Honda will unveil the European version of its new Civic hatchback at the Paris auto show later this month. The automaker previewed the car with a concept at the Geneva show in March when it said the latest generation will be its sportiest version of the car to date.
The Civic hatchback will also exported to the U.S. where it will be sold alongside sedan and coupe versions. The car is built at Honda's factory in Swindon, England, where Honda is investing heavily to make the plant the Civic hatchback’s global production hub.
The 10th-generation U.S. and European Civic hatchbacks have similar designs. It is longer, wider and lower than the current car with more interior space.
In Europe, Honda is adding a smaller gasoline engine -- a 1.0-liter, three-cylinder turbocharged unit -- so the car can better compete with rivals such as the Volkswagen Golf, Ford Focus and Opel Astra. It will also have a new 1.5-liter, four cylinder gasoline engine and the automaker's current 1.6-liter diesel.
Honda starts sales of the Civic hatchback in the U.S. this month. The European version will go on sale early next year. Honda has already begun shipping the hatchback to North America, which will take 40 percent of the 120,000-unit annual production, the company predicts. The UK will account for 20 percent of sales and the rest of Europe will account for the remaining 40 percent.
