Photos of US early-MMC Civic INTERIOR

In the U.S., the 9Gen Civic had a stormy introduction. While it managed to achieve best seller in its class, its interior, especially in the base models, had been criticized by many quarters, with the enthusiasts and Honda fans/owners being some of the loudest. While some have tried to defend the Civic, often by using the fact that it is a best-seller, the fact that AHM will launch an MMC for the 9Gen Civic this month proves that even Honda feels that some of the criticisms are at the very least, warranted. 

In our TOV forums yesterday, member 'Farage1' posted two high-resolution photos of what looks to be the dashboard of the MMC Civic (the photos are at the bottom of this article). While not conclusive, another forumer listed down a list of differences he observed, which should provide a useful starting point for anyone looking for the changes to the dashboard. The observations below are from TOV forumer 'atomiclightbulb'.

(1) Center stack: In the '12 model, Audio/Nav and HVAC are placed on different tiers. HVAC in the '12 is recessed slightly. In the '13 model, Audio/Nav and HVAC are part of one continuous surface, separated by a chrome strip right below the hazard/emergency lights button. This new design is akin to the 8G Civic.

(2) The black plastic bezel that surrounds HVAC/Audio controls continues on the left side of the steering column, making the driver area of the dash appear continuous.

(3) HVAC controls are revised. Button placement is slightly different and fan knob is bigger now.

(4) Dash panel geometry repaired. Starting from the top, the dash piece that goes over the digital speedometer appears to be a continuous piece that stretches all the way to the end of the passenger side part of the dash. In the '12 model, there is a cut line that seems a bit odd between the digital speedometer panel and the passenger side airbag panel. In the '12 model, the dash piece that extends from the top of the tachometer cluster and into the passenger side of the car is changed. The tach cluster plastic now ends where the center stack plastic ends. The passenger gets a soft touch panel on their side.

(5) Chrome trim around vents.

Honda Malaysia to establish R&Development center

Honda Malaysia will set up an R&D center in Malaysia to do development for new models for the local market. This center will be the fourth in the Asia region after HRT in Thailand. The center will be located in Pegoh industrial area of Melaka together with the assembly plant there. 

All these while, Honda Malaysia had to depend on HRT for any special requirements for models. In numerous cases when Honda Malaysia wanted a special model that HRT has not developed, Honda Malaysia had to source for it through a labourous process, by matching specifications of models in overseas market to local requirements. Often this can lead to slight mis-matches and in occassions, even cases of over-specification. 

A case in point is the current Honda Jazz Hybrid which is imported from Japan but is a variant spec'ed for the Europe market. This 'CBU Jazz Hybrid' has slight mis-matches against models specifically developed for ASEAN/Malaysia by HRT. An example is the location of the windscreen wiper and headlight/turn-signal stalks which are reversed in positions on the steering wheel. The fuel consumption readout on the multi-information display is also in units of litre/100km instead of km/l which is the unit used here. Then, the Jazz Hybrid is also a 'glitch' in terms of features, being better equipped than the Civic for e.g., with side and curtain airbags. This 'anomaly' has been resolved by the launch of the locally assembled Jazz Hybrid which now features only front dual airbags plus things like 'correct' location of the windscreen wiper/headlight stalks amongst other things.

In another example, when Honda Malaysia got permission to launch the FD2 Civic Type-R here a few years ago they had to develop some contents locally, like the boot tray cover. They could not depend on HRT as the FD2R was not authorized as an ASEAN model, only for Malaysia on a special case basis. It fell to the local product planning team to do the development, a task they are really not equipped to do. In that case however, they did a good job with the constraints they had to work with. 

The establishment of this R&D center will ensure situations like this will not happen. Other crucial functions of the R&D center also includes working with local suppliers to develop more local contents for calls assembled in Malaysia, to take advantage of the local tax laws for local versus important contents and thus to reduce cost and keep prices competitive.

'Why Proton ?'

This was the question I had for Honda Malaysia in an informal chit chat recently. The announcement of the Honda-Proton 'collaboration' recently had caused a lot of talk and debate in the Honda enthusiast circle. The main question was why of all partners, Honda chose Proton.

In the first place, I was told that what was announced, as far as Honda's side is concerned, is an agreement to do a feasibility study for joint developments in the future. As far as Honda is concerned, this was the only thing that was committed. So despite what may be read from the announcements, the feasibility study is what will happen but beyond that, nothing has been agreed upon. For all we know, what comes out of the study may well be an echo of that famous song let's call the whole thing off !

