Honda has unveiled its all-new European Civic ahead of its 2011 Frankfurt motor show debut. The slightly ambiguous ‘Revolutionary Evolution’ tag speaks of a host of heavy revisions rather than an a complete rethink, which the largely similar design language nods too. Though gone is the helmet visor frontal styling of the outgoing car, replaced by looks inspired by ‘a bird opening its wings just before take off’. Hmm.

Under the skin, Honda boasts of a sporty driving experience but with added comfort, the suspension setup receiving tweaks off the back of customer feedback on its firm-riding predecessor. Torsion beam rear suspension remains, with Honda citing packaging reasons, chiefly the retention of the Civic's clever, multi-folding rear seats. The new car will weigh the same as the one it replaces, while measuring 35mm longer and 10mm wider (at 4290mm and 1775mm respectively).

The existing Civic’s range of 1.4-litre and 1.8-litre petrol and 2.2-litre diesel engines carries on, but with revisions. Later in 2012 will see the introduction of a 1.6-litre diesel engine that will be key in giving the Civic a chance of stealing Focus, Golf and Astra sales. A performance version of the new Civic looks likely, though don’t expect Type-R badging. You can read the full story on that here. But a host of Mugen accessories looks likely, with Honda currently in discussions with its performance arm regarding the new car.

The Honda Civic will continue to be built in the UK at Swindon, with sales of the new car beginning at the start of 2012. Expect prices for the five-door car to kick off at around £15,000.

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