I think it will be a dresssed up 06 4 door Civic EX with the same motor that was in the SIR (2 litre DOHC 155hp) Question is will the manual be a 6 speed?
Actually, it's going to be the exact same as the JDM Civic sedan, as seen above dressed up in a Mugen bodykit. That means different front and rear end from the CDM/USDM Civic. A few guys at vtec.net were in a focus group done by Acura on teh new CSX and got to see it first hand. Ontop of the leather, etc... It has optional NAVI and HIDs.
As for the engine, it's from teh same family as the K20 in the SIR, but it's actually the identical motor as in the base model RSX - 155 hp @ 6500 rpm (SAE net Rev 8/04) and 139 lbs.-ft. @ 4000 rpm.
Not a screamer, but I think it's a good choice... Better all around drivability then the 1.8L in the Civics, due to more low end torque with higher top-end HP.
However, there is some dissagreemnet on the price... Some are hearing a near $30k base, and $36 with leather and NAVI... That doesn't make much sense with the current TSX prices, but apparently the TSX is being fazed out in the next two years (when the all-new Accord platform arrives), and Acura is going to move the EL (CSX) upscale a bit, hence the significant price increase.
Also, they realize that the EL cannabalized higher-end Civic sales with the present setup, so appareantly they hope to stop that by bringing the EL (CSX) upmarket, and phazing out the TSX.
Makes business sense to me, so I'd wager on the price being <$30k.
Fuurther proof of this can be found on the vtec.net forums, where those focus group people I mentioned previously stated that the prices they were shown were >$30k base.
