The last time we looked at the 2017 Honda Civic Si it was the prototype in Los Angeles. At the New York Auto Show it will be revealed and now we have the final specifications.
Showing it off via YouTube ahead of the New York Auto Show this week, the 2017 Honda Civic Si production car in both coupe and sedan form made its debut with the release of the long awaited horsepower specs.
And they are? 205 horsepower at 5,300 rpm and 192 pound-feet of torque at 2,100 rpm – these power figures from tuned up version of the Civics 1.5 liter turbocharged and directed-injected four-cylinder and a six-speed manual transmission.
I can already hear the collective WTF from many Honda enthusiasts? Where’s the horsepower? It’s exactly the same as the old Civic Si. Yes this is true and I myself thought they would have given us a bump, at least 210 just for progress sake.
But lets look at the the fact you have that horsepower 1,300 rpm lower in the rev range, the additional 18 pound-feet of torque comes on 2,300 rpm earlier and lasts longer. Also consider this new Civic Si is lighter and tighter with more chassis goods to put that power to the ground.
As they say it’s got a new dual-pinion adaptive electric power steering system with variable ratio, two mode adaptive dampers, and a limited-slip differential. Brakes are bigger, now at 12.3-inches and tires wider at 235/40 R18 – and you have a summer rubber option.
I will point out that while Honda is boasting of better handling, more agility, more this and that, they aren’t boasting of faster acceleration. All of us in the media will need to test one to know for sure. That will be happening very soon.
What we can see today however is that indeed the new Honda Civic Si is nearly upon us in both coupe and sedan form in the new body style.
The cabin as expected is boosted with some heavily bolstered sport seats and trimmed with lots of red stitching and Si logos. A unique TFT instrument cluster and red illumination set it apart at night, the aluminum sport pedals and metal carbon trim finishes set it apart in the daytime.
A standard 7-inch touchscreen display audio features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto among other things and has a 450-watt, 10-speaker premium sound system back end with AM/FM, SiriusXM, HD Radio and Pandora capability. The CD player is history.
Unlike the Civic Type R which will be built in the United Kingdom, the 2017 Civic Si Coupe and Sedan will be built in North America at their Ontario, Canada plant with engines built in Ohio. It goes on sale in May starting in the mid-$20,000’s.
