Compact coupes are not big business in Canada. Hyundai dabbled in the segment briefly with its Elantra, but quickly gave up. Kia enjoyed better success with its Forte model but appears to have abandoned the two-door variant with that car’s most recent redesign.
That leaves the Honda Civic as one of a very tidy group of small coupes -- now a segment of one, if our memory serves -- which it has been a part of since the early 1990s. While the Civic coupe may be the only proper compact two-door, it does have competitors in the form of the Mini Cooper hatch and Hyundai Veloster, as examples.
For 2019, there are a few minor changes to the Civic Coupe. Most notably, a Sport trim replaces last year’s EX-T model, the new car powered by a 2.0L engine shared with the basic LX variant. That means the 1.5L turbo mill is now limited to Touring and Si trims.
Honda has also made the Civic’s active safety and driver assist features standard in the LX and Sport; in 2018, that package was an option in LX and EX-T. Now, all Civic coupe models except for the sporty Si come with adaptive cruise, lane departure warning with lane keep assist and forward collision warning with automatic braking.
The Civic coupe’s basics remain the same. The LX and Sport models’ 2.0L engine makes 158 hp and 138 lb-ft of torque; Touring gets the 1.5L and its 174 hp and 162 lb-ft; and Si gets an uprated 1.5L with 205 hp and 192 lb-ft.
LX, Sport and Si come with a six-speed manual. A continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) is optional in LX and Sport and standard in Touring.
Standard features in LX trim include 16-inch alloy wheels, LED taillights, auto on/off halogen headlights, digital gauge cluster, automatic climate control, Bluetooth, heated side mirrors, multi-angle backup camera, power windows, keyless entry, tilt-and-telescopic steering, six-way driver and four-way front passenger seat adjustments, heated front seats and an eight-speaker stereo with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Sport adds 18-inch wheels, a centre exhaust finisher, dual-zone climate control, fog lights, sunroof, speed-sensing variable intermittent wipers, passive keyless entry and a leather-trimmed steering wheel.
Touring brings LED fog lights, LED headlights and front turn signals, rain-sensing wipers, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, navigation, garage door opener, wireless smartphone charging, leather seats, and a 10-speaker stereo.
Finally, Si gets an adaptive damper suspension and a rear spoiler, but its equipment list otherwise (mostly) matches that of the Sport trim.
Honda’s fuel consumption figures are 9.3/6.7 L/100 km (city/highway) with the 2.0L engine and six-speed; with the 2.0L and CVT, ratings are 7.8/6.1 for the LX and 8.3/6.6 in Sport trim; 7.8/6.4 in the Touring and its 1.5L/CVT combo; and 8.2/6.2 for the Si’s 1.5L turbo and six-speed combo.
