This text was not translated, because it is originally in English
Diesel Civic Tourer performs capably, but poorer interior refinement means luggage space is prioritised over passenger comfort. The Honda Civic in estate form, refashioned from the B-pillar backwards to pack the maximum luggage and, it has to be said, to appear a little more handsome than the rather awkward-looking hatch. The car has been engineered in Europe (Germany and the UK, largely), a first for Honda, and with it comes a range of technology upgrades that will also appear on the hatchback. These include a driver-assistance safety pack, featuring a city-brake system, forward collision warning, automatic headlamp high beam, lane departure warning, traffic sign recognition, blind spot warning and a monitor that warns of passing traffic when youre reversing. It costs 780 – good value – and is available on all versions bar the entry-point S. Honda has also improved the appearance of the Civics dash – an area of criticism on the hatchback – with the application of some matt-black finishes, aluminium surrounds for the airvents and double stitching for the gearlever gaiter and drivers knee pad. Subtle stuff, but an improvement nonetheless. The Tourer itself is impressive on a number of counts, not least thanks to its vast seats-down load bay, whose 1668 litres also includes a sizeable under-floor well occupying the space where you might have found a spare wheel. The floor itself is flat and low, in part because the Civics fuel tank is cleverly housed under the front seats. This allows the cushions of the back-bench to hinge upwards and clip to the backrest, providing a particularly tall and useful load zone. Honda calls them magic seats, and its a surprise that no other maker has copied them. The under-floor well stores two regulation carry-on airline cases, and includes dedicated storage for the tonneau cover and the two-position cargo net, and a shopping back hook that locks into position. The carpets are easy-clean, too. An intriguing Tourer feature is a set of switchable adaptive dampers for the rear axle, standard on the top two trims, a 550 option on the lower two.