Review: 2022 Honda Civic RS (FE) - If there were ever a perfect car for Malaysians, this is it

There’s no such thing as a perfect car for everyone as the needs and preferences of each differ from one another. However, I have a theory that if you plot a Venn diagram of the common needs of most Malaysian car buyers, one of the cars sitting at the intersection is the 2022 Honda Civic.

Also read: 2022 Honda prices post-SST: City up by RM 4.4k, Accord up by RM 10k

So what do Malaysian car buyers prefer? Well, according to a 2020 survey by Carsome on the most important considerations when it comes to buying new cars, the list goes (in order, from most important to least):

1. Appearance and driving performance
2. Competitive price
3. Car specifications
4. Car brand reputation
5. Financing options

Barring the last item, which isn’t relevant to the car itself, the 2022 Honda Civic checks all boxes.

Also read: ASEAN's most powerful, 2022 Honda Civic (FE) launched in Malaysia: priced from RM 126k

Exterior – Sleeker, but somewhat controversial

Let’s start with appearance. This latest FE-generation Civic has had mixed reactions regarding its looks; some still prefer the design of the previous FC-generation Civic, while the rest including yours truly find this to be more pleasantly sculptured.

When the Civic FC first came out, it was a huge departure from its predecessor with its fastback-like shape and chiselled lines. I thought it was bold at the time and liked it for a while. However, as years passed, I developed an impression that it’s over-styled and it just didn’t age well to me.

Then came the 2022 Honda Civic FE, to which I immediately thought it was a much cleaner design and gone are the sharp, angular lines that do not really flow or connect with each other. It looks grown-up whilst retaining some elements from before like the sloping roofline and C-pillar window.

I would stop short at calling it beautiful, that adjective belongs to the Mazda 3, which I believe will go down in history as one of the most beautiful cars ever made. The Civic FE does have aspects I feel could be tweaked – the oversized taillamps and body-coloured part of the front grille that gives it the Beluga Whale look.

A slimmer, sleeker set of taillamps, plus the Civic Hatchback’s front grille with a less-pronounced extension of the body-coloured area should do the trick. But overall, I believe this cleaner design will withstand the test of time better than its predecessor.

Specific to this test unit, it wears the RS outfit with gloss black treatment on the door handles, side mirrors, rear spoiler, 18-inch wheels, and visible exhaust tips. Personally, I could do without the RS elements and go for the V variant. But if I were a buyer at this point in time, I would take whichever will be delivered earlier.

Also read: Honda Malaysia: Expect delays in new car deliveries, due to chip shortage and pandemic

Interior – Simplifed and perfectly executed

Step inside and simplification continues. There are more horizontal lines that accentuates the cabin width and the dashboard has been made narrower, which creates a greater sense of spaciousness. The full-width honeycomb design element adds a nice visual touch and integrates the air vents.

Build and material quality seem to have taken a step up from before but still trails behind the Mazda 3, which still feels the most special in its segment with its driver-focused layout, plush leather, tactile buttons, and OCD-certified interior lighting.

Also read: The 2022 Honda Civic FE has a uniquely expensive boot lid

Having said that, the Civic FE trumps the Toyota Corolla Altis’ interior hands down in almost every aspect. It’s not as plain-looking, more spacious, more storage spaces and solutions for your loose items, plus an infotainment system that doesn’t look aftermarket and has wireless Apple CarPlay connectivity.

Where the Corolla Altis still has an edge over the rest is the seats, but we’ll get to those in the ride comfort section. If only the Civic had better seats, it might just annihilate the competition.

Speaking of things that can be better, dual-zone climate control would be nice, and the Bose sound system to remedy this below-average 8-speaker set up.

But these are minor misses compared to its positives, like the ergonomics. Every button, switch, and driving-related controls are placed exactly where they should be, easily reached. Driving position is as close to ideal as it gets for a car at this price point and visibility is excellent.

Basically, Honda has gotten the basics nailed perfectly. And it does so whilst offer class-leading interior space as it can comfortably fit four 6-foot adults. It begs the question; do you really need a Honda Accord?

Driving Experience – Improved would be an understatement

It still has the familiar L15B7 1.5-litre turbocharged mill mated to a CVT, making slightly more power and torque than before.

Though in practice, it doesn’t feel any quicker than before. Our instrumented tests mirrored that sentiment as the Civic FE completed the 0-100 km/h sprint in 8.8 seconds, which is surprisingly slower the Civic FC at 8.6 seconds.

What can be felt however, is the tweaked CVT. It’s more responsive to changes in throttle input and keener to accelerate even in normal mode. Actually, it’s so well-calibrated in normal mode that there’s rarely a need to engage sport mode.

