I haven’t had much seat time in the #MTGarage Civic recently, but intern Francis Gow has logged many miles and was eager to share his thoughts about our red Honda and how it compares to a friend’s fancy Audi. – Erick Ayapana
As an intern at Motor Trend, I’ve had the opportunity to drive many various cars home. Over the course of the past year, I’ve had more seat time in our long-term Civic than any other car. I remember getting sticker shock when I first saw the price of the Touring trim — it didn’t make sense to me; why would someone spend nearly $28,000 on a Civic? After one drive of our Civic Touring and I understood. Honda’s updated Civic remains an amazing value for money, despite the rising MSRP.
I had just driven a friend’s Audi A3, and I felt an immediate connection to that car after getting into the Civic. This new Civic felt like a worthy adversary while undercutting the luxury car price point of the Audi. Although the tech in the Honda wasn’t quite up to the beautiful Google Maps overlay found in the A3, everything felt much more premium than the previous-generation Civic. The digital dashboard, paired with an intuitive interface, shows that you don’t need the Germans to get the latest in modern technology in new cars today. Its sharp display compares well to the Audi’s available Virtual Cockpit instrument cluster display in terms of clarity, and the LED headlights light up a dark road like any other luxury sedan.
The next time I was in our Civic, its decently sound-insulated interior and adaptive cruise control system made it a breeze to take from our office in Los Angeles to our Best Driver’s Car competition in Monterey (though Erick previously wished the gap the system left between your car and the car ahead was a tad closer). I made the same road trip with my current-generation A4 almost exactly a year prior, and I felt completely at home in the Civic. There’s something about this car that lets you sink into the driver’s seat and allows for peaceful highway driving, and it’s no wonder that our long-term Civic has been used on a number of road trips and has covered over 27,000 miles within our short time of ownership.
Read more about our 2016 Honda Civic Touring: