2012 Honda Civic Sets Sales Record as 2013 Honda Civic Debuts

Even though the dramatically upgraded 2013 Honda Civic represents a wholesale improvement over the 2012 model, the former won’t be able to help the “Civic” nameplate much in terms of sales: after all, the latter enjoyed a 75.5 percent sales increase last month, posted its highest November volume total in its 40-year history and was the best-selling car in the country.  To give you an idea of how the 2012 Honda Civic fits in in the marketplace as a whole, check out this handy little chart:

Vehicle

Sales

Gain/Loss

Ford F-150

56,299

+17.9 percent

Chevy Silverado

30,674

-10.4 percent

Honda Civic

30,075

+75.5 percent

Toyota Camry

28,785

+22.7 percent

And if you’re looking for the 2012 Honda Civic’s next in-segment rival, it’s the Toyota Corolla, more than 7,400 units behind.

Nonetheless, Honda has gone ahead and deployed some big-time changes for the 2013 Honda Civic—which premiered at the recent 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show, as detailed here: http://www.autobytel.com/honda/civic/news/2013-honda-civic-preview-2012-la-auto-show-114291/—and the sedans are already at dealerships. Well, most of them are. The 2012 Honda Civic DX sedan, the previous entry-level model, is not returning to the lineup for the 2013 model year.

Now, as a result of that change, as well as a $160 price bump in the MSRP of the new starting point to the sedan lineup, the Civic LX will open things up at $18,165. Of course, Honda also has added “hundreds of dollars of standard features,” including air conditioning, Bluetooth calling and audio-streaming technologies, an interface for Pandora Internet radio, a rearview camera, an SMS text feature and steering-wheel-mounted controls.

The party line from Honda: “The top-selling and award-winning Honda Civic returns for 2013, with a host of design upgrades and a bevy of new standard features, while still maintaining the efficiency and value that has made the Civic an automotive icon for the past 40 years.”