| Pros | Cons | ||
| ✓ #savethemanuals! | ☓ Still sedan only | ||
| ✓ Great handling (especially with summer tires) | ☓ The clutch is way too light | ||
| ✓ Welcome tech, comfort updates | ☓ A little extra power wouldn’t hurt anyone, would it? | ||
| ✓ Competitively priced |
Honda continues the refreshed 2025 Civic rollout with the new Si.
As ever, the Honda Civic continues to be one of the most popular cars on the road, and the mid-range Si is still kicking for drivers who want a little more zest to go with their practical daily driver. To that end, we’re getting a list of subtle, but impactful updates to address customer feedback and give keen drivers — and manual enthusiasts like me — an affordable and fun option. Honda recently brought me and Andre out to Nashville so we could try this tweaked Si (and the hatchback Hybrid, for which we’ll have a full review right here on Thursday, September 19) and get a feel for whether we’d recommend this updated model.
Fundamentally, the 2025 Honda Civic Si hasn’t changed much from the pre-facelift eleventh generation model. You still get a sedan body, a snappy 6-speed manual transmission, and a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine. In fact, this is now the only trim where you can get the 1.5 turbo, as the hatchback model now gets either the base 2.0-liter Atkinson cycle engine or the two-motor hybrid setup across its trim walk.
Like before, the updated Si manages to send 200 horsepower and 192 lb-ft of torque to the front wheels. That’s not to say Honda didn’t make any engineering changes, though they’re all under the skin. They did increase rigidity by stiffening the upper front suspension mounts and added reinforcement along the bottom of the B-pillars and behind the rear doors (the last two also being done to improve safety in side impact crashes).
On the feature front, the 2025 Honda Civic Si gets a 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster for a start, rather than a half-digital, half-analog layout. Standard heated seats are now part of the equation, while the F1-style shift light indicators make their way down from the Type R to give you a clearer picture of when you want to bang in the next gear. The Civic Si now also gets expanded rev-matching capability from second gear down to first, as well as an updated 9-inch infotainment system with Google built-in apps.
The Si is still as fun as ever — I only have one real gripe.
Driving the 2025 Honda Civic Si down the Natchez Trace Parkway from Nashville, I found it just as engaging and fun a small sedan as ever. The bolstered seats are a little bit more comfortable than the Type R for everyday use, the steering is nice and sharp and the short-throw shift action is absolutely perfect, with almost zero play. This model isn’t any faster than before thanks to having the same 200 horsepower as before, but it’s always fun to wring out that little 1.5-liter turbo four-pot for all its worth.
For eleventh-gen models, Honda took the approach of actually offering slightly less power than the old tenth-gen Si, but the 192 lb-ft of torque is available across a wider portion of the rev band, so you don’t always have to take it out to redline just to get anything out of it. Thanks to the shift lights, though, it’s pretty fun to do it even when you’re not in a hair-on-fire, gotta-go-fast kick.
If you’re looking for absolute numbers, the updated Honda Civic Si should still manage a 0-60 sprint in about 6.5 seconds. That’s not hugely quick, I’ll grant you, but it still has enough gusto to be fun, and for the price it’s one of the most fun options you can pick up.
The only real option for the 2025 Honda Civic Si, same as before, is the summer tire package.
The new 18-inch V-spoke wheels come as part of the standard Si package, but you can spend an extra $300 to wrap those wheels with Goodyear Eagle F1 Assymetric 2s. If you live in an area where you don’t have to worry about temperamental seasons so much, it’s a good upgrade to check off for the premium. Otherwise, you’ll get a set of all-season tires.
Since we’re not talking about radical changes here, my biggest beef with the Civic Si — and its Type R sibling, for that matter — is the clutch action. While the shift throws are spot-on perfect, the clutch is stepping-on-a-marshmellow light. In a sense, that does make the car much more approachable for a wider range of drivers.
Nevertheless, the pedal feel is so soft that you don’t feel much engagement until the clutch pedal reaches the floor, nor do you have a strong sense of the bite point on the way back up until you get used to it. You will eventually get used to it, but if you daily drive another manual car like I do before you step into the Si, it’s annoying. By extension, my complaint extends to the Acura Integra A-Spec and Type S as well, since they use the same powertrains (and have the same clutch feel) as their Honda-branded counterparts.
With this year’s upgrades, the 2025 Honda Civic Si is an even better deal than before.
To be clear, though, the frustratingly light clutch is a fly in the ointment as far as I’m concerned — it’s far from a dealbreaker. At $31,045, the updated Honda Civic Si offers a solid daily driving companion that you can take out on the twisting southern back roads or into the canyons out west with the reassurance that it’s going to be great fun. It’s quick and nimble enough to put a smile on your face, without getting you into a heap of trouble if you’re a bit too overzealous.
When I drove a tenth-generation Civic Si coupe across the country, I thought it was a great car. Not only was it fun, but it also managed around 31-33 mpg on average, which is more or less what the 2025 sedan promises, according to its EPA ratings. I still thought the eleventh-gen Si is a great option, and that opinion holds through today. You don’t have too many options if you want a budget-friendly manual car, with notable four-door rivals in the $30K-ish range being the Hyundai Elantra N, the all-wheel drive Subaru WRX and the Volkswagen Jetta GLI. If you’re wanting a bit more practicality, hatchbacks in a similar band with a manual option include the Mazda 3 and the Toyota Corolla Hatchback.
Of that whole bunch, though, I’d argue the 2025 Honda Civic Si is the most well-rounded, bringing sharp styling, a decent set of standard features, a strong reputation for reliability and the all-important fun factor at a palatable price.
Check out more on the updated Civic Si, as well as a walkaround with the 200-horsepower Civic Hatchback Hybrid below. Driving impressions for the hybrid hatch are coming this Thursday, September 19.
