Honda plans new small petrol engine

Honda is likely to produce a 1.0-litre, three-cylinder petrol engine, according to Suehiro Hashi, head of research and design for the Civic.

He said: 'We will, of course, follow other manufacturers in terms of engine development, so we are thinking about a three-cylinder petrol engine.'

However, the details of the engine are still under consideration and it will be some time before Honda launches such an engine.

Hashi did confirm, however, that Honda was not likely to go as far as a two-cylinder engine, claiming that 'it depends on the application and balance of performance and efficiency, but three-cylinder is the optimum for us.'

Best cars with three-cylinder engines>
On paper, cars with a three-cylinder engine promise much. They are efficient, with low CO2 emissions, but offer a decent amount of power. However, some engines can be noisy and unrefined, while official economy figures might be hard to achieve because the engine generally requires more revs.

Here, we list the best cars with three-cylinder engines.

Dacia Sandero 0.9 TCe
Ford Fiesta 1.0T Ecoboost
Ford Focus 1.0T Ecoboost
Renault Clio 0.9 TCe
Seat Mii 1.0
Skoda Citigo 1.0
Volkswagen Up 1.0

By Vicky Parrott