The Civic Si occupies a perfect spot in Honda’s lineup. It’s a great choice for those who want a fun, compact, reliable vehicle without having to pay inflated Civic Type R money. Honda’s just revealed the newly updated Si coupe and sedan for 2020, bringing reshaped looks, interior improvements, and a shorter final drive ratio.
As far as the powertrain goes, no changes have been made for the 2020 model year. The Civic Si coupe and sedan both still use the 1.5-liter turbocharged inline four from the base Civic, tuned to 205 horsepower 192 lb-ft of torque. Like before, the only choice of transmission is a six-speed manual. What has changed is the final drive gear ratio—it’s shorter by six percent according to Honda. That means while the transmission gearing is the same, the gearing in the limited-slip differential is shorter, resulting quicker acceleration, but higher RPMs while cruising on the highway.
Cosmetic changes include a revised front fascia, with redesigned foglight surrounds featuring gloss trim. The Si coupe gets LED headlights as standard, while the sedan gets an updated rear bumper to match the front’s new design. Both cars get a newly redesigned central infotainment system with a selection of physical buttons, including—wait for it—a real volume knob, replacing the widely disliked touch-sensitive scroll bar. There’s also new seats with red accents and a slew of new driver assistance features.
The 2020 Civic Si coupe and sedan will arrive in dealerships starting September 6th, 2019, with a base MSRP of $25,930, including a destination fee of $930.
