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be a sporty, dynamic car, "We wanted that power. We needed that power." But, he adds, "Honestly, fuel economy is a huge focus for our company, so in order to get power and fuel economy, we needed the turbo." The turbo provides an estimated 31/42/35 mpg city/highway combined, so even though it is more powerful than the 2.0 liter, the fuel economy numbers are on par. What is interesting to note is that Evert says that in terms of the product development sequence that was underway at Honda, the turbo was not going to be timed coincident with the launch of the 10th-gen car. However, the team wanted to make sure that it was ready, so they advanced the eforts to get the engine ready to go. The Civic is available with continuously variable trans- missions (CTVs), assembled in Russells Point, Ohio, one specifc to each of the engines. Both CTVs ofer what is called "G-design shift logic." Essentially, this helps provide immediate acceleration response, such as when accelerating from a steady-state speed. Rather than having the rubber band-like feeling lag that is characteristic of some CVTs, the Civic CVTs are engineered so that power is immediately sent to the drive wheels while the gear ratio is being adjusted so that there is more of a linear feel. A six-speed manual is available on the LX trim, which is the base grade. The EX, EX-T, EX-L, and Touring grades all come with a standard CVT. The exterior styling of the sedan was done by Jarad Hall. The two-door was done by Guy Melville-Brown. In both cases, Evert says that the objective was to create a car that is low and wide. And it is. '16 Sedan '15 Sedan Difference Length (in.): 182.3 179.4 +2.9 Width: 70.9 69.0 +1.9 Height: 55.7 56.5 -0.8 Wheelbase: 106.3 105.1 +1.2 Front overhang: 35.2 36.6 -1.4 Rear overhang: 40.7 37.8 -2.9 What is interesting to note, however, is that there were some ramifcations regarding low and wide that occurred in the devel- opment program, one related to the design of the instrument panel and the other to safety. The 2016 Civic production was launched at Honda of Canada Manufacturing in Alliston, Ontario. Shown here is the front module being ftted to the sedan. What's notable is that unlike in previous builds, the front bulkhead is bolted on the vehicle, not welded. By not having it in place early in the assembly, workers have better access to the engine bay. 28 COVER STORY