2025 Mercedes-AMG C43 almost $20k cheaper despite more power, equipment
Available to order now, the updated C43 is priced at $123,800 before on-road costs.
Its turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine now produces 310kW of power – up 10kW – and 500Nm of torque.
It features a 48V mild-hybrid system, a nine-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive, and can do the 0-100km/h dash in 4.3 seconds.
Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Supplied Credit: CarExpert
Mercedes-AMG previously quoted a 4.6-second sprint time for the C43, which launched here in 2023.
Standard equipment for the C43 now includes: Night Package II (dark grille and badging)
AMG Dynamic Plus package
AMG Performance steering wheel in Nappa leather, Microcut microfibre
AMG Performance Seat Package High End
Metal Structure centre console, dash trim
AMG Track Pace
'Following the strong demand for the limited Mercedes-AMG C 43 Edition R launched last year, the base model Mercedes-AMG C 43 4MATIC receives performance-oriented upgrades to its carefully edited standard specification and is now available at a sharper price point,' the company explained in a release. Supplied Credit: CarExpert
Last year's Edition R saw the C43 gain all of this extra equipment – if at the expense of some other accoutrements – for a lower price tag of $112,600 before on-road costs.
The limited edition model swapped Mercedes' Digital Light headlights with Adaptive High Beam Assist Plus for regular LED headlights with adaptive high-beam, and lost stop-and-go assist for its adaptive cruise control, augmented reality for its satellite navigation, and heat- and noise-insulating acoustic glazing.
These features remain on the C43, as do the following: 20-inch alloy wheels
Panoramic sunroof
Rain-sensing wipers
Power-folding exterior mirrors
Proximity entry with push-button start
Power boot-lid
Autonomous emergency braking
Blind-spot monitoring
Lane-keep assist
Safe exit warning
Surround-view camera
Tyre pressure monitoring
Semi-autonomous parking assist
Heated, power-adjustable front seats with memory
Ambient lighting
Wireless phone charger
11.9-inch touchscreen infotainment system
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
12.3-inch digital instrument cluster
The C43 is Mercedes-AMG's rival to the Audi S5 and BMW M340i xDrive, which remain more affordable even after this price cut at $114,900 and $117,600 before on-roads, respectively.
The Mercedes has them beat in terms of power, pumping out 40kW more than the S5 and 25kW more than the M340i, but the BMW matches it in torque and the Audi produces an extra 50Nm.
The C43 slots in under the C63 S E Performance, which gains a plug-in hybrid system and takes on the BMW M3.
MORE: Everything Mercedes-AMG C43
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
6 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Belgian Grand Prix LIVE: Piastri starts second on grid behind teammate Norris
Latest posts Latest posts 10.18pm Where did Horner go? All the off-season shenanigans explained Hannah Kennelly The Belgian Grand Prix begins the second half of the F1 season, however the bigest moments so far have arguably come from the off-season. In case you've been living under a rock, Red Bull abruptly fired their long-term team principal Christian Horner after a 20-year stint that included eight Formula 1 drivers' titles, six constructors' titles, and 124 race wins. Red Bull did not give a reason for the decision, but thanked Horner for his work and said he will 'forever remain an important part of our team history'. The announcement comes more than a year after Horner was accused of misconduct toward a team employee. So what actually happened? The announcement follows a period of tense internal politics within Red Bull as well as a lacklustre performance on track during the 2025 season. Read more here. Will Max Verstappen go to Mercedes? If you weren't swept up in the Horner saga, it's likely you've been occupied by the rumour-mill concerning Max Verstappen and a potential move to Mercedes. Loading Verstappen currently sits in third place in the driver's championship, and while the Dutchman's talent and drive to win remains unquestionable, it's clear that McLaren have the better car and pace. Mercedes driver George Russell's contract expires this year and a contract renewal has not been announced. This potentially opens the door for Verstappen to switch teams. That speculation hit a fever pitch when news broke Verstappen and Mercedes boss Toto Wolff happened to be in the Italian island of Sardinia at the same time a few weeks ago. So far, no announcements have been made, but a typically wry Verstappen has remained tight-lipped during press conferences. He batted away journalists persistent questions around a Mercedes move and quipped,'There is also a possibility I don't wake up tomorrow!' he said. 'So then, there is no driving at all. Life is unpredictable.' 10.08pm What happened in Qualifying By Hannah Kennelly Nine points. That's all that separates Oscar Piastri (241) from his teammate Lando Norris (232) in the driver's championship standings. During Saturday's qualifying session, Norris pipped Piastri to pole position with a time of 1:40.562, beating the Aussie by 0.085 – less than a tenth of a second. 'The second lap was coming together really well and I just made a little mistake in (turn) 14. It is fine margins out there,' Piastri said after qualifying. 'Not a bad place to be starting, but there was more in it so that is disappointing.' Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will start from third and Red Bull champion Max Verstappen sits in fourth for Red Bull. McLaren's pace has been the talk of the season, but Verstappen has shown no signs of giving up his quest for a fifth consecutive championship. The Dutchman started second during the Spa Sprint race and manoeuvred past Piastri to win the race – his first victory since Imola. In a post-race interview, Verstappen described his race strategy as like 'playing cat and mouse'. The Red Bull star sits in third place in the driver's championship with 173 points.
