2022 Honda Civic vs 2023 Dodge Charger

The 2022 Honda Civic presented itself in familiar LX, Sport, EX, and Touring trim levels. Prices started at $21,700 for the Civic LX and climbed to $28,300 for the Civic Touring, excluding a destination charge of $995. A five-door Honda Civic hatchback was also slated for a return to the lineup later in the year, whereas the two-door coupe remained a thing of the past.

The primary evaluation vehicle was the Civic Touring in an extra-cost Morning Mist Blue, a new paint color that added $395 to the price, bringing it to a total of $29,690, including destination charges. Another Civic Sport model was briefly sampled, adorned with the extra-charge Platinum White Pearl paint and the new Honda Performance Development (HPD) appearance package, estimated at around $25,880.

From a mere glance, the redesigned 2022 Civic showcased some notable changes. It bore a resemblance to the larger Accord due to its lengthier wheelbase. The 11th-generation Civic took on a more conservative and plain look compared to its predecessor. Fans of the previous Civic's styling might have found the new, more mature look a bit boring, while detractors of the older model may have appreciated this new elegance.

Internally, Honda reverted to the simplicity of previous Civics, embracing a minimalistic design that concealed air vents behind a span of metal honeycomb mesh across the dashboard. The Touring trim boasted improved interior materials, exuding a maturity lacking in the earlier models.

In contrast, the 2023 Dodge Charger remained relatively unchanged since 2015, when it received a sleeker nose and sharper LED taillights. Though its basic design dated back to 2011, and more fundamentally to the 2006 model built on a platform borrowed from a 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class, it still looked remarkably modern. The vibrant exterior color palette, including the memorable Plum Crazy, ensured it stood out amid competitors like the Accord, Altima, and Camry, despite their multiple redesigns.

Our primary evaluation vehicle was an R/T Scatpack Swinger with the widebody kit. This kit included flared fenders to house 305-mm-wide tires on 20-inch wheels. The hood scoop, balanced with four air intakes and brake cooling ducts in a black honeycomb pattern, enhanced its aggressive stance. The tail featured enormous exhaust pipes and a matte black decklid spoiler, complete with Dodge’s classic full-width taillights meant to evoke a racetrack. Complementary black brake calipers against bronze wheels and F8 Green paint added a touch of tasteless elegance, countered by the 70s-style "Swinger" decals and Gold School Bee badges that adorned various parts of the car.

The Charger's interior was fundamentally dated, reflecting its 2011 roots. Chunky seats and analog gauges looked good, but the small touchscreen, plasticky knobs, and old-school switches felt antiquated. Despite Nappa leather and Alcantara seats, the interior did not feel upscale. Unique Swinger elements like green stitching and badges provided some distinction but could not wholly counteract the overall dated feel.

For the 2022 Honda Civic, Honda offered two engines in the redesigned sedan. LX and Sport trims came with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine delivering 158 horsepower and 138 lb-ft of torque, which sufficed for regular driving tasks but seemed lackluster compared to the turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder that powered the EX and Touring trims. This upgraded engine churned out 180 horsepower and 177 lb-ft of torque, providing a more robust and enjoyable performance, especially stretched across a broad rev range from 1,700 to 4,500 rpm.

Both engines were paired with continuously variable transmissions (CVT), featuring new Step Shift programming to mimic traditional automatic transmissions. Sport and Touring trims included a Sport transmission mode, quickening the car’s responsiveness. Improvements in structural rigidity, revised tuning for the independent suspension, and better steering feel made the 2022 Civic fun to drive while maintaining exceptional ride quality. Even with enhanced driving dynamics, the Civic's noise, vibration, and harshness were significantly subdued, rendering a quieter ride than its predecessor.

The new Civic returned 30.4 mpg on a 95-mile driving loop, slightly below the EPA estimate of 34 mpg, likely due to the engaging driving experience.

Conversely, the 2023 Dodge Charger was renowned for its potent lineup of engines. While it started with a 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 engine delivering 292 or 300 horsepower and 264 lb-ft of torque, depending on the trim, this base engine was generally overlooked. The AWD system available with this engine was poorly tuned, making it unsuitable for adverse weather conditions. However, the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission paired with all engines stood out for its smoothness and quick shifts, even achieving an impressive 30-mpg EPA rating on the highway in V6 models.

