New Honda Civic facelift 2025 review: subtle tweaks boost its appeal

Verdict

The updates to the Honda Civic may be small, but there really wasn’t much wrong with it in the first place. Subtle cosmetic tweaks inside and out are the support act to a slick hybrid powertrain and a great ride and handling balance that has the beating of most of its rivals. A little more standard kit, plus a price that is slightly lower than this time last year, make the Civic stronger once again. While the Skoda Octavia remains the best car in the family segment, the Civic ranks among the best alternatives – as long as you avoid the pricey range-topping trim.

Honda has revised its Civic hatchback for 2025. We rated the current model so highly on its launch that we named it our Affordable Hybrid of the Year in the 2023 Auto Express New Car Awards, and the 11th generation of the popular hatchback is still going strong. Even so, I often wonder if it deserves more success in the UK than it is getting. This update, then, is the perfect time to remind ourselves of where it stands in the family car pecking order, against the likes of the Skoda Octavia, Volkswagen Golf and Toyota Corolla. 

Used - available now

2015 Honda

Civic

45,825 milesAutomaticPetrol1.8L

Cash £11,495

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2017 Honda

Civic

45,900 milesAutomaticPetrol1.0L

Cash £11,495

View Civic

2021 Honda

Civic

27,216 milesManualPetrol1.0L

Cash £15,599

View Civic

2021 Honda

Civic

24,857 milesAutomaticPetrol1.0L

Cash £16,349

View Civic

For 2025, the Civic’s understated exterior lines have been given a subtle tweak that’s most noticeable at the front. A key to the change is Honda’s improved LED lighting tech; this has allowed the fog lights to be moved from their former place in the bumper and into the main headlamp units. As a result, the redesigned bumper gets clean character lines on either side of the redesigned, wider front air intake, which curves up around the sides of the front end and blends into the wheelarches. Above that, the grille is slightly smaller and less fussy than before, although the plastic trims that fill the space that the larger grill previously occupied looks a little like an afterthought if your gaze lingers on it too long. Overall, though, the design changes are subtle, but contribute to a tidier look. 

Elsewhere, the exterior is largely unaltered, with the details making the difference. These include a new design of 18-inch alloy wheel – painted grey on top-spec Advance trims, and Black on Sport models – although personally I thought the sharper old rims looked more sporty and suited the Civic a little better. One new paint colour is offered, with the bold Premium Crystal Blue being replaced by a slightly more subdued Seabed Blue. The rest of the colour palette remains the same, but dip into the accessory catalogue, and some of the accent colours can be chosen in new colours.

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Inside, not a huge amount has changed. Black upholstery and headlining is now standard throughout the range, while a subtle metallic finish has been applied to the air vent surrounds in a move that’ll be very tricky to spot unless you place old and new cars side by side. 

But in a class where more and more cars are going touchscreen only and offering over-styled cabins, the Civic’s clean, smart interior design is becoming more likeable than ever. Physical dials and buttons adjust the temperature and fan speed, and they all operate with a high-quality feeling. The rest of the cabin feels well screwed together, too. The touchscreen is one feature that slightly lets the side down, because compared with the best in the segment, it’s not particularly sharp, nor is it that quick to load. 

Elsewhere, the Civic ticks plenty of family-car boxes. The back-seat area remains largely the same as before, which means passengers are treated to loads of legroom, although taller occupants might prefer an Octavia when it comes to headroom. The Czech car does better for boot space, too; the Civic’s 415 litres is reasonable for the class, but well behind the Skoda’s 600 litres.

Under the bonnet, the Civic keeps the same hybrid powertrain as before, and it’s a very clever and efficient bit of kit. Most of the time, the 2.0-litre, four-cylinder engine works as a generator to provide energy to a 1.05kWh battery. The pack is linked to an electric motor, which moves the car along. It’s only at motorway speeds when the petrol engine directly drives the front wheels on its own – a set-up which reduces losses through the hybrid system, according to Honda.

You’d be hard pressed to realise that all of this complicated juggling of power sources is going on while you’re driving, though, because the Civic’s hybrid powertrain is impressively smooth. Unsurprisingly for a car where an electric motor is doing a lot of the work, the Honda shares lots of positives with many fully electric cars, such as a smooth, responsive throttle and lively performance. Only here, when the battery runs low, the petrol engine hums into life. When more power is needed, the engine can rev up a little noisily, with its eCVT transmission shifting through artificially stepped ratios to make the noise seem a little more natural.

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The points when the engine is at its most vocal are rare, though, particularly because straight-line speed is excellent. Officially, there’s 181bhp on tap, enough for a 0-62mph time of 7.8 seconds – and the Civic certainly feels more than capable of those numbers. It’s efficient, too. Our time behind the wheel saw a fuel consumption figure of roughly 50mpg – a strong return for a car which offers such lively performance. 

But it’s not just the powertrain that impresses here, because the Honda is among the better cars in its class to drive, too. Ride comfort is well judged; supple over bumps, yet not so soft that it wallows through the turns. In fact, the body control is quite the opposite; the Civic resists body roll well, grip is strong and the car’s balance is predictable, yet the handling remains agile. A pleasing weight to both the steering and the brake pedal caps off the positive feedback the Honda gives throughout. It’s no wonder that this platform formed such a solid base from which the phenomenal Civic Type R hot hatch was created. Our main gripe with the overall drive is that road noise is higher than in many rivals, so it’s a bit noisier than the competition on a motorway.

Alongside the minor cosmetic tweaks, the Civic has also gained a little more standard equipment. As before, three trim levels are available: Elegance, Sport and Advance. Wireless smartphone charging and an auto-dimming rear-view mirror are now standard throughout the range, as are keyless entry and go, heated front seats, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, front and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera and adaptive cruise control. The Sport model gains a heated steering wheel and a 10.2-inch digital driver’s display, while the Advance trim gets some additional interior ambient lighting.

More interesting is the cost. The Civic fell out of favour slightly in 2024 when prices started to climb, but they’ve gradually crept back down again. Elegance models start from £33,795 – or roughly the same as a mid-spec Octavia SE L with a mild-hybrid powertrain. The Octavia is the more spacious and practical option for the money, but the Civic is more fun to drive and has stronger performance. It’s that base model which we’d be happy to stick with, because the value for money starts to wane further up the range. The Sport trim adds £1,600 to the price of the Elegance, while the top-spec Advance climbs to £38,695 – that’s only £75 less than a full-blown Octavia vRS. 

The updated Honda Civic is now on sale, but if you'd rather save some money we can help. You can get your hands on a used Honda Civic for under £3,5000 through our Find A Car service.