Max Davies 2026 Cupra Formentor price and specs 8 Hours Ago While its premium pricing sparks fierce debate, the top-spec Civic e:HEV is a dynamic benchmark that's also very efficient and practical. If this is the car for you, we’ll compare offers from trusted dealers, handle the back and forth and manage your purchase from enquiry to delivery. The current 11th-generation Honda Civic may not be a top-seller in Australia's small passenger car segment, but that's not because it's a bad car. In fact, it's quite the opposite. The 2026 Honda Civic e:HEV is one of the small-car benchmarks – mainstream or premium – thanks to its excellent dynamics, smartly presented and practical interior, and strong hybrid efficiency. The CarExpert team named it Best Luxury Small Car in our most recent Choice Awards, somewhat controversially judging by the on-site commentary. While the recurring feedback seemed to be around whether the Civic is worthy of being labelled a small 'luxury' car, within the context of VFACTS segmentation that's precisely what it is. Now that the Civic range starts from just under $50,000 drive-away, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) classifies the Japanese hatchback as a 'premium' small car, alongside other mainstream-branded $45,000-plus offerings like the MG 4, Subaru WRX, and Volkswagen Golf. Even alongside traditional premium compacts like the Audi A3, BMW 1 Series and Mercedes-Benz A-Class, I'd still maintain the Civic holds its own. But without giving away our verdict before we've finished the introduction, we'll frame this review around what actually constitutes a premium compact vehicle, and how the Civic stacks up against that criteria. We recently drove the 2026 Honda Civic e:HEV LX to find out if the up-spec hybrid variant remains worthy of being CarExpert's Best Luxury Small Car... choice. The hybrid-only non-Type R Civic range