New Car in the Import Junkiez Garage
Looks like Christmas came a little early for us! I took a quick stroll halfway up the California Coast and picked up a 9th generation Civic. Instead of waiting 3+ months for an allocation, it took us about two week to find this little guy, well maybe not so little as the Civics have grown into the slot the Accords once held. Yup this Honda head spent time and money to actually buy a 9th generation Honda Civic Si - the sedan kind with the navigation. Yes the same 9th gen Civic that most reviewers and auto blog sites were hugely disappointed with, because not much has changed from the previous generation or at times much worse. The same 9th gen Civic that was stopped in the middle of its development to "cheapen" the car for American buyers who just saw the housing bubble burst in 2009 while in Japan they decided to nix the entire line. The same 9th gen where the Honda CEO, Takanobu Ito, took responsibility for the Civic's poor reception in North America while the President of American Honda, Tetsuro Iwamura, suggested that the company would consider moving the Civic's mid-model refresh from the usual model year of 2014 to 2013 (which means production would begin by the end of next summer) to fix the decontented Civic. There are no Car and Driver Best awards, MotorTrend COTY, or Consumer Reports recommendations for the line. Specifically for the Si, the shoehorning of an Acura TSX engine into the tiny Civic didn't win over the hardcore enthusiasts, just alienated them even more since the introduction of Honda's green initiative. Even with all that and a lack of an actual temp gauge, I still wanted one.
Hit the jump to find out why...
Why Honda Hates the USA
So here is the Honda Civic Mugen Si Sedan:
The standard Si Sedan pumps out an impressive 197hp, while this Mugen Si Sedan is pumping out a whopping 197hp thanks to that sports tuned exhaust. You read that right, no power increase. Other than that, you get a bunch of tacked on body kit pieces and a nice little number plate to let you know that you're Si Sedan is special. I guess you can't forget the upgraded suspension parts, the wheels are pretty nice, which offer a better handling car than the Si. Not the greatest package, but even this diehard Honda-head will not line up for the car when it is released later on this year. The car I would line up for is this:
This is the Mugen Civic RR, which will go on sale in Japan on Sept. 13th. Mugen tacked on about 15hp on top of the base Civic Type R's 225hp to push out 240hp. The car is also 22 pounds lighter thanks to the carbon fiber hood, spoiler, bumper. Add an upgraded exhaust system, upgraded suspension, and recaro racing seats and what we have here is a nice little pocket rocket that is $10,000 more than the Mugen Si Sedan. Even with a bump in price, this is a car I would rather spend money on than what Honda of America came up with for a Mugen package.
Why oh why is Honda of America cashing in on the Mugen name? Just when you think they finally get the American enthusiasts, they go after the American riceboy. Honda, next time you slap the Mugen name on the car it better deliver cause this Si sedan is a let down to many of your supporters.