The new, redesigned and reengineered 8th generation Honda Civic was finally revealed to the public of Trinidad & Tobago. We at trinituner.com feel this his fully loaded sedan will set a new benchmark in quality and performance for our market.

We test drove the 2006 Civic and can definitely report that the build quality both interior and exterior is exceptional. There are details on the interior that prove that Honda has 'upped the ante' with regards to ammenities, esthetics and features that are not usually expected in a small sedan. We will refer to it as 'upscale ambience' as it really impressed us. The forward thinking two-tiered instrument cluster is a real eye catcher with its "indiglo" blue ambient light.

The handling was commendable and especially soft. The 1.8 iVTEC engine with CVT pulled relatively strong through the powerband, though the CVT never let us feel any gear ratio changes. We were not able to test drive a unit with manual transmission but we are sure that it would carry the rewarding feel of previous Honda gearboxes when mated to this 1800cc engine. We assume the suspension will be stiffer on the new Si Coupe model which should arrive in a few months with an estimated price of TT$250K.

From a tuning perspective (considering the Civic is the most tuned and modified automobile in the world) the 2006 Civic has some issues that had us thinking: The catalytic converter is directly on the exhaust manifold along with the O2 sensor. In fact it would seem there isnt much of an exhaust manifold at all! This should make setting up for AFR tuning simpler and we should see some interesting header designs in the future.

Also the engine bay is very short and so the front shock mounts are under the windshield but still accessible through removable plastic panels finishing the cowl. We wondered what interesting strut tower braces and pillow ball strut mounts the aftermarket industry would have to devise to facilitate this radical cab forward design.

Four wheel disc brakes is standard on all models and much to the delight of many tuners the wheels are also 5 hole from the factory. The trunk is huge and the sound system is good with options for MP3 and steering wheel controls. Seems like someone at Honda has been listening to its customers.

We can deifinitely see the new 2006 Civic will take the industry by storm and will have everyone from salesperson to casual driver to track-day tuner thinking outside of the proverbial box.

We definitely liked what we saw!