Image: Honda
In what is likely one of the most anticipated reveals of the year, Honda just gave the world its first full look at the all-new 2023 Civic Type R at an event in Los Angeles. While Type R versions of the Civic have been available in the rest of the world since 1997, this is only the second generation of the Civic Type R to come to the US, based on the 11th generation Civic hatchback introduced for 2021 Design is much more mature than the last CTR.
Click here to see more of our exclusive photos of the 2023 Civic Type R!
New Civic Type R: exterior
Photo: Ernest Crosby
Gone is the previous generation’s exaggerated “I wear my hat backwards and vape” boy-racer design, replaced with clean lines all around on a longer, lower, and wider body. Aside from the big wing, hood and red Type-R badging, the rest of the new CTR is almost understated. Especially in Historic Championship White, the Type R-exclusive paint color you see here.
Photo: Ernest Crosby
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Up front, Honda gave the Type R a big lower grille – look closely and you can see a huge intercooler behind it – a front lip spoiler and the red badge we’ve come to expect from Type R products.
Photo: Honda
The good news is that Honda says every scoop or vent on the Type R is fully functional, for cooling, aerodynamics, or both. The vents behind the front wheels help cool the front brakes, and the vent in the hood draws hot air out of the engine compartment.
Photo: Ernest Crosby
There’s a huge black wing at the back, which again is functional. The rear bumper is unique to the Type R, with an updated version of the three-port exhaust we saw on the last-gen CTR and rear diffuser moldings.
2023 Honda Civic Type R: The interior
Photo: Honda
The interior of the Type R looks amazing and builds on the vastly improved interior of the 11th generation Civic. The biggest update to the new Type R: Even more red padding. The seats, which used to be red with black accents, are now all red, and even the carpet is now red instead of black. The seats are upholstered in a suede-like material. Once seated in they are fantastically grippy and should have no problem holding a rider in place during hard cornering.
Photo: Honda
New Civic Type R: engine and powertrain
Photo: Ernest Crosby
Honda’s familiar 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder returns, as does the six-speed manual transmission with automatic rev-matching (which, thankfully, you can switch off). The suspension and steering have been Nürburgring tuned to be more responsive and precise.
Honda also added a new driving mode called +R, which is activated by a button near the shifter. For now, all we know is that this button brings up a new performance-oriented layout for the instrument panel (with a large, horizontal RPM gauge) and center screen (with auxiliary gauges for coolant temp, oil pressure and more). We suspect +R mode will also dial in more aggressive powertrain and chassis settings, but we’ll have to wait for details on all of that.
Photo: Ernest Crosby
The Type R also gets a track-focused data collection system called Honda LogR, which records real-time vehicle information like pedal pressure and steering angle, along with a stopwatch to record lap times and a camera for lap videos.
2023 Civic Type R: power and performance
Photo: Ernest Crosby
As far as performance goes, Honda hasn’t released any details on horsepower, torque, 0-60 or anything like that. The 23 Type R is definitely faster on the track than its predecessor: Honda recently set a front-wheel drive record at Suzuka with a prototype of the car you see here. Honda says the 2023 Type R will be the most powerful Honda vehicle ever offered in the US; these numbers, along with pricing details, will be available later this year.
We’ll have to wait for more details as the Civic Type R sale date approaches. The Type R is slated for full launch this fall.
Photo: Ernest Crosby
Photo: Ernest Crosby
Photo: Ernest Crosby
Photo: Ernest Crosby
Photo: Ernest Crosby