Civic now elegant, sophisticated

Press, 21 July 1989, Page 29

Civic now elegant, sophisticated

ROAD TEST: Honda Civic GT 1.6 i ; [ v

By PETER GREENSLADE BORN in 1972, Honda’s Civic is now a 17 year old with the sort of elegance and sophistication that is the result of nurturing by responsible and proud parents. Obviously a lot of time and effort has been spent polishing off the rough edges that characterised this car in its earlier years. I road-tested a 1493 cu cm LX Civic hatchback immediately after Honda New Zealand unveiled its 1989 range late last year. It was rather better than I had anticipated, for previous models I had found to be viciously torque-steering, front-drive cars.

They at least made me realise that the average New Zealand matron is a tougher cookie than mere males give her credit for being. At least they give the appearance of being quite capable of being able to subdue Civic vices, for the little Honda has long been popular with the so-called gentler sex.

I’ve just been sampling the 1.6litre fuel-injected GT version and I can admit, unreservedly, that I was most impressed. In fact, anyone shopping for a hot hatch would not be doing the job properly if a Civic GT 1.6 i was not sampled before any sort of a decision was reached.

It performs better than is necessary in this neck of the woods, has all the garnishing that one could possibly want and is up to about $lO,OOO cheaper than its serious competitors. It is locally assembled and reeks of quality. That is not all that shows, for there is quality is the manner in which it feels, sounds and moves.

Although it shares the torsionally rigid bodyshell of the LX hatch, the similarity ends right there.

For starters, the GT’s 16-valve engine, with Honda’s well-known PGM-F1 fuel injection system, is only 7 per cent larger than the

1493 jeu cm LX engine, but it develops 28 per cent more power and 18.5 per cent more torque, the figures being 85k W at 6200 revs/min and 141 Nm at, 5000 revs/min. On the road those figures translate to a smooth power surge, and the relatively high speed of the long-stroke engine is no more stirring sonically than the constant hum of a hydro-electric turbine, no matter what a driver may demand of it. Honda clsims a 180km/h-plus capability and I’m inclined to regard that as an example of arch-conservatism.

Interestingly, the GT does not display the big shortcoming of small cars. That is the general lack of smoothness that is evident during city running. This, I believe, is absent for the simple reason that although peak torque is developed at 5000 revs/miri, 85 per cent of it is available from 2000 rev/min upwards. This makes for an extremely resilient small car and that virtue is emphasised because it rides so well at low speeds on city and suburban streets.

Like all the latest Civics, the GT has all-independent double wishbone suspension and that, in essence, means that the wheels are located by the suspension units on their own, and are not kept in place by the shock absorber/spring units as is usual these days. Thus the suspension carries out its designed purpose without having any constraints of friction imposed by the wheel-locating shock absorber/spring units.

feel sure, d consequence of the double wishbone front suspension, in which the camber angle against the road is controlled to almost Odeg. As a general rule, no; matter how well a small car is designed and built, it will have ride, handling and steering short comings because of size limitations. These shortcomings; are accepted and taken for granted by. most motorists, but whether that will remain the case must be extremely debatable, and especially so in the case of Honda, which up until now has never been great shakes as far as steering, ride and general handling are concerned. In that regard the Civic sets standards never before considered attainable. Of course, one can devise the best steering and suspension systems this world has ever encountered, but they will amount to nothing unless they are fitted with a monocoque body frame so strong as to be impervious to the machinations of the surface upon which the car is called upon to travel.

A flexible body structure will demand that a driver constantly makes steering corrections to direct the car along a desired path, while a flexing monocoque will contribute to the input of the suspension and in nine cases out of 10, deleteriously. The Civic’s monocoque bodyshell constitutes an extremely rigid platform to which the suspension and steering rack are attached. The extreme rigidity of the car not only ensures that the wheels remain in contact with the road, but also that the car runs along its desired path without the driver having to make constant steering corrections. And just to ensure that the GT stops as well as it goes, ventilated disc brakes with a proportioning control valve to prevent rear wheel lock-up are a standard fitment. !"

The GT weighs 885 kg, 25 kg more than the 1.5 LX hatchback, r but. that is inconsequential-be-cause the power to height ratio of 10.5 kg per kilowatt has only one equal in . this market a French hot hatch.

Although the mechanical features are just what the doctor ordered for the serious driver, the car has been designed and furnished to satisfy the demands of people with tastes bordering on the sybaritic. It is upholstered and trimmed in black leather of the kid variety. As the individual front seats are handsomely bolstered' there is no likelihood of occupants sliding about in them, particularly when the “g” forces make themselves evident in faster cornering. There is also an electronically operated sliding sunroof with draught excluder, and just to gild the lily, there is a very good Alpine stereo system, the tonal quality of which is beyond reproach. These standard features, which are generally listed as options by many car distributors, usually add some thousands of dollars to the basic price. Not only is the hatchback body attractive, but it is also practical. For example the doors are sufficiently wide to enable anyone to clamber in or out of the rear compartment with relative ease. The rear seats are comfortable, but by no stretch of the imagination could the GT be described as a five-seater. The rear seat has been designed to accommodate two quite large people, as leg and head room are quite generous.

The windows, which afford a generous field of all-round vision, are almost flush-mounted. Like so many hatchbacks, the rear windows open outwards, being retained by rudimentary clips. The roof-supporting pillars are slim and the windscreen as well as the rear screen are deep, affording good visibility fore and aft.

To the front the bonnet falls away quite sharply to give the driver a good view of the road immediately ahead, while at the rear the deep window is a worthwhile aid when parking in confined spaces. Incidentally, there is a reasonable amount of luggage space even when four people are carried in the car but, if it is used as a two or three-seater, luggage accommodation can be increased appreciably, because the seat backs can be folded down.

Needless to say, there is a comprehensive instrument display that should meet the demands of most sporting drivers, while the three-spoked steering wheel should also appeal to anyone who enjoys driving a sporting car. On the regular test circuit, the implacable solidity of the floor pan impressed me greatly. On the long straights the GT ran true, as it did with a commendable absence of body roll in the twists and bends.

There is just a touch of torque steer discernible when the accelerator is floored from a standstill, but it is barely noticeable once the car is rolling. Maybe it is because the GT is such a flat rider that there is so little understeer; certainly the car has to be held to its cornering line, but if that is done it betrays no tendency to run wide in bends. The transformation accomplished by Honda’s suspension and steering engineers is something that borders on the miraculous, especially as Honda was

.demonstrative. •. of.' sqj- -many shortcomings previously in those areas. I seem to recall reading somewhere that Honda does not regard its Formula One racing involvement as purely a public relations and promotional activity. The company regards Formula One as a pressure cooker course in automotive engineering and although much is made of PGM-F1 fuel injection and straight engine technology as being a big part of the fall-out from racing involvement, I’m equally certain that the more tangible benefits have arisen, from a greater understanding of the nuances involved in chassis, suspension and steering design. The range of hot hatches is ever-increasing, and for people who are attracted to this type of car, there is greater interest in the variety. But when it all boils down, it will almost inevitably be a case of value for money that will really count. On that basis alone, the Honda Civic GT 1.6 i must take a power of beating, for it sells for $27,700, and that is $4550 less than a Tdyota GT, which is" imported , j completely built up and comes without leather upholstery or a sunshine roof, although a stereo audio system is included in the package. If one can forget about the two-litre family saloons that can be bought in the $26,000-$35,000 bracket these days, the Honda GT looks a good buy. I think I’d forget.

Smooth power surge

Body shell rigid

Design benefits from racing