Facelifted Honda Civic FE Debuts in Thailand – Malaysia Soon?

The facelifted version of the 11th-gen Honda Civic (FE) has made its ASEAN debut in Thailand. Is Malaysia next?

Following its global debut in the US months ago, the facelifted version of the 11th-gen Honda Civic has finally made its ASEAN debut in Thailand. Arriving in a single sedan (codenamed FE) body style, the Thai-bound Civic facelift features three variants with two powertrain flavours, including the e:HEV series-parallel hybrid version.

The Honda Civic e:HEV EL facelift (left) uses the same e:HEV hybrid powertrain setup (right) as the pre-facelift model

According to Thai automotive portal Headlight Magazine, the three variants of the Thai-spec Civic facelift are the baseline 1.5 Turbo EL, the middling e:HEV EL, and the range-topping e:HEV RS. And as their names suggest, the latter two variants get the same hybrid powertrain setup comprising a 2.0-litre 4-cyl naturally-aspirated Atkinson Cycle petrol mill used on the pre-facelift model, which is then augmented with an electric motor rated at 181 HP and 315 NM.

Meanwhile, the baseline 1.5 Turbo EL spec uses the tried-and-tested 1.5-litre 4-cyl turbocharged i-VTEC engine that still makes 178 HP and 240 NM. The turbocharged mill is then mated to a CVT automatic gearbox, which sends the power to the front wheels (FWD).

Moving on to the visuals, it appears that the ASEAN-spec Civic facelift boasts the same design changes as we saw on its American counterpart, featuring a slightly tweaked front face that now houses a more Type R-esque front bumper design. The tweaked front end is accompanied by a new rear bumper design and new 17-inch two-tone alloy wheels for the two EL variants, while the top-spec RS model gets new 18-inch wheels with a seven-spoke design as seen on the US market.

Reserved for the top-two variants of the Thai-spec Civic facelift are the full LED headlights with DRLs and LED taillights, with the baseline model getting projector headlights instead. Further separating the RS model from the rest are the black and chrome accents scattered around the car’s exterior.

On board, the Civic facelift continues to get the same dashboard layout as the pre-facelift model, with the top-spec RS model getting a mix of black-hued suede and synthetic leather upholstery with contrasting red stitches, while the two EL variants get a leather and synthetic leather combo instead.

All variants of the Thai-spec Civic facelift now come with the Honda Smart Key system, an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, an 8-speaker audio system, and auto air conditioning as standard. Meanwhile, the top RS model gets the Smart Key card, dual-zone climate control, four-way power adjustments for the front passenger seat, a self-dimming rearview mirror, a 12-speaker Bose sound system, and a wireless charging pad.

New for the facelifted Civic is the 9-inch central infotainment system that is now powered by Google Built-In software, on top of supporting both wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

Safety-wise, all three variants of the Civic facelift in Thailand get a full-swing of the Honda Sensing active safety suite, which includes ADAS functions like Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Lane-Keeping Assist (LKA), and more. Unfortunately, Blind-Spot Monitoring (BSM) is still not offered for the facelifted Civic, with only the Honda LaneWatch system being offered to the two e:HEV variants.

The facelifted Honda Civic FE is now available for purchase in Thailand, with prices starting from THB 1.03 million (RM131,988) for the baseline 1.5 Turbo EL, THB 1.09 million (RM139,676) for the middling e:HEV EL, and THB 1.23 million (RM157,617) for the range-topping e:HEV RS.

As of now, there are no words from Honda Malaysia about the arrival of the new facelifted Civic for our market. Prior to this, the automaker did promise to launch at least two new models this year, with the first one being the Honda City Hatchback facelift, which debuted several months ago.

Could the new Honda Civic facelift be the second model Honda Malaysia promises to launch this year? Or would you rather see something a bit more electrified make its way into our market first? As always, don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments down below…