Toyota Prius C VS Honda Civic
Toyota Prius C
Likes
- Miserly fuel use
- Eye-catching exterior design
- Surprisingly quick away from lights
Dislikes
- Feels record-player old in places
- Some cabin materials feel cheap
- Standard safety is underdone
Honda Civic
Likes
- Great interior
- Lovely chassis
- Excellent engine
Dislikes
- Missing some safety gear
- Tight access to boot space
- Old media software
Summary
Toyota Prius C
See if you can guess the name of the world's first ride-sharing app. You're thinking Uber, right? Nope. It was a company called Sidecar. It's broke now, shuttered for good in 2015. What about the first video-on-demand service? Netflix? Nope. Amazon beat them to it, for starters, but so did many other, now-defunct companies who tried it even earlier.
The point is, being first on the scene is no guarantee you'll be the best, or the most successful. I mean, just look at electric cars; plenty of manufacturers were doing all-battery models before (and arguably better than) Tesla, and every one of them is now parked in Elon Musk's gargantuan shadow.
Before full-electric there were hybrids, and first to arrive on that particular scene in any meaningful way was Toyota and its awkwardly shaped Prius, back in 2001. And they had that field to themselves for a while, but soon enough the other manufacturers trotted out hybrid and plug-in hybrid models of their own.
And so Toyota shook up the Prius offering, launching the seven-seat Prius V, and the bite-sized (and Yaris-based) Prius c we've tested here, in 2012, hoping to broaden the appeal of its hybrid offerings. Problem is, 2012 was an awfully long time ago, and so Toyota has waved its wand over the ageing Prius c for 2018, changing its design, tech offering and interior in an effort to keep it fresh.
So, is the Japanese giant still head of the hybrid class? Or has it been beaten at its own game?
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 1.5L |
| Fuel Type | Hybrid with Regular Unleaded |
| Fuel Efficiency | 3.9L/100km |
| Seating | 5 seats |
Honda Civic
The Honda Civic's 10th generation is drawing to an end. Well, I say that, but there's still a pretty solid chance that the 11th generation won't quite be here this time next year.
I make the point because we've already seen a "prototype" for series 11 of the Honda Civic Story, but also because we won't actually get the car we've seen – the sedan. Just 20 per cent of Civic sales go to the booted version and then you have to merge that data with the rise of SUVs, both with Honda buyers and the market at large.Â
Things is, I think the sedan is the better of two for a variety of reasons which I will explain below. I also think the Civic, despite its advancing "age" (four years isn't really that long in the current climate) is still a fairly sensible choice among its peers, which include some serious competition.
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 1.5L turbo |
| Fuel Type | Regular Unleaded Petrol |
| Fuel Efficiency | 6L/100km |
| Seating | 5 seats |
Verdict
Toyota Prius C6.6/10
It's as if the the future is firmly rooted in the past at Toyota. The Prius is still undoubtedly clever, frugal and easy to drive, but it is feeling so old in places that the bad had begun to weigh on the good. If you're a tech-head or have a right foot crafted from lead, then there's nothing to see here. But if the thought of saving money at the bowser sets your heart aflutter, then step right this way.
Does a Prius c make you feel green, or just queasy? Let us know in the comments below.
Honda Civic7.3/10
As a car to drive, the Honda Civic feels great. It had a good start, but the later addition of the turbo 1.5 and the continuous honing of the chassis, steering and driveline – an endearing, unheralded trait that Mazda and Honda do so well – has taken what was a solid car and turned it into one I'd genuinely consider owning, even in this wild orange colour.
What it doesn't have is a full suite of safety systems, which is a real shame, because its main rivals do. Some of us are happy to forego things such as reverse cross-traffic alert and some are not. If you can, the Civic sedan should be in the reckoning. And the clock is ticking.
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Design
Toyota Prius C
The good news is that it doesn't look quite so quirky as the full-size Prius. The not-as-good news is that it's still no beauty-contest winner. Not helping matters was the fact our test vehicle was painted in a retina-burning yellow (they call it Hornet Yellow, and it's new for 2018) that looked almost nuclear.
Viewed front on, the blacked-out section of grille and bumper gives the littlest Prius a vaguely manta ray-shaped front-end, while the headlights climb both upwards and back into the body, lending a sense of sportiness to this very unsporty hybrid. From the back, the chunky bumper, vertical taillights and rear windscreen spoiler all add a little attitude to the design.
Inside, you'll find a small but premium-in-places space, with a gloss-black stereo surround that angles the main controls toward the driver, while the digital driver's binnacle is pushed toward the centre of the car, displaying speed, fuel and other key info above the stereo, rather than in front of the steering wheel.
Honda Civic
Making fun of the Civic's over-supply of angles and lines is really very easy, so for once I'll refrain. Partly because the sedan is better than the hatch in this respect and also because – somehow – I have become quite fond of its wacky face. The sedan's profile is also more flowing and, with all the RS piano black and extra aggro (which ironically means yet more lines and angles), it sat much more happily in my camera lens than before. I wonder if the Civic's controversial looks have aged well in the same way Chris Bangle BMWs have? Because we're all suddenly pretty fond of those now, aren't we?