The Age
6 hours ago
- The Age
Belgian Grand Prix LIVE: Piastri starts second on grid behind teammate Norris
Latest posts Latest posts 10.18pm Where did Horner go? All the off-season shenanigans explained Hannah Kennelly The Belgian Grand Prix begins the second half of the F1 season, however the bigest moments so far have arguably come from the off-season. In case you've been living under a rock, Red Bull abruptly fired their long-term team principal Christian Horner after a 20-year stint that included eight Formula 1 drivers' titles, six constructors' titles, and 124 race wins. Red Bull did not give a reason for the decision, but thanked Horner for his work and said he will 'forever remain an important part of our team history'. The announcement comes more than a year after Horner was accused of misconduct toward a team employee. So what actually happened? The announcement follows a period of tense internal politics within Red Bull as well as a lacklustre performance on track during the 2025 season. Read more here. Will Max Verstappen go to Mercedes? If you weren't swept up in the Horner saga, it's likely you've been occupied by the rumour-mill concerning Max Verstappen and a potential move to Mercedes. Loading Verstappen currently sits in third place in the driver's championship, and while the Dutchman's talent and drive to win remains unquestionable, it's clear that McLaren have the better car and pace. Mercedes driver George Russell's contract expires this year and a contract renewal has not been announced. This potentially opens the door for Verstappen to switch teams. That speculation hit a fever pitch when news broke Verstappen and Mercedes boss Toto Wolff happened to be in the Italian island of Sardinia at the same time a few weeks ago. So far, no announcements have been made, but a typically wry Verstappen has remained tight-lipped during press conferences. He batted away journalists persistent questions around a Mercedes move and quipped,'There is also a possibility I don't wake up tomorrow!' he said. 'So then, there is no driving at all. Life is unpredictable.' 10.08pm What happened in Qualifying By Hannah Kennelly Nine points. That's all that separates Oscar Piastri (241) from his teammate Lando Norris (232) in the driver's championship standings. During Saturday's qualifying session, Norris pipped Piastri to pole position with a time of 1:40.562, beating the Aussie by 0.085 – less than a tenth of a second. 'The second lap was coming together really well and I just made a little mistake in (turn) 14. It is fine margins out there,' Piastri said after qualifying. 'Not a bad place to be starting, but there was more in it so that is disappointing.' Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will start from third and Red Bull champion Max Verstappen sits in fourth for Red Bull. McLaren's pace has been the talk of the season, but Verstappen has shown no signs of giving up his quest for a fifth consecutive championship. The Dutchman started second during the Spa Sprint race and manoeuvred past Piastri to win the race – his first victory since Imola. In a post-race interview, Verstappen described his race strategy as like 'playing cat and mouse'. The Red Bull star sits in third place in the driver's championship with 173 points.
