Honda’s Civic Si is a car for people who wish they could drive a Gundam

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  This is the $25,000 Honda Civic Si. [credit: Honda ]

Earlier this week, we reviewed the VW Golf GTI, a jack-of-all-trades car that, in the words of one reader, is "the most refined and least 'boy-racer' of the hot-hatches." But what if you want a cheap and sporty car that leans into that boy (or girl) racer image? The answer could well be the car we're reviewing today-the 2020 Honda Civic Si. OK, technically this one isn't actually a hot-hatch; your $25,000 buys either a two-door coupe or a four-door sedan.

The idea, as always, is pretty simple. You start with a cheap car and add a more powerful engine, tweaked suspension, and some go-faster styling accoutrements that through the power of transubstantiation imbues the entire lineup with a shiny, glowing halo. (Ignoring the more special but even more expensive Civic Type-R, which polishes that halo.)

Honda describes the way the Si looks as "benefit[ing] from exterior styling enhancements befitting the model's aggressive driving dynamics." Another way to describe it would be to say that this one really looks like a space fighter. At the front there's a new front bumper with some elements that call to mind mid-engined exotica or the complicated front wing of a race car. At the back, a wide exhaust that kind of resembles an HDMI port, and a rear wing that I'm not sure does much aerodynamically. And to round it all off, some matte-black 18-inch alloy wheels, which you can have wrapped in sticky summer tires for an extra $200.

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