2011 Honda Civic Si Coupe
“Driving any modern car that is supposed to get nearly 30 mpg isn’t supposed to be this fun,” I keep telling myself as I let the 2-liter, 197 horsepower, 4-cyclinder engine in the 2011 Honda Civic Si Coupe rev up to its redline full song. “Maybe, I should wait to break it in,” hints an automotive angel riding shotgun on my left shoulder. But too bad on this day, the devil is in control of my mind and, more importantly, my right foot.
Mention 30 mpg to a 20-something driver, and instantly the eyes glass over. Their motoring thoughts quickly drown in a quagmire of the world of environmentally friendly cars that can’t go fast enough to get out of their own way.
But not the 2011 Honda Civic Si Coupe.
Fast for its Class
Like its older brothers we remember from 20 years ago, this car is fast for its class. Zero to 60 miles per hour comes up in just about 7.1 seconds, according to Edmunds.com.
And from behind the wheel, it feels every bit as quick as that. The Civic’s Si 16-valve power plant sounds magical as it revs all the way to its 8000 RPM redline. Peak torque (139 lbs-ft.) comes up at 6,100 RPM and you get 190 horsepower at 7,900 rpm. The power reaches the ground in a driver-friendly six-speed transmission that’s linked to a road-grabbing limited-slip different. Like any performance car, the Civic encourages you to keep your foot in it with a mechanical symphony of sound you just don’t get this side of a Ferrari. It’s also a mechanical musical performance that you don’t normally get out of a small car, let only one that gets nearly 30 mpg on the highway.
Room Enough for Friends
But the Civic Si Coupe isn’t small, not by the standards most people in their 30s or 40s grew up on. The 2011 Honda Civic Si Coupe is as large as the Honda Accord of the late 1980s and early 90s. No longer is the Civic the puny car on the Honda lot as it was in the late 1960s when Honda joined the Japanese micro-car movement.
You can get four reasonably-sized people in the Honda Civic Si Coupe and enjoy a full day’s spirited ride up and down your favorite back roads or mountain canyons. Thanks to a tuned and slightly stiffer transmission, the 2011 Honda Civic Si Coupe encourages city drivers in their search for new on-ramps to conquer. It reminds me of the type of on-rails feeling you get while driving a Mazda 3. However, the Honda Civic Si Coupe feels quicker and has a proven reliability that Mazda is unable to match.
A Driver’s Car
Just five minutes behind the wheel tells me everything I need to know. This is a driver’s car at a time when drivers need to get 30 mpg in a world of $3 and $4 a gallon gasoline. I can’t wait for my first trip away from New Jersey and through the rally inspired mountainous roads of Central Pennsylvania.
Just because gasoline is expensive doesn’t mean driving has to be dull.
And inexpensive also. The 2011 Honda Civic Si Coupe invoices for $22,276, says Edmunds, and you get a great deal of high-tech gadgetry — GPS, audio, ect. – to go along with a blissfully wonderful ride.
Thanks, Honda!
For color and equipment options, check out Honda’s website.