Beyond the V6, the Charger offered a range of Hemi V8 engines. The R/T models featured a 5.7-liter V8 engine producing 370 horsepower and 395 lb-ft of torque, with fuel-saving cylinder shut-off capabilities. The Scatpack models, including our Swinger, housed a formidable 6.4-liter V8 engine delivering 485 horsepower and 475 lb-ft of torque, providing a menacing yet controllable performance. The Hellcat models pushed boundaries with a supercharged 6.2-liter engine producing between 717 and 807 horsepower and up to 707 lb-ft of torque. While staggering in power, the Hellcats were notoriously difficult to control, especially at high speeds.

The Charger’s handling impressed, offering good front-end grip, minimal body roll, and precise steering, though its size and weight deterred aggressive cornering. The ride quality remained comfortable, and braking performance, especially with six-piston front and four-piston rear Brembos on Scat Pack Widebody trims, was exceptional.

The 2022 Honda Civic emphasized comfort and practicality, hallmark traits of the model. The redesigned front seats in the Touring trim offered superior support, with power adjustments allowing an ideal driving position, though they were only heated and not ventilated. The front passenger seat, despite lacking a height adjuster, provided excellent thigh support. However, the low ground clearance made entry and exit challenging for some.

The Civic's rear seat benefited from ample legroom, aiding easier entry and exit although the backrest angle might have felt too reclined for a few. The absence of rear air conditioning vents was a notable oversight, and the loss of heated rear seats in the Touring trim was unfortunate.

The redesigned center console featured a more conventional layout, though it sacrificed some storage flexibility. Nevertheless, it benefited from accessible cupholders and fingerprint-resistant trim. The Civic’s trunk space was generous at 14.8 cubic feet (or 14.4 cubes in Touring trim due to the premium sound system), accommodating full-size suitcases and offering utility via a split-folding backseat.

In contrast, the 2023 Dodge Charger, despite its large exterior, felt cramped inside. Headroom was adequate for the author’s 5-foot-11 frame without a sunroof, but the footwells were tight, and the transmission tunnel limited rear legroom. Rear headroom was also subpar, potentially intentionally so given the car's history as a police vehicle. Nevertheless, the Charger boasted a spacious trunk, measuring 16.5 cubic feet.

The Charger shone in its user-friendly control layout. Unlike many modern cars that replaced physical controls with touchscreen interfaces, the Charger retained large, intuitive buttons and switches for climate control, lighting, and the audio system, contributing to a familiar and straightforward cabin experience.

The 2022 Honda Civic excelled in technology, featuring digital instrumentation with a 10-inch display in the Touring trim. This larger display allowed greater customization and provided essential driving data and a Vehicle Activity display to remind drivers of their headlight and taillight status.

Honda's infotainment system impressed with a standard 7-inch touchscreen display, including essential features like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The screen's recessed design supported ease of use. Touring trim elevated the experience with a 9-inch touchscreen, wireless smartphone integration, and additional features like HD and satellite radio, wireless charging, and a navigation system. The 12-speaker Bose audio system in the Touring trim delivered a superior audio experience, thanks to Bose’s early involvement in the Civic's design process.

However, the 2023 Dodge Charger lagged in modern technological enhancements. It retained an 8.4-inch touchscreen, offering wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 4G Wi-Fi hotspot, and voice recognition, but lacked the latest Uconnect system found in other Stellantis vehicles. The Charger also missed out on advanced driver-assistance features like autonomous lane-keeping and large digital screens.

Yet, it featured the Charger SRT Dashboard, an app allowing extensive customization of performance settings, including throttle response, steering feel, and transmission behavior. Performance Pages displayed real-time power and torque curves, and specialized cooling functions preserved the engine’s performance.

The 2022 Honda Civic came equipped with the upgraded Honda Sensing suite of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), including Level 2 adaptive cruise control with Traffic Jam Assist, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and lane-keeping assist. These features operated with improved smoothness and accuracy, thanks to a new wide-view front camera and ultrasonic sonar sensors.

Importantly, the Civic replaced its cumbersome LaneWatch system with a proper blind-spot warning system and rear cross-traffic alert in the EX and Touring trims, though these were disappointingly absent from the base LX and Sport trims. Honda also incorporated new front airbag designs and rear side-impact airbags, ensuring better collision protection, and added a rear-seat reminder system as standard.

The 2023 Dodge Charger, considering its age, performed reasonably well in crash tests. It received four out of five stars from the NHTSA in various categories except for the rear passenger side tests, which scored five stars. However, the overall rating was four stars. The IIHS scores, based on the chassis of the 2015 Chrysler 300, may not accurately represent the Charger’s safety performance.

Standard safety features on the Charger were minimal, limited to rear parking sensors and a backup camera. Optional safety assists, including forward collision warning with emergency braking, lane departure warning with lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, and blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, were available only on specific trims and altogether excluded from the Hellcats.