Yahoo Autos 2023 Honda Civic Type R First Drive Review: All grown up isn't so bad
SEARS POINT, Calif. – Is being “all grown up” such a bad thing? Listening to blink-182’s latest would suggest that, yep, it definitely can be. Being rough around the edges, a tad tacky and a lot loud don’t have to be problems, they can be the very things that draw people to a pop punk band, clothing style or a certain high-performance hatchback in the first place. Smooth out those edges, class things up and quiet things down, and before you know it, the magic’s lost.
Well, the 2023 Honda Civic Type R sure seems all grown up. The absurd vents of the outgoing model are gone, replaced by more restrained body work, courtesy the 11th generation Civic, but with added elements unique to the Type R’s widened body and aerodynamic enhancements. The front fascia and interior styling in particular are classier than what you’ll find with the Civic Si. The big wing remains, but it feels more like the earring and tattoo you kept into your 30s. Maybe it’s because I’m almost in my 40s, (ugh) but I see absolutely nothing wrong with this. The Type R magic is not lost.
The main reason for that is beneath the boy-racer visual flamboyance of the previous generation was a surprisingly refined car, complete with an adaptive suspension that would allow you to unapologetically bomb around a back road yet not beat you up on the drive to work. Your girlfriend or mother would be unlikely to complain about being driven in a Type R. It also wasn’t terribly noisy, the seats weren’t silly and the car’s ample power and torque could be judicially doled out. Basically, the Civic Type R as we’ve known it here in North America was never exactly unhinged.
That remains for 2023, but the performance envelope has nevertheless been enlarged thanks to a variety of chassis, powertrain, cooling and aerodynamic improvements beyond the inherent improvements made for Civic generation 11. It starts with a body that’s longer, lower and wider than its predecessor, with bulging fenders encasing wider tracks (1 inch front, 0.75 inch rear) than the standard Civic hatchback. And, once again, the Type R is hatchback-only, while the Civic Si is sedan-only. The body itself is stiffer and weight is minimized with a resign hatch and front bulkhead, and the continued use of an aluminum hood.
The Type R’s K20C 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four gets pumped up to 315 horsepower and 310 pound of torque, improvements of 9 hp and 15 lb-ft. This comes courtesy of a redesigned turbocharger that enables it to generate pressure in a wider range of engine speeds and promotes increased torque output in the mid-range. And oh boy does it work, cause this engine is absolutely on-point when in the 3,500-5,000-rpm range. Power was also enhanced with a 13% exhaust flow rate made possible by an active exhaust valve and larger center (of three) exhaust outlet. A variety of enhancements were made to improve efficiency and cooling, while a lighter single-mass flywheel was fitted to the standard six-speed manual transmission (more on that later) to improve throttle response.
The front end differs significantly from other Civics with its dual-axis front suspension featuring knuckles, strut forks and lower arms made from aluminum, and crucially, special geometry that allows for negative camber (lateral movement) for crisper turn-in and additional caster (fore-aft movement) for greater stability. It also greatly reduces torque steer, which is key for a car that sends 315 hp to the front wheels only.
“Reduces” is the key word, however, as there is definitely still torque steer. During laps at Sonoma Raceway, the Type R’s wheel became stiff and reluctant to unwind when getting back on the gas out of tighter corners. This became frustrating and immediately summoned flashbacks of whipping the Toyota GR Corolla around similarly tight corners with its 50:50 all-wheel-drive power distribution freeing the front wheels to focus more on the turning task at hand. Honda says all-wheel drive would add complexity, weight and cost, with the latter including the need to engineer the Civic platform to accept a prop shaft and extra axle. There’s also the fact that the dual-axis front suspension actually does do an incredibly good job of reducing torque steer outside of powering out of tight corners. There’s no Saab Viggen wheel saw when launching in a straight line, nor did it hamper our more sedate mountain road drives. For a front-wheel-drive car, the Type R is sensational. It rotates nicely and the standard limited-slip differential reduces the chances of wheel spin when exiting corners.
The suspension also boasts updated adaptive dampers featuring Comfort, Sport and +R modes. Honda says Comfort is pretty close in firmness to the fixed dampers in the Civic Si, meaning the ride is still on the firm side of things but genuinely comfortable for those aforementioned drives into work. It also allows for greater suspension compliance, which makes it a wise choice when driving on bumpy mountain roads (as we were) or a soaking-wet track (as we did) to keep the chassis settled and the tires in contact with the pavement. The Type R’s Individual mode is easily set to keep everything in the default Sport or special +R mode (throttle, steering, engine sound, gauge design and automatic rev-matching speed), but leave the suspension in a more compliant setting. And for the record, Honda’s pro driver on hand at Sonoma was also lapping in Comfort mode in the wet and then Sport in the dry.
