Only a month after the 2022 Honda Civic Si was unveiled, various journalists within the U.S. have had the chance to place it by way of its paces.

Primarily based across the Eleventh-generation Civic, the brand new Si has been marketed by the automaker as essentially the most fun-to-drive Si there’s ever been. That’s a daring assertion contemplating among the incredible Civic Si fashions which have launched over the past 35 years however because it seems, Honda could be proper.

Learn Extra: Honda Reveals New 2022 Civic Si With 200 HP Turbo And Sort R’s Rev-Matching Tech

Powering the Civic Si is a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 200 hp and 192 lb-ft (260 Nm) of torque, that means it has 5 fewer horses than its predecessor. Whereas that’s a disgrace, Honda has fitted a 26 % lighter flywheel, a brand new exhaust system, and matched the 1.5-liter to a six-speed guide gearbox with 10 % shorter throws. The transmission additionally includes a rev-matching system similar to the Civic Sort R.

As these critiques reveal, it isn’t the engine that makes the 2022 Civic Si a significantly better automotive than its predecessor however somewhat the brand new underpinnings. It’s no secret that the common Eleventh-gen Civic rides on a extra inflexible model of the outgoing mannequin’s platform and as such, the brand new Civic Si presents dealing with prowess far superior to the outdated mannequin. The physique of the brand new mannequin additionally presents 8 % extra torsional rigidity and the suspension has been optimized with entrance springs which might be 8 % stiffer and rear springs which might be 54 % stiffer than the common 2022 Civic.

All in all, the brand new Civic Si looks as if an excellent sports activities sedan and that makes us all of the extra excited for the forthcoming Sort R.