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+ ■ Automotive Marketing at Ite best i m a g e r ^ , , □ 1SSS 4 4 S 4 S q | © nvi ,'^iz [ tAuComotIve Marketing at ita best i r r ^ g e r ^ □ 1S8S 44S4BO. IS set to


MOST family hatchbacks these days make'a big dis-' - tinction between their three


• and five-door bodystyles. ^ ^ > ( Tlie cars can look quite dif-^ ferent in each guise, the three-


door car setting out to be sleek and sporty while the boxier five-door car adopts a more practical approach. Honda’s Civic, is a family


- hatch that counts its futuristic - styling and sporty persona as big selling points whether in three or five-door form. To highlight the dynamic side of the five-door car more


By STEVE WALKER


; of the Civic engine range up for grabs. Things kick off with the;


\ 1.4-litre i-VTEC engine, a typi-- ■; cally smooth and high-rewing Honda petrol unit. With only ■98bhp, it is not the power plant


■; to give the Civic five-door the - turn of speed to go with the Si • trim’s energetic looks, but it is a good compact petrol engine. The 1.8-litre petrol unit also


. fully, Honda dreamed up the Si trim level which upgrades the visuals at an affordable price. ■. The- three and five-door •


■ diesel hatchbacks can match. •■- ■•The sprint to 60mph takes 8.7-


■


:• secs, making this smooth and’ . punchy engine the quiekest in the five-door Civic range. : i_Handling is ve^ smart, with ■


-. responsive steering and good • - body control. The Civic also '. has a.tight turning circle, b u t ; :■ the ease withTwhich the;car •■ can:be manoeuvred is badly: ‘impacted by the rear visibility. ’


■ carries the famous Honda • . VTEC branding denoting the presence of variable valve-tim- -


■ ing technology. Peak power of 138bhp is generated at a buzz- •


Honda Civic’s do not look massively.different, but Honda: differentiates the two lines with its trim level range.-The three-doorcar is available in • racy;Type-S and high perform-: ; ance Type-R guises, while the five-door comes in a selection of configurations that are more. sedate, particularly at the low­ er end of the range. The Si models are an at­


I ? (H |ri>- f j i '


; ing 6,300rpm, so you need to - hold the gears to squeeze out- the best of the p’erformance.' -x f-- Do so and the-0-60mph-|


: sprint takes-8.9:secsj .but ’ : change-up early without trou-"' bling the: rev-limiter and the - 1.8 i-YTEC stay's pleasantly ;i demure for everyday drivingiV;’;;j:


tempt to ^bring come of the sportiness that has proven pop-, ular with the three-door cars to the five-door line-up and they are priced at a level that should ■ pique the interest of hatchback ^ buyers.


^ Si customers have the whole


; The. thick C pillars and split ' : . rear screen make what is be- ' : ;■ hind a bit of a mystery at times;' - and if the rear headrests are • raised yoii have got no chance.- • ;-• You could not accuse the '


■


■'.Honda Civic of being boring.. : The functional but dull image -


; of this car’s predecessor has . been well and truly shed. -The ,-i.Civic’s is a compact nugget of :'. a shape with short overhangs , and a wedge-like: front that


;:never, looks less that firmly ' planted on the road. The thin


. headlamps join with the grille to form a slash across the nose


. : Honda resisted'the'urge-tb'is ■dirty its hands with diesel fof^’ a long time;'but when it did, the results took a lot of peo­ ple abaek. The 2.2-litre CTDi - oil-burner in the Civic sharesi-l many of the characteristics offt: Honda petrol engines, with its' y 138bhp maximum achieved at ® a relatively lofty 4,000rpni and -; refinement levels that very few


- and the triangular motif is fe-' • : peated.atboth ends in the fog , - lights and the exhaust pipes. ‘ ; Those attracted to the five-" door Civic by the promise of


- extra jiracticality may need to tread with caution. Although


. access to the rear is improved- -by the presence of rear doors, .-the'space available to back seat passengers is not as generous ;as4n some five-ddorlfamily


hatch models. There is plenty of space for children, but the c u r^ roofline cuts into rear headroom for taller occupants. The plus side comes at the very rear where there is monstrous -


■ boot with a wide aperture cour­ tesy of the high lifting tailgate.. 485-lit'res is the official capac­ ity and that is extremely large ’ fortheclass. Build quality on the Civic


is generally robust, although there are question marks over some of the plastics and how • well they stand the test of time. Th'e.dash is an unusual tiered affair with various digital dis­ plays feeding back the impor­ tant information. Honda has been adventurous here and the layout might be too challeng­ ing for those with more con-;


servative tastes. Shorter driv­ ers might find that the steering, wheel obstructs the speedom­ eter display. ■. ; The Si trim level is predomi­


nantly about further enlivening the looks of the Civic five-door. The 1.4-litre cars get 16in. al- joy wheels with a Graphite fin­ ish while the more powerful ■ engines get similar 17in. items. There is dark chrome detailing; for the shapely door handles and the fuel filler cap, while body-coloured side mouldings make the car look lower and a special mesh front grille like that of the Type-R is installed. Inside, there is half leather


trim and a USB connector on top of the other Civic features like climate control, an MP3 compatible CD stereo and


electric windows. The Civic’s .-.138bhp diesel engine is one of the best of its ilk and cost effec-


- tive too, weighing in at either Group 10 or.Group 11 insur­ ance, dependent on trim level. With an average fuel consump­ tion figure of 54.3mpg, it is not going to cost the earth in terms of ongoing running costs. The 1.4-litre petrol engine returns just under SOmpg while the


1.8-litre unit chips in with just under 40mp'g. The Civic is not the cheap­


est option to buy in the famfly hatch sector, but its residual < values are firmer than those of many of its rivals which keeps i overall running costs com- ’ petitive. Tliere is a three-year / '


■ 90,000-mile warranty as stand­ ard.


