Compare the2024 Honda Civic SiVS 2024 BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic Si have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic Si are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Civic Si are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Civic Si deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Civic Si’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The 2 Series Gran Coupe’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Both the Civic Si and the 2 Series Gran Coupe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Civic Si the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 54 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The 2 Series Gran Coupe last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2022.

Honda’s powertrain warranty covers the Civic Si 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than BMW covers the 2 Series Gran Coupe. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the 2 Series Gran Coupe ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 3 times as many Honda dealers as there are BMW dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Civic Si’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Civic Si’s reliability 18 points higher than the 2 Series Gran Coupe.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than BMW vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 2 more problems per 100 vehicles, BMW is rated lower.

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Si gets better mileage than the 2 Series Gran Coupe:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Civic Si uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The 2 Series Gran Coupe requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Civic Si has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The Civic Si offers a manual transmission for better acceleration, control and sportiness. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a manual transmission.

For better traction, the Civic Si has larger tires than the 2 Series Gran Coupe (235/40R18 vs. 225/45R17).

The Civic Si’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the 2 Series Gran Coupe’s standard 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Civic Si has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the 2 Series Gran Coupe.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Civic Si’s wheelbase is 2.6 inches longer than on the 2 Series Gran Coupe (107.7 inches vs. 105.1 inches).

The Civic Si handles at .97 G’s, while the M235i xDrive Gran Coupe pulls only .91 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Honda Civic Si may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 450 to 650 pounds less than the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Civic Si a Mid-size car, while the 2 Series Gran Coupe is rated a Compact.

The Civic Si has 5.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the 2 Series Gran Coupe (96.6 vs. 91).

The Civic Si has .9 inches more front legroom, 1.5 inches more front shoulder room, 1.4 inches more rear headroom, 3 inches more rear legroom and 2.9 inches more rear shoulder room than the 2 Series Gran Coupe.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Civic Si’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the 2 Series Gran Coupe’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Marginal.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Civic Si has standard extendable sun visors. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Honda Civic Si and the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Civic was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2023 and 8 more times in the last 39 years. The 2 Series Gran Coupe has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.

The Honda Civic outsold the BMW 2 Series by almost 12 to one during 2022.