North Georgia Ford Compares 2017 Ford Fiesta VS 2017 Honda Civic Near Jasper, GA

Both the Fiesta and the Civic have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front-wheel drive, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding and available rearview cameras.

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

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 Ford Fiesta is safer than the Honda Civic:

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

There are almost 4 times as many Ford dealers as there are Honda dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Fiesta’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2016 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford 11th in initial quality, above the industry average. With 17 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 23rd, below the industry average.

On the EPA test cycle the Fiesta SFE 3 cyl. Manual gets better fuel mileage than the Civic Sedan Manual with its standard engine (31 city/41 hwy vs. 28 city/40 hwy).

The Fiesta stops much shorter than the Civic:

The Fiesta Titanium Five-Door Hatchback handles at .83 G’s, while the Civic LX Coupe pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Fiesta’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the Civic’s (34.4 feet vs. 35.7 feet). The Fiesta’s turning circle is 3.4 feet tighter than the Civic Sport Hatchback’s (34.4 feet vs. 37.8 feet).

The Ford Fiesta may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 200 to 400 pounds less than the Honda Civic.

The Fiesta Sedan is 4.4 inches shorter than the Civic Sedan, making the Fiesta easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Fiesta Sedan has 1.3 inches more front legroom and 1.9 inches more rear hip room than the Civic Sedan.

The Fiesta’s standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The Civic’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

The power windows standard on both the Fiesta and the Civic have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Fiesta is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Civic prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Fiesta’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Civic doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Fiesta’s variable intermittent wipers have an adjustable delay to allow the driver to choose a setting that best clears the windshield during light rain or mist. The Civic LX’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent.

Insurance will cost less for the Fiesta owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Fiesta with a number “1” insurance rate while the Civic is rated higher at a number “5” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Fiesta is less expensive to operate than the Civic because typical repairs cost much less on the Fiesta than the Civic, including $12 less for front brake pads, $101 less for a starter, $114 less for fuel injection, $49 less for front struts, $261 less for a timing belt/chain and $104 less for a power steering pump.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Fiesta third among small cars in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Civic isn’t in the top three.