xbbnx
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2017
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- Location
- Houston TX
- Vehicle(s)
- 2022 Si, 2017 Si (past), 2015 Si (past)
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- #1
So after a nearly 2 month search my brother has finally acquired a brand new 2021 Hatchback Touring Sport 6 speed manual transmission. This car is so rare that after a 2 month statewide search we acquired one of only two 2021's in Texas for the rest of the year.
*Little side note for those of you who don't know this.... The 6MT Touring Hatchback are not entirely exactly the same as their CVT counterparts. The manuals are about 67 pounds lighter curb weight, 2 MPG better on the highway, has 17lbs ft more of torque, and the Horsepower comes on 500rpm sooner in the rev range all while being $800 cheaper MSRP!*
Anyways, now that he has owned it for roughly 2 weeks and I have gotten a chance to drive it a few times, I would like to compare my brother's Touring Hatch 6MT vs my 2017 Civic Si (owned since new). The pros and cons vs my Si....
PROS:
Handling: This car can turn in! I swear she is 85% of an Si when pushed in the corners. Superb grip, superb body control, and super confidence inspiring ability to maintain its lines. I was blown away how planted and stable it felt when I tossed it through a sharp highway merger bend. Like I said it felt 85% of my car on that same curve.
Steering: Very sharp and responsive! A little to light for me personally though, feels slightly lighter than my Si in comfort mode even. But its precision is great, you make even the slightest movement and the car wants to change direction, very sharp. Could use a tad bit more road feel though, it was a little hard to tell what the front wheels were doing. About 80% of my Si in the steering department.
Brakes: The brake feel is really really good, it's very easy to modulate and very predictable. Not too soft, not too hard. It stops great as well. By feel alone I would say it is about 85% of my Si.
Comfort: And this is where the delta between my Si and the Touring Hatch 6MT is enormous. It is literally like stepping out of a Bentley and into a Focus RS as far as ride quality goes and I'm not even exaggerating. It is butter smooth! Road imperfections and potholes are smoothed out in the cabin like no $30K car has any business doing. It is so good that it rivals, no, it IS better than my sister's $50K 2014 Infiniti QX70 that she has had since brand new. Fantastic comfort, and road noise is also much improved as well.
Quality: This is a 2021 Civic which means it is at the very end of it's life cycle so Honda has had enough time to polish things up. My car is a 2017 Si which was the very beginning of it's life cycle. I'm going to judge them brand new for brand new because it's not fair to judge a 3 and half year old car vs a 2 week old car. Even with that, new for new, the feeling of quality here is much better. It feels much more solid and refined, it's hard to explain but everything just feels much better put together. Quiet and refined is the feeling here. All the touch points are leather, leather seats, heated fronts and rears seats, 12 speaker 540 watts vs 10 speaker 480 watts. It's just simply a better space to be in.
CONS:
Speed: It feels notably slower to me. The turbo feels slower to spool especially off the line. It feels kind of lazy off the line, too relaxed. Now I don't know if it is because the engine is still too new and needs to be fully broken in (drove it around 300 miles on the clock), or just the way it was tuned/different internals vs the Si (which is stock tune btw). But yea, I wasn't too fond of the way it delivered power especially off the line. Passing power is also not as good as my Si.
Throttle: The throttle response to me here vs my Si is a big let down. My Si is no Lexus LFA either, but the Touring Hatch 6MT is much worse. Rev matching is sloppy because tapping the throttle gives you next to no response, you have to really jab it. It's also a little difficult modulating the throttle in stop and go because of the lazy response. My Si in "Sport mode" solves a lot of the lazy throttle response issues, the Touring Hatch 6MT desperately needs a "Sport Mode" just for the throttle response alone.
Shifter: While very precise and easy to go in and out of gears, the throws are too long compared to my Si, and the engagement feels a little sloppy and soft-like in comparison. It is not bad per say, just not up to my standards after 5 years of Si ownership (I owned a 2015 Si before my 2017 Si), but I still found it enjoyable to roll through.
Clutch: Felt lighter and a bit more vague than my Si. Again, this could be a breaking in thing as they share the same clutch as far as I know so I won't harp too much on this.
Steering: Could be a little weightier, but then again I know this is not the class of vehicle and also a personal preference. Road feel could be a little better though.
