Honda has big plans for the Civic. When we first reported on it yesterday, Honda aimed to make waves with Generation Z, and chose to unveil the 2022 Civic Prototype via Twitch (the first time that an automaker has ever used the service for that purpose.) But we were left wondering, can the 2022 Honda Civic serve as an effective continuation of the Civic nameplate? Especially as younger buyers are rapidly moving towards utility vehicles?
Radical styling shift signals more polish is coming to the Civic 
We learned several things from Honda’s trip to Twitch. The fact that there are young Fortnite players out there with reflexes and finger speeds far superior to the majority of the U.S. population, and that the Civic is going to get a massive reboot in terms of design. The wild angles, curves, and protrusions of the old Civic are gone, and instead, Honda designers opted for a sleeker and far smoother approach to things, with the front fascia adopting a new front grille design, as well as sharper headlights. The side profile does feature several design lines, but unlike the current generation Civic, things have been reigned in a bit, and the theme of focused style is once again prevalent.
Honda claims that the whole point of the new duds is to help make the Civic look lower and meaner, but the rear end is arguably where things get the wildest. The old and rather tacky lightbar gets pitched, with the Prototype adding new split style taillights (it’s unknown if the smoked look will make it to production) a new spoiler, as well as a tidy set of exhaust tips. Solar Flare yellow (the color featured here) will be offered on the Civic, but as reported previously, the Civic coupe is canned for this generation, with the Civic only being available in sedan or hatchback configuration.
New interior brings welcome changes and new trim too 
Unlike the exterior, Honda chose to release one lone rendering of the interior of the Civic prototype. While we eagerly await photos of the real deal, the rendering does show that some changes are coming here for buyers as well. The firm wanted to try and maintain the impressive ergonomics that define the current generation Civic, but also usher in a new era of simplicity at the same time. The dashboard now features a horizontal dash design, with minimal buttons and switchgear scattered about. There are modest trim changes in the cabin, and the infotainment system now sits on top of the dashboard versus being embedded in it.
While we’re not big fans of dash mounted units, we are willing to wait until we try it out for ourselves to usher in final judgement. We certainly hope that faster and newer software is on deck for the system, which has arguably been one of the biggest faults of the current generation Civic. It certainly seems to be moving in the right direction, with Honda reps revealing that the screen has grown from 7.0 inches to 9.0 inches, The Civic is also ushering in a small change within Honda’s broader lineup, with the model bringing the first ever all digital dashboard to a Honda product. Digital dashboards are rapidly becoming very popular in the automotive world as of late and perhaps Honda did this to further cement its ties with tech focused buyers, especially as Generation Z moves closer to driving age.
When can I buy a 2022 Civic? 
Like other Honda and Acura models that have been previewed as “prototypes” the wait for the new Civic shouldn’t be that long, with the production version of the 2022 Civic making its way to Honda dealers early next year. At this stage in the game, pricing information as well as final engine offerings are also unknown, but look for those items to appear closer to the Civic’s official launch.
But this early look does appear to show that Honda is still willing to invest plenty of dollars in the Civic, and it will be interesting to see if this latest iteration of Civic can continue its winning ways or not.
Carl Malek has been an automotive journalist for over 10 years. First starting out as a freelance photographer before making the transition to writing during college, his work has appeared on numerous automotive forums as well as websites such as Autoshopper.com.
Carl is also a big fan of British vehicles with the bulk of his devotion going to the Morgan Motor Company as well as offerings from Lotus, MG, and Caterham. When he is not writing about automobiles, Carl enjoys spending time with his family and friends in the Metro Detroit area, as well as spending time with his adorable pets.