2012 Honda Civic Si concept Car

2012 Honda Civic Si

After you see the commercials for the 2012 Honda Civic Si, you might think the car was built by over-caffeinated Japanese animators for equally restless gum-chewing teenage girls who dabble in ninja work when they tire of hanging out in Tokyo's Yoyogi Park. Anything but subtle, the marketing message appears to target a buyer raised on video games, Red Bull and manga. Ironically, inspiration for the new Si came from a farther-flung blend of kookiness: yoga and Pilates.

Seeking ideas for the ninth generation of a cornerstone product, Honda designers from Japan's Wako studio came to the U.S. to walk among Civic buyers, both past and potential. Toshiyuki Okumoto, chief exterior designer for the new car, says he wanted to learn their lifestyles and values. His team found that Civic buyers are an earthy, body-conscious lot into ecology, good fuel economy and Eastern stretching. Okumoto wanted to integrate yogic principles of purity and efficiency into the new Civic skin, and create something that brought vitality to the surface.