Overview
The new Civic Sedan features the most rigid, tightly sealed body and aerodynamic body design in Civic history, with the greatest use of high-strength steel for any Civic model ever made, offering significant advancements to overall noise, vibration and harshness (NVH), ride and handling, fuel efficiency and collision performance.
Longer, lower and wider, the new Civic body is also more spacious, with 5.8 additional cubic feet of passenger and cargo space. Despite its larger size, the new Civic Sedan’s unibody is 68 pounds lighter than before with a 25 percent increase in torsional rigidity, while its lower height, wider stance and shortened front overhang serve as the basis for the new Civic’s sportier, more premium look and feel.
Advanced unibody construction techniques, including the use of Honda’s next-generation ACE™ body structure and new crash stroke front frame, enable superior front, side and rear crash-worthiness. Comprehensive body sealing measures, the use of acoustic windshield glass combine with new chassis technologies, such as hydraulic suspension and engine mounts, to make the 2016 Civic Sedan the quietest and most refined Civic yet.
Key Body Features
- Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body structure with new crash stroke front frame design*^
- 59-percent high strength steels (14 percent ultra-high strength steel)
- B-Pillars and rear frame members with selectively-tempered soft zones*^
- 590 MPa high-strength steel floor pan*
- Narrow A-pillars for 84.3 degrees of forward visibility
- Acoustic-glass, flush mounted windshield
- Acoustic fiber side under-panels
- Acoustically sealed unibody
- Full underbody covering*
* First for Civic
^ First for Honda
Exterior Dimensions
Compared to the previous model, the 2016 Civic Sedan’s wheelbase is 1.2 inches longer for improved ride comfort, better second-row seating roominess, and improved ingress and egress. The overall length is up 2.9 inches, improving interior roominess as well as cargo storage capacity. A 1.4-inch shorter front overhang improves both appearance and aerodynamic efficiency, while a 2.9-inch longer rear overhang adds to storage capacity. Fuel efficiency is improved in part due to comprehensive aerodynamic gains throughout the exterior, and even underneath the vehicle.
2016 Civic vs. 2015 Civic Exterior Dimensions
(See the Specifications and Features section for all data.)
Increased Trunk Capacity
The 2016 Civic Sedan has a wider and deeper trunk with 15.1 cu. ft. of storage volume, 2.6 cu. ft. (or 20.8 percent) larger than the 12.5 cu. ft. of the previous Civic Sedan. Together with the enlarged passenger volume, this makes the new Civic Sedan best in class in total interior volume. (See the Interior section for more information.)
A low lift-over height of 26.8 inches and a maximum trunk opening width of 39.7 inches improves the ease of loading or unloading bulky items, as does a flat trunk floor, which measures 54.9 inches wide and 40.6 inches deep – all significant improvements over the previous model. The floor and trunk sides are carpeted to help protect cargo during transit, and also to help reduce road noise entering the passenger cabin.
The Civic Sedan’s trunk will accommodate four soft suitcases or four golf bags – one more of each compared to the previous Civic Sedan. For long, narrow items such as skis, the 3.5 sq-ft. trunk pass-through is 20.6-percent larger than before. A removable floor panel hides the temporary spare tire, jack and wrench. A single LED cargo-area light provides illumination when the trunk lid is open.
Key Body Specifications
(See the Specifications and Features section for all data.)
Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™)
As an integral part of the 2016 Civic structure, Honda’s proprietary Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body-structure enhances occupant protection and crash compatibility in frontal collisions. ACE utilizes a network of connected structural elements to distribute crash energy more evenly throughout the front of the vehicle, thus reducing the forces transferred to the passenger compartment. ACE channels frontal crash energy to both upper and lower structural elements, including the floor frame rails, side sills and A-pillars.
Crash Stroke
A Honda first, the ACE™ structure used on the new Civic features a new crash stroke technology, developed by Honda engineers in the company’s advanced safety research laboratory in Raymond. Ohio. With the new crash stroke structure, in a frontal collision the lower section of the front vehicle frame hinges to direct the engine down and rearward, helping direct crash energy into the vehicle’s floor while also minimizing cabin intrusion. This crucial piece of safety engineering effectively adds 80mm (3.2 in) of additional energy-absorbing “crash stroke” to the front of the vehicle.
Besides helping the Civic aim for the highest ratings in the rigorous federal crash tests, the new crash stroke structure enabled designers to develop the Civic’s body design to feature a short front overhang and short hood-line for a unique and exciting appearance, excellent outward visibility and improved handling. (See the Safety and Driver Assistive section for more information.)
