Honda Regains Sanity! When Honda introduced the then-new 2001 Civic, America's enthusiasts responded with a heaving yawn. When the half-measure Civic Si hatchback came along a year later, all were dumbstruck by its tepid specifications in comparison to the full-force Civic Type-R the rest of the world could buy. The sport compact movement was built atop the solid foundation of the Civic, and the Civic itself abandoned us.
If the Civic Si concept car shown at February's Chicago Auto Show is any indication (and it is), the Civic is on its way back. This car is clearly a preview of the nearly all-new 2006 Civic that's coming this fall, and the Si version promises to be what we've wanted all along: a two-door coupe with the 200-hp, 2.0-liter version of the K-Series i-VTEC engine driving a six-speed manual transaxle. In short, the Civic Type-R mechanical stuff inside a new coupe body.
Honda isn't saying much about what's going on with the new Civic, except it's coming this fall. However, all indications are that the new car will be significantly sleeker and modern looking as Honda tries to reclaim the youth-centered style leadership it abandoned with the conservative 2001 edition. Underneath the sheet metal, it's rumored, is an evolution of Honda's current Global Small Car (GSC) platform. That means MacPherson struts will be used up front and the rear suspension will be a simple independent system. All the engines will likely be based on the K-series block with some versions dipping down to 1.5-, 1.6- or 1.7 liters. Naturally, both two- and four-door versions will return to the lineup, but don't expect the three-door body used on the current Si to come back.
The concept car has 18-inch wheels and oversized Brembo brakes that we don't expect to make into production. But the body kit may be closer to production spec than you'd expect, and that rear wing may wind up as a Honda dealer-installed accessory.
The best thing about the concept car is its aggressively raked windshield, tautly drawn flanks and perfectly proportioned hood, greenhouse and trunk. All those are definitely making it into showrooms.
Don't expect the Si (or hybrid or natural gas) Civics to be available until a few months after the bread-and-butter models show up. That means our Civic salvation could be here by January.
New Lexus IS The next-generation Lexus IS, unveiled in Geneva last March, hints at the future of the IS, which will go on sale late in 2005 as a 2006 model.
The new car, called the IS 250 in Europe, will be the second production vehicle released under the new "L-Finesse" design philosophy, which is described as an expression of "intriguing elegance, incisive simplicity and seamless anticipation." Whatever you think of this kind of designer babble-and we know what we think-it is clear the new IS will become sleeker and more aggressive. The coefficient of friction has been reduced from .29 to .27.
The standard U.S. engine-a 2499cc, direct-injection DOHC V6-will have dual VVT-i electronics managing both intake and exhaust valves. This system will allow the V6 to deliver 201 hp at 6400 rpm, and 184 lb-ft of torque at 3800 rpm. It will be controlled via a six-speed manual and, eventually, will be available with all-wheel drive. The optional engine is a 320-horse, 3.5-liter V6 driving a six-speed automatic with sequential paddle shift. The shift paddles are integral to the wheel, so shifting and downshifting the automatic becomes a fingertip operation.
The IS will use a double-wishbone front suspension and a multilink configuration in the rear. The shocks, a gas monotube design, have increased piston diameter to improve road feel and more readily absorb jounce, reducing undamped vibration throughout the chassis. Front and rear disc brakes have high-friction pads, and a variable-ratio brake pedal delivers more progressive actuation. The goal, states Lexus, is to achieve uncompromised ride comfort in a car with superior cornering capability-a compromise the IS has always made well.
Steering is accomplished via a speed-sensitive, electrically assisted rack-and-pinion system. The new configuration uses a slightly quicker overall ratio, at 15:1, than the prior IS 300 and is a quarter-turn quicker, lock to lock. Lexus claims the system eliminates performance and reliability compromises inherent in hydraulic steering, while providing measurable fuel savings, seamless linear feedback, and quieter operation. It is also, coincidentally, part of the package necessary to hybridize a car. It's entirely in character to see a high-performance hybrid IS someday.
Third-Generation Mazda MX-5 Miata At the Geneva Auto Show in March, Mazda launched the third generation of the car that best embodies its corporate vision. The 2006 Miata is all new, and if Mazda is to be believed, all better.
The aged 1.8-liter BP cast-iron block engine was thankfully put out to pasture and is replaced by the all-aluminum MZR 2.0-liter engine that employs a host of Mazda's newest engine technologies. A two-stage plastic intake manifold combines with a 10.8:1 compression ratio, variable valve timing and an electronic throttle body to produce an estimated 170 hp and 136 lb-ft of torque. Significant effort was made by the engineering staff to produce linear torque through the powerband such that every dip of the throttle is met with accelerative force.
The MZR is connected to a new six-speed manual transmission with even shorter throw, tightly spaced gears and triple-cone synchros on several of the gears. Five- and six-speed automatic transmissions will be offered, with the "Active-matic" six using steering-wheel-mounted paddles. The same rear limited-slip differential installed on the RX-8 sits at the back of the new Miata.
The Miata's new chassis, despite being larger in every dimension, is 48 pounds lighter thanks to the use of high- and ultrahigh-tension steels. Torsional rigidity has also been increased by 47 percent. The hood and trunk lid are aluminum, and the fuel tank has been lowered to reduce the car's center of gravity and polar moment. The engine was moved 5.3 inches closer to the firewall to keep the Miata's signature 50:50 weight distribution, giving it a "front midship" layout.
As before, an aluminum powerplant frame connects the transmission to the rear differential isolating torque loads from the chassis and improving throttle response.
The suspension employs a double-wishbone setup in the front and a newly developed multi-link layout in the rear; we have to assume there is some parts-bin sharing with the RX-8. Standard wheels are 16 inches with 205/50-16 tires. A sport package yields 17x7-inch wheels, and 18-inch wheels are available as optional equipment. The brake rotors have grown 0.8 inches in the front, and the calipers on all four corners are 25 percent stiffer, fed by a power booster that is 1 inch larger.
The Coke-bottle shape of the first- and second-generation cars was dropped in lieu of RX-8-like flanks and flares that give it a decidedly more aggressive set. The headlights and taillights have been moved inward, which help visually mask the larger overall dimensions. Despite a 2.6-inch longer wheelbase, 3.0-inch wider front track, 2.1-inch wider rear track and every manner of mechanical and material upgrades, Mazda claims the new Miata weighs just 22 pounds more than the car it replaces.
Those who have driven the car during development promise better performance but with the same wonderful, intuitive relationship between pilot and craft that won our hearts 16 years ago. In fact, six-footers now fit with room to spare, and the steering wheel is adjustable. Better brakes, a stiffer chassis, improved suspension geometry and a big bump in grunt combine to knock out lap times at test tracks substantially faster than the car it replaces.
Larger, able and refined, our baby is back. Look for driving impressions soon. -Jared Holstein