Samson

i like it alot, minus the wood trim.

jeffphx

That is about what I was thinking. The exterior changes are good, but the K20 would be really dreaming.

jaje

not like the k20 is hard to get in there (it's already in the jdm, edm, and usdm civic si ctr, etc)...plus the fact that the rsx shares the same platform

our 2k1 is nice but the d17 is only adequate...i looked into turbos but those are few and far between and most are only in prototype stage (i don't even know if hks has released it yet been over a year now)

a k20 would make the civic much more fun to drive and give it more potential with the next gen b (k) series powerplant

98CoupeV6

I think all that is fairly obvious, but what would keep it from eating up Accord LX sales? The Civic EX already chips away at them.

LuckyDog

I think it has a chance here for 2004. Honda said it wants all it's 4-cyls to be iVTEC by 2005, and it wouldn't make sense to give the Civic an iVTEC for its final year. Anyway, a lot of companies are making more power standard and the Civic EX. Cavalier, Ion, Sunfire, Corolla, Protege, Focus (I heard the 148hp 2.3l will soon be standard across the line), Neon. Honda has alienated its sporty image, I think it knows, and I think it wants it back.

kazi

In all those more standard power cars (with the exception of the Corolla) you listed, did you happen to notice that their mpg were much lower? They are. BTW, the 140hp ION with the 5spd auto gets less mpg and is slower (0-60mph @ ~10+ sec) than its predecessor.

boilers

I don't think it has a big chance coming here either. If it comes here, it's going to cost more than $17,000 which cost almost the same as accord LX.

velfarretokyo

LuckyDog has a point, more and more econoboxes are entering the "HP wars" (for lack of a better term). New Mazda3 is rumoured to be getting a standard 2.0L 150hp and I wouldn't be surprised to see the next Focus get a similar bump. Fact is, the current Civic is already outgunned by similar GM/VW/DCX products and its Japanese rivals. I wouldn't be surprised if a top-line Civic got the engine. Also, Accord LX's sticker for about 19.2k and I think the target market is a bit different so there's room for differentiation. Although I'd agree that leather in a Civic would be gross overkill.

rb6teg

I would love to see that become the new civic Si.....try something new Honda....

I really dig the taillights, much better than the old ones

mrshoe

Ok so it might not have any changes as a UDSM Civic Sedan Si
But I'd like the Acura EL to get that power plant. It already has the fogs, the leather and a stylish exterior. What else could they give it for its midlife refresh?