I cannot stress enough that cost, without question, is the single biggest reason why people haven’t made the upgrade to an electric car. EVs are expensive, with the average cost of an electric vehicle hitting $55,544 in December 2024 according to Kelly Blue Book. That’s why I think the Honda Civic Hybrid is better than the cheapest EV.
After driving the 2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid ($31,950 MSRP), I think it’s one of the best alternatives to buying any of the cheapest EVs and PHEVs on the market — thanks in part to its combined 49 mpg fuel economy. Best of all, the starting price of the base trim is a fraction of the cost of most EVs.
There’s also more to this reliable sedan than a relatively affordable price — for the cost, it’s a fun drive that could easily be a second car for a family and a main one for any individual who doesn’t want to spend a fortune on their next vehicle.
2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid: Specifications
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | 2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid |
| Engine | 2.0-liter DOHC Dual-VTC engine |
| Gas Fuel Economy | 30 mpg |
| Gas-Electric Fuel Economy | 50 city/47 highway/49 combined mpg |
| Fuel Tank Capacity | 10.6 gallons |
| Horsepower | 200 hp |
| Wheels | 18-inches |
| MSRP | $31,950 |
2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid: Testing summary
I drove the 2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid for a total of 133 miles for a week. That’s a lot less than my other test drives, mainly due to the inclement weather that was going on during my week with the vehicle, but the Civic Sport Hybrid's fuel economy can’t be overlooked.
For the little amount of driving I did, the average fuel economy came out to less than what it’s rated for at 36.2 mpg. However, the trip setting does show that it achieved a much better 44.9 mpg fuel economy driving 952 miles. On one of my longer drives, I got it to nearly 50 mpg fuel economy while cruising at about 45 mph for most of the ride.
If it’s able to sustain that 49 mpg fuel economy, combined with its 10.6-gallon fuel tank, the 2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid would have a range of 519 miles — easily besting some of the most efficient EVs I’ve tested.
2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid: What I Like
Affordable on just about any budget
The cheapest EV I’ve tested in the last year is the Hyundai Kona Electric, which at $41,000 tested, delivers a huge amount of savings over the average cost of EVs. However, the 2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid I’ve tested has an MSRP of $31,950. If you’re willing to opt for a less powerful engine, the base Civic LX trim costs even less at $24,250 — while still achieving an EPA-estimated combined 36 mpg fuel economy.
I asked Google Gemini to calculate the Civic Sport Hybrid's fuel cost driving 10,000 per year over a course of 10 years. In total, it would cost $8,141.72 factoring inflation into the calculation, which comes out to a tiny bit more than just buying the Hyundai Kona Electric. I know that EVs still have greater long term savings, like charging them at home instead of a station and how they have fewer maintenance costs, but car shoppers looking at the face value will appreciate how the Civic Sport Hybrid can offer them more affordability upfront.
Better-than-expected power performance
With its 2.0-liter DOHC Dual-VTC engine, I’m really impressed by the performance of the Civic Sport Hybrid because it doesn’t drive like your typical, underpowered hybrid. It amounts to a 200 hp performance that makes accelerating buttery smooth, much like how EVs handle, since it doesn’t seem to be struggling with all of the gear shifting.
In fact, the Civic Sport Hybrid accelerates much better than PHEVs I’ve tested when defaulting back to their gas-hybrid power — like the Mazda CX90 and Kia Niro PHEV. Most of my driving was in ECON mode to get the best efficiency, but there’s a lot more responsiveness in Sport mode.
Extra bright headlights
Usually this isn’t a main draw for any vehicle, but it manages to stand out here with the Civic Sport Hybrid. Although there’s nothing special about the headlights here, they’re some of the brightest I’ve seen — making nighttime driving a breeze because everything on the road is illuminated well.
As much as I adore how car makers add niche touches, like the dazzling LED accents on the Kia EV9, I’d much rather have something that actually gets the job done.
More up to date touch screen/interface
Even though it’s one of my favorite EVs I’ve tested, for some reason Honda skimped out on the display in the Prologue. Lucky for the Civic Sport Touring Hybrid, it’s fitted with a more up-to-date looking 10.2-inch touchscreen display.
That’s because it’s sharper and much more visible, plus the interface itself is more modern looking with its cleaner icons and fonts. It’s also great that it supports CarPlay and Android Auto, which I always appreciate as options instead of the car maker’s own infotainment system.
Cool honeycomb air vents
I don’t know why, but the honeycomb pattern of the air vents inside of Civic Sport Touring Hybrid is striking, and I’d say that the interior space is much more pleasant looking than the design of the car itself. Those honeycomb patterns throughout the dashboard absolutely give the car its own unique style.
2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid: What I Don't Like
Seats feel a bit stiff
As I’ve said already, I very much like the design of the interior space, but the seats themselves feel stiff. It could be due to the leather trim that Honda uses, but I wish it were more breathable. Then again, it’s probably more stain resistant than using another type of material.
Seat warmer takes a while to warm up
You could say that the frigid temperatures could be to blame for the Civic Sport Touring Hybrid taking much longer than other vehicles to warm up its seats. Even after I set it to the highest setting, I didn’t feel a whole lot of warmth with the seat while driving. In fact, it took about 10 minutes after starting the car for me to register the faint warmth from the seat.
Low quality backup camera
While I appreciate the convenience of a backup camera with the Civic Sport Hybrid, its quality is just as bad as some other gas-power sedans I’ve driven — like the Volkswagen Jetta GLI Autobhan. Not only is it super soft, but the quality takes a dramatic shift when it’s nighttime. There’s a lot of noise and it often appears choppy at times, so I’ve been forced to double check my blind spots because it’s hard to make out oncoming cars through the backup camera.
2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid: Verdict
If I were to buy a car right now, I would buy a hybrid car at the very least. The 2025 Honda Civic Sport Touring Hybrid quenches my appetite because of its affordable price, excellent range, and modest features. With this particular trim, its responsive driving and smooth acceleration makes it as fun to drive as an EV with 100% torque at its disposal.
But the bigger value is found with the savings you’ll get from its hybrid-gas power. You’ll end up spending much less fuel through its lifetime compared to your standard all-gas powered car. And best of all, it holds value against some of the cheapest EVs on the market.
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