I believe the best way is to go and test drive and decide for yourself. From your description, the Toyota Corolla sedan is the better choice. if I'm not mistaken, the word "Altis" has been dropped is no longer used. It's now called "Corolla" only, or Corolla sedan if one doesn't want to mix it up with Corolla Cross SUV.

As usual the choice is dependent on priorities as there are pros and cons with both Civic and Corolla. I used to favour power and sporty handling but nowadays that's not so important anymore. For me it's a nice, quiet and comfortable drive which take precedence over everything else. Good NVH with minimal rattling sound inside the cabin. IN these areas, I generally find Honda vehicles from City to Accord to score poorly here. I test drove the Corolla GR Sport last year with the intention to buy one and the refinement in the drive and NVH are above average, in other words good. The downside of the Corolla, to me, is the lack of power due to the 1.8-litre engine and the high price exceeding RM150k. The power from the 1.8-litre engine is OK, and I probably could accept it if it's priced lower, but at RM150k+ I thought it's poor value. The hanlding and steering feel also were a bit lacking but that's irrelevant since it's a family orientated car, and moreover by benchmark was high comparing to my then Ford Focus 2.0 where the power and handling were one or two levels higher.

Sorry, I just read you owned the Accord and CRV and it's useful to note that your long-term experience coincide with my short term experiences having sat in my colleagues and friends Accord and Civic.

Coming back to point, for your criteria I think the Toyota Corolla is a much better choice than any of the Honda, provided you can put up with the slight lack of power and mediocre handling, and also the price. The price for the lower spec is RM140k up to RM148k for high spec and RM152k for the GR Sport version. To me it's a bit overpriced and poor value but that's just my opinion and also not forgetting it's not CKD but CBU from Thailand so that explains on the higher pricing. I owned the Nissan Sylphy 2.0 before and the NVH is among the best in its class or much pricier vehicles back in 2007. Back then I bought it for just slightly above RM110k I think. That's really great value but nowadays we can't get the same level of refinement and performance for the same money already. Sorry for being long-winded.

Yes, I guess that's the main factor. Nevertheless, I don't really understand how they work out the CBU pricing. The Ford Focus 2.0 CBU from Philippines which I bought year 2013, the MSRP is RM115k and after discount it's just RM105k if I recall correctly. To me it's great value when bought new and under warranty. Perhaps things have changed as 10 years has passed.

It is surely expensive but even if I have the money, I won't buy it as it only comes in manual transmission. I'm now in the same boat as the OP as handling and power are not important to me anymore these days. 15 years ago yes, but not anymore now. Having said that, as long as the vehicle doesn't take more than 12 seconds to complete a 0-100km/'h, it's more than sufficient for me.

If manual transmission is for real men, then I'm not sure what do we call the majority of males who drive automatics on the roads here. Fake men?

Anyway, back to topic. I'm aware some of the "true" GR vehicles have automatic transmissions though they only appeal to a niche group of affluent race heads and/or people who have a need for speed. For majority of people who don't have a need for speed (or money), don't need to go there.

May I ask if there's any links to pictures or videos on the Corolla Altis 2025? So far I've seen some rendering created by artists, not actual car. Perhaps some actual vehicle of the Corolla but those are mostly in the American market which looks completely different from the model we are getting here.

"better" is subjective and there are many areas where it can be better or worse. The Proton S70 already failed my first hurdle or requirement which is in exterior looks. To me it doesn't look elegant. If it doesn't look good, I won't look at it anymore not to mention test-driving it.

Well, that's inaccurate supposition on your part. For any car to appeal to me, to make me consider buying it, first and foremost is the exterior looks. All other aspects are secondary. If it doesn't look good to me, it's out.

Proton badge is secondary but yes, I try to avoid a Proton car if possible but it's of less importance. If a Proton car looks great, I will consider it. However, based on my long term experience with Proton cars albeit pre-Geely rebadged versions, I tend to avoid it. I also read horror stories about X50 and X70, mainly spare parts unavailability. Other aspects include reliability and quality especially in NVH and not showing noticeable or serious rattling sound inside the cabin within say 2-3 years.

Just to add, due to poor NVH and rattling sound inside the cabin of all Honda cars even fairly new cars, Honda cars are always out of consideration for me despite the nice good looks and impressive spec and performance on paper.

My worst experience was sitting inside an Accord back in 2013 or 2014, give and take, from KL to a small town in JB and then back to KL again. A business associate drove the car during a company trip. The worst experience was when the vehicle exited the highway and went into the small kampung roads. It's just terrible. Anyway I wouldn't repeat the experience as I posted it on the forum 2 or 3 years ago, and it created a ruckus especially with Honda owners or fans.