2022 Honda Civic Hatchback Review: Best Gets Better

The Venn diagram showcasing the strengths of the 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback looks like a Spirograph.

It’s no secret that the new-for-2022 Civic sedan is already the best car in the segment. Refined, big-car feel? Check. A cleaner, premium-feeling cabin? Yep. Still quietly excellent to drive? Uh huh. If you haven’t yet fallen under the spell of a crossover, the Civic offers pretty much everything you could ask for in a reasonably-priced new car.

Now here comes the Hatchback, which wraps all the inherent goodness of the 11th-generation Civic in a more practical shape. It’s a great car made greater still—and with the available manual transmission, it should appeal to those craving that extra bit of interaction, too.

Well, that shape, of course. Like the sedan, the Civic Hatchback has adopted a simpler design than the origami-like 10th-gen model. Half a year of them multiplying on the road has only reinforced my personal opinion that it’s a better design, a move back to the strong, clean shapes that Honda favored in the ’90s.

The Hatchback gets its own rear treatment, though as before, it’s pretty hard to spot unless you’ve got a view of the tail itself. It’s here where the unique rear taillights make it clear that yes, this is the hatchback. The truncated tail helps the Civic feel, well, compact once again—it shaves five full inches from the length, which is now 179.0 inches.

The style revolution continued inside for the 11th-generation Civic. Honda ditched the spaceship aesthetic for something altogether cleaner and easier to grasp. And grasp is exactly what you’ll want to do to the trio of climate control knobs in the center of the dashboard. They turn with a pleasantly tactile click, an important early touch point that gives the Civic an upmarket feel. The rest of the dashboard is a smooth combo of textures, the high-quality plastic, mesh, and yes, even piano black trim come together for an interior that punches well above its weight.

The powered, leather front seats are redesigned, and prove comfortable and supportive. Note that they do sit quite low though, so ingress and egress can be tough on some folks. Honda has carved out more head and legroom, with 37.6 and 42.3 inches of the stuff, respectively. Rear-seat passengers will find more legroom than before too, now up to an impressive 37.4 inches. There’s no headroom difference between sedan and hatchback, with enough for this 5’10” writer to easily sit “behind himself.”

There was a time not too long ago that a digital instrument panel and 9.0-inch touchscreen were the markers of a luxury model. Now they’re in a Civic. Not all Civics get the 10.2-inch panel in front of the driver: lower trims stick to analog dials with a 7.0-inch screen between them, and a central touchscreen measuring the same size. But the setup on offer here is a good one, with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support, unique to the larger screen. A wireless charging pad is also present and accounted for. The color-coded menus are easy to navigate, even if they aren’t the prettiest.

The instrument panel screen earns higher marks. Not only does it offer plenty of useful information right in front of the driver, but it goes above and beyond with smart little details. The overview screen used for the adaptive cruise control, for instance, shows a little graphic of the car, with turn signals and lights mirroring the car’s current settings. The adaptive cruise control screen also shows the traffic surrounding the car, and where it sits in its own lane. Another big perk: the navigation screen works in conjunction with Apple Maps.

The latest Civic features the sort of deft dynamic tuning you’d associate with a German premium brand. There’s a calculated maturity to how the car rides, with a bit of firmness and excellent body control. The Civic’s suspension handles all manner of surfaces with care, smoothing over surface-level harshness. The electrically-assisted steering is of course light, but it’s got a nice consistency to it, and turn-in is eager. The whole setup gels, making the Civic an easy rider on highways, and a willing companion on back roads.

Helping with the latter is the six-speed manual. In typical Honda fashion it’s silly easy to operate, with a light clutch pedal and short, accurate throws. I wouldn’t begrudge someone for opting for the CVT—Honda knows most folks will, and it’s a good example of the breed—but if you’re even remotely interested in that extra level of mechanical control, the three-pedal is the way to go.

The 1.5-liter turbo is a good match, too. Older heads might still think of Hondas as high-revving buzz-boxes, but this little four-pot packs a thick slug of torque barely over idle. It means you don’t necessarily need to hustle through the gears, especially since the engine is done its best work by 5,000 rpm. But it does translate to excellent around-town manners, where you can surf along on the torque in third or fourth gear without issue.

You’ll pay a small penalty for opting for the manual. The EPA rates the CVT-equipped Sport Touring hatch at 30 mpg city, 37 mpg highway, and 33 mpg combined; the six-speed drops 2 mpg off the city and combined ratings. Canadian 6MT figures are 8.5, 6.3, and 7.5 L/100 km, respectively. Over a little under 200 miles (310 km) of driving, I averaged 34.6 mpg (6.8 L/100 km).

If you’re picking up on the lack of major negatives in this five-door package, here’s one: it’s pricey. The Civic has always asked a little more from the pocketbook, and the 2022 Hatchback goes further still.

Pricing for the hatch starts from $24,365 ($29,700 CAD), including destination, for a 2.0-equipped LX model. If you want the turbo engine, we’re talking at least $28,065 ($33,200 CAD). At the top of the tree is this here $30,865 ($36,700 CAD) Sport Touring.

That’s a lot of coin, notably more than any Toyota Corolla hatch. The Mazda 3 can crack the $30k barrier too, but that car offers the option of AWD (and the high-powered 2.5 Turbo, but that’s a different proposition). If you crave the sportiness and don’t mind forfeiting the five-door practicality, the new Civic Si sedan also undercuts the top-level hatch.

The 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback is an excellent riposte to the sub-compact crossover. The hatchback offers just as much practicality, and—to these eyes anyway—the car shape looks a lot better than just about any sub-compact crossover you can buy.

More than that, the hatchback still contains all the baked-in goodness of the 11th-gen model. The interior approaches premium status, as does the ride. Basically, it takes everything that makes the Civic sedan the best car in the segment, and adds an extra dollop of goodness on top.

FAQs

How much does a 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback cost?

The Civic Hatchback has a starting price of $24,365 ($29,700 CAD). A loaded Sport Touring model like this will set you back $30,865 ($36,700 CAD).

When can you buy the 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback?

Right now; dealerships started stocking the hatch late in 2021.

Can you get a manual transmission in the 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback?

Yes. The only way to get a manual transmission in the sedan is the sporty Si trim.