The Advertiser
15 hours ago
- The Advertiser
How Honda's hybrid can save you time and money
SPONSORED It's been a necessary evil since the birth of the automobile, but does anyone actually enjoy going to the petrol station? Treading on a sticky, diesel-coated forecourt is hardly a red carpet or even a warm welcome mat, and feeling your wallet shrink at the same rate as your fuel tank when filling up isn't a great experience either. Then there's the endless temptation of shiny, sugary treats at the counter, shouting at you to spend even more money. Or the lukewarm yellow food that's been sitting under a heat lamp for God only knows how long. Sure, petrol stations are convenient, and refuelling is quicker than recharging an electric car, but what if there was a way you could visit them less often – like your dentist – to save you both time and money. Sounds good, right? CarExpert can save you thousands on a new Honda Civic. Click here to get a great deal. Well you can, simply by choosing a more efficient car like a hybrid, which combines a lean-burning petrol engine with an electric motor to help reduce fuel consumption. Now, before you run to the dealership to trade-in your old gas-guzzler, not all hybrids are created equal, and some do a better job than others at saving fuel in different driving scenarios. As a general rule though, hybrids provide significant advantages in urban areas where the electric motor does more of the heavy-lifting in stop-start traffic than it does beyond the city limits at highway speeds. So, if you're mostly bound by the suburbs then a hybrid is an ideal fuel-saving solution. To test this out, we set up an experiment with the latest Honda Civic e:HEV, which features one of the most advanced conventional hybrid powertrains available today, to see how long we could avoid a petrol station, and therefore how far we could travel on a single tank of fuel exclusively in urban traffic by replicating the average Australian daily commute. On that topic, according to the latest census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) taken in 2021, more than half (53.1%) of working Australians drive a vehicle to work every day. This, however, is likely to be an anomaly as the ABS recognised the 2021 data is the lowest figure in 40 years, and significantly less than the highest 63 per cent result from the previous 2016 census, most likely due to the dramatic rise in stay-at-home work that was in place during the COVID crisis at the time. Either way, it's clear that the majority of Australians use a vehicle to get to work every day, with twice as many (6.4 million) vehicles on our roads in 2021 than there were in 1981 (3.2 million). According to the same census data, the national average commute from home to work is 16.5km each way, with drivers spending a total of 48 minutes behind the wheel every weekday. With all of that in mind, we set up a daily schedule to complete a consistent loop during peak-hour traffic between 4:30pm and 6:00pm Monday to Friday, which included a broad range of urban driving conditions. The route measured a total of 32.1km – replicating that average daily commuting figure – starting from the suburbs before heading into the CBD and back, taking in arterial roads with an 80km/h speed, suburban streets with 60km/h and 50km/h limits, and dense urban streets with a maximum speed of 40km/h. Across that distance, there was a total of 49 traffic lights, seven roundabouts and four stop-sign intersections. So, there were plenty of stop-start events. As for the car itself, the Honda Civic is now exclusively available as hybrid model, with two variant choices: the entry-level L we're using for this test, which costs $47,990 drive-away, and the flagship LX that commands a $6000 premium in exchange for extra features. Both model grades share the same high-tech hybrid powertrain, which links a lean-burning 2.0-litre petrol four-cylinder engine with a CVT automatic transmission that incorporates a pair of electric motors; one that is primarily used a generator to recharge the 1.0kWh lithium-ion battery mounted under the rear seats, and a more powerful traction motor that assists the petrol engine when driving. The engine alone generates 105kW of power and 186Nm of torque, and while Honda does not quote separate outputs for the electric motors like other automakers, its says the powertrain has a combined maximum power output of 135kW and 315Nm of torque. In most situations, the powertrain acts like a regular series-parallel hybrid with the primary electric motor used to get things moving away from a standstill, before the petrol engine chimes in and they work together. The generator unit is used to recharge the battery pack through regenerative braking and under deceleration, but it can also reverse its flow and provide additional power under heavy acceleration. However, unlike some other systems, the Honda can also decouple the petrol engine at cruising speeds and run entirely on electricity. Now, because the battery capacity is reasonably small, it can't do this for long durations like a plug-in hybrid would. But it does make a significant improvement to its fuel consumption, as Honda claims an average fuel consumption of just 4.2L/100km. With a 40-litre fuel tank, that should deliver a theoretical driving distance of around 950km between refills, which means it would take almost six weeks of Monday-to-Friday commuting before we needed to visit a petrol station again. Sounds too good to be true. However, when filling the Civic for the first time, and resetting the trip computer, its digital dashboard indicated I could travel 752km on a single tank, which seems a little more realistic. So, with that, let the experiment begin. Thankfully, the latest 11-generation Honda Civic is a very nice car to spend a lot of time in thanks to a spacious and comfortable cabin that is equipped with the latest in digital conveniences. From the driver's point of view, the cloth-trimmed