High tech on the cheap in a Honda; Subaru winter dreadnaught

Author: By John R. White, Globe Staff

Date: SUNDAY, February 2, 1997

Page: H1

Section: Automotive

The summer greensward cut by the pavement is now a frozen tundra, 4 or 5 inches of hard-packed snow on both sides -- and on both sides as you approach the street is a sheet of inches-thick ice leading to the glacial wall of packed snow and ice built by the snowplows.

I have learned over the years that the quickest way to do something is often what appears the slowest -- the right way. Shortcuts often become long routes -- but I opt for the shortcut, start the little Honda, buckle up and point it toward the snow. It plows into the white stuff, crunching its way past the Buick, then begins to slip on the ice -- throttle back, regain some grip, plow ahead and ascend the glacier bordering the street and slide out onto the dry pavement. Hey, not bad for a wee little car on street tires!

And this Honda is wee -- the Civic HX, a garish blob of red with two doors, front drive and a high-tech continuously variable transaxle. Continuously variable transmissions may be high-tech, but they're not new -- Subaru had one on its Justy, the motorized overshoe. The first CVT actually hit the streets around 1906, a device that relied upon a belt sliding on a cone.

Honda's CVT works smoothly; you notice immediately the absence of shift ``points,'' the distinct, sometimes abrupt gear changes of the conventional automatic transmission. The tachometer needle zips up and down, the Honda changes speed -- but you never feel gears change. Impressive!

Well, yes, but the thing that impressed me most about this car was the $75 floor mats! Seventy-five bucks for a couple of square feet of rubber-backed carpet -- or is it carpet-surfaced rubber? They are just like the mats you might put inside the front door of your home -- only they're much smaller in the Honda. You can find such mats for the home for $10 or $11 in a Kmart; how do they get to be $37.50 a mat when they enter your automobile?

Even with the pricey mats, the Honda Civic HX is cheap by today's market standard -- $14,870 delivered. For the money, it comes reasonably well equipped, with dual air bags, power steering, 3-point belts front and rear, AM/FM radio, rear defogger, intermittent wipers, power locks and power front windows. You want antilock brakes? Opt for the EX. You want air-conditioning? Ditto, or talk to the dealer about installing one. Or do without.

The Civic HX Coupe is long on economy while still offering fairly good performance -- at least what feels like good peformance -- but it comes up a bit short in riding comfort. But what did you expect in a Liliputian car on a short wheelbase? The ride is hard, jouncy, occasionally harsh. Acceleration is pretty good, but it feels like a rocket; there's an illusion of speed that makes 55 miles per hour feel like 155. Headroom up front is fine, and there's enough legroom for most of us -- I do not make a habit of investigating back-seat room in tiny 2-doors. Never mind my journalistic duties, Bunky, it's my back I'm concerned about.

The handling is good; the Civic corners neatly and responds nimbly in traffic. Controls are generally convenient, but the Soft Touch Heat/ Vent Controls require a longshoreman's grip to try to center the switch on medium heat. No matter how I struggled with it, the tested sample offered only three heat settings: too cool, too hot and way too hot.

You don't get much of a glove box, but there is a deep covered bin at the driver's elbow, and door bins. A cupholder ahead of the shifter was less than convenient, but, if you insist on drinking while you drive, you deserve no comfort.

The Honda HX is EPA rated 34 miles per gallon city, 38 highway; it delivered 34.16 overall for around 1,200 miles of mixed driving. Luxury it isn't, but the breed rates high on overall reliability, and it is reasonably priced transport for the budget-minded with a bit of fun in the bargain -- a definite thumbs up.

For a little less than twice the price of the Honda, you can have what seems about twice the car -- the Subaru Legacy Outback wagon, delivered as tested for $25,490. For the money, you get a 4-door wagon with plenty of headroom, 4-speed automatic transmission, antilock brakes, a 2.5-liter/16-valve, 4-cylinder engine, dual air bags, heated front seats and side mirrors, cargo area 12-volt outlet, air conditioning, power everything, leather interior, AM/FM radio, engine block heater and Subaru's vaunted all-wheel-drive system.

This is luxury -- do anything, go-anywhere luxury. With this car, if the driveway's, blocked I have another option: head out back, cross country, to the next street over. And Outback does it with some attention to fuel economy: The Outback is EPA rated 21 miles per gallon city, 27 highway, delivered 22.63 m.p.g. overall for more than 1,200 miles of varied driving.

The Outback has a bit more ground clearance than the standard Legacy -- good in snow country; this is a car bred for winter driving. When wheels begin to slip in the white stuff, the car automatically adjusts torque -- power -- from wheels that are slipping to wheels that are still gripping. It's not impossible to get stuck in one of these cars, but you'd really have to work at it.

Acceleration is OK; this is not a performance barn burner. Handling is very good; the all-wheel drive enhances the cornering ever so slightly on dry roads, ever so greatly on wet or slick roads. The antilock brakes add stability in panic situations; hammer the brake pedal and the microprocessor signals a pump to engage and disengage the brakes faster than your foot ever could, keeping the car tracking straight while still allowing some steering ability under hard braking. The heated seats and a fast-warming engine add to winter comfort even as the AWD adds to winter peace of mind.

The glove box is merely OK, but there are door bins and a deep covered bin between the seats -- plus added storage in the back. A pop-out cupholder over the radio attends the need of the compulsive coffee guzzlers. Controls are generally good, the electric window switches especially convenient.

OK, it's pricey. But it does a lot, satisfies a lot of needs. And these days, Subaru has its act together -- the act is all-wheel drive and it rates a round of applause.