Road Test: Honda Civic Type R

Review by Feann Torr - 15/August/2007

Busting out of the current hot hatch template like an overripe pimple on a teenagers face, the Civic Type R does not, in fact, have a turbocharged engine. It's a rare thing that a hot hatch in today's day and age wouldn't have forced induction of some sort, but Honda never gave it a second thought.

The Civic Type R is vastly different to its rivals on numerous levels. Just take a look at the car: the design is part automotive artwork, part gerbil. The engine can be wound up to an eye-watering 8400rpm. The interior, too, is completely different from anything we've seen before. It's like settling into the commanding officers chair on futuristic battle station.

The Honda Civic Type R is, in a word, unique.

The current kings of the hot hatch world, the Ford Focus XR5 Turbo, VW Golf GTI, Holden Astra SRi Turbo et al are all based on existing models on sale in Australia. 

The Civic Type R is an anomaly in that Honda sells only the Civic sedan in Australia, whereas the Type R it imports is the British-build hatchback. The reason behind this move? Who cares, because this car is very cool.

Powered by a peaky 2.0-litre engine and paired with an impressive 6-speed manual gearbox, not to mention one of the tightest chassis tunes this side of a Lancer Evolution, the Honda Civic Type R represents a real drivers car, something that has be to pushed to its limits to be truly appreciated.

The pricing of the highly modified Honda heads towards the pointy end of the hot hatch market, and at just under $40,000 it's undercut by vehicles like the XR5 Turbo and Astra SRi Turbo, but on the flip side it'll never be mistaken for an everyday runabout.

With its twin triangular exhausts, beefy body kit, squat stance, and dynamically different styling, the Civic Type R will attain sales based purely on its looks. But if you thought this naturally aspirated 4-pot screamer was all show and no go, you may want to read the drive section before you scroll down to the conclusion...

Drive: 4/5

Step into the starship Civic and it's hard not to be dazzled by it's non conformist cabin. Slot the key in and everything lights up, but the engine won't start. You have to hit the red starter button.

First impressions of the way the car drives are favourable. It's easy to steer thanks to its precise steering response, the throttle is a bit touchy, but the clutch and 6-speed gearbox are friendly enough for everyday use.

Everything falls to hand fairly easily - the steering wheel is small and sporty, the gear shifter offers short sharp throws between the gates, and all your ancillary controls are clearly labelled.

Driven from Honda's HQ back into the city highlighted the car's frugal nature. At 100km/h on the freeway (in sixth gear) the car was sipping about 6L/100km, and its crisp steering and short wheel base made a mockery of the dense pre peak hour traffic.

Darting in and out of the gaps like a motorbike, the Civic Type R's only shortcoming during the everyday drive was the sensitive throttle (though this could be seen as a boon by lead foots) and extensive rear blind spot brought about by the rear pillars and the ginormous rear wing. Oh, and the frontseatbelts were positioned too far back, meaning you had to really stretch to get them.

Otherwise, it's a real pleasure to drive. There's nothing scary about piloting it and while it is capable of generating some very serious lateral G-forces, it retains the Civic's, um, civility.Parking the car isn't too difficult because of it's middling 4.28 metre length, and the view out the front windscreen is fairly encompassing.

You'll notice a lot red in the cockpit too, from the innumerable scarlet 'H' symbols to the heavily bolstered bucket seats. And for good reason - this car is a real pocket racer and, as such, needs to communicate this to all who request entry.

The suspension is skewed heavily in favour of 'performance' and though ride quality suffers because of this (even on nominal surfaces), it is a Type R after all. If a smooth ride is a priority, you may want check out the standard Civic.

Out in the country, where the traffic was almost non-existent and the flowing corners abundant, the Type R came into its own. With peak torque hitting the skids @ 7800rpm, you really have rev the engine to find any sort of speed. At lower revs it feels like any other 2.0-litre small car, though perhaps with more tractability.

But as the revs rise, so does the enjoyment factor.

Pushing the hyperactive 2.0-litre engine to its redline just the other side of 8000rpm results in an acoustic explosion and the sort of acceleration one doesn't normally associate with a naturally aspirated 4-cylinder petrol engine. If you're willing to push the limits of both the engine and the chassis, you'll find the Civic Type R is a road warrior of high repute.

The tachometer (rev meter) is simply massive, and dominates the lower instrument display. The needle seemingly orbits the tacho in an almost 360 degree swirl, and if kept above 6000rpm the Type R can be surprisingly quick. 

Though it will be humbled by most turbocharged hot hatches in a straight line, it's 6.6 second 0-100km/h sprint time is far from slow and a 14.8 second quarter mile puts things in perspective.

I really liked that the engine provided the car with a unique feel, because so few hot hatches today come without a turbocharged 4-banger. Together with precise (and lag-free) throttle response the Civic Type R is supremely involving to drive. The clutch is light and together with the sweet shifting 6-speed manual gearbox allows drivers to row through the gears like canoe on a classy lake.

It holds a tight line through a given corner - smooth surface or not - but because of its soft-ish power delivery that relies on high revs and peak power (torque is minimal at best), it means that traction is rarely overridden. The front wheels are difficult to displace and as such you never feel the need to hold back. 

In turn, this makes the car feel very planted, inspiring the confidence to push harder and see just how far the Civic Type R can go. The term 'woah nelly' comes to mind when describing what's capable when you combine this vehicle, a deserted road, and plenty of sharp corners.

Body roll is muted, as is torque steer, and the steering is fantastic. The small steering wheel feels great with a decent amount of weight behind it. The tiller requires only small inputs to get the car to turn in, which it does with the kind of precision I've rarely experienced before. The precise steering makes you feel directly connected to the car, and the feedback is likewise very clear.

Indeed, communication through the chassis via the seat and steering wheel was very good. The car felt so undeniably sure of itself and so stable that after the first few corners I was incredulous. "Surely you jest..." went my inner monologue as I tried in vain to upset the chassis. Quite simply, the CTR has the best initial turn-in of any hot hatch I've driven to date.

Piloting this banzai vehicle is almost like going back in time and driving a raw version of the many modern hot hatches on the market, in that it requires far more focus to extract maximum performance. And therein lies one of the car's best attributes; at the end of the day, the extra level of driver involvement makes the journey a much more memorable and rewarding experience.

It's that concept of having to conquer the boring bits (1000 to 6000rpm) before you can access the really good stuff (7800rpm).

The chassis is best described as neutral, with perhaps only a modicum of understeer. As a result the car feels well balanced under full throttle loads when leaning through corners and the direct steering adds supreme levels of confidence. 

I thought that it's 1345kg weight was a bit portly for something bearing Type R badges, but as it happens the car never felt particularly lacking in terms of acceleration or deceleration. The brakes don't have the initial bite of some sports cars, but squeeze the pedal a little harder and the 2-door Type R washes off speed effortlessly. Your rhythm won't be unduly hampered if you have to brake mid-corner either,testament to the finely-tuned chassis balance.

Because the engine revs to such extremes and necessitates a lofty compression ratio, the driver can attain additional deceleration via the gearbox and engine, and this also keeps the engine in its powerband.

It's short wheel base, independent front and torsion beam rear suspension ensured that it was easy to flick between rights to lefts without wallowing. And while some may be shocked to know that the rear end has an old-school suspension setup, it works well and provides the rear end with a surprising amount of feel.

The 225/40 R18 tyres offer excellent grip, which was rarely overwhelmed by engine power and thus allows you to just nail the throttle and concentrate on your line through the corner. It's sits very flat through corners too -- the stiff suspension setup removes a lot of body roll, as do the front and rear anti-roll bars.

Honda's British-built Civic Type R hatchback is a breath of fresh air in the hot hatch market. While its rivals are happy to clone each other, this vehicle breaks the mould in more ways than one and manages to involve the driver like few others. It makes all the right sounds, and communicates well what the road's doing underfoot, and with impressive bucket seats that hold your torso firmly in place during extreme cornering, it's dynamics are hard to fault.

Yes, it has an overly firm ride, it's not the most powerful hot hatch available, and it doesn't have a button to change its suspension settings. But it is the most involving hot hatch to drive, and that's quite an achievement.

Engine: 4/5

Compared to the standard manual Civic's 114kW, the 148kW Type R offers more than just a mild retuning of the engine. It is the automotive equivalent of an habañero chilli. Yeah, so hot it'll melt your face.