Improved Body Rigidity
Compared to the previous Civic generation, the new 2016 Civic Sedan body’s global bending rigidity increases 19 percent and its torsional rigidity increases 23 percent. The benefits of this increased stiffness are numerous, including the ability to tune the suspension for superior ride and handling performance. The more rigid body structure also directly results in a quieter and more comfortable ride experience for the passengers, with less NVH felt over a wide range of driving conditions. Some key advancements in body structure include:
Under the Hood
- A lower stiffener, located behind the engine on the front bulkhead, improves handling
In the Unibody
- Certain connection areas where the A-pillars meet the floor sills, and the B-pillars meet both the floor sills and roof rails, reduce idle vibration and booming
- Large body panels are shaped using computer aided engineering (CAE) to reduce booming
- Gussets positioned inside the rear quarter areas of the unibody reduce road noise
- An internal rear structural ring stiffens the unibody for improved handling
- Short-pitch welding places spot welds 20mm (0.8 in) apart in critical areas of the unibody, compared to 40mm to 45mm (1.6 in to 1.8 in) traditional spacing, increasing stiffness and durability
Underneath the Vehicle
- The Civic’s floor pan is made of 590-MPa high-strength steel to provide a lighter yet stronger overall structure
- Floor cross-members positioned under the driver and front passenger’s seating area improve ride comfort
- A lateral cross-member and damper structure, located between the rear wheels, improves handling
- A cross-car brace, located at the front of the vehicle, improves handling
Aerodynamics
The Civic was designed to have class-leading aerodynamic performance – including 12-percent less drag than the previous Civic generation – which helps improve both fuel efficiency and interior quietness. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to measure the car’s efficiency during the design phase, followed by scale-model wind tunnel testing and finally by full-scale wind-tunnel testing. Two critical gains from this process include a 15-percent reduction in drag (CdA) through the management of underbody and engine-room airflow, and another 4-percent CdA reduction through wheel design.
Specially shaped components at the front of the vehicle guide airflow through the radiator and into the engine’s cold-air intake, while channeling the remaining airflow over, around and under the vehicle. Along with narrower the A-pillars and flush-mounted glass, these contribute to the Civic’s efficient passage through the air. The relaxed slope of the rear roofline and rear window further improves aerodynamic efficiency.
The new Civic features the flattest underbody of any gasoline-powered Honda production vehicle. A molded under-panel is positioned directly beneath the front fascia, starting the rearward flow of air underneath the vehicle in a smooth manner. An aluminum under-tray is positioned underneath the engine and transmission and features a cooling duct that allows ambient airflow to the hydraulic engine mount. Dual side under-panels (molded plastic on LX, acoustic fiber on EX and above trims) extend from behind the front wheels to just ahead of the rear wheels, further smoothing the airflow as it travels rearward, while also reducing wind noise in the passenger cabin.
Lateral strakes located ahead of each wheel and tire (8.5 inches wide in front, and 3.5 inches wide in the rear) help deflect airflow around the tires for additional aerodynamic efficiency gains. Even the stamped steel exhaust silencers are aerodynamically shaped, eliminating the need for an under-cover at the rear of the vehicle. This reduces parts count, complexity and weight while helping to ensure optimal aerodynamic efficiency.
In-Die Softzone
In a first for Honda, the Civic employs selectively-tempered “soft zone” technology. This special forming technique allows the creation of specially tempered areas, or soft zones, within an ultra-high-strength hot-stamped steel part. As a result, simpler, lighter components can provide the appropriate energy pathways necessary to absorb crash forces. The process minimizes both parts count and weight. In the 2016 Civic Sedan, this technology, applied to the B-pillars and rear frame rails, saves 15.6 pounds compared to the previous-generation Civic.
The process involves heating the sheet steel to 930-degrees Centigrade before simultaneously stamping and cooling key areas of the part. A laser cutting trimming process then completes the component.
Side crash area
Located where the B-pillar joins the lower sill, a new built-in soft zone is designed to bend during a side collision, channeling crash forces away from the passenger compartment and into the B-pillar and lower sill. The soft zone’s rated material strength is 550-650 MPa advanced high-strength steel, compared to the much stronger 1500 MPa hot-stamp steel of the overall B-pillar and lower sill. Using the technology in the B-pillars saved 6.8 pounds.
Rear crash area
The rearward ends of the two rear unibody frame rails each contain a pair of soft zones designed to fold in a controlled, three-bend manner in the event of a rear impact, helping to attenuate crash energy. The rated material strength of these soft zones is 700-800 MPa high-strength steel, compared to the much stronger 1500 MPa hot-stamp steel of the overall rear frame rail. Using the technology in the rear frame rails saves 8.8 pounds.