seat has plenty of adjustment to suit all types of drivers and is both sumptuous in its cushioning and supportive in its bolstering. In fact, the Civic is a high-water mark for comfort in the small-car class. On top of that, there's excellent vision through the glasshouse, the large wing mirrors provide a wide view to adjacent traffic (which is always good in heavy traffic), and the three-spoke steering wheel falls nicely to hand with a logical array of fingertip controls (all the audio settings are on the left side and the cruise control is on the right). Plus, it is heated which makes for a nice way to start on a chilly winter's morning. The digital instrument cluster is also easy to read due to crisp, clean graphics that include a traditional speedometer on the right and a power meter on the left, which makes it easy to monitor when the powertrain is drawing from or replenishing the battery. If you're interested, that is quite literally the only way you can tell when the petrol engine is active as the transition from electric to hybrid power is totally seamless. Unlike other hybrids, in which it is obvious when the petrol engine comes to life – either through a jerky motion, more sudden acceleration or audibly – the Civic's engine is supremely quiet and smooth. And it also feels punchier than its power outputs suggest, with instant response and decent acceleration when you mash the throttle pedal from any speed, which we did on several occasions during this experiment. In fact, we didn't lightfoot the Civic at all, as it was important to replicate normal driving behaviour during this experiment. We also used its dual-zone climate control system the whole time and tapped into the wireless Apple CarPlay via its 9.0-inch touchscreen infotainment display to listen to music or podcasts for entertainment – just as you would normally. The end result took longer than we anticipated. After driving the same loop at the same time every day during the working week, we covered just over 700km before the fuel light came on. And we still had more than 50km of driving range available before it was completely empty. In total, it took 21 days, and 13.5 hours, of driving at an average speed of just under 50km/h to achieve a final fuel consumption figure of 4.4L/100km, which is pretty close to Honda's claimed figure. So, that equals a full month between visits to the petrol station for the average Australian if you just drive to work and back. It would be even longer if you live closer or had less congested traffic. If you calculate that out, with the current price of standard unleaded petrol, it costs around $800 a year for fuel to run the Civic Hybrid, which is peanuts. And considering Honda only charges $199 for each annual service, that makes it even more attractive. So, if you want to steer clear of petrol stations more often, the latest petrol-electric powertrains like the one in the Honda Civic e:HEV are proof that fuel-saving technology also saves you time and money. MORE: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from: SPONSORED It's been a necessary evil since the birth of the automobile, but does anyone actually enjoy going to the petrol station? Treading on a sticky, diesel-coated forecourt is hardly a red carpet or even a warm welcome mat, and feeling your wallet shrink at the same rate as your fuel tank when filling up isn't a great experience either. Then there's the endless temptation of shiny, sugary treats at the counter, shouting at you to spend even more money. Or the lukewarm yellow food that's been sitting under a heat lamp for God only knows how long. Sure, petrol stations are convenient, and refuelling is quicker than recharging an electric car, but what if there was a way you could visit them less often – like your dentist – to save you both time and money. Sounds good, right? CarExpert can save you thousands on a new Honda Civic. Click here to get a great deal. Well you can, simply by choosing a more efficient car like a hybrid, which combines a lean-burning petrol engine with an electric motor to help reduce fuel consumption. Now, before you run to the dealership to trade-in your old gas-guzzler, not all hybrids are created equal, and some do a better job than others at saving fuel in different driving scenarios. As a general rule though, hybrids provide significant advantages in urban areas where the electric motor does more of the heavy-lifting in stop-start traffic than it does beyond the city limits at highway speeds. So, if you're mostly bound by the suburbs then a hybrid is an ideal fuel-saving solution. To test this out, we set up an experiment with the latest Honda Civic e:HEV, which features one of the most advanced conventional hybrid powertrains available today, to see how long we could avoid a petrol station, and therefore how far we could travel on a single tank of fuel exclusively in urban traffic by replicating the average Australian daily commute. On that topic, according to the latest census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) taken in 2021, more than half (53.1%) of working Australians drive a vehicle to work every day. This, however, is likely to be an anomaly as the ABS recognised the 2021 data is the lowest figure in 40 years, and significantly less than the highest 63 per cent result from the previous 2016 census, most likely due to the dramatic rise in stay-at-home work that was in place during the COVID crisis at the time. Either way, it's clear that the majority of Australians use a vehicle to get to work every day, with twice as many (6.4 million) vehicles on our roads in 2021 than there were in 1981 (3.2 million). According to the same census data, the national average commute from home to work is 16.5km each way, with drivers spending a total of 48 minutes behind the wheel every weekday. With all of that in mind, we set up a daily schedule to complete a consistent loop during peak-hour traffic between 4:30pm and 6:00pm Monday to Friday, which included a broad range of urban driving conditions. The route measured a total of 32.1km – replicating that average daily commuting figure – starting from the suburbs before heading into the CBD and back, taking in arterial roads with an 80km/h speed, suburban streets with 60km/h and 50km/h limits, and dense urban streets with a maximum speed of 40km/h. Across that distance, there was a total of 49 traffic lights, seven roundabouts and four stop-sign intersections. So, there were plenty of stop-start events. As for the car itself, the Honda Civic is now exclusively available as hybrid model, with two variant choices: the entry-level L we're using for this test, which costs $47,990 drive-away, and the flagship LX that commands a $6000 premium in exchange for extra features. Both model grades share the same high-tech hybrid powertrain, which links a lean-burning 2.0-litre petrol four-cylinder engine with a CVT automatic transmission that incorporates a pair of electric motors; one that is primarily used a generator to recharge the 1.0kWh lithium-ion battery mounted under the rear seats, and a more powerful traction motor that assists the petrol engine when driving. The engine alone generates 105kW of power and 186Nm of torque, and while Honda does not quote separate outputs for the electric motors like other automakers, its says the powertrain has a combined maximum power output of 135kW and 315Nm of torque. In most situations, the powertrain acts like a regular series-parallel hybrid with the primary electric motor used to get things moving away from a standstill, before the petrol engine chimes in and they work together. The generator unit is used to recharge the battery pack through regenerative braking and under deceleration, but it can also reverse its flow and provide additional power under heavy acceleration. However, unlike some other systems, the Honda can also decouple the petrol engine at cruising speeds and run entirely on electricity. Now, because the battery capacity is reasonably small, it can't do this for long durations like a plug-in hybrid would. But it does make a significant improvement to its fuel consumption, as Honda claims an average fuel consumption of just 4.2L/100km. With a 40-litre fuel tank, that should deliver a theoretical driving distance of around 950km between refills, which means it would take almost six weeks of Monday-to-Friday commuting before we needed to visit a petrol station again. Sounds too good to be true. However, when filling the Civic for the first time, and resetting the trip computer, its digital dashboard indicated I could travel 752km on a single tank, which seems a little more realistic. So, with that, let the experiment begin. Thankfully, the latest 11-generation Honda Civic is a very nice car to spend a lot of time in thanks to a spacious and comfortable cabin that is equipped with the latest in digital conveniences. From the driver's point of view, the cloth-trimmed seat has plenty of adjustment to suit all types of drivers and is both sumptuous in its cushioning and supportive in its bolstering. In fact, the Civic is a high-water mark for comfort in the small-car class. On top of that, there's excellent vision through the glasshouse, the large wing mirrors provide a wide view to adjacent traffic (which is always good in heavy traffic), and the three-spoke steering wheel falls nicely to hand with a logical array of fingertip controls (all the audio settings are on the left side and the cruise control is on the right). Plus, it is heated which makes for a nice way to start on a chilly winter's morning. The digital instrument cluster is also easy to read due to crisp, clean graphics that include a traditional speedometer on the right and a power meter on the left, which makes it easy to monitor when the powertrain is drawing from or replenishing the battery. If you're interested, that is quite literally the only way you can tell when the petrol engine is active as the transition from electric to hybrid power is totally seamless. Unlike other hybrids, in which it is obvious when the petrol engine comes to life – either through a jerky motion, more sudden acceleration or audibly – the Civic's engine is supremely quiet and smooth. And it also feels punchier than its power outputs suggest, with instant response and decent acceleration when you mash the throttle pedal from any speed, which we did on several occasions during this experiment. In fact, we didn't lightfoot the Civic at all, as it was important to replicate normal driving behaviour during this experiment. We also used its dual-zone climate control system the whole time and tapped into the wireless Apple CarPlay via its 9.0-inch touchscreen infotainment display to listen to music or podcasts for entertainment – just as you would normally. The end result took longer than we anticipated. After driving the same loop at the same time every day during the working week, we covered just over 700km before the fuel light came on. And we still had more than 50km of driving range available before it was completely empty. In total, it took 21 days, and 13.5 hours, of driving at an average speed of just under 50km/h to achieve a final fuel consumption figure of 4.4L/100km, which is pretty close to Honda's claimed figure. So, that equals a full month between visits to the petrol station for the average Australian if you just drive to work and back. It would be even longer if you live closer or had less congested traffic. If you calculate that out, with the current price of standard unleaded petrol, it costs around $800 a year for fuel to run the Civic Hybrid, which is peanuts. And considering Honda only charges $199 for each annual service, that makes it even more attractive. So, if you want to steer clear of petrol stations more often, the latest petrol-electric powertrains like the one in the Honda Civic e:HEV are proof that fuel-saving technology also saves you time and