An about face!
Coming back for the 2025 model year and in its 10th generation is the Honda Civic Hybrid, a popular electrified compact poised to enter production in 2024 in Canada. Following that the hatchback will join the line up at Honda’s Indiana factory, and the overall news is very exciting! While many details are still yet to be revealed, it has been released that the Civic will come back in both sedan and hatchback variants! There has been a large push for electrified and electric vehicles in the brand, and this is the result!
Here’s more…
What we know!
The Civic Hybrid had moved away from the nameplate after its ninth generation and replaced by the Insight Hybrid. It had been discontinued as part of Honda’s shift in focus toward new technologies and models in response to changing market demands and regulations.
In this new generation, it will be offered in both sedan and hatchback form, both of which will ship with the same powertrain.
The Hybrid for 2025, though, comes back strong, and consists of a 2.0-liter Atkinson inline-four and the two-motor hybrid system, similar to what is currently available in the Accord Hybrid and CR-V Hybrid. It’s still too soon to determine if the Civic Hybrid will get a slightly different tune, but by comparison the already revealed CR-V Hybrid in Europe uses this 2.0-liter Atkinson cycle four-cylinder to make 181 hp and 232 lb-ft of torque. This same number is expected for the Hybrid.
The sedan will be built in Canada, with the hatchback built in Indiana. The powertrain components, though, will be contsctuded in Ohio, then sent to their destined final assembly points.
While Honda has offered hybrids for decades, the automaker has placed an even greater emphasis on technology in the lineups of its most popular models. To that end, it is expected — and hoped — that the Civic Hybrid will represent nearly half, or 40 percent, of Civic sales. Since Honda already sells the Civic Hybrid elsewhere around the world, this is not really an entirely “new” product.
Considered one of the best compacts on the market, the Civic’s addition of a hybrid powertrain only serves to make it a more attractive choice for today’s buyers. It presents an option for those who want something electrified, but don’t want to commit to a full EV.
With the Insight Hybrid discontinued, the timing could not be more perfect for this return. Beginning with the sedan production in Allison, Ontario, next year, followed by the hatchback variant at the Honda factory in Indiana, the Hybrid is back and back strong. It is positioned at the top of its Accord lineup and represents one of Honda’s biggest nameplates.
More details are expected as this model gets closer to production, with this Hybrid joining a segment revitalized by the top-selling new Toyota Prius. And while it appears that consumer interest has moved from cars to light trucks and SUVs, Honda still stands behind sedans and hatchbacks as what they consider to be important parts of their business operations.
“The market has shifted away from passenger cars, but cars still matter to Honda,” Mamadou Diallo, vice president of automobile sales for American Honda, said. “The cars bring in younger, more multicultural buyers to the brand.”
Younger buyers coming back to this model is the goal, with Honda also planning to open the order books for its all-electric Prologue SUV this year as well. The result is a broader electrification overall of its lineup.
One last appealing fact is that fuel economy for combined city/highway driving should be about 50 mpg, which would be very competitive with the rival Toyota Corolla Hybrid and Toyota Prius as well as the Hyundai Elantra Hybrid. And, in the area of price, it is expected that the MSRP range for this vehicle will be between $26,000 and $44,000, thus falling somewhere around the current Civic prices.
With a battery expected to have a life expectancy between six to 10 years or up to 100,000 miles, this new model is appealing in more ways than one! See what happens when Honda takes an about face, bringing this model back. Reserve yours today!