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The sedan version of the ninth generation Honda Civic was unveiled earlier this year, and now it’s time for the European version, which is slated to debut at September’s Frankfurt show. Developed specifically for the European market, this Civic will be offered exclusively as a five-door hatchback, taking on C-segment stalwarts such as the Golf, Focus and Astra. It will go on sale in early 2012.
Often criticised in Europe for its hard ride, Honda has worked on that area. According to the company, the new Civic’s ride and handling has been developed in Europe, and the Japanese team worked closely with European colleagues and external experts. The focus was on improving the ride quality, while retaining the sporty handling of the current model.
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“Every time we visited Europe during the development of the car, we achieved significant improvements in the ride and handling, tuning the car for the local demands. The new Civic is not just an evolution. In terms of ride quality, we have taken a major step forwards, equivalent to two generations of development,” said Kazuo Sunaoshi, Development Leader – Chassis.
Honda says that its engineers were conscious that European roads are some of the most varied in the world, where you have smooth, fast highways turning off to poorly surfaced country lanes. Final tuning was done in Europe, as a result.
The segment leaders employ all independent suspension, but Honda will stick with the torsion beam for the new Civic, giving it the largest cabin in the segment. But to improve body control and high speed stability, the wall thickness of the beam and the diameter of the stabiliser bar have been increased. Overall ride comfort and handling will also benefit from the introduction of new fluid-filled compliance bushings to the rear suspension.
© 2011 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.
This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Tue, 02 Aug 11 02:33:31 +0000.
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