T-Direction Welding
Applied to the forward edge of the front door hinge pillars, just behind the front wheel openings, a new “T-direction welding” technique is anticipated to help the 2016 Civic earn top ratings in the rigorous IIHS narrow offset frontal collision test, based on Honda internal testing. Instead of using lateral overlapping welded joints on the hinge pillars, which would be negatively affected by the wheel moving rearward and striking the pillar in an offset frontal collision, the hinge pillars instead use a longitudinal welded seam designed to withstand sheer forces generated in such a collision.
Class-leading Forward Visibility
The A-pillar section on the 2016 Civic is 18mm (0.7 in) narrower than on the previous-generation Civic, reducing the obstructed area by 11.6-percent, and resulting in a 7.9-degree improvement in forward visibility. As a result, the new Civic offers a class-leading 84.3 degrees of forward visibility (the angle made by drawing lines from the driver’s eye point to the outboard edges of the A pillars). Safety is maintained through the pillars’ shape, the precise design of load pathways during a frontal collision or rollover, and the use of 1500 MPa hot-stamped ultra-high-strength steel for the A-pillars.
High-Strength Steel
Multiple steel grades are used in the Civic’s body construction to help achieve excellent overall vehicle dynamics, optimize safety performance, and lower NVH. Materials range from five different grades of steel, including premium hot-stamp steel and ultra-high-strength steel used in the unibody, to aluminum for the front bumper beam. All were chosen to achieve the best combination of strength, rigidity, dynamic performance and light weight. Fully 59 percent of the body structure is composed of high-strength steel, up 7.3 percent compared to 55 percent for the previous Civic Sedan. In addition, the use of hot-stamp ultra-high strength steel increases to 14 percent from 1 percent in the previous-generation Civic.
Lighter Weight
The increased use of high-strength steel contributes to a 68-pound reduction in weight for the 2016 Civic Sedan’s unibody compared to the previous Civic generation.
Body Materials
Noise, Vibration and Harshness (NVH) Countermeasures
The new Civic takes noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) countermeasures to the next level, positioning it at the top of its competitive set. All Civic trims feature strategically placed body sealants (see below). Additional NVH enhancements on all models include acoustic separators inside the A-, B- and C-pillars, while a sound-insulating acoustic windshield (see below) further aids overall cabin quietness.
Engine Compartment Isolation
Measures to isolate sound and heat emanating from within the engine compartment include dedicated front, side and rear hood seals, strategically placed heat baffles, a hood insulator panel, an engine under-cover, and dedicated insulation within the instrument panel. Inside the vehicle, a one-piece molded insulated carpet liner adds further to exceptional heat isolation and noise reduction for the 2016 Civic.
Acoustic Windshield
Special laminated acoustic glass is used for the Civic windshield to help reduce noise entering the cabin. Tuned specifically to attenuate wind-noise frequencies, the windshield glass uses an outer layer of 2.0mm safety glass, a 0.7mm thick middle layer of acoustic polyvinyl butyral (PVB), and a 1.8mm safety-glass inner layer for a total thickness of 4.5mm. This helps the Civic place at the top of its class in wind-noise performance. The windshield also incorporates UV light-absorbing technology. In addition, the Civic Sedan has 4.0mm tempered front door glass and 3.5mm tempered rear door glass. The available one-touch power moonroof with tilt feature uses 3.5mm tinted and tempered glass.
Sound-absorbing Undercovers
Underneath the Civic, along both sides of the passenger cabin, are absorptive undercovers (fiber on the LX and EX, and molded plastic on the EX-T and above trims) that mitigate road and wind noise. A special baffle plate located beneath the center of the floor pan, and felt fender inner liners on EX and above trims, further attenuate wind and road noise.
Body Sealing
The 2016 Civic Sedan has an unprecedented level of body sealing to dramatically reduce the levels of noise inside the vehicle – a 58-percent overall leak reduction compared to the previous-generation Civic. Throughout the unibody are 9.3 sq. in. of weld seals and other sealers to reduce vibration and the transmission of noise.
Additional measures include:
- Pillar separators seal the hollow A-, B- and C-pillars to reduce the transmission of noise from the floor area into the passenger cabin.
- Triple door sealing utilizes 360-degree molded door seals to reduce wind noise and improve isolation.
- New door gap seals at the rear edges of the doors are a first for Civic. They join the triple sealed door openings and lower door-edge seals in keeping wind noise from entering the cabin.
- A total of eight new air leak reduction moldings and clips are used at key locations where the side windows slide into the Sedan’s four doors, reducing the possibility of audible air leaks occurring in these locations.
Along with internal bracing, acoustic hole seals fill open areas inside the door structures, significantly reducing the amount of wind and road noise and vibration that can reach the cabin. The same Thinsulate™ material that is used in the doors is also used to reduce sound transmission through the roof, the body A- and C-pillars, and the rear tray.
(See the Specifications and Features section for all data.)