■4 . . - r • ost powerful Fabia ever - - T , www.motorstoday.co.uk motors today 35


Find just the car you are looking for with... m o t o r s !


SIMPSONS'Skoda is: all ' geared up to launch th e , all-new, rally inspired, most powerful Fabia ever, the


Skoda Fabia vRS. ;. The hatchback and estate


models, launched on' Friday,. will feature the award winning _ 1.4 litre TSI engine as stand­ ard. After three years in the


making, the new model incor- : poratcs many sports-like fea­ tures usually attributed to the incredibly successful S2000. rally car for an exhilarating yet practical drive. Benefiting from a swift start ;


Jazz:i:2S.Manual • The little Honda that’s big on savings.


j £ 9 ,9 9 5 O T R Saving £995


Welcome to 3 years affordable driving with a Honda.


’ .C i v i c 1.4


V -Reminding you how good it ' feels to drive, and to have ;i.>:,peaceof mind.


‘ £ 1 3 ,9 9 ‘5 0 T R - Saving £1,425


Insight 1.3 S E C V T Good for the planet


- Good for your wallet ' ,


* ^ I ’ ‘ ‘ - f ' l a j


and continued power, the su- ' percharged and turbocharged I engine takes just over seven seconds to go from 0 - 62 mph. With ISObhp the model can reach a maximum speed of nearly 140mph. Luxury features include 17


£ 1 4 , 9 9 5 O T R ' : Saving £1,330


inch alloy wheels, LED day­ light running lights, tinted rear windows, iPod connectivity, 3 ■ spoke multi-function leather steering wheel with paddle speakers, electric and heated door mirrors, air conditioning, trip computer, sports seats, tyre pressure monitor and dual exhaust, all as standard. ~ ' ' The vRS also features, the .'


safety system -XDS which pre-~ cisely brakes an inside front


s'


■


wheel if the car is being asked to corner too hard helping to reduce wheelspin and under­ steer. :


Encompassing the power


and many features of the SEAT Ibiza Cupra and Polo GTI the vRS is substantially better value with prices begin­ ning at £15,700. ' • Buyers can choose from 15


colours and whether to have the alloy wheels finished in silver, white or dark grey. Con­ tinuing the personalisation, the roof can be the painted the body colour, black or white to be in-keeping with the rally style. ■ Neil Simpson, managing di­


rector of Simpsons Skoda and a former rally driver, said: “I am looking forward to getting behind the wheel of this new vRS, its rally car similarities make for an exciting model.” To celebrate its launch


Simpsons Skoda in Preston and Colne will be holding a test drive event from July 29th until August 1st as well as of­ fering two years’ free servicing on selected used Fabia mod­ els. • For further details, visit


www.simpsonsskoda.co.uk or call the Preston dealership on 01772 722200 or the Colne dealership on 01282 864266.


I: New Fabia VRS '• ■«. '' ‘ • Tx / Li i : i The new Skoda Fabia vRS It doesn't just look


mean, it acts mean. With eye catching looks the award winning Fabia vRS is the most powerful Fabia ever built. Boasting a


.0-62 mph acceleration in just 7.3 ■ ■ secondsthis car sets new standards.


Inside the sporting theme continues with vRS sports seats and a 3-spoke steering wheel. You can even customise your vRS with 15 colour combinations.


Test Drive the newvRS and other exciting Skoda makes this weekend - ring for details.


: Greenacre Honda " ' -


•Greenacre Street, Clitheroe, Lancashire- BB71 ED. Call: 01200 423108 ■ ■ 854,Whalley New.Road, Blackburn, Lancashire BB1:9BD.- Call: 01254 245666


Fuel consumption figures in mpg (1/1 OOkm) Civic Type S range Urban 321 - 42 8 (8 8 ^6 fit Pvtra ii.hon c . /< (4.5 - 4.2L CombLd 6 1 .4 ^ l4% .6 ^® ® 0 2 emislionVlM®-V(flg/tm:'^°'^‘’'"^‘'


T .™ . and condition. OflersvalKl on Civic 1 4 Tt o S Man Cmc 14 SI M.n T iv ,r i AW . model and colour availability. Honda ~ '


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- ' " ' ^ ______ - V - Greehacre Honda Do it right. ^ , ‘ . ‘ ‘ •'’ A ^ ' U r P a n 6 2 . 8 - 6 7 .3 ' - Z ' ' - only. Road TawAmonetaiy ■ A


is S i Cuaranteecl Minimum'' ^ ;^ ^ ^ ^ ^ » F u tu re Value


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&i.-i»Bis2s«s^doc & option tee sT o ta l Amount Payablei


i« 5 7 ,0 0 ^ S J : € 3 9 0 7 j 3 2 ^ ^ | ^ l


of Credit . £ 1 L 7 9 2 : 6 8 ^ ^ £ 6 9 5 0 : 6 A | f '€ 1 9 5 7 : 9 6 - >


£ 1 7 6 5 7 :9 6 1 T i l ,4 :8 ■pTen1:?^r‘m i f ^ ^ i ^ ^ !


BAKUN/BRU


2 MINUTES FROM


R i& U N D A R ^ J - J f ' M I L L S T O R E S ^


Simpsons Skoda . LLCet that Simpsons Skoda feeling


I C a r s shown for illustration purposes only. Rnance subject to status. ♦Terms and conditions apply.: www.simpsohsskodaco‘.uk - I


LCBR UHY - NEW - • • >


BOUNDARY MILL .: .


COlNEaf :njT


Burnley Road, Colne, BBS 8LF Event Hotline: 0844 209 8108


" Afemilybhsinessforover60yea«* ^ ,


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