The new Civic Type R is the big news for Civic fan boys and girls in North America. But the Type R won’t be a vehicle for everyone. It will be relatively pricey and sold in fewer numbers. Mostly, it will be an overkill for those who are realistic about their track driving aspirations but still want a fun and functional commuter vehicle. Enter the Civic Si – less powerful than the Type R, but still fun, and less expensive. It fills the performance gap between the top conventional Civic and the Type R. 
Power aside, the biggest difference between the Type R and the Si is in the available body styles. The Type R is strictly a five-door hatchback whereas the Si will come in two-door coupe (given the amount of four-door coupes these days, I felt like this needed to be specified) and a four-door sedan versions. 


Good news for those who still think that the manual transmission is the best transmission – The Civic Si will be exclusively mated to a short-throw six-speed. And here is the unexpected part, that transmission is connected to a proper helical limited-slip differential. None of that bullshit where the LSD is simulated by a brake pad wearing electronic device. Nope, this is the real deal. Respect. 
Another unexpected bit is the addition of the adaptive damper system – basically struts with two settings, normal and sport. The Sport mode adjusts the suspension damping, steering, and throttle response. Front brakes are bigger, at 12.3-inch, and the tires are wider – 235/40-18, and there is a performance tire option. Stiffer springs and sway bars (+30 percent front, +60 percent rear), solid front and rear compliance bushings, and rigid front upper control arms from the Civic Type R complete the chassis changes.
The turbocharged 1.5-liter engine from the base Civic gets re-tuned and has more air forced down its manifold. It cranks out 205 horsepower at 5700 rpm. More importantly, the Si finally gets proper low-end power, relatively speaking, of 192 lb-ft of torque between 2100 and 5000rpm. This is will make it easier to live with on daily basis by reducing the need to keep the engine speed high. Yes, some will miss the screaming naturally aspired engines of Honda’s past but those days are long gone. 

The Civic Si body gets mildly modified for the Si trim, mostly with blacked-out bits, center exhaust, wing, and larger wheels. The already very nice Civic interior gets the typical Si treatment of thicker steering wheel, seating surfaces, and that kind of stuff. Nothing unexpected here. 
While the Civic Si of the last decade was a fun vehicle, it really did not stand up to its competition. The 2017 Civic Si seems to have all the right hardware for a great sporty car and its $25,000-ish price should be just right, too. We will see it in person next week at the New York Auto Show.