The 2006-2011 Honda Civic was a revolutionary design. With a super short hood and strange front fascia, the whole car looked like a wedge of cheese, a huge departure from the boring and underwhelming 2001-2005 Honda Civic. Yet, there was a superior Civic that North America never got, and boy did we miss out: The Honda Civic hatchback. Introduced in 2005 as a 2006 model year, the Civic’s radical design still looks fresh more than 15 years later.
- Car: 2006 Honda Civic Hatchback
- Location: Unknown
- Photog: Unknown (images owned by Honda used with permission)
- Camera: Unknown
The Honda Civic hatchback of this era wasn’t quite the 1-to-1 comparison to the U.S. model sedan. The front half of these cars was about the same as the sedan and coupe, but the rear half shared a lot in common with the Honda Fit. The Civic hatchback had a simpler torsion-beam rear suspension, and its fuel tank was under the front seats, like the Fit. On the positive side, those changes allowed the Civic hatchback to inherit the Fit’s clever “magic seats”, allowing for a super flexible interior.
This car is still 10 years away from being able to import. Lucky Canadians, they can import them now. I have to wait until 2031.
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