Honda creates one-off Civic Type R pick-up

NO NEED to check the date, today is not April Fools. Honda has really pulled the covers off a pick-up version of its venerable Civic Type R hot hatch, but the bad news is such a model is not planned to make it into production.

 

Officially known as the Honda Civic Type R Pick-Up Truck concept, the Japanese marque’s latest creation was brought to life by a specialist team from the product engineering department at the Honda of the UK Manufacturing (HUM) factory in Swindon, England.

 

Other than the bodywork behind the B-pillars, the Civic Type R is basically untouched, meaning its UK-market 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine continues to produce 235kW of power at 6500rpm and 400Nm of torque from 2500-4500rpm in pick-up form.

 

Similarly, drive is still exclusively sent to the front wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, while a limited-slip differential does its best to minimise torque steer and maximise traction around corners.

 

As a result, the Civic Type R pick-up is estimated to sprint from standstill to 100km/h in less than 6.0 seconds while on the way to its top speed of more than 265km/h. As such, Honda describes it as “potentially one of the fastest pick-up trucks on UK roads”.

 

According to HUM powertrain product development and durability manager Alyn James, the company might have even bigger plans in store for the Civic Type R Pick-up Truck concept.

 

“We have a special projects division at the factory in Swindon, and this project was a fantastic opportunity for the team to show just what their creative minds could do,” he said.

 

“The passion that our engineers have for Honda is shown in our latest creation, and we are even considering taking it to the Nurburgring to see if we can take the record for the fastest front-wheel-drive pick-up truck!”

 

In April last year, the Civic Type R five-door hatch set the lap record (7:43.8) for a front-wheel-drive production vehicle around the famous Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit in Germany.

 

Revealed at the annual Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) Test Day this week in Millbrook, England, the pick-up differs from its hatch counterpart due its lack of rear seats and boot space, which have made way for a checker-plate, steel-lined flatbed loading area and a black sports bar.

 

While the Civic Type R’s signature rear wing spoiler remains, it is instead mounted on the pick-up’s flip-up tailgate, which conveniently allows for it to be moved out of way during loading.

 

Despite its promise as a versatile performance-cum-commercial weapon, Honda Motor Europe Limited (HMEL) head of car Phil Webb revealed the company has a more mundane role in mind for the concept.

 

“This Civic Type R Pick-up Truck concept by the special team at our Swindon-based plant demonstrates the passion and commitment of the team there – going above and beyond outside working hours to deliver the final product,” he said.

 

“There are no plans to put this in to production, but we will be using it to transport our lawn and garden products as and when required!”

 

Since its Australian launch in October last year, the Civic Type R hatch ($51,990 before on-road costs) has been a sales success for Honda Australia, with more than 350 dealer orders held a month before it hit showrooms, while 555 units have been sold to date.

 

BMW pulled a similar move on April Fools in 2011, outing a pick-up version of its E92-series M3 sportscar, which has since been used as a workshop delivery vehicle for BMW M GmbH.

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