
The Civic does still come in a 4 door model.  My wife and I looked
quite seriously at the 626, Prizm (Corolla), and Civic, as well as
some other cars.  Our impressions: all three seemed well built and had
the features we wanted - these are similar to the features you want
except for cruise control, and we want a manual transmission and are
considering anti-lock brakes.  I also hate automatic seatbelts and we
both think having an airbag is a plus.  In general, comfort and
performance were both significant.

Some specific +'s and -'s are listed below.

Mazda 626
 + very comfortable and roomy
 + can theoretically get ABS on DX model, though in practice this is
   hard to find
 + base price for base model includes numerous little things like:
   tach, variable speed wipers, rear defroster, 60/40 split folding rear seat
 - more expensive than many other cars listed below

Honda Civic
 + DX gets significantly better mileage than other cars listed here
 + comfortable front seat
 + adjustable seat belt mounting
 - no ABS without EX model (includes $1000's of other things like a sunroof)

Geo Prizm/Toyota Corolla
 - seats not very comfortable to us (your mileage may vary)
 + adjustable seat belt mounting
 + can get ABS without lots of other extras

Saturn
 + SL2 was quite comfortable, though SL1 less so
 - motorized attack belts

Dodge Spirit
   no real outstanding +'s, but seemed generally ok
 - rear seat does not fold down

Chevy Corsica
 + comes with ABS standard
 - lower "would you buy that car again" and safety ratings in
   Consumer Reports (than first 3 cars above)
 - suspension didn't feel as stiff as the others (this would be a +
   for some)

The Honda Accord and Toyota Camry were both more expensive than the
626, and in our minds, not significantly better.

We probably gave disproportionately low consideration to the "big 3",
due (a) to my wife's family's general dislike of Chrysler products,
(b) some unimpressive GM products owned by my parents and a housemate
of mine (c) the Taurus comes with automatic transmission, I find the
seat of the Tempo very uncomfortable, and the escort has attack belts
and no air bag.