As for my guess that a 'Proton Brio' might well be in the works, the response was that Proton's Tanjung Malim plant is an interesting prospect for something in the future. Brio ? There was a smile and a look which suggests "well, what do you think ?"

Automotive Industry Timeline for Malaysia

Malaysian automotive stalwart Nick Gomez has published a "Malaysian Automotive Industry Timeline" on his facebook. This article looks at the evolution of the automobile industry in Malaysia, starting from 1926 when the Ford Motor company first set up office in Singapore to supply Malaysia as well. This quickly evolved into the vibrant automotive industry of both countries today. Nick's work can be accessed at https://www.facebook.com/notes/nicholas-gomez/malaysian-automotive-industry-timeline/10151368147943714 and contains a wealth of information especially for those interested to know the past and current state of the automotive industry in Malaysia.

9Gen Civic MMC now available in US dealer's websites

The early MMC for the 9Gen Civic, known in the U.S. as the '2013 Civic' is almost on us. On some dealer's websites in the U.S., one can already 'build' (i.e. select options) the car one is interested in buying. And the '2013 Civic' is now already available for building. This also gives us an early 'sneak peek' at the new 2013 Civic, eventhough in CG form only. The photos below are captured by one TOV forumer from the 'Benson Honda' dealer website and offers us an almost complete look at the exterior of the MMC 2013 Civic. Of special mention are the new front grille and bumper design plus the new tail-lights.

TOV is back online

Just in case any readers are not aware, Temple of VTEC is now back up online. All our resources including the forum is now available. The cause of the outage was due to a hard-disk problem and which has now been replaced. We thank you for your kind patience and support.

Temporary outage of TOV

Regular readers will know by now that our main Temple of VTEC site has been down for the better part of the day. This is due to a hard-disk problem. The problem has been resolved and we are now going to restore the server. TOV will be back up again very soon. This outage did not affect Temple of VTEC Asia or TOVA. We thank our readers for your patience and support.

Civic finished WTCC debut season with a podium !

Today saw the final rounds of the 2012 World Touring Car Championship (WTCC), taking place on the Guia Circuit in downtown Macau. The mission for Honda Racing Team JAS was to bring the Civic WTCC's great performance from qualifying into race day. And despite the cloudy sky, the omens looked good from the early morning warm up session, with the Civic WTCC setting the second fastest time (2:31.844).

Race1:

The formation lap got underway at 11:00am local time, and starting from fifth on the grid and with the car's promising pace, Honda Racing Team JAS driver Tiago Monteiro was in a confident mood. He got off to a great start. On the opening lap of the nine lap race, Tiago managed to clear the difficult Lisboa Bend in fifth to remain in the top group. He then edged passed the car in front on Lap 2 to climb to fourth. He continued his charge, breathing down the neck of the car in third. On Lap 4 an accident caused one of the front-runners to drop a position, allowing Tiago to move up. Over the next few laps Monteiro kept up the chase and a three-way fight for the lead continued until the end. Monteiro held his place, crossing the line in 3rd and delivering the first podium place for the Civic WTCC in just its third outing.

Race 2:

Following technical problems to a car in front, Monteiro was promoted from fifth to sixth on the grid in Race 2. He kept his place on the opening lap from a standing start. However, the position was short-lived. At Lisboa Bend on Lap 3 Monteiro was overtaken by two cars, dropping him to seventh. When the safety car came out on Lap 4 due to an accident in front, the Civic WTCC was running in sixth. The race finally resumed, however the drama continued; two front-runners crashed on the very first lap at Lisboa Bend. With the safety car again leading the field, the race ended after 11 laps and the Civic WTCC came home in fourth.   

Driver Tiago Monteiro: "In Race 1 I had a good start and was able to overtake the car in front in the early stages of the race. From that moment, I pushed very hard to get an opportunity to pass the Chevrolets but it wasn't possible. I am very happy to get on the podium in the end though. Race 2 was a bit more difficult at the start and the race in Macau is long and many things can happen, so it was important just to finish. The entire team deserves this amazing end of the season on the podium. They've worked very hard and this is the result of team work."

Honda Racing Team JAS Team Principal, Alessandro Mariani: "Of course we are very happy with the podium finish, but from my point of view, our greatest achievement this weekend was finishing so close to the works Chevrolet cars. After only two races and fighting for the lead - this is a fantastic result! But whilst the car clearly has strong potential for 2013, we're still learning, so we'll work even harder to prepare it for next season."

