It’s a question that is being pondered by many manufacturers today: do you save some money by churning out just another five-door hatch that families will be happy with, or do you try and keep a sense of identity with your customers and make a decent-handling car?
Thankfully there are companies that remain in the latter camp. Ford have resolutely stuck with the principle of making excellent cars to drive since the original Focus, and Honda also decided a few decades ago that good driving is the right way to go.
Demonstrating this ethos is the new Civic, now available as a sort-of saloon with four doors and a 1.6-litre diesel under the bonnet.
The car we tested is fitted with either a six-speed manual, or a nine-cog auto’, and that 1.6-litre i-DTEC motor produces 120PS (118bhp) and 300Nm (221lb ft) of torque. That means a top speed of 124mph and a sprint to 60mph in 10 seconds for the manual or 10.7 seconds for the auto. Efficiency figures vary between manual and auto, but the official NEDC test bring a combined 83.1mpg with the manual (68.9 in the auto) and 91g/km (108 in the auto).
We drove the saloon in SR trim, which means the standard climate control, heated mirrors, handling assist, DAB radio and auto headlights are joined by Bluetooth, Honda CONNECT system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration, 17”alloy wheels and a rear parking camera for a price of £22,590 (a £1,845 premium over the standard SE car). An extra £2,860 to upgrade to EX trim would add heated front and rear seats, blindspot monitoring, wireless charger, keyless entry and start, full leather interior, headlight washers, two extra speakers and an auto-dimming rear mirror. Our car came in pearlescent Brilliant Sporty Blue, which added an extra £525.