The 2022 Civic Hatchback configurator is live: https://automobiles.honda.com/tools/build-and-price-trimwalk?modelseries=civic-hatchback&extcolorcode=RP-61P&modelid=FL1H8NKNW&modelyear=2022
A while back I had an Accord Coupe 6MT. In that generation, manual drivers could get any color they wanted as long as it was black (V6s also had the choice of red, but that's it). Automatic drivers had the choice of about a dozen different colors.
It looks like Honda is doing the same thing with the 2022 Civic. You want the turbo and a 6-speed? Your only choices are shades of grey. If you settle for the CVT though, you can have any color you please!
This is particularly criminal given that Honda has a cool purple metallic color and a neat blue color for this generation. Can't get them on the turbo 6-speed though. (Weirdly if you settle for the non-turbo you can pick red or blue. But you get penalized for picking the top trim in this case.)
This is the kind of thing that would drive me to a competitor. Mazda locks the 6-speed to one trim level but at least lets you have any color you want, as does Toyota (and Hyundai, etc...)
Could be either an early availability thing or maybe they are going to funnel MT sales to the upcoming Si? I also noticed that to get the turbo, you have to get the Sport Touring trim, which starts at nearly $30k. If memory serves me right, you could get the old one with the turbo in the regular Sport, which undercut the Si in price by a few grand. I was cross shopping those with the Kia Forte GT last fall.
Also, the take rate on MT stuff is not nearly as high as it once was, so limited availability is better than nothing, I guess. This is the reality people will face when shopping for MT-equipped cars these days.
In reply to Tony Sestito :
You are correct there, you used to be able to get a bare-bones Sport with the turbo and 6MT, now the Sport is the NA engine and the Sport Touring is the only way to row your own with a turbo.
I'm guessing Honda is assuming they won't move a lot of $30k manual Civics that don't have a Si or Type-R badge.
(Ironically, you can get "Boost Blue" on a manual NA model, but not on a manual turbo...)
Options, colors, etc are all predetermined by their sales metrics from the past. They sell to the masses and make what statistics say the masses generally want.
Same problem with some of the really cool cars that everyone says they want but no one actually purchases. They track this and try and make what actually sells. They are much more concerned about making 99 percent of the people happy and just not caring about what the other 1 percent want. Their metrics say that of the 6-speed cars the only ones that sold were the black ones. So they are going to only make black ones. Why would they bother making red ones when statistics say the red ones they did make stood on dealer lots for 2 years and they eventually lost money on.
The manufacturing and selling of cars is about making $$$ and answering to shareholders of the company. It is not about providing every possible option to meet everyone's taste in cars.
In reply to dean1484 :
This is all obvious to me. Nonetheless, it's frustrating that Honda is consistently locking paint colors to transmission options, while the competition isn't.
Honda historically tries to offer as few combinations of cars as possible. So if they're not really sure they can sell a bunch of them, they won't offer it. Hence things like in the Accord, you always had to get the biggest engine and most of the options if you wanted leather. But Toyota would happily sell you a base model 4cyl Camry with just leather added in.
In reply to pointofdeparture :
I dont know ... I just built a blue and a red with a manual transmission ... maybe I got lucky.
$30.4k Honda Civic Sport Touring manual...
what the actual berkeley...
It's now $1k MORE expensive than the Mazda 3 2.5S Manual Hatch... You'll have to excuse me for a moment while I join these gents in having a laugh..
pointofdeparture said:
This is the kind of thing that would drive me to a competitor. Mazda locks the 6-speed to one trim level but at least lets you have any color you want, as does Toyota (and Hyundai, etc...)
it's also $1k CHEAPER THAN THE CIVIC! and unles Honda makes HUGE leaps and bounds in their materials on the interior.. they're going to me more expensive and less luxurious than a mazda 3....
ProDarwin said:
spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:
pointofdeparture said:
This is the kind of thing that would drive me to a competitor. Mazda locks the 6-speed to one trim level but at least lets you have any color you want, as does Toyota (and Hyundai, etc...)
it's also $1k CHEAPER THAN THE CIVIC! and unles Honda makes HUGE leaps and bounds in their materials on the interior.. they're going to me more expensive and less luxurious than a mazda 3....
but with boost
And no rust after one year 
In reply to Slippery :
Has Mazda3 rust been an issue in the past 10 years? i know it was an issue on the ford built ones..