My changed opinion is bound to infuriate Honda's designers who have cleaned up the Civic for its next version. At this point I should mention that the sedan is on its last legs here in Australia – we won't be getting the next one.
The interior is as good-looking as it is practical. I still don't like the angles of the gauges in the left and right sections of the dash, but the central digital dash section is really good and easy on the eye. The RS picks up some subtle features like the strip of chequered flag fabric on the seats. It's a nice, clean look and I like the use of metallic materials on the climate controls and the stereo. It's a very calm interior, quite a contrast to the exterior.
Practicality
Toyota Prius C
Not very. This is a Yaris-based city car, let's not forget.
That said, it never feels cramped up front, with enough shoulder and headroom to ensure you feel separated from your fellow passengers, where you'll also find two cupholders, and an infuriating USB connection housed in the touchscreen - so your cord dangles from the dash when connected.
Climb into the back, and you'll find yourself in a pretty snug space. Sitting behind my own (5ft-8inch) driving position, it's only the scalloped back of the driver's seat that affords me any clear air between my knees and the seat in front, and the space behind my head and the roof lining is minuscule, too. But again, we're talking city car space here, so you can't expect to lounge about back there.
The ambience in the backseat leaves a little to be desired, though. The door trim pushes into the passenger space, and the plastics used in the rear are rock hard. There's a single cupholder to share, and a seat-back pocket on the rear of the passenger seat, but that's it; there's no vents, USB or power sources. There's no bottle-room in the rear doors, either.
An easy-access boot space will swallow 260 litres with the 60:40 rear seats in place. And there are two ISOFIX attachment points, one in each window seat in the back.
Honda Civic
The Civic's cabin is swimming in space and and filled with comfortable seats and lots of storage.
The back seat is super-spacious as it has been forever. Having driven the i30 Sedan last week, I'm having difficulty splitting the two for legroom and lounging space. Where the Civic loses out – and it's close – is in rear headroom.
There are four cupholders and bottle holders and a massive central bin between the front seats, big enough to conceal the massive new PlayStation 5 (okay, maybe not that big, but it it certainly looks big enough).
The boot holds a gigantic-for-a-small sedan 519 litres with the seats in place. Honda doesn't supply a total figure with the seats down, but it will be a lot. The opening for the bootlid is a little tight, so don't get too excited at Ikea.
Price and features
Toyota Prius C
We've just spent a week behind the wheel of the Prius c i-Tech; the top model in the two-variant range, sitting above a cheaper model known simply as the Prius c.
At $26,540, it ain't cheap for a city car (and it's $4k more than the most-expensive Yaris on which it is based; more worryingly, it's only $1500 cheaper than an Audi A1), and the standard features list is more a novella than War and Peace.
Outside, you'll find 15-inch alloy wheels, remote unlocking, LED headlights and front fog lamps, while inside you'll leather-look seats (they're actually vinyl), sat-nav and climate-control.
Tech is covered by an (old-school feeling) 6.1-inch touchscreen that pairs with a six-speaker stereo, but there's no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.
Honda Civic
The Civic RS price has slowly crept north, along with the prices of its mostly Korean rivals, now at $34,090. It's a fair bit more than the Ford Focus ST-Line, but you can't get a sedan version of that and infuriatingly neither can you get the wagon.
The RS has 18-inch alloys, a 10-speaker stereo, faux leather seats (nothing wrong with that), auto LED headlights and DRLs, dual-zone climate control, reversing camera, front and rear parking sensors, keyless entry and start, electric driver's seat, auto headlights and wipers and a space-saver spare.
The 7.0-inch matte-finished touchscreen runs Honda's homage-to-the-80s software package that is bolstered by the presence of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It also has DAB, which is a nice touch, but it is missing built-in sat nav, which most of its rivals have.
Under the bonnet
Toyota Prius C
Under that little hood lives a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine good for 54kW, which pairs with a 45kW electric motor. Toyota lists combined outputs at 74kW at 4800rpm and 111Nm at 4000rpm.
That hybrid setup partners with a CVT automatic, pumping power to the front wheels.
Honda Civic
The 1.5-litre four-cylinder has a light pressure turbo bolted in to produce 127kW at 5500rpm and 220Nm between 1700-5500rpm. Those numbers are 23kW and 46Nm up on the 1.8-litre, which goes without the turbo.
You can let the continuously variable transmission (CVT) look after the turning of the front wheels or if you're feeling sporty – not an unreasonable expectation if you've picked the RS – you can use the paddle shifters which tell the computer to put some fake gears into the box for you to shift up and down.
Efficiency
Toyota Prius C
If that last section didn't impress, this one surely will. The little Prius c will sip a claimed 3.9L/100km on the combined cycle.
That's very low, and the fact it accepts cheaper 91RON fuel makes it a very affordable car to run. Except... the onboard computers revealed a slightly less-impressive 5.1L/100km after my time with the car.
