Compare the2024 Honda Civic SiVS 2023 Lexus IS

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

© 1999 - 2024Advanta-STAR Automotive Research, all rights reserved. This vehicle comparison and all of the content in it are provided only by license from Advanta-STAR Automotive Research Corporation of America (“Advanta-STAR”). If you are not a legally licensed user of this vehicle comparison, it is against federal law to access it, copy it, forward it, or use it in any manner whatsoever. Any unauthorized use of this vehicle comparison is a violation of U.S. and international law and is punishable criminally and civilly. Removal of this watermark/notification without prior written license and approval received from Advanta-STAR is an agreement, understanding, and/or stipulation by the person(s), entities, agents, attorneys, and any other persons involved in the removal of this watermark/notification (including but not limited to Search Optics, LLC and any and all parent entities, sister entities, and subsidiary entities of Search Optics, LLC and/or any other entity, agent, attorney, and persons related in any manner to Search Optics, LLC) to: 1) an agreed upon amount of liquidated monetary damages of a minimum of $1,250,000.00 US Dollars in favor of Advanta-STAR; 2) the jurisdiction and enforcement of any legal claims associated with this matter asserted by Advanta-STAR in the United States Federal District Court in Portand, Oregon; and 3) service of process of any legal claims asserted by Advanta-STAR associated with this matter may be accomplished by First-Class Postage by the United States Postal Service or comparable service. XPYNN-M34HG 2a06:98c0:3600::103 2024/05/14

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Civic Si are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The IS doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Civic Si 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 Si’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The IS’ side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

The Civic Si’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The IS doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Civic Si and the IS have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras 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 Si is safer than the Lexus IS:

	Civic Si	IS
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	30%	35%
Neck Stress	241 lbs.	429 lbs.
Neck Compression	23 lbs.	60 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	189/372 lbs.	599/675 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.5 inches
Neck Injury Risk	25%	41%
Neck Compression	61 lbs.	81 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	275/164 lbs.	399/459 lbs.

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 Si is safer than the Lexus IS:

	Civic Si	IS
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.7 inches	1 inches
Hip Force	286 lbs.	406 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	15 inches
HIC	260	293

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

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 Si the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 54 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The IS has not been fully tested, yet.

Warranty

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the Civic Si for 1 year and 14,000 miles longer than Lexus pays for maintenance for the IS (2/24,000 vs. 1/10,000).

There are over 4 times as many Honda dealers as there are Lexus dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Civic Si’s warranty.

Reliability

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Civic Si’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the IS’ camshafts. If the IS’ belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Si gets better mileage than the IS:

			MPG
Civic Si
	FWD	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	27 city/37 hwy
IS
		5.0 V8	17 city/25 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/31 hwy
		3.5 DOHC V6	20 city/28 hwy
	AWD	350 F Sport 3.5 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
		300 AWD 3.5 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Civic Si uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The IS requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Civic Si 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 IS 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 Si higher (6 out of 10) than the Lexus IS (5). This means the Civic Si produces up to 6.9 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the IS every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

The Civic Si offers a manual transmission for better acceleration, control and sportiness. The IS doesn’t offer a manual transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

The Civic Si stops shorter than the IS:

	Civic Si	IS
70 to 0 MPH	156 feet	159 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	110 feet	117 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The Civic Si’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the IS 300’s standard 45 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The Civic Si handles at .97 G’s, while the IS 500 Performance pulls only .89 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

Chassis

The Honda Civic Si may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 750 to 950 pounds less than the Lexus IS.

To almost totally eliminate engine vibration in the passenger area, the Civic Si has a liquid-filled front engine mount. The liquid helps further dampen engine harshness. The IS uses conventional solid rubber engine mounts.

Passenger Space

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Civic Si a Mid-size car, while the IS is rated a Compact.

The Civic Si has 6.4 cubic feet more passenger volume than the IS (96.6 vs. 90.2).

The Civic Si has 1.1 inches more front shoulder room, .2 inches more rear headroom, 5.2 inches more rear legroom and 2.6 inches more rear shoulder room than the IS.

Cargo Capacity

The Civic Si has a much larger trunk than the IS (14.4 vs. 10.8 cubic feet).

Ergonomics

The Civic Si’s speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The IS’ standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Civic Si has standard extendable sun visors. The IS doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Honda Civic Si and the Lexus IS, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Civic was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2023 and 8 more times in the last 39 years. The IS has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.

The Honda Civic outsold the Lexus IS by over six to one during 2022.