money. MORE: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from: SPONSORED It's been a necessary evil since the birth of the automobile, but does anyone actually enjoy going to the petrol station? Treading on a sticky, diesel-coated forecourt is hardly a red carpet or even a warm welcome mat, and feeling your wallet shrink at the same rate as your fuel tank when filling up isn't a great experience either. Then there's the endless temptation of shiny, sugary treats at the counter, shouting at you to spend even more money. Or the lukewarm yellow food that's been sitting under a heat lamp for God only knows how long. Sure, petrol stations are convenient, and refuelling is quicker than recharging an electric car, but what if there was a way you could visit them less often – like your dentist – to save you both time and money. Sounds good, right? CarExpert can save you thousands on a new Honda Civic. Click here to get a great deal. Well you can, simply by choosing a more efficient car like a hybrid, which combines a lean-burning petrol engine with an electric motor to help reduce fuel consumption. Now, before you run to the dealership to trade-in your old gas-guzzler, not all hybrids are created equal, and some do a better job than others at saving fuel in different driving scenarios. As a general rule though, hybrids provide significant advantages in urban areas where the electric motor does more of the heavy-lifting in stop-start traffic than it does beyond the city limits at highway speeds. So, if you're mostly bound by the suburbs then a hybrid is an ideal fuel-saving solution. To test this out, we set up an experiment with the latest Honda Civic e:HEV, which features one of the most advanced conventional hybrid powertrains available today, to see how long we could avoid a petrol station, and therefore how far we could travel on a single tank of fuel exclusively in urban traffic by replicating the average Australian daily commute. On that topic, according to the latest census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) taken in 2021, more than half (53.1%) of working Australians drive a vehicle to work every day. This, however, is likely to be an anomaly as the ABS recognised the 2021 data is the lowest figure in 40 years, and significantly less than the highest 63 per cent result from the previous 2016 census, most likely due to the dramatic rise in stay-at-home work that was in place during the COVID crisis at the time. Either way, it's clear that the majority of Australians use a vehicle to get to work every day, with twice as many (6.4 million) vehicles on our roads in 2021 than there were in 1981 (3.2 million). According to the same census data, the national average commute from home to work is 16.5km each way, with drivers spending a total of 48 minutes behind the wheel every weekday. With all of that in mind, we set up a daily schedule to complete a consistent loop during peak-hour traffic between 4:30pm and 6:00pm Monday to Friday, which included a broad range of urban driving conditions. The route measured a total of 32.1km – replicating that average daily commuting figure – starting from the suburbs before heading into the CBD and back, taking in arterial roads with an 80km/h speed, suburban streets with 60km/h and 50km/h limits, and dense urban streets with a maximum speed of 40km/h. Across that distance, there was a total of 49 traffic lights, seven roundabouts and four stop-sign intersections. So, there were plenty of stop-start events. As for the car itself, the Honda Civic is now exclusively available as hybrid model, with two variant choices: the entry-level L we're using for this test, which costs $47,990 drive-away, and the flagship LX that commands a $6000 premium in exchange for extra features. Both model grades share the same high-tech hybrid powertrain, which links a lean-burning 2.0-litre petrol four-cylinder engine with a CVT automatic transmission that incorporates a pair of electric motors; one that is primarily used a generator to recharge the 1.0kWh lithium-ion battery mounted under the rear seats, and a more powerful traction motor that assists the petrol engine when driving. The engine alone generates 105kW of power and 186Nm of torque, and while Honda does not quote separate outputs for the electric motors like other automakers, its says the powertrain has a combined maximum power output of 135kW and 315Nm of torque. In most situations, the powertrain acts like a regular series-parallel hybrid with the primary electric motor used to get things moving away from a standstill, before the petrol engine chimes in and they work together. The generator unit is used to recharge the battery pack through regenerative braking and under deceleration, but it can also reverse its flow and provide additional power under heavy acceleration. However, unlike some other systems, the Honda can also decouple the petrol engine at cruising speeds and run entirely on electricity. Now, because the battery capacity is reasonably small, it can't do this for long durations like a plug-in hybrid would. But it does make a significant improvement to its fuel consumption, as Honda claims an average fuel consumption of just 4.2L/100km. With a 40-litre fuel tank, that should deliver a theoretical driving distance of around 950km between refills, which means it would take almost six weeks of Monday-to-Friday commuting before we needed to visit a petrol station again. Sounds too good to be true. However, when filling the Civic for the first time, and resetting the trip computer, its digital dashboard indicated I could travel 752km on a single tank, which seems a little more realistic. So, with that, let the experiment begin. Thankfully, the latest 11-generation Honda Civic is a very nice car to spend a lot of time in thanks to a spacious and comfortable cabin that is equipped with the latest in digital conveniences. From the driver's point of view, the cloth-trimmed seat has plenty of adjustment to suit all types