5 Things You Need to Know About the Honda Civic GX (CNG)

Forgotten Alternative Fuel

The Honda Civic GX is the only car offered by an auto manufacturer that can run on clean burning natural gas. In the past, several manufacturers offered cars and light trucks that could operate on NG. All except Honda have left this market in the U.S. Even the experts can't pinpoint why natural gas vehicles (NGV) never caught on with American consumers. However, NG is growing in popularity in the medium- to- heavy market. It is now widely used in transit buses, school buses, refuse trucks, package delivery trucks, and vehicles used in ports. One thing these all have in common, they can be refueled at a central location. This is not the case with cars and light trucks that travel where NG might be difficult to find. This could be a large reason for lack of interest in NG by the general public.

Cleanest Car You Can Buy

The 2008 Honda Civic GX is the latest Honda NGV, the first one being the 1998 Civic LX. Unlike bi-fuel vehicles that were offered by other automakers that could run on both natural gas or gasoline, the Honda NGVs are a dedicated natural gas vehicles in that they can only use natural gas. This allows the engine to be optimized for NG.
The U.S.EPA says the Honda Civic GX is the world's cleanest internal-combustion vehicle. The California Air Resources Board has designated it an Advanced Technology Partial-Zero-Emission Vehicle (AT-PZEV). In California you can even obtain a decal allowing driving in the HOV lane even with only one aboard.

Looks and Drives Like a Regular Civic

The Civic GX comes only as a four door that looks identical to gasoline Civics. The 2008 Civic GX is powered by a 16-valve, i-VTEC four-cylinder engine that produces 113 horsepower. This compares to 140 horsepower when the engine operates on gasoline. The engine if equipped a Drive-by-Wire throttle system and only a five-speed automatic transmission is offered. The cylinder holding the CNG at 3600 psi is located in the trunk and holds 8.0 GGEs (Gasoline Gallon Equivalent). The EPA rating are 24 mpg city/36 mpg city, about the same as for the gasoline version. At a MSRP of $25,225, it about $7,000 more than Civic LX, but the GX usually qualifies for substantial tax credits and other incentives because it is environmentally friendly and lessens the nation's dependence on imported oil. Also CNG is significantly less expensive compared to gasoline.

Refill at Home

While it might difficult to find a CNG station on the road, you can fill up at home. That's because Honda offers the Phill Home Refueling Appliance made by Fuelmaker in Canada. Phill, which can be installed in the garage or outside, lets you refuel off of a home's natural gas supply. Phill does require as much as 16 hours to fill an almost empty tank. An overnight top-off will usually be sufficient for the daily commute since the GX has a range of 220 to 250 miles on a full CNG tank. Refueling at a fast-fill CNG station takes no longer than tanking up with gasoline.

Safe and Reliable

CNG is a much safer fuel than gasoline. After all, natural gas is used in virtually every home. In case of an accident or leak, unlike gasoline that can pool on the ground, natural gas dissipates harmlessly into the air. With a very narrow range of flammability to be combustible and nearly twice the ignition temperature of gasoline it is less likely to cause a fire. Because natural gas is such a clean burning fuel, carbon deposits in the engine are nil reducing cylinder and ring wear so engine life can be many time longer than when running of gasoline. Oil change and tune up intervals can also be extended.

Bill Siuru is a retired USAF colonel who has been writing about automotive technology for nearly 40 years. He has a bachelor's degree in automotive engineering, a PhD in mechanical engineering and has taught engineering at West Point and the U.S. Air Force Academy.