All in all it is a fantastic vehicle and a true unicorn. I told my brother that he is more likely to see a Lambo, Mclaren, or a Ferrari on his way home here in Houston than running into another Touring Hatch Manual because it is that rare so he needs to cherish what he has lol. And cherish he should because it is truely an Si-lite with the amazing comfort and upscale-ness to boot. My brother is in love and plans on keeping it for at least 10 years.
*Little side note for those of you who don't know this.... The 6MT Touring Hatchback are not entirely exactly the same as their CVT counterparts. The manuals are about 67 pounds lighter curb weight, 2 MPG better on the highway, has 17lbs ft more of torque, and the Horsepower comes on 500rpm sooner in the rev range all while being $800 cheaper MSRP!*
Anyways, now that he has owned it for roughly 2 weeks and I have gotten a chance to drive it a few times, I would like to compare my brother's Touring Hatch 6MT vs my 2017 Civic Si (owned since new). The pros and cons vs my Si....
PROS:
Handling: This car can turn in! I swear she is 85% of an Si when pushed in the corners. Superb grip, superb body control, and super confidence inspiring ability to maintain its lines. I was blown away how planted and stable it felt when I tossed it through a sharp highway merger bend. Like I said it felt 85% of my car on that same curve.
Steering: Very sharp and responsive! A little to light for me personally though, feels slightly lighter than my Si in comfort mode even. But its precision is great, you make even the slightest movement and the car wants to change direction, very sharp. Could use a tad bit more road feel though, it was a little hard to tell what the front wheels were doing. About 80% of my Si in the steering department.
Brakes: The brake feel is really really good, it's very easy to modulate and very predictable. Not too soft, not too hard. It stops great as well. By feel alone I would say it is about 85% of my Si.
Comfort: And this is where the delta between my Si and the Touring Hatch 6MT is enormous. It is literally like stepping out of a Bentley and into a Focus RS as far as ride quality goes and I'm not even exaggerating. It is butter smooth! Road imperfections and potholes are smoothed out in the cabin like no $30K car has any business doing. It is so good that it rivals, no, it IS better than my sister's $50K 2014 Infiniti QX70 that she has had since brand new. Fantastic comfort, and road noise is also much improved as well.
Quality: This is a 2021 Civic which means it is at the very end of it's life cycle so Honda has had enough time to polish things up. My car is a 2017 Si which was the very beginning of it's life cycle. I'm going to judge them brand new for brand new because it's not fair to judge a 3 and half year old car vs a 2 week old car. Even with that, new for new, the feeling of quality here is much better. It feels much more solid and refined, it's hard to explain but everything just feels much better put together. Quiet and refined is the feeling here. All the touch points are leather, leather seats, heated fronts and rears seats, 12 speaker 540 watts vs 10 speaker 480 watts. It's just simply a better space to be in.
CONS:
Speed: It feels notably slower to me. The turbo feels slower to spool especially off the line. It feels kind of lazy off the line, too relaxed. Now I don't know if it is because the engine is still too new and needs to be fully broken in (drove it around 300 miles on the clock), or just the way it was tuned/different internals vs the Si (which is stock tune btw). But yea, I wasn't too fond of the way it delivered power especially off the line. Passing power is also not as good as my Si.
Throttle: The throttle response to me here vs my Si is a big let down. My Si is no Lexus LFA either, but the Touring Hatch 6MT is much worse. Rev matching is sloppy because tapping the throttle gives you next to no response, you have to really jab it. It's also a little difficult modulating the throttle in stop and go because of the lazy response. My Si in "Sport mode" solves a lot of the lazy throttle response issues, the Touring Hatch 6MT desperately needs a "Sport Mode" just for the throttle response alone.
Shifter: While very precise and easy to go in and out of gears, the throws are too long compared to my Si, and the engagement feels a little sloppy and soft-like in comparison. It is not bad per say, just not up to my standards after 5 years of Si ownership (I owned a 2015 Si before my 2017 Si), but I still found it enjoyable to roll through.
Clutch: Felt lighter and a bit more vague than my Si. Again, this could be a breaking in thing as they share the same clutch as far as I know so I won't harp too much on this.
Steering: Could be a little weightier, but then again I know this is not the class of vehicle and also a personal preference. Road feel could be a little better though.
All in all it is a fantastic vehicle and a true unicorn. I told my brother that he is more likely to see a Lambo, Mclaren, or a Ferrari on his way home here in Houston than running into another Touring Hatch Manual because it is that rare so he needs to cherish what he has lol. And cherish he should because it is truely an Si-lite with the amazing comfort and upscale-ness to boot. My brother is in love and plans on keeping it for at least 10 years.
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