Base Acura 1.6 EL trounces Civic
Canada-only model, listing at just $300 over Civic EX-G is a
surprisingly good value
The rational side at me used to stand in wonder every time I saw
an Acura 1.6 EL drive by. Why, I asked myself, would anybody pay the
extra money for what is essentially a gussied-up Civic? Nicer lights
and wheel designs notwithstanding, I couldn't understand why, in a
period of six months, four green ones popped up on my block alone.
After all, the Civic and the EL have a lot in common. They've got
the same rigid structure, the same proven double-wishbone suspension,
the same Toyota Previa-esque pregnant dashboard that pushes the radio
and ventilation controls within easy reach&emdash;though the Civic's
cassette player is mounted near the floor, separated from the head
unit. Their doors and roofline are the same. They share most interior
trim bits, too, though the Acura is done up in darker shades of gray.
They also share a mechanically exacting feel that many cars in
this class lack and that Honda seems to excel at. The steering in
both cars is nicely weighted&emdash;if a bit light on
highways&emdash;and lets you place wheels with absolute precision.
The suspension, though great for carving through corners, remains
supple over bad pavement, transmitting most pavement inconsistencies
aurally rather than through your spine.
This feeling of precision continues into the interior. As with the
major controls, all minor controls, from the turn-signal stalks to
the radio and ventilation buttons, click reassuringly and move in
well-defined motions. In the Civic, even the cover over the two front
cupholders is mechanically flamboyant&emdash;give it a touch, and it
wafts open as smoothly as any Lexus cupholder, but is damped by
little gears instead of hydraulics. The EL's cupholders are left
exposed.
Both cars' engines are smooth and provide ample power, though the
EL has a 21 horsepower and 4 lb-ft torque advantage over the
106-horse/103 lb-ft Civic. They're both hauled to a stop by a
front-disc/rear-drum brake setup that's coupled to a pleasingly
linear pedal.
Yet even as the rational side of me tallies off the similarities
between the two sedans, my emotional, touchy-feely, side tells me
that the EL is a very different car, one that&emdash;much to my
surprise&emdash;feels worth every penny of its premium over the more
plebeian Honda.
Much of my preference for the EL stems from its enhanced
performance. Its VTEC equipped engine is as smooth as the
sewing-machine like unit in the Civic, yet doesn't sound like one. It
has noticeably increased urge underfoot and, unlike the merely
willing engine in the Civic, always seems to be goading you to go
faster. The five-speed shifter is also superior; its detents are
better defined and it's far less rubbery.
The EL handles better too; even the base model rides on 15-inch
wheels, rather than the fourteens mounted on every Civic. The
Michelin XGT V4s on my EL test car were quieter in the dry, and
grippier in the rain, than the Civic's standard Firestone FR680s.
But it's the EL's laundry list of little details that puts it
ahead of the Civic in my mind. Things like the radio antenna being
embedded in the rear glass rather than having to be pulled out of the
windshield pillar manually.
Or the beautifully matched moldings around the centre console,
such a marked contrast to the nastily aligned panels in my test
Civic. Maybe it's the seats' bigger side bolsters and the
leather-wrapped steering wheel. Perhaps it's the dome light that
comes on when you unlock the doors with the remote-control key fob.
Or&emdash;shoot me now, please&emdash;the engraved red lettering on
the key.
It's not a perfect car by any means. There are some surprisingly
un-Honda-like cheap touches in its interior, such as the low-mounted,
invisible controls for the power mirrors and a glovebox that isn't
lockable. And while the remote control is fun to play with, a genuine
keyhole for the trunk would have been nice. The orange backlighting
on the dash, too, seems sickly in contrast to the sharp white
illumination of the Civic. Worst, its hole-punched headrests are
painfully uncomfortable and have a very limited range of adjustment.
If you're in the market for anything but a sedan, though, you're
out of luck with the Acura.
Honda&emdash;praise be&emdash;still offers a Civic hatchback,
which starts at $14,000. Two-door coupes start at $15,900, with Si
models&emdash;the only ones offering the EL's VTEC engine in the
Civic lineup&emdash;starting at $18,300.
The base Civic LX sedan goes for $15,700, while the EX&emdash;with
body-colour trim and a power package&emdash;starts at $17,000. The
"G" package, which includes air and ABS, adds $1500 to any sedan
model.
The base 1.6 EL stickers at $18,800; a sport package with alloy
wheels and other equipment adds $1700; add an extra $2000 to get a
"premium" model with leather, ABS and all the goodies.
What this means is that a base 1.6 EL&emdash;loaded save for air
conditioning&emdash;is priced just $300 above the $18,500 premium of
the Civic EX-G I tested. Its air and ABS were functional advantages
to be sure, but they weren't enough to win over my touchy-feely side,
which, by the end of the Acura's test period, was telling me that
maybe those four people on my block hadn't been so irrational after
all.
Don't ask why they were all green, though. Purple looks far
better.