In reply to spacecadet (Forum Supporter) :
Not sure, was pilling on lol but every Mazda that I owned in Florida rusted.
In reply to Slippery :
Neither of those that you built are the turbo model which only comes in shades of grey with the stick. As I noted in the original post, cashing out $30k for the turbo gives you *fewer* choices, which is lame.
spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:
$30.4k Honda Civic Sport Touring manual...
what the actual berkeley...
It's now $1k MORE expensive than the Mazda 3 2.5S Manual Hatch... You'll have to excuse me for a moment while I join these gents in having a laugh..
They won't be laughing when they get more than that $1k back in resale value in a few years.
I am amazed they even make the loaded up civic at 30K with the manual. 90% of the those buyers are going to the type R for the minimal money it costs when you factor in resale values. (Pending getting one at MSRP of course)
This is anecdotal and 13 years old...But, when I was still working for an auto parts firm we shipped everything to Honda in batches of 30. I suggested they could save freight by filling the containers we were shipping from Saltillo, Mexico to Marysville, Ohio. They weren't interested because they were building a batch of 30 identical cars and then another batch differently equipped, so our headrest shipments had to match, 30 to a container that easily held 45. I can imagine that they wouldn't build 30 manual equipped purple cars unless there was a significant and repetitive demand. They don't like any inventory that languishes and they don't like unlimited combinations.
It will be interesting to see where the Si slots in. I don't want all of the things the touring offers because they add weight, so I hope the Si offers something shy of $30k.
pointofdeparture said:
In reply to Slippery :
Neither of those that you built are the turbo model which only comes in shades of grey with the stick. As I noted in the original post, cashing out $30k for the turbo gives you *fewer* choices, which is lame.
My bad. I just read the thread title.
There's probably data out there correlating manual Honda buyers and color blindness.
pinchvalve (Forum Supporter) said:
It will be interesting to see where the Si slots in. I don't want all of the things the touring offers because they add weight, so I hope the Si offers something shy of $30k.
There's not going to be a Si hatch, which is a bummer. I would guess the Type-R is going to inch closer to $40k too. That's a wide void to fill for sporty hatchbacks.
I hope the forthcoming Toyota Corolla GR really knocks it out of the park.
Manufacturers assume that most people hate color. White, black, silver and charcoal seem to comprise 95 percent of what you see out there - and they're probably right. My cousin drove past a Ford dealership while eying a certain pickup for most of a year. Finally he walked in and said to the sales manager "You can't sell that red F-150 for the life of you, can you? Got a sweet deal.
spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:
In reply to Slippery :
Has Mazda3 rust been an issue in the past 10 years? i know it was an issue on the ford built ones..
It has always been a problem with Hiroshima built cars. I'm not sure if they don't know how to protect a car or just don't care.
They are better than they used to be, but I am still seeing 3 year old Mazdas with all the spot welds under the car rusted out. They must be relying on a process that protects the sheetmetal before welding, with no treatment to the shell after welding.
ProDarwin said:
spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:
pointofdeparture said:
This is the kind of thing that would drive me to a competitor. Mazda locks the 6-speed to one trim level but at least lets you have any color you want, as does Toyota (and Hyundai, etc...)
it's also $1k CHEAPER THAN THE CIVIC! and unles Honda makes HUGE leaps and bounds in their materials on the interior.. they're going to me more expensive and less luxurious than a mazda 3....
but with boost
I'd rather have the K20 (or the Skyactiv engine) than the 1.5 turbo. The butt dyno suggests they make about the same real-world power but the 2 liter feels nicer, more linear in response.
The 1.5 turbo is great until you notice the lag. It isn't 1980s bad but it's also not present with the 2 liter.
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
I just rented an Accord for a week with the 1.5 and the stupid CVT. I was impressed both with the engine and the transmission wasnt as obnoxious as the ones in the Nissans. Nice car.
Had me looking at what Hondata had to offer for the engine:
