Honda Civic Type-R 2016 Review

Honda Civic Type-R GT
Road Test

The hallowed 'Type-R' regalia is reserved solely for Honda's maddest machinery. And the Civic Type-R is certifiably crazy. In a good way. It's banzai 228kW engine – turbocharged VTEC! – is tucked inside a stiffer body shell, you get Brembo brakes, a mechanical limited-slip front diff, rock-hard suspension, F1-style shift lights and bodywork that says "I know, but I don't care". Priced at around $52,000 in the UK, it's not cheap, but this Honda is not to be trifled with.

The Honda Civic Type-R is the real deal – a punchy, raw, aggressive hot hatch. And this model represents the first time Honda has turbo-charged this scintillating Civic, taking the well-loved bum-dragger to a brazen new level.

Only problem is, Australians aren't allowed to drive it... Not yet, at least.

Despite interest running hot for three years now – it almost broke the internet when it was confirmed as a turbocharged ripper – Honda Australia will wait for the next-generation model that supersedes this one.

That means 2018.

Like a caramel swirl ice-cream toppling from its waffle cone only to slowly melt on the road, it's a great shame Honda couldn’t make this car available to Aussies because it's equal parts loco and lovable.

Nevertheless, we travelled to the UK to give Honda's current Japanese-designed, British-built hot hatch a good flogging. Long story short? We fell in love.

After picking up the car in London it's safe to say this is not the ideal daily drive. The suspension is too firm (even on 'soft' mode), rearward vision is shot by the giant roof spoiler and constantly changing gears via the six-speed manual gearbox gets a little tiresome in relentless London traffic.

But like all highly-strung hot hatches, this is par for the course.

An on-ramp to the freeway looms and it's time to test the beefed-up 2.0-litre turbo-petrol VTEC engine. Verdict? It's good.

Peak torque of 400Nm at 2500rpm gives the car solid low-end grunt, while 228kW of power at 6500rpm provides a powerband that just doesn't quit. Turbo boost is mega, giving the car a slightly frenetic, somewhat raw feel, but acceleration is fierce, squeezing occupants into the heavily bolstered bucket seats.

This is in stark contrast the last Civic Type-R offered in Australia, a gutless but satisfying 8000rpm naturally-aspirated four-pot screamer with less torque than a toy monkey wrench.

Indeed, the adoption of an intercooled, turbocharged powerplant changes the car's attitude dramatically. There's no more worrying about being caught in the wrong gear or trying to keep the engine on the boil – just flex and fly thanks to lavish thrust right until the 7000rpm rev limit.

Honda claims the car can rip to 100km/h 5.7 seconds and top out at 270km/h, and with excellent throttle response and only a subtle whiff of turbo lag, it's hard not to be impressed by the wicked force-fed VTEC engine.

As well as having a bigger whacking stick, the Civic Type-R's chassis has been reworked to provide more feedback and more grip, making it a more involving car as a result.

The springs are firm — real firm — and partnered with a new adaptive damping system that has two modes – stiff or shattered coccyx.

To say the car doesn't particularly like rough roads would be like saying Donald Trump doesn't particularly like Mexicans. But for serious hot hatch buyers ride comfort will be more than acceptable and for the most part it's an adept cornering machine.

Honda's heavily modified Civic generates loads of grip and drives hard out of corners, exhibiting the sort of intensity that only a few others in its class can match. It's a hackneyed cliché, but the Civic Type-R feels glued to the road, both front and rear ends tracking beautifully through corners.

Brimming with confidence and capable of slicing apexes like a master sushi chef slices sashimi, the accurate and communicative steering connects you completely with the car. Equally gratifying is tearing through the gears, the short-throw six-speed manual shifter and neat clutch subtly goading the driver to keep pushing.

Satisfying to drive? You bet your bottom dollar.

Understeer isn't a major issue thanks to the fitment of a limited-slip differential integrated within the front axle, and when you're pitched deep into corners the bucket seats do a splendid job of holding bodies in place.

Little touches like the F1-inspired shift lights, which gradually fill the instrument panel as the engine nears its redline, are nifty. And the big Brembo brakes are reassuring, especially on tight, undulating country roads with poor sight lines.

The anchors pull the car up hard and, despite ours catching a stone in a calliper for a few hours, the big stoppers stood up to repeated punishment over a 10-day period.

There's a good sense of occasion within the cabin with loads of red highlights and the deep bucket seats and sports steering wheel instantly attract the eye. The spherical milled-aluminium gearshift knob is a thing of beauty too.

But the two-tiered dashboard can go and get stuffed -- it's old and wasn't good when it was new. The Civic Type-R doesn't have the mad high-revving nature of its predecessor either, and the exhaust acoustic is soulless.

But I'd still pick it over its predecessor every day of the week, because it's got such a frenzied yet accessible spread of torque, although its 1397kg kerb weight wouldn't hurt with a further 50kg trim.

With plenty of room for four adults, the five-door layout works well in a practical sense, and the cavernous 498-litre boot provides loads of room for cargo. The standard equipment list is OK, with engine idle-stop, a reversing camera, autonomous emergency braking and automatic climate control all here.

Alright, so Honda's hottie is not as entertaining as the Focus RS and perhaps not quite as precise as the Renault Megane RS, but the Civic Type-R is still a fast and very gratifying hot hatch to rip around in, and one that should’ve been offered in Australia.

It would have sold in big numbers and added an attainable halo car for Honda Australia's dealerships, even if its model life was short-loved.

That's all academic now though. That it's a pearler of a car in so many ways bodes well for the 10th-generation Civic Type-R, which launches globally in September 2017 and expected in Australia in early 2018.

It'll have more power and torque, and hopefully more grip, but the same mongrel attitude as this one. Talk is that it's going to be a bona-fide Focus RS rival, so it could be worth the wait.

2016 Honda Civic Type-R pricing and specifications:
Price: $52,000 (approx)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 228kW/400Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Fuel: 7.3L/100km (UK claimed)
CO2: 170g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP

Also consider:
>> Ford Focus RS (from $50,990 plus ORCs)
>> Renault Megane RS 275 (from $53,000 plus ORCs)
>> Volkswagen Golf GTI (from $41,340 plus ORCs)