Honda have been a bit slow to join the throng of turbocharged hot hatches. By sticking to their naturally-aspirated principles they’ve seen their Type R badge banished from the Euro market while the competition enjoy ever-increasing power outputs that don’t fall foul of emissions regulations.
Now VTEC is back and this time it’s got a TURBO too! It’s powered by the first of Honda’s new Earth Dreams range of petrol engines and Honda are claiming it will have at least 280PS.
2015 Honda Civic Type R
With that much power Honda means business. With a capacity of 2.0-litres, 4 cylinders, direct injection and a turbocharger sitting alongside the renowned VTEC system, the Civic Type R is going to be right in the thick of the fight for supremacy in the hot hatch market. Whether the chassis can match the promise of the engine remains to be seen but Honda appear to be aiming to beat the Renaultsport Megane’s ‘Ring record.
What the Earth Dreams part of the equation means is that the new engine will be compliant with the next set of EU engine regulations. With EURO 6 compliany in mind the Civic should be safe for a few more years, unlike the previous naturally aspirated engine that fell foul of EURO5.
2015 Honda Civic Type R
Hopefully the finished car will look just as good as this prototype. The wide arches, big spoiler, four exhaust tips, gold 19-inch rims and red Brembo callipers certainly look the part.
There’s plenty of time to go until the new civic Type R goes on sale in 2015 but with the Tokyo Motor Show just around the corner Honda will be keen to drum up as much hype as they can.
2015 Honda Civic Type R
