Just test drove new Si, my thoughts

[joe007]

Just got back from my sedan test drive.

- Car is plenty fast for me, I normally drive a 3.0L E46 and the Si felt about the same. Really no reason for anything faster in the city.
- Exhaust / engine sound is fine for me, again probably on par with my E46. You can definitely hear it, but it's not too obnoxious.
- Shifter seems "clicky" and not quite what I'm used to on my E46 / Integra, but I can get used to it. No complaints really.
- Clutch is super soft, probably similar to my Integra, resulted in some bad shifts at first.
- Backseat seems big enough for most adults and definitely kids.

Downsides are:

- Didn't notice any difference between "sport" and "normal", except for the graphics on the dash. What's the point? Seems like a mostly useless gimmick to me.
- Visibility is bad, obviously this is a problem with the Civic line and not just the Si. Rear view area is tiny, and overall window coverage seems small.

I really can't comment on the handling with the ~15 minutes I had, I wasn't testing the limits of the car, for obvious reasons. I'll need to trust the pro reviewers for that.

Overall it's a nice car, but I'll test drive a GTI and WRX before deciding to buy.

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[H23civic]

Just got back from my sedan test drive.

- Car is plenty fast for me, I normally drive a 3.0L E46 and the Si felt about the same. Really no reason for anything faster in the city.
- Exhaust / engine sound is fine for me, again probably on par with my E46. You can definitely hear it, but it's not too obnoxious.
- Shifter seems "clicky" and not quite what I'm used to on my E46 / Integra, but I can get used to it. No complaints really.
- Clutch is super soft, probably similar to my Integra, resulted in some bad shifts at first.
- Backseat seems big enough for most adults and definitely kids.

Downsides are:

- Didn't notice any difference between "sport" and "normal", except for the graphics on the dash. What's the point? Seems like a mostly useless gimmick to me.
- Visibility is bad, obviously this is a problem with the Civic line and not just the Si. Rear view area is tiny, and overall window coverage seems small.

I really can't comment on the handling with the ~15 minutes I had, I wasn't testing the limits of the car, for obvious reasons. I'll need to trust the pro reviewers for that.

Overall it's a nice car, but I'll test drive a GTI and WRX before deciding to buy.

Glad you enjoyed the test drive. Sport mode stiffens up the suspension considerably, stiffens up the steering wheel as well for a more sporty feel. If you weren't taking turns with it on then you may not have noticed. It also increases throttle response, I could feel an immediate difference on acceleration and definitely on turns with the tighter suspension.

 

[Jake Speed]

I really like driving in Sport, but the regular mode is good enough that I sometimes forget to engage Sport, especially just driving around town. I especially like the suspension dampening change and faster steering. I think we feel Sport most when driving harder...

 

[repeet]

I haven't got enough miles on mine yet to write a full impression.

I started out not feeling like the sport button did much. But as I put miles on the car, I've started noticing more of a difference. I'm not sure if that is because the car is loosening up, or I'm just more use to the feel, so that I can sense it better now.

Right now I'm of the opinion that, yes there is a difference between sport and normal. But that it is mostly a difference in how the car response feels. And that I can drive the car equally well with both "feels".

But like I said, I need more time to get use to the car, and have it break in, before I feel comfortable writing a full review.

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