It gets nice extras like a forged chrome-molybdenum flywheel for quicker engine response, and with a raised rev ceiling and tweaks to the airbox that increase its acoustics, it sounds pretty nasty too. Honda describes the sound as "...more of a guttural howl, that becomes a rasping shriek as the revs rise". Couldn't have said it better myself.

Throttle response in this gnarly-looking ovoid pocket rocket is acute. Dab the loud pedal and the engine instantly responds, but it should be mentioned that with a decent cruise control system, the car can also be fairly docile.

Our overall fuel consumption for the seven day test drive was 11L/100, well above the claimed 9.3L/100 that Honda claims. I blame the alpine regions...

Though it lacks torque compared to its rivals with a paltry 193Nm (the Mazda3 MPS makes almost double that: 380Nm) it's still a very tractable. It'll sit in 6th gear at speeds of 65km/h without bogging down and you can turn cruise control on at such engine speeds, no dramas. 

Cruising at 100km/h in 6th gear, the engine ticks over at about 3000rpm, which affords very good economy across long distances.

When heading out for a more thrilling drive, I thought the engine took a while to reach it's sweet spot at around 7000rpm, though it still had good pulling power low in the rev range and this made everyday driving surprisingly relaxed. Ninety percent of peak torque hits the front hoops at just 2500rpm, which explains the cars tractable, easygoing feel at low engine revs.

Where most turbocharged engines thrive on mid-range torque, building a large wave that allows effortless acceleration, the Type R's highly strung 2.0-litre engine is markedly different. While 90 per cent of the maximum 193Nm of torque is available from 2500rpm, that leaves naff-all torque to build later in the rev range. From 2500rpm onwards the car thrives on power rather than torque, and it feels awesome when you reach the engine's sky-high powerband.

There is a bit of a flat spot in the power delivery between 3000 and 5000rpm, but otherwise the engine is hard to fault. Acceleration is constant, if somewhat flaccid before 6000rpm, and the final drive ratio has been lowered from 4.764 to 5.062 for improved acceleration.

The most fun can be had when you aggressively seek to mash the rev counter's needle against it's bump stop beyond 8000rpm, and in tandem with its super-rigid chassis the CTR scythes from corner to corner with finessed ease. The gearchage couldn't be better, with short throws between gears that have a good amount of precision, enough to build your confidence as you flick through ratios.

Working your way through the rev range is like a trial of courage at times. The engine seems fairly docile off idle, and there's no turbo to whip it up to a quick start. At around 3000rpm the car begins to feel quick, and by 5000rpm it feels like a hot hatch. At 7000rpm the engine is channeling a very angry 4-cylinder sound into the cockpit, and the next 1000rpm towards 8000rpm is where the car feels strongest, and winding the engine up to its rev limit is magnificently involving.

Exterior: 4/5

As I mentioned in the intro, the CTR is unconventional. It's got a non turbo engine, a solid rear axle and at the push of a button can display the speed on a large digital display in km/h or mph. The exterior design is equally different; it goes against the grain on a completely wholesale level. 

Where cars like the Astra SRi Turbo have injected impressive levels of style into the hot hatch arena, the Civic Type R drops a hydrogen bomb on the playing field. It's short and squat but muscular too, and utterly unorthodox. Whether viewed from the front, the sides, or behind, the British-built Civic Type R is different. And refreshingly so. 

The overriding shape of the Civic hatch is an ovoid of sorts, with relatively short front and rear overhangs giving it a compact footprint. I liken it to an egg on wheels, but an oddly attractive one with the iconic red 'H' symbol emblazoned on the microscopic front grille and a stylised metal fuel cap. Even the door handles are unconventional, in both design and operation.

The front end features slimline headlight clusters that almost reach the front wheel arches, and the triangular design theme begins with the front fog lights. The rear, in contrast, is a big fat chunky surface with plenty of angles to reflect the light with brake light clusters that mimic the headlights.

Sitting low to the ground on large 18-inch wheels with a 7-spoke design, the aerodynamic body kit works well on a visual level. The low front spoiler has subtle contours, and the side skirts feature a more overt design, while at the rear the triangular design theme reappears in the form of twin exhaust outlets. The rear spoiler didn't grill my bacon so to speak, but I think that without it the car would probably look too rounded. It's a very different design overall, perhaps even peculiar, but it stands out and it attracts attention and that's something that many of its rivals have trouble achieving.

