Civic Type R emerges hotter than ever

HONDA UK has revealed first details of its wild new Civic Type R production model.

And if all goes well the Civic Type R could arrive here by mid-2007, becoming the first ever Civic Type R to be sold Down Under, Australia’s first three-door since the sixth-generation Civic disappeared in September 2000 and our first Type R since the current Integra Type S replaced the Type R in September 2004.

Officially, Honda Australia says a business case for the Civic Type R is yet to be finalised and the car remains "firmly on our wishlist".

But given Honda’s typically cautious local arm has confirmed it is also "obviously very keen to take the car" and "confident the Type R would make a great compliment to the new Civic sedan range", it seems the chances of the edgiest Honda in ages reaching Aussie shores can only be described as good.

If sold here, the Type R would become the sports flagship of Honda Australia’s eighth-generation Civic range that arrived here in February and comprises seven four-door sedan variants only, ranging from the 103kW/174Nm 1.8-litre VTi ($20,990) to the 114kW/188Nm 2.0-litre Sport auto and the Civic Hybrid - both of which are priced at $31,990.

Never in Civic’s 23-year history has only one bodystyle been on offer here and with the UK-built five-door hatch available only in Europe, the three-door Type R would go a long way in addressing the dearth of performance cars from a company that built its name on ground-breaking models like the NSX supercar, the previous-generation Integra Type R and the S2000 roadster.

But Honda Oz is quick to point out it is still trying to make the numbers stack up.

"There’s still a lot of work to be done," warned national public relations manager Mark Higgins. "There are still a whole lot of issues to sort through, including exchange rates, production schedules and the cost of ADR compliance," he told GoAuto.

Based on the Civic Type R concept that debuted globally at the Geneva motor show in March and revealed in the UK on Friday along with (lower-spec) Type S and (more luxurious) GT variants of the sleek three-door Civic hatch, the Type R will be built exclusively alongside the five-door at the Honda of the UK Manufacturing (HUM) plant in Swindon, UK. Suggestions Honda Australia could source the Type R and other three-door Civics from Thailand appear to have been wide of the mark.

Unlike high-profile turbocharged hatches like the Mazda3 MPS (priced from $39,990), Ford’s Focus XR5 ($35,990) and the Renaultsport Megane 225 ($39,990), which produce 190kW/380Nm, 166kW/320Nm and 165kW/300Nm respectively, Civic Type R joins Holden’s new Astra SRi Turbo coupe (147kW/262Nm, $34,990) in employing a three-door bodyshell.

UK pricing won’t be revealed until closer to its European release in March, but Honda has confirmed the Type R will edge ahead of both its predecessor (which wasn’t sold here), the Astra SRi and Volkswagen’s popular Golf GTI (147kW/280Nm, $39,990) when it comes to performance.



Powered by a 150kW i-VTEC DOHC 2.0-litre naturally-aspirated inline four-cylinder, Honda UK says the new Type R blasts to 100km/h in 6.6 seconds and on to a top speed of around 235km/h, making it about as quick and fast as its forebear. It also claims that slightly lower final drive gearing and better aerodynamics compensate for "the small increase in kerb weight".

According to Honda, it’s also more refined, more flexible and offers a stiffer chassis than the outgoing Type R, as well as suspension and steering systems that are different to its current Civic stablemates.

The high-revving 2.0-litre engine employs a new balancer shaft and electronic throttle control to improve refinement and response, while a wider torque spread is the result of switching to high-lift, long duration valve timing – via Honda’s VTEC variable valve timing and VTC variable inlet camshaft system – earlier than before.

A new i-VTEC warning light, positioned to the right of the digital speedo, illuminates to indicate entry to the VTEC powerband at 5200rpm – in case the driver needs reminding – and the VTEC mode now continues to 8000rpm. Honda says peak power of 150kW is now produced at 8000rpm, compared to one horsepower less at 7400rpm in the current Type R.

Like the other three-door Civics, the latest Type R adopts a 20mm-wider rear wheel track but suspension dampers, bushes and springs are all unique to Type R, which offers a 15mm lower ride height and 18-inch 225/40-section tyres on seven-spoke alloy rims.

Honda claims the Civic chassis is already one of the stiffest in the C-segment, but that has not stopped it increasing strength via floor and engine bay cross-members. Reduced power steering assistance, a quicker steering ratio and stiffer steering box mountings are said to improve steering response and feedback.

Much of the Type R concept’s wild bodykit carries over onto the production version, which is more discreet than the current Type R but features a deep front spoiler with larger air-intake, triangular fog lights, a black honeycomb mesh grille to replace lesser Civics’ glass panel and a rear tailgate spoiler. Type R logos appear on the front brake calipers and on the stainless steel door sill inserts.

Inside, race-style front bucket seats feature large black alcantara-clad bolsters, red stitching and red fabric seat backs and cushions, while the Civic instrument panel is embellished with red illuminated dials and gun-metal effect switch panels on either side of the central display.

A black leather-clad steering wheel features red stitching, while an alloy-look knob and red-stitched boot feature on the gearshifter – ahead of which is a plaque engraved with the car’s unique serial number.