2020 Honda Civic Si, Updated, Is Even More Fun for the Money

For the 2020 model year the Honda Civic Si gets updated with exterior and interior changes, revised transmission gearing, Active Sound Control, and a host of new standard driver assists. The refresh includes tweaks to the front and rear bumpers, LED headlights, and new blackout-style 18-inch wheels. The interior cabin gets a host of new red accents on the dashboard and seats. Honda also says the Civic Si's new shorter final-drive ratio should aid in acceleration responses in each gear. The newly added Honda Sensing from the Si's older brother comes standard and includes automated emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and lane-keeping assist.

The 2020 Civic Si's value and overall goodness are hard to beat at its price. For 2020, that price has gone up by $735, bringing the base price up to $25,930, but you get a lot for under $26,000. Sportier alternatives such as the Subaru WRX and Volkswagen Golf GTI/Jetta GLI exist, but these examples have starting prices above the Civic Si, and many more features on those competitors are additional-cost options. A manual gearbox is the sole offering for the Si, and we're okay with that. Optional summer tires are $200 and are well worth it if you want the extra performance. Click on to see in detail what's new for the 2020 Honda Civic Si coupe and sedan.

Honda was careful with its refresh of the 2020 Civic Si, mindful of its great success and popularity across the globe. Starting at the front of the car, new LED headlights and fog lights as well as a redesigned front bumper improve its looks and nighttime visibility.

At the rear of the 2020 Civic Si sedan, we see a redesigned bumper with what looks like little body-colored whiskers. The new rear bumper design is only for the sedan; the coupe stays the same. The changes are small and you need a keen eye to spot them, but we think they're tasteful.

As you can see, the rear end of the coupe is untouched from 2019. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. In this case, we think it looks great, and any extra styling might make the rear end too busy. Did you notice the new wheels, though?

For 2020, the Civic Si coupe and sedan get new shoes. These beautifully styled matte-black 18-inch wheels are a perfect fit for the Civic Si and give a much more aggressive look than last year’s wheels.

The only option on the 2020 Civic Si is a set of summer tires; Honda swaps the Goodyear Eagle Sport all-season tires for stickier Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric tires for only $200.

The 2020 Civic Si gets a bunch of changes to the interior cabin to match its bigger brother, the Civic Type R. New red dash trim, red-trimmed seats, Honda Sensing active-safety technology, and improved Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity are the biggest highlights.

These tweaks to the interior might not seem like much, but those familiar with last year's model will immediately notice and appreciate the added color in the interior cabin. The Civic Type R has a lot more red on the interior, but for the mild-mannered little brother, this works well.

The same seats from the 2019 Civic Si are now trimmed in red to match the stitching and the rest of the red in the interior cabin. They're not as bolstered as the Type R's seats, the Si's seats provide extreme comfort and enough bolstering to keep you in the seat when driving spiritedly. We really appreciate the newly added red touches.

Another thing the 2020 Civic Si has picked up from its bigger brother is Honda Sensing. It comes standard, and it gives drivers additional peace of mind with advanced safety and driver-assistance technologies (and a lot of new acronyms). Honda Sensing includes collision mitigation braking (CMBS), adaptive cruise control with low-speed follow (ACC with LSF), lane-keeping assist (LKAS), road-departure mitigation (RDM), and standard automatic high-beams. These active-safety features are really helpful on the highway and can help reduce driver fatigue and prevent accidents.

A six-speed manual gearbox is still the only way you can get the Civic Si. To improve acceleration, Honda added a new shorter final-drive ratio (from 4.105:1 to 4.35:1), and to enhance sound in the cabin, there's now Active Sound Control, which amplifies the natural engine sound and pumps it through the speakers. We're usually not a fan of pumping fake sound into the cabin, but Honda does a good job of making it louder but not going overboard.

The new shorter final-drive ratio is meant to aid in acceleration in every gear, but the trade-off is a 2-mpg loss across the board, which results in a 26/36 city/highway fuel-economy rating. #SavetheManuals

To round out the changes to the interior, Honda improved its Apple CarPlay and Android Auto user experience. A carry-over from the 2019 Civic Si are the physical volume knob and row of buttons, which we can't get enough of. The only thing it's missing now is a physical tuning knob . . .

Feast your eyes on the beautiful 2020 Civic Si TCA race car. You can get one for yourself for the low price of $52,500. It has all stock internals, Honda Performance Division (HPD) upgraded brakes and exhaust, a stripped-out interior, and a host of other drivetrain and suspension upgrades.

All 10 examples that we drove were finished in Rallye Red, which is just one of six colors you can get your Civic Si in. Aegean Blue, Crystal Black, Modern Steel, Lunar Silver, and Platinum White are the other choices. Keep clicking to see action photos of the 2020 Civic Si taken at the Circuit of the Americas: