cool red shift light (another nod to aftermarket tuners, I’m sure) starts blinking and you’re forced to disengage the drive-by-wire throttle and bring the revs back down again. Then again, I didn’t mind having to do the extra shifting, as the Si’s clutch action is smooth, not grabby like some offerings in the compact sports market, and the gear lever action is among the crispest in the biz, hampered only by slightly long throws.

Plus, there is little that says “purity” like a sports car that asks for your engagement by compelling you to carefully monitor engine and road speeds by shifting, shifting and then shifting again to keep the engine in the meat of the powerband. With a car like the Si, every turn should be a perfectly matched combination of good braking, a snappy downshift and a flick of the wheel. Thanks to the aforementioned LSD, the perfect turn, when all of these pieces fall into place, is achievable. The front suspension features sport-tuned MacPherson struts, while the rear wheels get what Honda calls a Reaction-link double wishbone suspension. The result? A front-wheel drive car that turns in like few others I have driven before, short of the industry-leading Mini Cooper S. I cannot recall understeer ever being a notable problem, and coupled with that great wheel, the feeling of winding on lock never gets tiring. The Si also features Honda’s great EPS power-assist steering, which actually becomes weightier as speed soars higher, and the communication between driver, car and road is nothing short of addicting. Suspension and steering systems are important, but not the be-all-end-all of a good driving experience. At 2,886 lbs, the Si is not a heavy car, and in another nod to the company’s F1 heritage, the Si actually features panels mounted below the chassis to force air underneath, acting as a suction cup between car and road, and helped along by Michelin Pilot Exalto all-season tires (sport tires are also available as an option). When the time to halt the proceedings inevitably comes, the 10.9 inch ventilated discs up front and the 10.2 inch solid discs at the rear are more than up to the task, aided by Electronic Brakeforce Distribution that senses exactly which wheel is struggling to cope, and transfers braking power accordingly. To keep things cool, functional air dams in the bumper force cold air directly to the front bakes, drastically reducing feelings of brake fade. I was always confident at the wheel of my Si, always knew what the car was doing, and for me that kind of communication is the essence of any sports car.

At the end of the day, rest assured that the Si is also one of those cars that made daily life easier. Missing a dinner ingredient at the last minute? No problem. In fact, I would love to go to the store just for the thrill of driving there. Friend needs an emergency airport pickup? Sure thing—and the trunk should have no problem fitting the bags. All this daily activity is made even easier thanks to the Si’s none-too-shabby fuel consumption figures of 21 and 29 mpg for city and highway respectively, which puts the car right in the thick of the gas miser competition raging in the automotive market today, and is a direct result of not having to rely on a turbocharger to squeeze extra power out of the car.

Overall, the Si does a remarkable job of balancing pocket-rocket duties with everyday usability. It is aggressively styled, no doubt, but not over the top. It’s also practical thanks to folding rear seats and a largish trunk, but doesn’t feel like it’s overburdened. Yes, a little more torque would have been nice, but when the sticker price says $21,110 it’s hardly a deal breaker. The bottom line is that the Si does what it set out to do, and makes it hard to loosen your grip on the wheel at the end of the day.

Specifications (Honda Civic Si Coupe)