Rent Honda Civic 2022 in Dubai

Some compact sedans just move you around. The Honda Civic 2022 actually wants you to enjoy the drive, and that is the reason to put it on your shortlist for a week in Dubai. We rent it here with a no-deposit option, so you can have it at your door without locking up a chunk of your card limit on a hold. What you're really deciding with this car is whether you want the sharper, more grown-up alternative to a Corolla, or whether plush comfort and outright space matter more to you. This page is about exactly that call.

What the Civic is actually for

This eleventh-generation Civic is a five-seat sedan with a 1.5-litre turbo four and a CVT, and it drives with more intent than almost anything else in its price band. The steering has real weight, the body stays flat through a fast slip-road, and 180 horsepower is plenty to make an overtake on Sheikh Zayed Road feel effortless rather than nervous. It'll reach 100 km/h in about 7.3 seconds, which for a rental sedan is genuinely quick.

The trade-off is the ride. Honda tuned this car firmer than a Corolla, so you feel expansion joints and the rougher patches that Dubai's newer ring roads still throw up. It's never harsh, but if your priority is a cabin that floats over everything, you'll notice the difference on a long day.

Specifications

Refuelling and running it for a week

The turbo Civic is economical for how quick it is. Driven sensibly around the city you'll see something close to the combined 6.9 L/100km, and the 47-litre tank gives you a real-world range in the region of 670 km. For most renters that means one fill at the start of the week and maybe a top-up before you hand it back, even with a couple of airport runs and the usual mall-and-meeting routine.

Two things on cost stay with you, not us. Salik tolls are billed to the renter, so every gantry you pass on the E11 or the crossings adds up. The same goes for any RTA fines, including speed-camera ones, which are easy to collect in a car this willing to climb past the limit. Seatbelts are mandatory front and back, and that's on the driver to enforce.

Boot, cabin and whether your luggage fits

The Civic's boot is one of the larger ones in the compact class, and that matters most on the DXB or DWC run. You'll fit two large checked cases and a soft cabin bag without playing Tetris, and the boot opening is wide enough to load them flat. Three big hard cases plus several smaller bags is where it gets tight, and at that point you're better off in something bigger.

Inside, the cabin is roomy for the segment. Two adults up front have space to spare, and the back seat genuinely takes two grown adults for a Dubai-to-Abu-Dhabi trip without anyone complaining. A fifth passenger in the middle is a short-hop arrangement, not a comfortable one.

Heat, AC and parking

Park anything outside in a Dubai July and the cabin hits oven temperatures by mid-afternoon. The Civic's AC is strong and pulls a baked interior down quickly, usually comfortable within a couple of minutes of pulling away with the fan up. There are rear vents too, so back-seat passengers aren't left waiting on the front to cool things down. It's a properly air-conditioned car, not a budget one that struggles at 45°C.

Around town it's an easy car to place. At 4.66 metres it's longer than a small hatch, but the visibility is good and the turning circle is tight enough for mall U-turns and tight multi-storey bays. The 155 mm of ground clearance clears standard speed bumps and most ramps fine, though as with any low sedan you take the steeper Marina parking ramps gently.

Who should rent it, and who shouldn't

Rent the Civic if you actually like driving and you're spending real time on the highway. It's the compact sedan that rewards you on the E11, returns strong economy, and still swallows a family's airport luggage. For a couple or a small family doing a mix of city and intercity miles, it's the sharper, more satisfying pick over the obvious alternatives.

Look elsewhere in two cases. If soft, isolated comfort is what you want above all, a Corolla rides plusher over rough tarmac and asks less of you. And if you regularly carry four adults with full luggage, or you just want more rear legroom and boot, step up to an Accord. For everyone in between, the Civic is the one we'd point you to.