Honda has announced that the previously mentioned IMA-equipped hybrid Civic will be sold in the U.S. in sedan format beginning in March of 2002. This is what we now know and don't know about the hybrid Civic:

- It is to be made available in Japan in 2001, in the U.S. in March 2002.

- Price has not yet been set.

- In the U.S. Honda hopes to sell "at least 12,000 hybrid Civics a year, in addition to 5,000 hybrid Insights."

- As a five-seater car without the Insight's advanced aerodynamics or weight-saving aluminum body, a hybrid Civic should not be expected to not achieve the efficiency or CO₂ emissions levels of the Insight. However, it would still be better than a conventional powered Civic.

- The hybrid Civic will be offered in Sedan Format. Interestingly, this will give Honda a car that is much more similar to the Prius, and will therefore position them to compete even more directly with Toyota's hybrid. The Prius is also a five-seat steel bodied car. Seating for five gives it wider market appeal, but it too has lower fuel efficiency and higher CO₂ emissions.

This is the news wire item regarding the hybrid Civic U.S. release date:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - June 26, 2001 - Honda Motor Co Ltd plans to begin selling gasoline-electric hybrid-power Civic sedans in the U.S. next March, hoping to triple U.S. sales of fuel-efficient hybrid cars, USA Today reported.

Honda Executive Vice President Dick Colliver told the paper on Monday the company hopes to sell at least 12,000 hybrid Civics a year, in addition to 5,000 hybrid Insights.

Colliver said no price has been set for the hybrid Civic, but sales of Insights doubled last month as U.S. gasoline prices hovered around $2 a gallon in many places.