2025 Honda Civic RS: Unimpeachable sedan excellence
There are some things in this world that are just too good to let go, despite the arrival of modern alternatives.
In this era of touchscreens and touchpads, the computer mouse that I learned with in the 1990s should have gone the way of the dodo long ago. But anyone who has ever been infuriated with the imprecision of the aforementioned haptic interfaces still appreciates and buys these quaint pieces of hardware, with a design dating back to the 1980s.
And if you ask any of my colleagues, they know that I’m one of the very few people who still uses a traditional paper notebook – a smartphone is great when I need to immediately run photos on our official Facebook page (like us now on Mobility PH), but I can still jot down long notes quickly without needing a charger or powerbank.
The traditional four-door sedan, once the prized carriage of the Filipino family, started losing its crown to the Asian Utility Vehicle in the late 1990s. And nowadays, you can buy multi-purpose vehicles, crossovers and even vans for the price of a modern Honda Civic.
Yet the Civic lives on, even getting a sensational hybrid-electric e:HEV model as a concession to the changing times. But it still has four doors, an enormous trunk and a sleek profile that actually stands out amid the towering figures of the modern Filipino family car.
We take a look at why the 2025 Honda Civic RS is still one of the best of them all.
Low and wide
Park the Civic next to its biggest rival, the Toyota Corolla Altis GR-S, and you’ll see the world of difference.
Whereas the conservative Corolla has a formal and upright appearance, the Honda has a low and wide stance, emphasized by the large LED headlights. The recent design refresh means a much cleaner lower bumper akin to its supercar-killing sibling, the Civic Type R.
The steeply raked front and rear windscreens, along with the flared fenders to accommodate the black, 18-inch, 10-spoke alloy wheels, just emphasize the Civic RS’ length. Meanwhile, the strong character line above the door handles and the subtle side skirt tastefully exude this sedan’s sporting character.
Out back, the large trunk spoiler and prominent dual exhaust pipes are your only hints that this Civic isn’t the base V variant. In addition, the large LED taillights fit in well with the various curves and edges of this car’s design language.
Capacious cabin
Inside, the Civic RS has a crisp, clean and spacious interior, with the hexagonal-pattern air-conditioning vents taking more than half of the dashboard.
On the center console, you get simple physical controls for the powerful dual-zone climate-control system. Everyone should be doing it like this as fumbling with a touchscreen on the road to prevent your imminent hypothermia is hugely dangerous (think back to why computer mice are still a thing today).
And speaking of touchscreens, you don’t get a 55-inch TV welded to the dash here – just a 9-inch infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto that is mated to a Bose 12-speaker surround-sound system. There is even a physical button to go quickly back to the previous menu, although the display from the rear cameras is rather fuzzy.
All Civic RS models get a very supportive, electrically adjustable driver’s seat that are much more livable than the manual semi-bucket seats in the Civic Type R. And although you get soft-touch materials and part-suede upholstery, I would have preferred a full-leather interior at this price point.
Turbo power
Go for a drive in the Civic RS and you realize that this is not just some hum-drum sedan with sporty cosmetics (a charge that I can bring forward to some of this Honda’s rivals).
Under the long hood is a turbocharged 1.5-liter, twin-cam, 16-valve inline-4 gasoline engine pumping out 176 horsepower and 240 Newton-meters of torque, which are coursed through a continuously variable transmission. There is more than sufficient motivation as low as 1,500 rpm, allowing for relaxed driving at low speeds.
But when the road and the mood take you, the Civic RS Turbo girds its loins and unleashes full boost, pulling smoothly to the 6,500 rpm redline with a pleasant exhaust growl. The well-weighted steering, planted ride and handling, and powerful, easy-to-modulate brakes work in tandem to make this sedan a joy, even in spirited driving.
And should you be stupid enough to exceed this car’s high hardware limitations, the superb Honda SENSING active-safety suite is ready to step in with life-saving software like Adaptive Cruise Control, Collision Mitigation Braking System and Lane Departure Warning.
Adding to the list of positives is the good fuel consumption – 9 to 12 kilometers per liter in the city and 17 to 20 kilometers per liter on the expressway. Perhaps the only thing that took away from the Civic RS’ driving pleasure is that I had driven the Civic RS e:HEV beforehand.
The latter’s 2.0-liter hybrid-electric powerplant not only gets better fuel economy, but also packs one hell of a punch – combined output is 181 horsepower and 315 Newton-meters of torque. And because it’s not turbocharged, throttle response is more instantaneous and satisfying (there’s no replacement for displacement, as they say).
Superb sedan
Overall, the P1,790,000 Honda Civic RS offers everything you could ever want in a non-hybrid family sedan – it’s roomy, fun to drive, exceedingly safe and reasonably economical.
The P1,333,000 Toyota Corolla Altis GR-S may be considerably cheaper, but it is also considerably slower and less engaging to drive. And then there’s the P1,790,000 Mazda 3 HEV – like the Civic, it’s not a full hybrid-electric vehicle, but it is even more exciting to drive and sports a sumptuous cabin that befits a car near P1.8 million.
But the best part about driving a sedan like the 2025 Honda Civic RS is that you don’t look like you’re driving around in a condominium tower. Besides the computer mouse and the notebook, style is yet another thing that just won’t die, even amid the rise of pragmatic neoliberalism.
And neither, I think, will this long-running Honda.