Emissions are a claimed 90g/km of CO2, which is very good.
Honda Civic
Honda's official testing suggets a combined cycle figure of 6.3L/100km which is lower than the 1.8-litre, a nice bonus when you have all that extra power to play with. My week with the Civic was mostly suburb-bound and I scored a respectable (indicated) 8.2L/100km.
Driving
Toyota Prius C
In much the same way that you don't buy an exotic performance car for its ability to run to the shops, you're unlikely to be buying the Prius for its ability to set your pulse racing.
But happily, it doesn't feel wobbly or disconnected, either. It's aided by being such a small package, and when you're not wafting silently about in electric mode, and you've coaxed that little petrol engine into life, it serves up more than enough poke to navigate the city, and even to leave the slow-reactors in your rear-view mirror at traffic lights.
The ride is good, too, feeling connected to the road below without feeling uncomfortable, although the little Prius does tend to track with the corrugations in the road, leaving you to wrestle it back into line. That's a job made easier by light and surprisingly direct steering, which feels tailor-made for the city.
Finally, the leather-look seats are comfortable, even over long distances, the razor-thin A-pillars make forward vision easy and it's a very simple thing to drive and manoeuvre into parking spaces. And all of those are good things.
Not so good? Well, the entire drive experiences feels a little beige and emotionless, it can get noisy and there are parts of the cabin that feel downright cheap. Worst of all, though, is that for a car that once heralded the future, it's feeling very, very dated.
But there are some amazing quirks attached to driving an (almost) electric car, including the delivery of eco awards for using the least amount of fuel (they were awarded for 2.6, 3.2 and 3.6L/100km over as much as 25km - none of which occurred during my tenure). The hardest thing to get used to was the absolute silence served up in electric mode. I counted four seperate occasions when I walked away from the car with it still turned on.
Honda Civic
This iteration of the Civic has been with us for a while now. I wasn't absolutely sure about it when I first drove it – that was partly down to the less-than-stellar 1.8 and an at-times doughy CVT.
Over the years I've been very lucky to drop my posterior into two, three or even four Civics per year. During that time I have noted some subtle changes, such as the CVT's more attentive nature and the progressive improvement of the ride on particularly bumpy surfaces, such as Sydney's concreted arterial roads.
The RS itself is no different mechanically to the other 1.5-litre turbo-engined cars in the range (it's an entire engine's worth of power short of the madcap Type R) but over the years, that has meant good things. I've always liked the low-set driving position, it's lower than many hot hatches. You sit in and down in the Civic and it feels quite sporty.
Turn the wheel and it's all very positive, with a very pleasant ride and handling balance. The CVT is still a CVT but, especially in the turbo, it has more grab off the line and doesn't indulge in flaring as you'd find in a Subaru, turbo or not. It's actually fun to drive, especially if you draft in the paddles to do some work.
But it's also a car you need never provoke to enjoy driving. The comfortable ride and secure handling make it the kind of car anyone can like. The steering wheel is just right, the controls all feel really nice to use and touch. There's nothing particularly flashy about the Civic apart from its looks, but it's such a comfortable car with a super-solid feel to its engineering.
The main advantage of the turbo engine is that it doesn't have to work as hard as the 1.8 to keep the Civic moving. The extra torque is always there and makes it a much more relaxed car around town than the 1.8-powered Civics, while giving you the extra grunt to push out into traffic, or pull off a tricky overtake.
Safety
Toyota Prius C
Every Prius c arrives with seven airbags, along with a reversing camera and... wait, that can't be it, can it? Oh... Forget AEB, lane-departure warning and the like, this future-focused Prius has a safety package firmly rooted in the past.
It was awarded the maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating, but was tested back in 2014.
Honda Civic
All Civics come with six airbags, ABS, stability and traction controls.
The Honda Sense package adds forward collision warning, forward AEB (high and low speed), lane departure warning and lane keep assist.
One of my favourite Honda quirks is LaneWatch. Flick the indicator for a left-hand turn and the media screen displays the output of a camera pointed down the left-hand side of the car. It's still too bright at night, but you can disable it or tap the button on the end of the indicator stalk to cancel it.
You also get two ISOFIX anchors and three top-tether points.
The Civic sedan was last assessed by ANCAP in April 2017 and scored five stars.
Ownership
Toyota Prius C
Toyota offers a three-year/100,000km warranty, while the batteries are covered for eight years or 160,000km. The car's six-month service intervals might sting a little, though, but with each service capped at $140 for the first three years, even taking two trips to the dealership a year isn't too expensive. Just annoying.
Honda Civic
Hondas ship with a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty, which is competitive as more and more manufacturers consider this a minimum.Â
The "Tailored Servicing" program caps nine of the first 10 services at $281, with just one service jumping to $310. That's reasonable value for a turbo engine, except servicing is every 12 months or 10,000km. That means more than one trip per year to the dealer if you drive more than 10,000km per year.