Honda Civic Series II ups the ante

A week after launching its all-new Civic hatch range, Honda Australia has introduced a revised Series II Civic sedan line-up that includes slightly cheaper entry- and mid-level models, as part of its push to more than treble sales of its revamped Civic range.

Now sourced from Thailand, the Series II Civic sedan is priced from $20,490 for the VTi manual, which is $500 less than the previous $20,990 VTi-L price-leader.

The VTi model is new to the range and is joined by the VTi-LN, which together with the VTi-L, Sport and Hybrid models expands the range from three to five models.

Civic VTi-L models are now auto-only, priced at $23,990, and the new VTi-LN costs $26,990, with the 'N' adding satellite-navigation.

At the top of the table is the Honda Civic Sport, which has risen by $3000 in price, from $27,990 to $30,990, but now comes with more kit, such as a reversing camera, satellite-navigation and updated leather upholstery.

The Civic Hybrid is still sourced Japan and the price remains unchanged at $35,990.

Honda Australia Director and General Manager Sales and Marketing Stephen Collins said the new Thai-sourced Civic sedan range will help drive total annual Civic sales to 20,000, which is a big jump from last year's total sales of just 6499 – a figure that was down partly due to Japanese tsunami-influenced supply issues.

"Over 3400 Civic sedans have already been sold since the all-new model was launched in March this year," stated Mr Collins. "Australians can expect superior quality, even more features and exceptional value for money."

Honda has been selling more than 1000 Civic sedans per month since March and expects a combined total of around 2000 per month with the new Civic hatch coming online.

Therefore, the sales split between Civic sedan and hatch is expected to be around 50:50, thanks to the reduced price of the new UK-sourced hatch, which starts at $22,650 for VTi-S.

All Series II Honda Civic sedans, including the VTi, now come as standard with keyless entry, cruise control, power windows, USB and iPod connectivity, Bluetooth audio streaming and smart phone integration, electric power steering and an advanced trip computer, or Intelligent Multi-Information Display (i-MID) in Honda-speak.

Step up to the VTi-L and you gain automatic headlights, while the VTi's 15-inch steel wheels are replaced by 16-inch alloys.

The VTi-N adds rain-sensing wipers, satellite-navigation, reversing camera, front foglights, and keyless entry/starting.

The Sport gets more kit than the Series I vehicle, adding sat-nav, a reversing camera and new leather upholstery.

Both manual and automatic gearboxes are five-speed units and the four-cylinder petrol engines remain unchanged, with the Civic Sport powered by a 114kW/190Nm 2.0-litre unit and the rest of the range fitted with 104kW/174Nm 1.8-litre motors.

Safety features are abundant across the range, comprising six airbags, electronic stability control and anti-lock brakes as standard. All Honda Civic models come with a five-star ANCAP safety rating.

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