Honda Civic Hybrid Saloon 2006 - Present

The Honda Civic is a common sight on British roads. They sell in bundles and because they're so reliable they stick around for a while too.

The Civic Hybrid Saloon is Honda's effort to keep up with it's neighbours Toyota, who have stolen a march with the Prius. The hybrid engine works on a pretty simple basis. It has a regular combustion engine which is complimented by an electric motor. The petrol engine is used for acceleration and a lot of the driving. When you brake or coast the momentum charges the electric motor giving extra power when needed it is possible to run the car on the electric motor alone if you're in traffic, but it does need to be fully charged to do so.
The engine is equipped with start stop technology so if you're sat in traffic the engine will turn off on it's own in order to save fuel, and restart as you go to drive away. The engine is a 1.3 petrol unit which generates 94 bhp. The Electric motor adds an extra 20 bhp to the mix. The net effect is to have the power of a 1.6 engine with the consumption of a 1.1. The additional electric power is really good in the mid range, offering decent and useful acceleration from 30-70 mph.

The ride is something of a let down with too much left out as a means of making the car lighter and therefore more economical. It is also fitted with special low resistance tyres, fitted to aid fuel economy. These no doubt do aid the MPG figure but they also make the ride even worse. Low resistance tyres are made from a harder form of rubber that rolls easier and therefore needs less energy to propel it. Softer tyres grip the road better but require more energy to drive them. This also means that they offer less grip on the road, although the Civic Hybrid is amply equipped to cope with whatever the driver is likely to throw at it.

The Civic Hybrid looks good and if you're happy to overlook the somewhat rustic suspension and finish it offers great economy figures and will cost £15 to tax annually at the moment and nothing from April 2009. It also comes in with insurance band 7 so should be cheap to run. There may be depreciation issues, although as new tax rules start to bite hybrid cars will become more valuable on an almost daily basis

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