2013 Honda Civic nipped, tucked and ready for its closeup

Mid-model refreshes from Honda usually don't make headlines because of their formulaic predictability: touch up the bumpers and slap on a handful of features in its third model year and call it a day. Hence, an emergency refresh of the heavily criticized Honda Civic — only a year after its debut — was the company's tacit admission of "we screwed up." One Honda executive ominously warned dealers to clear out the 2012 models because of "dramatic improvements" to the 2013 edition, and from what was unveiled at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show, he was right — the old Civic can't exit the stage soon enough.

Teaser shots have already shown the Clarity FCX-esque changes to the front and rear, but the biggest changes happen inside. The dash sees a major overhaul: Playskool plastics are replaced with finer grain panels and chrome touches, and soft touch materials adorn the dash and front door. The headliner no longer looks pulled out of a Toyota Yaris, and the HVAC vents aren't nonsensically shaped. Plenty of amenities now come standard, including a rear backup camera, Bluetooth HandsFreeLink/Audio and Pandora. At cost of an additional 50 pounds, it'll also be the safest Civic; the revised body structure meets stringent requirements for the Institute for Highway Safety's new small-offset crash test, and the car has optional collision detection technology, a first for its class.