of drivers and is both sumptuous in its cushioning and supportive in its bolstering. In fact, the Civic is a high-water mark for comfort in the small-car class. On top of that, there's excellent vision through the glasshouse, the large wing mirrors provide a wide view to adjacent traffic (which is always good in heavy traffic), and the three-spoke steering wheel falls nicely to hand with a logical array of fingertip controls (all the audio settings are on the left side and the cruise control is on the right). Plus, it is heated which makes for a nice way to start on a chilly winter's morning. The digital instrument cluster is also easy to read due to crisp, clean graphics that include a traditional speedometer on the right and a power meter on the left, which makes it easy to monitor when the powertrain is drawing from or replenishing the battery. If you're interested, that is quite literally the only way you can tell when the petrol engine is active as the transition from electric to hybrid power is totally seamless. Unlike other hybrids, in which it is obvious when the petrol engine comes to life – either through a jerky motion, more sudden acceleration or audibly – the Civic's engine is supremely quiet and smooth. And it also feels punchier than its power outputs suggest, with instant response and decent acceleration when you mash the throttle pedal from any speed, which we did on several occasions during this experiment. In fact, we didn't lightfoot the Civic at all, as it was important to replicate normal driving behaviour during this experiment. We also used its dual-zone climate control system the whole time and tapped into the wireless Apple CarPlay via its 9.0-inch touchscreen infotainment display to listen to music or podcasts for entertainment – just as you would normally. The end result took longer than we anticipated. After driving the same loop at the same time every day during the working week, we covered just over 700km before the fuel light came on. And we still had more than 50km of driving range available before it was completely empty. In total, it took 21 days, and 13.5 hours, of driving at an average speed of just under 50km/h to achieve a final fuel consumption figure of 4.4L/100km, which is pretty close to Honda's claimed figure. So, that equals a full month between visits to the petrol station for the average Australian if you just drive to work and back. It would be even longer if you live closer or had less congested traffic. If you calculate that out, with the current price of standard unleaded petrol, it costs around $800 a year for fuel to run the Civic Hybrid, which is peanuts. And considering Honda only charges $199 for each annual service, that makes it even more attractive. So, if you want to steer clear of petrol stations more often, the latest petrol-electric powertrains like the one in the Honda Civic e:HEV are proof that fuel-saving technology also saves you time and money. MORE: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from: SPONSORED It's been a necessary evil since the birth of the automobile, but does anyone actually enjoy going to the petrol station? Treading on a sticky, diesel-coated forecourt is hardly a red carpet or even a warm welcome mat, and feeling your wallet shrink at the same rate as your fuel tank when filling up isn't a great experience either. Then there's the endless temptation of shiny, sugary treats at the counter, shouting at you to spend even more money. Or the lukewarm yellow food that's been sitting under a heat lamp for God only knows how long. Sure, petrol stations are convenient, and refuelling is quicker than recharging an electric car, but what if there was a way you could visit them less often – like your dentist – to save you both time and money. Sounds good, right? CarExpert can save you thousands on a new Honda Civic. Click here to get a great deal. Well you can, simply by choosing a more efficient car like a hybrid, which combines a lean-burning petrol engine with an electric motor to help reduce fuel consumption. Now, before you run to the dealership to trade-in your old gas-guzzler, not all hybrids are created equal, and some do a better job than others at saving fuel in different driving scenarios. As a general rule though, hybrids provide significant advantages in urban areas where the electric motor does more of the heavy-lifting in stop-start traffic than it does beyond the city limits at highway speeds. So, if you're mostly bound by the suburbs then a hybrid is an ideal fuel-saving solution. To test this out, we set up an experiment with the latest Honda Civic e:HEV, which features one of the most advanced conventional hybrid powertrains available today, to see how long we could avoid a petrol station, and therefore how far we could travel on a single tank of fuel exclusively in urban traffic by replicating the average Australian daily commute. On that topic, according to the latest census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) taken in 2021, more than half (53.1%) of working Australians drive a vehicle to work every day. This, however, is likely to be an anomaly as the ABS recognised the 2021 data is the lowest figure in 40 years, and significantly less than the highest 63 per cent result from the previous 2016 census, most likely due to the dramatic rise in stay-at-home work that was in place during the COVID crisis at the time. Either way, it's clear that the majority of Australians use a vehicle to get to work every day, with twice as many (6.4 million) vehicles on our roads in 2021 than there were in 1981 (3.2 million). According to the same census data, the national average commute from home to work is 16.5km each way, with drivers spending a total of 48 minutes behind the wheel every weekday. With all of that in mind, we set up a daily schedule to complete a consistent loop during peak-hour traffic between 4:30pm and 6:00pm Monday to Friday, which included a broad range of urban driving