2022 Honda Civic – live photos direct from Thailand

Earlier this month, the 11th-generation Honda Civic made its launch debut in Thailand, where it is priced between 964,900 baht (RM123,875) and 1,199,900 baht (RM154,031), with three variants being made available.

While the official press images provided at the time were nice to look at, Honda Thailand has since uploaded several live photos so we can see more of the C-segment sedan out in the wild. Does it look better than rivals like the the Mazda 3, Hyundai Elantra and Toyota Corolla? What about when compared to the 10th-gen model, which was commonly referred to as the Civic ketam? You’ll have to browse through the photos and judge for yourself.

As a recap, the latest Civic exhibits a more matured and restrained look than before, which is immediately obvious when viewed from the front. The prominent faux intakes at the bottom corners of the bumper and “Solid Wing Face” chrome bar are now gone, with a simpler design in their place.

Slimmer headlamps are also part of the new styling approach along with a longer bonnet, while down the sides, it’s just a straight shoulder line linking the front and rear lighting clusters. The side view also reveals an Accord-like sweeping roofline and distinctive window line kink near the C-pillars, while the rear loses its ketam taillights in favour of Audi-esque clusters.

Customers in Thailand who want an injection of sportiness will have access to an RS variant that comes with black door mirrors and door handles, along with an additional boot lid spoiler also in black. The RS also gets 17-inch wheels, while the other two options – EL and EL+ – come with 16-inch units.

The Civic’s new body measures 4,678 mm long, 1,802 mm wide and 1,415 mm tall, making it 30 mm longer, three millimetres wider and one millimetre lower than the previous model. The 2,733 mm wheelbase is also 33 mm longer, which is said to promote more legroom, especially for rear occupants.

The pursuit of a “purer” design extends to the interior, which is now more upmarket in look than outgoing model. Highlights include a horizontal dashboard with a full-width honeycomb mesh that conceals the air vents, while a freestanding touchscreen infotainment system takes its place beside the instrument binnacle.

Improved materials that are nicer to the touch are also used here, while practical improvements can be seen on the centre console, which boasts a specific texture to hide fingerprints and smudges to help maintain the high-end appearance.

Available equipment for the Thailand-spec Civic include LED headlamps, dual-zone climate control, a 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster, a Qi wireless charger, a Honda Smart Key Card, keyless entry and engine start and black Ultrasuede upholstery.

The good news for customers there is the standard fitment of the Honda Sensing suite of driver assistance systems, including autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane centring assist, lane keeping assist, automatic high beam and front departure alert. Six airbags are also part of the kit list, along with a variety of passive safety systems.

As for what’s going on under the bonnet, the long-serving 1.8 litre naturally-aspirated i-VTEC four-cylinder engine has now been retired, with the familiar 1.5 litre VTEC Turbo being used on all variants this time around.

Paired with a CVT driving the front wheels, the mill has been tuned to deliver quicker throttle response and slightly better performance, the latter indicated by a 5 PS increase over the previous model to 178 PS at 6,000 rpm. Meanwhile, torque gets a 20 Nm boost to 240 Nm, available from 1,700 to 4,500 rpm.

Besides Thailand, Singapore also welcomed the new Civic not too long ago, and the local specification there is noticeably different. As for us, we’re still waiting for our turn to get up close with the latest Civic, as teased by Honda Malaysia back in April. Of course, given the state of the pandemic here and whatever unknown surprises potentially ahead, there’s nothing definitive for now.