CHAMPION ELECT? (some text hidden) --NONE--

By Steve Walker

Introductionword count: 101

Ask anyone which car pioneered hybrid engine technology on the world stage and assuming they don't respond with the blankest of blank looks, it's a safe bet they'll go for the Toyota Prius. They'd be right too but while the Prius was bolstering its profile as environmental saviour with celebrity endorsements and a mammoth marketing budget, another similar car was purring away in the background comparatively unnoticed. The Civic Hybrid was Honda's answer to the Prius and, although its fortunes were like betamax to its rival's VHS, it's now available on the used car market and might be worth a look.

Modelsword count: 9

Models Covered: 4dr saloon (1.4 petrol/electric hybrid [ES, EX])

Historyword count: 191

The first generation Civic hybrid, dubbed the IMA, was launched in 2003 and by that stage, the first generation Toyota Prius had been on sale in Japan for six years. The car was based on the seventh generation Honda Civic with a saloon bodystyle and for a car packing such an advanced propulsion system, it looked relatively nondescript out on the road. The Civic IMA never came close to overhauling the Prius which had a significant head start and a distinctive shape that the public came to associate with hybrid cars. The follow-up to the original Civic Hybrid came in 2006 and it's that model we're looking at here. Again, it was based upon the Civic saloon and was the only saloon version to be sold in the UK so if you see an eighth generation Civic with a boot, you can be reasonably sure it's the Civic Hybrid. The car went head to head with the second generation Toyota Prius that launched in 2004 and was Honda's only hybrid model on sale in the UK between its launch in 2006 and the arrival of the second-generation Honda Insight in 2009.

What You Getword count: 215

UK car buyers aren't known for their love of saloons and most would take a nice practical hatchback over one any day. So why did Honda create an amazing power system and then ruin its chances by putting it into a four door car. Didn't they consult the sales data? Step back and widen your perspective and you'll understand Honda's rationale. Only 8,000 hybrid cars were sold in the UK between 1997 and 2006. That's not a lot. Compare that to the 110,000 hybrid sales that Honda notched up worldwide from 2001 to 2006. Ninety per cent of those sales were in the US and Japan, markets that are very receptive to four door saloons. There's another reason why this car actually works better as a four-door saloon. Hatchback buyers like the benefit of folding the rear seats flat for added practicality. The battery pack in the Civic Hybrid resides behind the rear seats so that wouldn't be possible in any case. Compared to the sleek Swindon-built Civic hatch, the Japanese-built saloon does look a little frumpy but it's arguably a good deal better looking than a second generation Prius. The interior is a good deal more spacious than the old Civic IMA and the dashboard is far more attractive, with an adventurously three-dimensional look.

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