conditions. The route measured a total of 32.1km – replicating that average daily commuting figure – starting from the suburbs before heading into the CBD and back, taking in arterial roads with an 80km/h speed, suburban streets with 60km/h and 50km/h limits, and dense urban streets with a maximum speed of 40km/h. Across that distance, there was a total of 49 traffic lights, seven roundabouts and four stop-sign intersections. So, there were plenty of stop-start events. As for the car itself, the Honda Civic is now exclusively available as hybrid model, with two variant choices: the entry-level L we're using for this test, which costs $47,990 drive-away, and the flagship LX that commands a $6000 premium in exchange for extra features. Both model grades share the same high-tech hybrid powertrain, which links a lean-burning 2.0-litre petrol four-cylinder engine with a CVT automatic transmission that incorporates a pair of electric motors; one that is primarily used a generator to recharge the 1.0kWh lithium-ion battery mounted under the rear seats, and a more powerful traction motor that assists the petrol engine when driving. The engine alone generates 105kW of power and 186Nm of torque, and while Honda does not quote separate outputs for the electric motors like other automakers, its says the powertrain has a combined maximum power output of 135kW and 315Nm of torque. In most situations, the powertrain acts like a regular series-parallel hybrid with the primary electric motor used to get things moving away from a standstill, before the petrol engine chimes in and they work together. The generator unit is used to recharge the battery pack through regenerative braking and under deceleration, but it can also reverse its flow and provide additional power under heavy acceleration. However, unlike some other systems, the Honda can also decouple the petrol engine at cruising speeds and run entirely on electricity. Now, because the battery capacity is reasonably small, it can't do this for long durations like a plug-in hybrid would. But it does make a significant improvement to its fuel consumption, as Honda claims an average fuel consumption of just 4.2L/100km. With a 40-litre fuel tank, that should deliver a theoretical driving distance of around 950km between refills, which means it would take almost six weeks of Monday-to-Friday commuting before we needed to visit a petrol station again. Sounds too good to be true. However, when filling the Civic for the first time, and resetting the trip computer, its digital dashboard indicated I could travel 752km on a single tank, which seems a little more realistic. So, with that, let the experiment begin. Thankfully, the latest 11-generation Honda Civic is a very nice car to spend a lot of time in thanks to a spacious and comfortable cabin that is equipped with the latest in digital conveniences. From the driver's point of view, the cloth-trimmed seat has plenty of adjustment to suit all types of drivers and is both sumptuous in its cushioning and supportive in its bolstering. In fact, the Civic is a high-water mark for comfort in the small-car class. On top of that, there's excellent vision through the glasshouse, the large wing mirrors provide a wide view to adjacent traffic (which is always good in heavy traffic), and the three-spoke steering wheel falls nicely to hand with a logical array of fingertip controls (all the audio settings are on the left side and the cruise control is on the right). Plus, it is heated which makes for a nice way to start on a chilly winter's morning. The digital instrument cluster is also easy to read due to crisp, clean graphics that include a traditional speedometer on the right and a power meter on the left, which makes it easy to monitor when the powertrain is drawing from or replenishing the battery. If you're interested, that is quite literally the only way you can tell when the petrol engine is active as the transition from electric to hybrid power is totally seamless. Unlike other hybrids, in which it is obvious when the petrol engine comes to life – either through a jerky motion, more sudden acceleration or audibly – the Civic's engine is supremely quiet and smooth. And it also feels punchier than its power outputs suggest, with instant response and decent acceleration when you mash the throttle pedal from any speed, which we did on several occasions during this experiment. In fact, we didn't lightfoot the Civic at all, as it was important to replicate normal driving behaviour during this experiment. We also used its dual-zone climate control system the whole time and tapped into the wireless Apple CarPlay via its 9.0-inch touchscreen infotainment display to listen to music or podcasts for entertainment – just as you would normally. The end result took longer than we anticipated. After driving the same loop at the same time every day during the working week, we covered just over 700km before the fuel light came on. And we still had more than 50km of driving range available before it was completely empty. In total, it took 21 days, and 13.5 hours, of driving at an average speed of just under 50km/h to achieve a final fuel consumption figure of 4.4L/100km, which is pretty close to Honda's claimed figure. So, that equals a full month between visits to the petrol station for the average Australian if you just drive to work and back. It would be even longer if you live closer or had less congested traffic. If you calculate that out, with the current price of standard unleaded petrol, it costs around $800 a year for fuel to run the Civic Hybrid, which is peanuts. And considering Honda only charges $199 for each annual service, that makes it even more attractive. So, if you want to steer clear of petrol stations more often, the latest petrol-electric powertrains like the one in the Honda Civic e:HEV are proof that fuel-saving technology also saves you time and money. MORE: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from:
