Thom Blackett’s Opinion of the 2006 Honda Civic’s Design:
Somebody ought to make beer goggles for car buyers. Back in college, countless inebriated guys and gals found themselves matched up with the hottest bod in that particular establishment, only to sober up and see a hairy lump in the kitchen cooking breakfast, smiling with those three gnarly teeth. Kinda like buying a 2006 Honda Civic at night and rubbing your eyes as you peer into the driveway the next morning.

Inside, the look is pleasant, with muted tones, well-placed chrome accents, steering-wheel mounted controls that are illuminated and easy to use, and a split gauge cluster that, after acclimation, proves to be quite handy. But outside, the Civic looks like a Hollywood movie designer’s attempt at creating the funky commuter car of 2025, with nary a sharp edge to be found, thinly wedged headlights, and a rather blunt rear end.

Brian Chee’s Opinion of the 2006 Honda Civic’s Design:
Call it quirky, futuristic, stylish…whatever you want to say that makes you feel better about buying into a car that, while smartly designed in many ways, takes a little getting used to when it comes to the more practical elements of design.

Consider the instrument panel: Completely redesigned, the digital mph readout is on top and centered in front of the driver, while a large round rpm gauge is also centered, and just below the speedo. That’s nice. It’s cute, really it is, but confusing: which one do we use? As we’re not driving a zippy little performance car, and most people will likely buy the Civic with the automatic transmission, the size of the tach seems a bit like wasted space. There is also the green house effect: on a hot day, all that glass surrounding the driver and passenger heats up the car pretty quickly, a problem if you don’t care to run the A/C all the time. For back seat occupants this is especially problematic, as there are no rear vents. The depth of the dash also takes a little getting used to, as it puts you farther away from the nose of the car. That’s a great aspect of the new design, as a matter of fact, but it does take a little getting used to.

Ron Perry’s Opinion of the 2006 Honda Civic’s Design:
I wasn’t bowled over by the new Honda Civic’s design when it was released and since then it still hasn’t grown on me. The steeply raked windshield looks out of place and creates two issues that definitely bother me. First are the useless little quarter windows at the A-pillar. They are likely a design element put there to reduce the heaviness of the A-pillar, but they look out of place to me because they don’t seem to serve a purpose. The other is the acreage on top of the dash – although Honda has made good use of it with the new instrument panel layout. Honda seems to have intentionally gotten away from conservative design, and for that I praise them, but this Civic might be too far ahead of its time. It may take a while for appreciation of the design to come around.

Christian Wardlaw’s Opinion of the 2006 Honda Civic’s Design:
With the redesigned 2006 Civic, Honda sheds conservatism and restores its popular little car’s former trend-setting status. In the 1980s, every new Civic pushed the design envelope by marrying simplicity and functionality with a distinctive yet timeless appearance. In the 1990s, redesigned Civics were on the bland side as Honda tried to appeal to a more conservative customer. A glance at the 2006 version makes it clear that this is a game-changing automobile.

It will take some time for the general public to accept the new Honda Civic’s styling. It is advanced and purposeful, yet rakish and sporty – especially for a small four-door sedan. The interior is equally off-putting at first, but after using it for hundreds of miles, it is impressively useful. That funky digital gauge cluster at the base of the windshield might not be aesthetically pleasing, but it’s extremely easy to check speed and fuel without looking too far away from the road. That small steering wheel might seem undersized at first, but it’s wonderful to grip for long stints behind the wheel. And the controls are within easy grasp, large and clearly marked for quick reference and ease of use.