The 2006 North American Car of the Year winner defeated competition in the form of the Alfa Romeo 159 2,2 JTS, Toyota Avensis 2,2 D-4D Exclusive, Hyundai Accent 1,6 GLS HS, Lexus IS250, Ford Focus ST 3-dr, Opel Astra GTC 1,9 CDTi and Renault Clio 1,6 Dynamique 5-dr to hand Honda South Africa its first Car of the Year title.

The winner was announced at banquet hosted by Wesbank in Johannesburg on Tuesday evening.

"We are extremely honoured the Civic has been singled out for the SA Car of the Year Award 2007," Honda SA managing director Hiroaki Shibata said. ???We have endeavoured to provide the South African customer with an exceptional value-for-money package and we??™re thrilled the Guild has recognised our efforts.???

???The Civic saloon offers a complete all-round driving experience with a perfect balance of driving dynamics, ergonomics and modern styling aesthetics, combined with class leading refinement and build quality,??? Honda SA general manager of sales and marketing Graham Eagle added.

In the March issue of CAR, we reveal the Top 12 best buys for 2007, brought to you in conjunction with Nedbank Vehicle and Asset Finance, all the runners up and a few honourable mentions. To read more about Honda??™s two-time Best light car category winner, the Jazz, visit our Go Top 12 Interactive! module.

Click here to read our driving impression of the Civic 1,8 VXi .

OR

View the Honda Civic 4-dr gallery and launch report.

Source: [url=http://www.cartoday.com/content/news/singlepage.asp?in=8479]Car Today[/url]