Even so, it will not change the minds of CVT cynics. There’s still a hint of rubber band effect should you go looking for it and whines when driven aggressively. But for the majority of the time, it’s unintrusive and goes about its business smoothly.

More interestingly, the steering and chassis now come together in a more cohesive package. The steering isn't as quick to react off-centre and feels more organic than before. It’s not wringing with feedback, but it’s well-weighted and superbly accurate, which enables you to thread the car precisely through corners.

And through the bends is where the Civic FE impresses. Whereas the Civic FC’s rear-end felt a little flat-footed, the Civic FE rotates more willingly and tracks along where the front axle goes obediently. 

Combined with the retuned suspension, the Civic FE possesses a sense of fluidity that the FC never had. The FE simply keeps its composure with minimal body lean, no matter the road surface or condition.

Brakes also feel like they have been tweaked for a more progressive response, and it’s still as confidence inspiring as before when you really put the anchors on.

When you decide to take a step back, the Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow works smoothly on our roads and traffic.

If only the Civic FE had Traffic Jam Assist function, essentially an extension of the Lane Keep Assist System that works in stop-and-go traffic, it would have sweeten the deal. As it is, it only works above 70 km/h or so.

Ride Comfort – Sublime ride, let down by the seats

In terms of ride quality, I think Honda has done a superb job on the Civic FE’s suspension tuning. There’s a level of sophistication on how it handles rotten tarmac and high-speed undulations. It’s difficult to get it right, especially with relatively low profile tyres the RS variant has, but they’ve done it.

There hasn’t been a scenario in which I felt the ride was harsh or certain bumps that could've been absorbed better. It’s just well-damped all the time, soaking up the worst our Malaysian roads have to offer and wafting through large undulations.

If comfort were to be judged based on suspension alone, the Civic FE would’ve passed with flying colours. But as mentioned earlier, what holds it back from supreme comfort is the seats, particularly the seat base at the front.

Not only is it firm, it’s oddly contoured with almost like a scoop right where your tailbone is pointed at. Perhaps it might have been shaped that way for our bums but it feels flat. If you’ve slouched on a flat bench, the sensation is not too dissimilar. As a consolation, thigh support is decent.

The seat back is alright. It could do with additional lumbar support but as it is, it supports my back fully with no gaps and evenly distributed pressure.

While the front seats aren’t as good as they should be, the rear seats are relatively comfortable with a relaxed recline angle. The bench is on the low side to presumably allow more headroom for the sloping roofline, but thigh support is unavoidably sacrificed. For absolute comfort, the Corolla Altis still has the upper hand.

In terms of cabin insulation, powertrain noise is hushed in normal driving, wind noise is well-suppressed even past the national speed limit, but tyre noise can be quite evident at higher speeds.

If I were to nit-pick, the noise it generates during impacts such as going over sharp bumps can sound hollow instead of a solid thud that is typically felt in “Continental” cars.

Fuel Consumption

Two fuel consumption tests were conducted for the 2022 Honda Civic FE. The first test returned a figure of 9.1-litre/100 km and the second test gave a result of 8.3-litre/100 km.

Both tests were conducted by yours truly, the only difference is that there was more highway driving clocked on the second test. Without disregarding either of them, we calculated the average of the two and the 2022 Honda Civic FE’s fuel consumption works out to 8.7-litre/100 km.

Conclusion

So let’s rewind back to the list of preferences for new car buyers and put the 2022 Honda Civic FE up against it.

1. Appearance – Highly subjective but I personally like the clean looks, check.
2. Driving performance – A more pleasant steer than before, check.
3. Competitive price – Not the cheapest in its segment but offers most value, check.
4. Car specifications – Honda Sensing standard across the range, check.
5. Car brand reputation – It’s a Honda, check.

If you think about it, this was also the case for the Civic FC. It’s objectively the superior choice for a C-segment sedan, but subjectively it didn’t do it for me in the design or driving department.

Now though with the 2022 Honda Civic FE, the changes have made improvements in just about every aspect including the subjective ones. It drives and rides better than before while maintaining its class-leading space and practicality. It's a car you really have to be nit-picking in order to fault it.

Where the Toyota Corolla Altis excels – comfort – the Honda Civic FE achieves 80 to 90 percent of it and gives more power, space, and a nicer interior in return. The Mazda 3 on the other hand, still feels more special to drive and to be in, but the discrepancy isn’t as large as before and we all know how Mazdas fare when it comes to space and practicality.

I have once said to myself that if I were to shop in the C-segment market, the Mazda 3 will be my pick regardless of its flaws. Having lived with the Honda Civic FE for a few days, I am not too certain of that choice anymore. And praises certainly don’t get any higher than that.

Also read: Across the world, the Honda Civic is an unstoppable force, so why is it ignored in Japan?