The Honda Civic has been one of the best-selling sedans in America for decades. Over its time on sale, it has also been a station wagon, a coupe and tuner special and now comes in standard, hybrid, Type R and the Civic Si, the second fastest in the lineup, tested here.
Every Civic Si, at least in the past 20 years, has been just a little sportier, a little sharper and a little cooler than the competition from Nissan and Toyota.
The 2024 Honda Civic Si features a turbocharged, 1.5-liter engine delivering 200 horsepower, about the same as the last-generation model. It is larger than it has ever been before, offering plenty of space for four or five along with a standard six-speed manual transmission. It's truly built for enthusiasts who also need some utility with their daily driver.
There wasn't a lot to complain about after a week with the vehicle that included grocery and home improvement runs, playdates and dinners. We did need to pick up a Christmas tree and though it probably could have been strapped to the top, we used the other car in the household instead.
What we tested: Newsweek test drove a 2024 Honda Civic Si in Urban Gray for this review. The four-door sedan has a starting price of $30,250 before a $1,095 destination charge was added on. With the options this Honda Civic Si had an as-tested price of $31,800.
KEEP: The shifter
Honda and Acura, for a long time, have had the best shift lever and linkage. The hewn metal cylindrical cap on top is freezing in the winter, but warms up when you start rowing gears and has a solidity to it not felt in much more expensive vehicles.
A close variation of the setup is used on the Civic and Acura Integra, the old Honda S2000 and several others in the family. The throws (distance between the gears) are small making gear changes quick and easy. And unlike some others, it doesn't flex when jamming into a gear while entering the freeway or passing.
CHANGE: Clutch pedal effort
Complaints are small, but in a sportier vehicle like this, enthusiasts usually like more feel from the clutch pedal. The Civic's pedal is very low effort, takes time to get used to and is hard to modulate when needed.
KEEP: No-nonsense dashboard
Since its latest redesign the whole Civic family has used a hexagonal grate as a design feature across the dashboard, which also hides the heating and cooling vents. It's an attractive, simple solution and gives the inexpensive vehicle a tougher, more industrial look.
It expands to the far side of the steering wheel and is the dividing line between the touchscreen on top and the heating controls below. All use physical controls, which are usually more convenient than digging through menus on a screen.
CHANGE: Slightly noisy cabin
Again, these are small complaints, but the Civic Si has more road noise than its competitors, partially due to its sporty character. Even with the windows up there's a bit of wind noise in the cabin, though that's not unexpected in a vehicle in this class. There's also engine and exhaust sound, but that isn't as unpleasant or noticeable.
KEEP: Dancer's feet
As I've said the Civic has always been a little sportier than its competition in most trims. This larger-but-still-compact sedan feels light and agile in traffic through the steering wheel, among other things. The front end moves quickly in whatever direction you nudge it; entering a cloverleaf expressway entrance at speed is simple as is moving between the lines.
The brakes make the Si feel like a featherweight as they have a short pedal stroke and firm grip in the first few inches of travel. That makes for confident stops at all speeds, but especially when traffic slows to a crawl on fast surface streets during rush hour.
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