Honda CIVIC CTD-i DIESEL RANGE
Yes, You Did Read That Correctly A
Honda Diesel, And Whats More Its A Good Un. Andy Enright Reports
Certain concepts dont rest easily together. Fish and bicycle. Chalk and cheese. Jamie Oliver and the structural integrity of my television screen.
Likewise, diesel and Honda arent two words we generally see in close proximity to one another. Honda had previously bucked the trend for compression ignition insisting that petrol systems such as intelligent valve timing could replicate the benefits. They were wrong. Diesel engines have come a long way in the past few years and the Japanese company has realised that if you cant beat them, youd better join them, hence the latest Civic CTDi diesel range.
| Build |
 |
| Comfort |
 |
| Depreciation |
|
| Economy |
|
| Equipment |
|
| Handling |
|
| Insurance |
|
| Performance |
 |
| Styling |
|
| Value |
|
Trailing into the market as reluctant tail-end charlies doesnt exactly fill one with a great sense of anticipation, but remember who were dealing with here. This is
Honda, creators of the worlds most amazing engines. Ask anybody in the know and they wont look at
Ferrari,
BMW or Mercedes when it comes to sheer engineering ingenuity; instead theyll look to Japan. Or, in this case, Swindon, where these Civic diesels are built.
Its tempting to think that building a class competitive diesel engine is something of a sinch.
Volvo popped their D5 diesel engine onto the podium with no real track record of building oil burners and Honda appear to have done likewise with the 1.7-litre CTDi engine. Perhaps the design was a bit of light relief for Hondas engineers, a humorous email circulated around the office that took wings and flew.
The truth is a little more prosaic. The engine is in fact an
Isuzu design, fettled by Honda for use in the Civic.
"In one fell swoop, Honda have gone from diesel refuseniks to potential champions."
Still, its a sterling effort. Take the traditional bugbear of diesel engines, NVH, or noise, vibration and harshness. Honda have eliminated a great deal of this straight from the off by using the liquid filled engine and transmission mounts carried over from the petrol versions. Many unpleasant harmonic frequencies are filtered out by this barrier, but those that make it through get mopped up by a variety of other counter measures.
The engine itself features a high-performance acoustic cover, whilst a dual damper on the crack pulley and a high inertia flywheel further improve refinement. An engine undercover is fitted plus deep floor mat insulation, a noise absorbent felt backing is applied to the fascia while the front bulkhead is squeezed full of vibration and sound absorbent urethane foam. Such is the engines refinement, one suspects if Honda turned their hand to making aircraft, the petition against Heathrow Terminal 5 would probably be significantly shorter. Its not the most powerful diesel engine in the class, its 100bhp putting it towards the median power point although buyers can choose between the sporty looking three-door version as well as the more family-oriented five-door bodyshell.
Prices start at £13,225 and one mainstream trim level is offered the relatively well-equipped SE. Just because it doesnt crank out a stratospheric power output doesnt mean the Civic CTDi is off the pace. A sprint to 60mph in 11 seconds flat is on a par with Peugeots 2.0-litre 110bhp 307 HDi a car from one of the leading diesel exponents.
Hondas arent generally renowned for their torque figures, and the 220Nm that the CTDi generates is, somewhat embarrassingly, even more than their sporty Accord Type-R and S2000 models can muster. Your gain. A unique five-speed manual transmission has been developed to cope with the muscular torque characteristics of the diesel engine. Massively tough shot-peened gears are used, and a beefy triple-cone synchroniser between first and second gears ensures a creamy smooth shift.
Anybody familiar with the Civics dash-mounted gearshift will know what to expect. At first it looks a little gawky, but within a few shifts youll wonder why anybody bothers placing the gear lever on the floor. On the floor! What a ridiculous place for something you perpetually use. Fuel consumption is predictably superb, over 57mpg is attainable with a moderate right foot, helped by the fact that peak torque is developed at a subterranean 1800rpm.
With the rev counter registering barely above tickover, youll be able to make effortless progress thanks to the variable nozzle turbocharger that intelligently allows the boost pressure to instantly vary according to demand. This and the common rail design help the CTDi engine remain a good environmental citizen, emitting only 129 grammes of carbon dioxide per kilometre. If anything, the latest set of changes have driven the three-door and five-door Civic models still further apart. The three-door versions have become sharper and more aggressive while the five-door models go for extra equipment, greater refinement and a more upmarket feel.
These changes are necessary as theres a sea change going on in this sector. Significant new rivals are coming thick and fast and its apparent that if manufacturers take their eye of the ball for a moment, theyll be left with products that are seen as old hat. Whichever model you choose however, you should find it pretty well specified. Theres ABS, twin front and side airbags, keyless entry and electric front windows included on every model and theres the usual three-year comprehensive warranty to consider.
Not that youre likely to need it. Build quality a traditionally strong Honda trait is as usual exemplary: even the gaps between the body panels have been halved over the previous generation Civic. Twin front and side airbags are standard across the range, as are anti-lock brakes and three-point
seat belts for all five occupants. Now that Honda have adopted the diesel, its hard to imagine them leaving things be. This opens up a whole realm of possibilities diesel engines that can crack 100bhp per litre and rev to 9,000rpm? Thats all fantasy at the moment.
Whats hard fact is that in one fell swoop, Honda have gone from diesel refuseniks to potential champions. Whoever said life wasnt fair probably wasnt working for Honda.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Honda Civic CTDi diesel range
PRICES: £13,225-£14,225 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 5-6
CO2 EMISSIONS: 134g/km
PERFORMANCE: 0-60mph 11.5s / Max Speed 112mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (urban) 44.8 mpg / (extra urban) 64.2mpg / 56.5mpg (combined)
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front and side airbags, ABS with EBD
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: [5 dr] length/width/heightmm 4285/1695/1495mm
<< Back to Honda car reviews
<< Back to car reviews homepage
Find New & Used Cars in the UK |
New & Used Honda Cars For Sale UK
