2019 Honda Civic vs Skoda Octavia: Variants Comparison

While the Civic is available in petrol-CVT and diesel-MT combinations only, the Octavia can be had with MT and AT transmission options with both petrol and diesel engines

Honda has launched the tenth-gen Civic in India. It is available in three variants -- V,VX and ZX -- priced from Rs 17.7 lakh to Rs 22.3 lakh (ex-showroom pan-India). The new Civic comes six years after the eighth-gen model was discontinued in 2013. During all that time the Civic was away, the competition in the segment has grown fiercer, with the introduction of new models of cars like the Skoda Octavia, Hyundai Elantra and the Toyota Corolla Altis.

So, let’s put the Civic against its Czech competitor, the Octavia, and find out which of the two offers better bang for your buck.

• 2019 Honda Civic Variants Explained: V,VX And ZX

Before diving into the variant-wise comparison, let's take a look at the mechanicals.

Dimensions

• The Octavia is longer, wider and taller than the Civic.
• The Civic, however, has the longer wheelbase here.
• As far as luggage-carrying capacity is concerned, the Octavia outclasses the Civic with a massive 590 litres of boot space.

Engine

• Where the Civic is available with a single 1.8-litre petrol engine, the Octavia has two turbocharged engines to choose from: a 1.4-litre and a 1.8-litre.
• Both the engines of the Octavia are more powerful than the Civic’s 1.8-litre unit. Where the 1.4-litre engine makes 9PS/76Nm more, the 1.8-litre engine makes an extra 39PS/76Nm.
• Where the Civic is available with a CVT (automatic transmission) only, the Octavia is available with both manual and automatic transmissions. The smaller engine is available with a manual transmission only while the bigger 1.8-litre engine can be had with a DSG automatic only.
• For the sake of fuel economy, we’ll compare the Civic 1.8 CVT with the Octavia 1.8 DSG, and not with the Octavia manual. The Civic with the 1.8 CVT powertrain returns better fuel efficiency than the Octavia 1.8 DSG.

Diesel

• Where the Civic comes with a 1.6-litre unit the Octavia gets a bigger 2.0-litre engine.
• The Octavia is more powerful as well. It makes 23PS/20Nm more than the Civic.
• Where the Civic diesel is available with a 6-speed MT only, the Octavia is available with both 6-speed MT and 6-speed DSG.
• The Civic is more frugal than the Octavia -- and that too by a good margin of 5.8kmpl (comparing FE of diesel-manual only).

Variants: We will compare only the similarly priced variants of the two sedans.

Petrol

Honda Civic ZX CVT vs Skoda Octavia Style 1.8 TSI AT

Common Features:

Safety: Six airbags, ABS with EBD & brake assist, ISOFIX child seat anchors, rear parking sensors and electronic stability program, rear defogger, auto dimming IRVM, front seatbelt pretensioners.

Exterior: Auto LED headlamps with LED DRLs, LED tail lamps, front fog lamps, turn indicators on ORVMs and alloy wheels.

Interior: Leather upholstery.

Comfort: Electrically adjustable and foldable ORVMs, tilt and telescopic steering wheels, push button start, dual zone climate control with rear AC vents, power adjustable driver’s seat (Civic’s seat is 8-way adjustable but Octavia comes with 12-way adjust) , adjustable headrest for rear passengers, rain sensing wipers, auto dimming IRVM, cruise control and reverse parking camera.

Infotainment: Where the Civic gets a 7-inch touchscreen unit, the Octavia comes with an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system. Both offer Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support.

What Civic ZX CVT gets over Octavia Style 1.8 TSI AT: LED fog lamps, digital instrument cluster, electric sunroof, Honda lane-watch camera, ambient lighting, walk away auto lock, remote engine start, electronic parking brake, and high speed alert system.

What Octavia Style 1.8 TSI AT offers over Civic ZX CVT: Front parking sensors, rear fog lamps, headlight washer, auto dimming ORVM with auto tilt function and memory, foldable rear seats and boarding spot lamps, driver seat memory, adaptive front light system, cooled front glovebox.

Verdict: The Civic ZX’s main attraction in this comparison is the sunroof, which the Octavia Style doesn’t get. The digital instrument cluster is also another feel-good feature that the Civic gets. If a sunroof is a must-have for you now, you can justify the extra ~Rs 40,000 for it and go with the Civic. But the Octavia Style offers more convenience in the form of memory seats, auto-tilt ORVM on reverse and front parking sensors. It’s also priced lower and that makes it a sensible pick over the Civic ZX.

Diesel

Honda Civic VX MT vs Skoda Octavia Style 2.0 TDI MT

Features:

Safety: Four airbags, ABS with EBD & BA, ISOFIX child seat anchor, rear parking sensors and electronic stability program, rear defogger, auto dimming IRVM, front seatbelt pretensioners.

Exterior: Projector headlamps, LED DRLs, LED tail lamps, front fog lamps, turn indicators on ORVMs and alloy wheels.

Interior: Leather upholstery.

Comfort: Electrically adjustable and foldable ORVMs, tilt and telescopic steering, push button start, dual zone automatic climate control with rear AC vents, power adjustable driver’s seat (Civic’s seat is 8-way adjustable but Octavia comes with 12-way adjust), adjustable headrest for rear passengers,, cruise control, reverse parking camera, front and rear armrest, all-four power windows and remote opening and closing of windows.

Infotainment: Where the Civic gets a 7-inch touchscreen unit, the Octavia comes with an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system. Both offer Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support.

What Civic VX MT gets over Octavia Style 2.0 TDI MT : Hill hold control, walk away auto lock, digital instrument cluster, electronic parking brake and high speed alert system, ambient lighting.

What Octavia Style 2.0 TDI MT offers over Civic VX MT: Curtain airbags, rear fog lamps, auto LED headlamps, front parking sensors, rain sensing wipers, headlight washer, auto dimming ORVM with memory and auto tilt function on reverse, foldable rear seats and boarding spot lamps, cooled front glovebox, driver seat memory, adaptive front light system and cornering function on fog lamps.

Verdict: Although both cars are generously equipped, the Octavia is our pick here as it is the more loaded car overall and the price difference is not much. It gets extra airbags along with other important features like front parking sensors, LED headlamps and memory function for driver’s seat. And the premium of Rs 30,000 for these additional features is justified in our opinion. The Honda Civic also gets some additional features like digital instrument cluster and electronic parking brake, but those don’t add as significant a value as the Octavia’s additional features do.

Also Read: 2019 Honda Civic Vs Skoda Octavia Vs Hyundai Elantra Vs Toyota Corolla Altis: Spec Comparison

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