24 Oct 05
These new systems, plus regenerative braking (like a Prius again) - which recovers extra energy when you touch the brake pedal by using the electric motor more intensively as a generator - helps the Hybrid to a typical average fuel consumption of about 58mpg. There's a stop-start system, as before, but previously it didn't work when the air-con was on because the air-con pump was driven by the engine. Now, the pump can use its own electric motor when needed and the engine can switch off. It is, in fact, a hybrid air-con pump.
You have to keep your foot on the brake pedal to keep the engine stopped, because it restarts as soon as the pedal is released. Honda does it this way, rather than waiting for you to press the accelerator, to minimise delay in moving off, but drivers stuck behind you in traffic might curse your high-level brake light.
Driving the Hybrid is a curious experience at first. Is the engine, well, being an engine? There's always the sound of an engine running because that crankshaft is turning, so the only way you can tell, other than by leaning out of the boot and feeling for warm exhaust gases, is to watch the instant mpg read-out. If there's no reading, the engine is using no fuel. When you accelerate away gently, you can feel and hear a subtle change in activity somewhere between 1,100 and 1,400rpm; the electric motor doesn't operate alone above these speeds.
So that's the hybrid part, its only other visible sign a small hump in the rear bulkhead where the slender battery pack lives (it means you can't fold the rear seats). Driving this Civic is just as you might imagine a Civic CVT to feel, except that it has a brisk, keen step-off from rest (the 0-60mph time is around 10 seconds) and the engine gets quite vocal when you accelerate hard, because it whips up to high revs. It's quiet in gentler driving, though, when the electric motor's low-speed torque proves its worth.
The new cabin is an airy, welcoming place and the dashboard is very easy on the eye. The digital speedometer sits high above the bold, blue rev-counter that sits dead ahead and the three-spoke steering wheel contains a curious plastic mesh in its skeletal bottom spoke. This steering wheel is the gateway to a very capable chassis, with quick, accurate and nicely-weighted steering, excellent agility and a supple, quiet ride. The feeling of precision, fluidity and composure bodes well for the Civic hatchback's driving qualities.
The Civic Hybrid goes on UK sale in the middle of next year at around the £15,000 mark.
