– By David Brown –
I recently drove the top of range 5.0 litre Mustang V8. This is not the sort of car that is likely to be on many fleets but it made me think about a feature of a fleet vehicle, particularly a company car, that is more than just the price and practicality or even the image for the organisation.
The Mustang looked great in the driveway. This is not to impress the local community for we have a driveway that is obscured from the passing traffic. The thing is that when you went out in the morning and saw the bright orange colour, flowing style and its mean aggressive look, you just had to feel good.
There are other image benefits such as when driving down the street or showing it off to the family but it’s that quiet boost to one’s feelings when you see it waiting there for you, that I really appreciated.
So here is the point. Can we not add in a feeling of pride to the driver (not just the company) when you go through a process to get them a new car? This takes a degree of commitment and understanding. I have seen many people pick a particular car for their work vehicle and have it evoke a fair degree of criticism. But a driver loves their car for their own reasons.
A good company car is like a picture you keep in your house. It occasionally captures your attention and makes you feel good. You might show it to guests and friends but its beauty is experienced at the personal level.
Now I am not saying the Honda Civic is in the same category as the Mustang. It is after all a Corolla sized five seat passenger vehicle and Honda do not sell many cars to fleets. But their new Civic does have a distinctive design that, like all good art, you either love or hate. When you see it in the car park it looks different and it is not hard to pick it out from the others.
The front bonnet that slopes down as opposed to the recent trend of strong, big grilles and bulbous noses especially on SUVs. The roof line is rakish while the rear of the vehicle looks like a cross between a hatchback and a fast back and when I approached it from certain angles it brought back memories of the Rover LDS (1976-1986) in a vague sort of way.
The rear of many vehicles is usually a style free zone with slight variations in the tail lights the only apparent point of differentiation. But the Honda Civic makes a more distinctive statement with tail lights that look like they were designed with an image of a boomerang in mind.
But practicalities are still important.
The base model has a 1.8 litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine with 104kW of power and 174Nm of torque. This engine has been around for some time and is not class leading.
For higher grades of the Civic you get a 1.5 litre turbo engine with 127kW and 220Nm. A nice feature is that this turbo engine can run on regular unleaded rather than the costlier premium variety. I found it a bit noisy when you revved it out.
All models come with a continuously variable transmission so no manuals in Australia.
The fuel consumption is rated at 6.0 to 6.4 litres per 100 kilometres. The ride and handling is a class act and the interior is very good.
Honda use to be best known for its engine technology; who can forget the S2000 sports car first sold in 1999 that revved out to 9,000 rpm. But the new Civic is at its best with its handling and interior comfort. And it will stand out particularly from the rear.
