The '01 Civic is an improved version of an already good small car, an improvement that mostly retains the nimble practicality that's been Civic's hallmark while growing it up a bit. And get rid of that front-end clunk, please. Trunk is 12.9 cubic feet. Automatic transmission cuts 1 to 2 mpg. A sweetheart, as always, but a little more work on the steering and suspension wouldn't hurt.
Test Drive appears Fridays.