Compare the2023 Honda CivicVS 2023 Kia K5

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Kia K5 doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Honda Civic has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The K5 doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Civic deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Civic’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The K5’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Both the Civic and the K5 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Honda Civic is safer than the Kia K5:

	Civic	K5
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Leg Forces (l/r)	189/372 lbs.	444/276 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.5 inches
Neck Injury Risk	25%	50%

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Honda Civic is safer than the Kia K5:

	Civic	K5
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.7 inches	1 inches
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	516 lbs.	687 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	14 inches
HIC	260	297

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Civic, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 1.2% less likely to roll over than the K5, which received a four-star rating.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Civic the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The K5 has not been fully tested, yet.

Warranty

The Civic’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the K5 runs out after 100,000 miles.

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the Civic for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the K5.

There are over 37 percent more Honda dealers than there are Kia dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Civic’s warranty.

Reliability

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 4 places higher in reliability than Kia.

Engine

As tested in Motor Trend the Civic EX/EX-L/Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the K5 1.6T 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder:

	Civic	K5
Zero to 60 MPH	7.4 sec	7.8 sec
Quarter Mile	15.7 sec	16 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	91.4 MPH	87.4 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Sedan gets better mileage than the K5:

			MPG
Civic Sedan
FWD	Auto	EX 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	33 city/42 hwy
		Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	31 city/38 hwy
		2.0 4-cyl.	30 city/37 hwy
K5
FWD	Auto	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	27 city/37 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	24 city/32 hwy
AWD	Auto	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	25 city/33 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Hatchback gets better mileage than the K5:

			MPG
Civic Hatchback
FWD	Manual	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	28 city/37 hwy
		2.0 4-cyl.	26 city/36 hwy
	Auto	EX-L 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	31 city/39 hwy
		Sport Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	30 city/37 hwy
		2.0 4-cyl.	29 city/37 hwy
K5
	Auto	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	27 city/37 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	24 city/32 hwy
AWD	Auto	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	25 city/33 hwy

Regardless of its engine, the Civic’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. Kia only offers an automatic engine start/stop system on the K5 LX.

The Civic has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The K5 doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Civic higher (6 to 7 out of 10) than the Kia K5 (5). This means the Civic produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the K5 every 15,000 miles.

The EPA certifies the Honda Civic as a “Super Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (SULEV). The Kia K5 is only certified to “Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (ULEV) standards.

Transmission

The Civic has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The K5 doesn’t offer a CVT.

Brakes and Stopping

The Civic stops much shorter than the K5:

	Civic	K5
70 to 0 MPH	170 feet	179 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	114 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	140 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Civic has larger standard tires than the K5 (215/50R17 vs. 205/65R16).

The Civic EX/EX-L’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the K5 LXS’ standard 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Civic EX/EX-L has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the K5 LXS.

Suspension and Handling

The Civic Touring Sedan handles at .88 G’s, while the K5 EX pulls only .83 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Civic Touring Sedan executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the K5 EX (26.7 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 27.4 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

Chassis

The Honda Civic may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 200 to 450 pounds less than the Kia K5.

The Civic Sedan is 1 foot, 2.1 inches shorter than the K5, making the Civic easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Ergonomics

The Civic’s front power windows open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The K5’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically.

On a hot day the Civic’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance with the keyless remote or at the outside door handle. The driver of the K5 can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Civic EX/EX-L’s standard wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers and the Civic Touring/Sport Touring’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield. The K5’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Model Availability

The Honda Civic comes in sedan and four door hatchback bodystyles; the Kia K5 isn’t available as a four door hatchback.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Civic owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Civic will cost $450 less than the K5 over a five-year period.

The Civic will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Civic will retain 47.45% to 51.94% of its original price after five years, while the K5 only retains 40.99% to 42.41%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Honda Civic will be $4275 to $6151 less than for the Kia K5.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Honda Civic and the Kia K5, based on reliability, safety and performance.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Civic as the 2022 North American Car of the Year. The K5 has never been chosen.

The Honda Civic outsold the Kia K5 by over two to one during 2022.