Interior: 4/5

I like the Civic Type R, to the point where it became lamentable that the standard Civic hatch never reached our shores here in Australia. Still, we get this one and it kicks arse. The front seats feature strong lateral bolsters for the torso and medium bolsters for the thighs, which makes for easy ingress and egress (unlike, say, the Audi RS 4, which is a right-royal bitch to get in and out of). They look good, they're quite comfy thanks to decent cushions and smooth suede finish, and best of all they've been designed to hold you firmly in place during high G-force cornering.

The centrepoint of the interior is the futuristic (but impressively ergonomic) steering wheel and stacked instrument display. At first it's quite a shock getting used to the bizarre layout of telemetrics, but after a few days in the saddle it becomes clear that such a setup is close to perfect. Unsurprisingly, the controls for the heating/cooling are located near the steering wheel, and not on the centre console as is almost exclusively the case with new cars.

The instrument cluster is more of an 'instrument swathe', encompassing a large area of the dash. It's all back lit red which adds to the occasion and the large digital speedo is easy to read, needing only a glance to tell you how close you are to the 235km/h top speed. The sweeping dashboard is utterly different to anything else on the market and it looks great. I'm a big fan.

While the speedo sits high up above the rest of the instrument panel, a modern looking trip computer resides inside the huge tachometer. It has various displays for overall/instant fuel consumption, distance covered etc. and gives the dash yet another high-tech feature with which to impress your friends and colleagues alike. There's also a VTEC light at the top of the dash that blinks on to tell you when the engine is swapping to the high lift camshaft (@ 5400rpm), and it's little touches like this and the engine starter button that contribute to the car's unique allure.

Alloy pedals add an extra dash of sports-cool to the cabin, and the gearstick is just the business. It's a simple metallic sphere, brushed aluminium I think, that looks like it was poached from a Lamborghini Diablo circa 1992. Above this the radio is inset into the dash plastics in what would generally be considered as the centre console. It looks a bit plain compared to the rest of the interior and while it's a decent radio, most enthusiasts will probably want something with more kick and clarity. Good luck ripping out the original head unit though...

Honda has fitted the Civic Type R with an impressive number of standard features, including dual zone climate control, folding mirrors, auto headlights, leather steering wheel, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, six airbags, ABS and stability control. Interestingly, the button for the front passenger's climate control is located in their door panel next the electric window toggle. 'Different' seems to be the CTR's middle name.

Some of the interior plastics come across as a bit cheap with little texture or feel, but overall the cabin is a crimson coloured-coded drivers paradise. Most controls are ergonomically placed and the steering wheel features cruise and stereo controls, which allows the driver to concentrate on the road.

The rear seats aren't quite as fancy as the fronts. They're not buckets, but they are colour coded and there are good-sized cupholders which should pacify those passengers who were too slow to call shotgun. Rear leg room isn't great, but for a 4.2 metre long car it's not terrible. Boot space is generous at 485 litres, which expands to 1352 litres with the rear bench folded away, and should be roomenough for a small poker table and a few bags of garden mulch.

Overall: 4.25/5

It's not as powerful nor as quick as many of it's rivals, but the Civic Type R is entertaining to drive in a way that is so utterly different from the norm that it almost becomes a curiosity. I found myself wanting to spend as much time as possible in the car, partly because it's so sorted in terms of handling and engine response, but also because of the way it looks -- both inside and out.

It's not as cheap to buy as the Ford Focus XR5 Turbo or the Holden Astra SRi Turbo, sitting at the pointy end of the 4-cylinder hot hatch price list. But what it offers in terms of raw sensory feedback is worth the extra spondoolies in my view. It does compete with the VW Golf GTI on price, and with better build quality and hardcore bucket seats I'd take them both for a spin before deciding on the insanely popular Veedub.

The Civic Type R won't always reign supreme in the traffic light tango due to its low levels of torque, but in terms of driver involvement there are few performance hatchbacks - and even sports cars - that can rival this Japanese-engineered model. It's kind of like the 350Z of the hot hatch world, only far more freaky to look at. In finishing, I will say that I've rarely thought about buying a new car, but this hyperactive blob of metal and plastic has stoked the fires of desire more than anything else in recent memory.

Bring on the Accord Type R!