Honda led off by noting that the new 2023 Civic Type R is “the most powerful Honda production vehicle ever sold in the U.S.” It’s an empty suit of a superlative when you note Honda achieved it by milking a not-so-gobsmacking nine extra horsepower from the previous generation’s 2.0-liter engine. Using it is a tacit admission by Honda that the new Type R is more of an incremental update and refinement than rumors of a radical, hybrid, 400-horsepower AWD Civic Type R suggested. But the same could be said for virtually every affordable, low-volume combustion performance car, as manufacturers invest in going electric over everything else.
The Civic Type R did add that power, though, along with an extra 15 lb-ft of torque. Honda engineers stiffened the chassis and retuned its suspension. It has a wider track and a longer wheelbase for added stability. And Honda endeavored to resolve some of the Civic Type R’s most prominent criticisms, whether that was the less-than-stirring exhaust note or hyper-aggressive styling unfit for anyone but a backward hat-clad, Red Bull-quaffing teenage ne’er do well.
Honda brought me out to California to drive the Civic Type R in its intended environments: seriously curvy Napa Valley mountain roads and on track at Sonoma Raceway on dealer-optional Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires (with Honda staffers constantly monitoring the pressures between runs). And after a lengthy day of Type R-ing, the new version proved to be exactly what it needed to be: the ultimate Honda hot hatch — if not the ultimate hot hatch for everyone.
Why is the Honda Civic Type R special?
Honda engineers excel on a budget. The Civic Type R is their take on building “the ultimate high-performance hot hatch” (at a price buyers can afford). Their interpretation sticks with front-wheel drive. It’s not the typical choice for performance cars — Lamborghinis and Porsche 911s stick with rear-wheel or all-wheel drive. But Honda argues that front-engine, FWD is a simpler, lighter and purer layout than, say, the VW Golf R’s AWD with its “Vehicle Dyanmics Manager.” Sticking with FWD also avoids an extensive and costly overhaul of the base Civic.
Engineering out the torque steer that plagues high-powered vehicles, Honda has ostensibly produced the world’s quickest production FWD track car, which is dramatically less expensive than the quickest RWD one. This model won’t be the last Type R we get in America. But it almost certainly will be the last purely combustion-powered version.