The Breakdown: Honda Civic Touring vs. Toyota Corolla XSE

MotorTrend

It may not be as old or have created as much tire smoke

Transcript

00:00 If you were talking to someone about buying a compact sedan, what would you say to them?

00:04 I'd say get the Civic. Yeah, as simple as that.

00:07 Hey, I'm here with three Motor Trend editors and they've just finished a two-car comparison test.

00:17 Head-to-head, it is the Honda Civic versus the brand new Toyota Corolla.

00:21 The result is Honda Civic wins. Miguel, why does it win?

00:26 It's just a great car all around. I mean, it has the value, it has the looks, it has the technology,

00:31 it has the space, the interior space. It has everything that a buyer that's looking into that segment, it has it.

00:38 It really wasn't much of a comparison to be honest. I mean, the Civic was just either

00:42 good or very good in everything we stuck at it.

00:46 Even though there are hundreds of thousands of Civics from this generation on the road today,

00:53 I still think that's a really strong design. You know, with those boomerang tail lights and

00:58 just the way it kind of caves in at the back like that, it's a cool design.

01:02 I would say that from last generation on the Corolla to this generation, it's a huge change

01:07 in terms of design. It just, the car looks way better, it's fresher, it's sportier, it's younger.

01:13 It has much more appeal to it than what the previous gen had.

01:19 Basically, these are all compact cars, but as we found out, the packaging and the way that they use

01:25 a very similar amount of space differs a lot. Zach, you said the Honda does the best.

01:30 Oh, I have such a crush on the Honda. I just can't believe how well it makes the most of its space.

01:35 And it's not even a question of, oh, the Civic is much longer and harder to park, because it's not.

01:40 It still has way more backseat space and more trunk space.

01:43 And then where does that leave Toyota in terms of kind of interior styling and quality and features?

01:49 I don't think it's a bad interior, but it doesn't resonate either. You know,

01:52 some features that can seem a little old in a way, but the interior in general,

01:58 it's just plain simple, okay. The dash is like in your face,

02:02 and you feel like you're getting crammed in there.

02:06 And I like the Honda LaneWatch, which is a camera that's mounted on the bottom of the passenger side

02:16 side mirror, and it points backwards and it basically tells you, it shows you what's in your blind spots.

02:23 I think the best one here, and we all could agree, is the Civic's, right? Like,

02:26 the Lane Keeping Assist works great. It stays right centered on its lane.

02:31 There's good distance with the adaptive cruise control, whereas, you know, there's no car that's

02:38 going to get in between you and the car in front of you. Part two is that the Lane Keeping Assist

02:42 on the Civic, well, if you keep it on and you're going to go through a minor, like, just a really

02:48 mild turn on the freeway, it will turn for you. It will help you turn, and the Toyota does that too,

02:53 but the Toyota is not as accurate as that Civic.

02:56 So, as you guys were driving these cars around, I know you did loops.

03:03 Do you have anything to add to you about the handling or the dynamics of the cars?

03:07 Yeah, well, with the Toyota having driven the previous-gen Corolla a couple times,

03:12 I was really surprised by how responsive the CVT was. It's actually the slowest car

03:17 in motor trend testing, and yet it didn't feel like that on the road.

03:22 The Corolla, for me, was a surprise here too, because it just feels way better. It feels more

03:27 agile. The steering is very well balanced too. There was so much refinement compared to the

03:32 previous generation. The handling verdict is the Civic for both sportiness and comfort.

03:37 All around, I mean, the engine, the 1.5-liter engine, is pretty sporty too,

03:41 and it's just, you know, pretty powerful. All that power train mixed with the well-balanced

03:48 suspension, the sport steering, it makes a car that's really fun to drive.

03:52 So, the bottom line is, even if you're not someone who's going to go on winding roads,

03:56 the Honda just rides better.

04:02 That's the verdict. The Honda Civic wins over the new Toyota Corolla.

04:05 To read the story, catch Zach's article on MotorTrend.com.

04:09 [Music]

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