The 2025 model year brings a refresh to the Civic and a new hybrid powertrain.

Driven in its Touring form, the Civic is an impressive machine. The 1.5 turbo is quick, pretty serene, and drones much less than the same unit in the previous-generation car. Nicely-weighted, precise steering, stable handling and a firmly-resilient ride, make the new Civic a pleasure to conduct. With the six-speed manual transmission, with a light clutch and crisp gearchanges, the 1.5T Civic is an engaging drive.

Driven briefly, the high-performance, 315 horsepower Civic R is a delight. The term “Civilized Hooliganism” is an apt description of the Type R. The turbocharged 2L four is impressively serene in gentle driving but when full performance is requested, the zingy, rev-happy engine takes on a feral bellow that is sonically compelling. The engine sends power to the wheels via a docile clutch and gears are selected by a manual transmission with a precise, snicky, mechanical-feeling action. Despite the massive power going through the front wheels, torque-steer is not an issue but there is some ‘tramlining” effect on road imperfections due to the super-wide tires. Steering is precise and transmits road surface information to the driver very well. Handling and grip are impressive and the ride is resilient, especially considering the phenomenal handling of the Type R.

Two familiar engines, a 158 horsepower, normally-aspirated 2L, and a 1.5L turbo with 180 horsepower (200 HP on the Si) return for mainstream versions of the car. The Type R is powered by a 2L turbo four with 315 horsepower. New for 2025 is a hybrid powertrain taken from the Accord and CR-V hybrids that produces 200 total system horsepower. Most Civics are hooked to a CVT but the Si and R trims send power to the front wheels via a six-speed manual transmission.

The dashboard is very horizontally oriented and is adorned with a perforated mesh grille that disguises the dash vents. The climate is controlled via three dials, and infotainment functions can be manipulated via knobs for volume and tuning and hard buttons for other functions. The interior is tastefully conservative and is constructed from attractive materials.

Sedan: the base LX model has a full active safety suite including active cruise control, blind spot and rear cross traffic monitors. The Sport model adds alloy wheels, a sunroof, a heated steering wheel and a 60/40 split-fold rear seat. The Sport hybrid is priced $1900 higher than the gasoline version of the same trim. The Sport Touring adds power seats and leather interior but no built-in navigation is available.

Hatchback: The Sport is powered by the proven, durable 2L normally-aspirated four. The Sport hybrid adds a heated steering wheel and sunroof and commands a $3800 price bump compared with the conventional variant. The Sport Touring upgrade adds leather seating, wireless android cellphone hookup, wireless cellphone charging and the Google built-in interface. The hatchback and sedan versions of the 2L are priced the same but the hybrid versions of the Sport and Sport Touring cost $1900 more than the equivalent sedan.

Civic pricing has increased significantly over the past five years where even the cheapest Civic is now expensive and Honda has essentially abandoned its traditional customers who will either keep their current cars past the point they would normally have and may move to the used car market once their current cars give out. While even the cheapest Civic is expensive, Honda is restricting supplies of its base LX trim in favour of fancier versions and is planning to build up to 60 percent of Civics with the hyper expensive hybrid powertrain. roduce the pricey hybrid variants of the Civic. At least Honda is delivering hybrid Civics to Canadians, something Toyota won’t do for its Corolla.

The hyper-performance Type R is a limited production car with a very long waiting list.

Above average reliability predicted for the 2L Civic. Durability of the 1.5L turbo is uncertain and there have been complaints regarding premature wastegate failures which Honda has no interest in fixing. The turbo and intercooler are only covered for three years/60,000 kilometers. Some head gasket failures are now being reported on the 1.5T engine.