Fiona Shafer road-tests a Honda Civic Type R

Fiona Shafer had one or two misgivings about road-testing a Honda Type R. Once behind the wheel, however, most of those concerns soon disappeared. Fiona is the MD of MDHUB

Handling the unexpected

T o review or not to review - that was my immediate thought when Maarten let me know that the Honda Type R was next up on the delivery schedule. Th is was the fi rst time I had ever pushed back on a car review.

My own personal bias had automatically kicked in as to whether or not a technical ‘hot hatch’ would be of interest to (or, indeed, wasted on) both myself and the overall demographic of the Dynamic readership. Th en I remembered that it is often the husbands and partners of said readership that read this column as well. In addition, there are other variants of the Civic that might be of interest despite this review of the ‘slightly unhinged’ version.

I had Maarten’s words ringing in my ears. ’And this is exactly why you should review it, Fi,’ backed up wholeheartedly by my business partner Phil Green.

It also prompted the memory that I had once been the proud owner of a Golf GTI for a number of years, largely driven by a younger boyfriend who I suspect thought it was handy to hop onto my insurance and have a blast.

Th at particular love aff air – with the car I may add – came to an end after too many blown head gaskets. Th en the fi nal nail in that coffi n came when I went to work one morning to fi nd the Th atcham alarm had been disabled and the entire dashboard and steering wheel had been stolen and were likely en route back to Germany to be sold as precious replacement parts. Shame that the car thieves forgot to take said boyfriend with them as well.

So I decided to get over myself and crack on - the irony of a menopausal woman in a hot hatch not being lost on me.

How times move on. As Honda celebrates its 30th anniversary of the Type R, my anxieties of driving something quite hideous and luminous around town – now elevated to the term ‘Super hatch’ with a massive spoiler on the back – were calmed upon sight of a rather gorgeous graphite grey Type R, with a discreet and unusually subtle small wing spoiler. In fact, let’s take the word spoiler out

This is quite as, in the literal sense, it is not. Instead, a departure by let’s stick with small wing as it calmed my sensibilities. It also does not cut across as Honda’s designers but I rather much of the visibility at the back window as it might normally do, which is a good start. liked it For die hard Hot Hatch fans who like an aggressive, sharp design that either courts envious attention and screams ‘look at me’ or alternatively sends eyes rolling, this is quite a departure by Honda’s designers but I rather liked it. Honda has been promoting this car as ‘understated’, and Top Gear described it as being “as shy and retiring as a nocturnal fi eld mouse.“

POSITIVES

• It’s fun and super sporty • Shiny, titanium gear knob which is great to hold • More power than an AMG 35, BMW M135, Audi S3 and Golf R • No more bonnet scoop • 420-litre boot space • An extraordinarily useful and well written 835-page manual, starting with ‘What to do if’ • Great value for money – starting at £34,450

TECH STUFF

MODEL TESTED: Civic Type R ENGINE: 2.0-litre turbocharged POWER: 329 bhp SPEED: 0-62 5.4 secs TOP: 170 mph ECONOMY: 34.4 mpg PRICE FROM: £34,490

NEGATIVES

• Infotainment system – rather underwhelming • A rather puny sounding horn • Comfort seats - You can end up in the lap of the passenger in the back if you’re not careful • It has a disconcerting screech when you apply the brake pedal - see the manual • The Honda factory at Swindon has now shut and is no longer making them but the Germans have picked up the manufacturing mantle, so watch out for the new model in 2023.

If a Sports Car can ever mature to reach a wider audience, then the Type R might be just what you are looking for in 2023 8.5/10

DYNAMIC

With 60mph arriving in 5.8 secs on such a setting, the car was going to make itself known somehow

I think that was a little unkind. I don’t believe it to be either.

Th e 20-inch wheels have been changed for 19-inch rims. Th is, in turn, means that rural driving, normally pretty uncomfortable in the fabulous R Type setting, was surprisingly acceptable even though I did have the very odd experience of getting out of the car and feeling like I had just disembarked from a boat onto dry land; ever so slightly wobbly.

Th en again, with 60mph arriving in 5.8 secs on such a setting, the car was going to make itself known somehow. Stick to the Comfort or Sports settings and you might not need a lifebelt!

Internally, the upholstery is a matt black velour-look fabric with smart white and black stitching. It’s OK but with the classic red seat belt wrapped across you, you could be mistaken for resembling a box of Black Magic Chocolates.

With a top speed of 168mph, it fortunately has brakes as sharp as hyena teeth, comes complete with the customarily throaty triple exhaust, handles extremely well and has a highly visible speed check (offi cer…).