Chief Engineer for Civic WTCC Development, Daisuke Horiuchi: "I am very happy to get such a great result - third place on the podium. And what makes it even more special was that we were able to fight so closely with the regular leaders, the Chevrolets. Step by step we have improved the car's set-up to the point where we get this excellent result in the final round of the season. It's very gratifying as I feel that the effort of the driver and all the team members has been paid off. I have got a positive feeling for next year, but at the same time realise that this is just the beginning of a tough road before our full WTCC entry in 2013."

Sunday, 18 November 2012

Guia Circuit, Macau (6.12km)     

Weather: cloudy      

Temperature: 20℃

Track condition: dry

　

Warm-up session                                2:31.844 (2nd fastest)

Race 1:

1          Yvan Muller               Chevrolet Cruze             9 laps               23:08.977

2          Alain Menu               Chevrolet Cruze　          9 laps　            23:09.892

3          Tiago Monteiro      Honda Civic WTCC    9 laps　           23:10.274

4          Gabriele Tarquini　  SEAT Leon　　　　          9 laps　            23:10.944

5          Darryl O'Young         Chevrolet Cruze             9 laps 　           23:20.496

6          Tom Coronel             BMW 320                       9 laps               24:04.113

Race 2:

1          Alain Menu                 Chevrolet Cruze　　　     11 laps　         35:36.096

2          Robert Huff                 Chevrolet Cruze　          11 laps　         35:36.416

3          Yvan Muller                 Chevrolet Cruze             11 laps            35:36.985

4          Tiago Monteiro        Honda Civic WTCC     11 laps　        35:45.111

5          Darryl O'Young           Chevrolet Cruze             11 laps 　        35:45.882

6          Franz Engstler　         BMW 320　　　　　　      11 laps            35:46.223

(According to the regulation, which stipulates that the first two Safety Car laps completed will not count towards the race distance, this race was run over 11 laps.)

Happy Birthday Honda-san

 

Today (November 17th) is the birthdate of Soichiro Honda, the grand 'Old Man' of Honda. Honda fans around the world, join us in acknowledging the great man whose dreams were directly responsible for all the great Hondas in the past, and hopefully all the great Hondas to come in the future.

Apologies for the inactivity

I apologize for the lack of updates over the past week and a half due to some internal issues. I am happy to report that I am now back in action and will resume posting regular Honda news of special interest to Honda fans.

Spy Photos of the USDM MMC 9Gen Civic

Spy photos of the MMC 9Gen Civic, for the USDM, is already surfacing around the internet. At the moment, Motor Trend is carrying photos of the MMC Civic, to be launched at the end of this month. The links to the Motor Trend website is below.

http://wot.motortrend.com/spied-2013-honda-civic-revealed-with-accord-like-front-styling-285789.html

One TOV forumer took two Motor Trend photos and photoshop'ed it to 'remove' the tapes and reveal what he thinks is the actual MMC design. These photos are below. (Lots of TOV forumers are very talented with Photoshop).

Another TOV forumer with proven insider information has offered additional info on the MMC Civic, having seen the actual car with his own eyes. In his own words, the major changes to the MMC 9Gen Civic were described as

Interior yes, powertrain no.........The Hood (bulged due to pedestrian safety), head lights (projectors), tail lights and grill are changed. Inside is about a 70% refresh......The dash, door panels and buttons and switches are changed and the AUX and Charger have a compartment next to it now like the Accord...The seat fabric and quality have been changed along with the sound of the door when it closes...

Yet another TOV forumer, has offered the following information (he is an employee with a Honda dealership)

Wait until you see it in person. Honda brass friends have phoned with their praise. I trust the(m) like my brothers. They never failed me before. I heard that it is absolutely stunning inside and out in the way that the new MY13 Accord is compared to the outgoing '12. It needed to be seen in the flesh. Remember, dude?
The 2013 Civic sedan's rear lighting, classy trim and new flank look extremely upscale. The chrome adds much poshness to its compact car class. The front fascia is very Accord-like, giving it a sporty, fresh, airy and tidier flare. It's more aerodynamic in look and engineering. Higher MPG should result yet test figures are top secret.

Quality of materials, greatly improved interior all-around, a more substantial list of class leading features (safety and otherwise) and the promise of a new model (i.e., hatchback, crossover variant) around the corner following this amazing "refreshened" Civic is extraordinary.

Think back to the doubters of the 9th generation Accord for a reminder and look at its October 2012 sales figures and those comparison and single car reviews of the hot new '13 Accord sedan -- trumping the all new and highly anticipated 2013 Ford Fusion, Fusion Hybrid and best selling Toyota Camry, Camry Hybrid. Amazing! And keep in mind, the Honda Accord coupe has yet to be formally introduced and stocked and the hybrid models are currently unavailable.