Honda’s new Civic Type R, a future legend

It has finally arrived! Billed as a ‘race car for the road’, the latest generation of the Honda Civic Type R has arrived on our shores and is set to deliver unrivalled performance and driving involvement.

One look and it will leave you in no doubt this is a very serious contender for the hot hatch title. According to Graham Eagle, director of operations at Honda Motor South Africa: “The all-new Honda Civic Type R is the most extreme and highest performing Type R ever built and sets new standards in the fiercely contested high-performance front-wheel drive hatchback segment.”

Yes, it’s got deep spoilers and large rear wings, but this is no ordinary Civic dressed up as a boy racer. All that aero kit plays a serious role in the Type R.

A look at the back end with its large wing, lower diffuser and four tail pipes should say it all. In fact, aerodynamics was a major focus for the design team and the result is a zero lift coefficient with minimum drag.

Put simply, it ensures the car is literally pushed and sucked down on to the road, supplying massive levels of grip in co-operation with the specially developed Continental 235/35 R19 SportContact 6 tyres.

Honda engineers have left no stone unturned to ensure this is the best ever Type R and one has to say they have very definitely succeeded. To prove it, they chose to add to the launch experience by including multiple laps of the Killarney Race Circuit as well as the normal road route.

The 2.0 litre petrol engine is an allnew unit and is an example of the company’s Earth Dreams Technology that improves efficiency. But don’t think that implies the latest offering is all about just saving the planet.

This one is a magnificent example of performance engineering. Employing direct injection Honda’s proven VTEC and VTC technology is coupled with an advanced new mono-scroll turbocharger and delivers 228kW at 6 500r/min.

Add to that a torque figure of 400Nm at 2 500r/min and you have the highest figures ever for a Type R. Red-lined at 7 000r/min, the response of the new power plant is impressive.

This is attained by using lightweight materials in the engine, such as cast aluminium pistons, aluminium VTEC rocker arms, forged con rods and a lightweight crankshaft, all of which reduce weight, size and rotational mass of the engine.

Acceleration from 0/100km/h is claimed at 5.7 seconds and top speed at 270km/h, with a combined fuel consumption of 7.5 l / 100km and emissions at just 177g/ km. If the responsiveness of the engine is impressive, then the transmission is equally so.

A six speed manual gearbox was selected rather than the double clutch transmissions so popular today. Once again, as with the engine, the gearbox betters its predecessor.

The short shift, just a 40mm throw, allows very quick changes with a very positive feel and features the traditional hewn aluminium gear knob ensuring a positive grip.

The final drive is through a helical limited slip differential and ensures maximum traction when cornering very hard. There is also a dedicated oil cooler for the gearbox, essential when being pushed hard on a racetrack.

Using a high rigidity casing reduces weight making it the lightest in its class. To keep it all firmly planted, the Type R has a fourwheel Adaptive Damper System (ADS), which enables continuous independent control of each wheel.

Using multiple sensors the ADS monitors the car’s situation every 0,05 seconds and using electromagnetic coils adjusts the dampers to keep the car flat and stable. The system also eliminates fore and aft pitching during braking and acceleration.

The dual axis front suspension provides greater high speed stability and helps to reduce torque steer by 55% over the standard Civic. Dual pinion electric power steering provides a rapid response, but still provides good driver feedback.

This system has been developed from the unit used on the standard Civic. Then of course there is the new “+R” button.

If you thought the car was a really well set up package, push that button and you’ll find another dimension. It’s not a case of more power, but an increase in the already excellent response of chassis and drive train.

Entering the Type R is not an elegant manoeuvre, but once ensconced in the front sport seats with full lateral support and the flat bottomed steering wheel allowing a seriously low driving position, hip point is 30mm closer to the tarmac than the standard car.

The rear bench seat splits 60:40 for extra load capability and folds flat for even greater cargo loads. Even though this car is all about performance, the Type R does not skimp on the creature comforts.

Standard are a Multi-Information display, dual zone automatic climate control, remote central locking with smart keyless entry, auto LED headlights and windscreen wipers, cruise control with speed limiter, front and rear parking sensors, power windows all round, electrically adjustable and retractable exterior mirrors with integrated turn indicators, Bluetooth connectivity, an audio system and a multi-function steering wheel.

There’s an Agile Handling Assist programme which works through the VSA to keep you pointed in the right direction. And when you need to haul it in quickly, the Brembo 350mm diameter drilled discs with four pot calipers up front are up to the job.

For further piece of mind the Type R retains the five-star Euro NCAP rating achieved by the standard Civic hatchback.

Describing the drive will never do it justice. Let me rather say this has to be one of the most well sorted performance hatches I have ever driven.

Every aspect of the car has been honed to a point of engineering excellence.

Agreed, this is very much a niche model – but it is one set to become a legend.

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