RE: Honda Civic Type R (FK8): Driven
Discussion
That's unfortunately also a killer for me, 4 seats only. All while the boot is relatively huge, this is a big miss.
Our Cupra ST seats five and has a bigger boot so suits family life better. But from the factory it is clearly not as good as the FK8 to drive, although I did fix most of that, at a cost though. But if I bought new now, the FK8 with a 'Touring Pack' (factory or DIY) would be high on the list, 4 seats makes it drop down a lot...
Our Cupra ST seats five and has a bigger boot so suits family life better. But from the factory it is clearly not as good as the FK8 to drive, although I did fix most of that, at a cost though. But if I bought new now, the FK8 with a 'Touring Pack' (factory or DIY) would be high on the list, 4 seats makes it drop down a lot...
Edited by Onehp on Monday 6th May 13:57
The factory tyre is also extremely good apart from having a name for wearing fast:
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2019-Sport-Au...
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2019-Sport-Au...
Onehp said:
The factory tyre is also extremely good apart from having a name for wearing fast:
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2019-Sport-Au...
I was surprised at how much better it was than the PS4shttp://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2019-Sport-Au...
Derek Chevalier said:
Chestrockwell said:
I drove one yesterday, got the keys and drove it around for a few hours from Yeomans Guildford, definitely going to buy one, the performance on offer is a joke and the traction is frankly ridiculous.
I got mine from therescmcc said:
Hi, I posted a fairly long post re my FK2 in early 2016. I’ve had along line of Honda Type Rs, M3s & Porsches (predominantly 911s). My FK2 replaced an E90 M3 2 door, it lasted 6 months till I reverted back to a 997 GTS 2 PDK I then sold that about a year later & bought a very low mileage, manual Mk 7 Golf R to use day to day. The Golf R was capable but ultimately too dull for me, that was sold & I went back to another gen 2 997 C2. Having 18 month old twins & a need to move people & thngs about the 911 wasn’t really cutting it day to day (much as I tried to work round the space limitations). My wife’s car is pretty big but not available to me due to being in constant use with our kids, we live a reasonable distance outside Glasgow so another option was required. My dealer (Phoenix Honda in Linwood - not local to me but the best I’ve ever used) kindly gave me an extended test drive in a FK8. Initially I was horrified at how it looked, then I put all the junk I needed for my job in the boot as opposed to the front seat, the rear seats & the boot of the 911. How novel. Then I drove to the shops on the way home to collect all the stuff from the supermarket that my wife couldn’t get due to the kids kicking off earlier that day - IN SPORT MODE - & the ride was brilliant. Then I put it in comfort mode & it was even better on Glasgow’s chronic roads. The reason I sold the FK2 was primarily the ride. Ultimately unbearable for me day to day, this was a big deal for me. It was the weekend in late November when we had some snow in Scotland so the roads weren’t great. I got out for a drive on the Sunday afternoon for about an hour & was hooked. Pre all the reviews etc, if Porsche built a fwd hatchback, it would feel like this. It’s the whole thing, the ride, the engine, that gear change, all the contact points. I’d be amazed if they haven’t benchmarked Porsche GT cars. I’ve driven both gen 2 996 GT3 & gen 1 997 GT3 + owned 993/996/997 Turbos & everything naturally aspirated from SCs to 997 GTS & all points in between. I’m not the fastest but I know a sorted car when I drive one. The FK8 Civic Type R is one of the 3/4 best cars I’ve ever driven in my 48 years on this planet. It’s unbelievably good day to day, utterly addictive to drive anywhere & sensational whenever you get the slightest whiff of a chance to have fun. I also think it’ll destroy anything point to point on our roads. The FK2 was almost this good but too firmly sprung. The FK8 is sublime. Forget all this “must have individual mode” talk. The FK8 is setup up by engineers & drivers way beyond my ability. I’ve deduced that their combination of settings is fine by me, & sport mode as the default is the correct one 90% of the time. I only use comfort mode on the worst roads in my area. As for the looks? I don’t care & now even like them. Everything’s there for a reason, & once you’ve felt it on a good road you know at a decent speed you’ll understand why it’s all there. Anyway, I don’t have to look at it, I’m inside having fun in the best day to day car available to me at any price - & mine’s white!
Two years on how are you getting on?Edited by scmcc on Tuesday 26th December 21:54
Edited by scmcc on Tuesday 26th December 22:09
Your Porsche comment re it being like one they'd built is one Dicke Meaden has made, and frankly have test driven two now I see his point.
acme said:
scmcc said:
Hi, I posted a fairly long post re my FK2 in early 2016. I’ve had along line of Honda Type Rs, M3s & Porsches (predominantly 911s). My FK2 replaced an E90 M3 2 door, it lasted 6 months till I reverted back to a 997 GTS 2 PDK I then sold that about a year later & bought a very low mileage, manual Mk 7 Golf R to use day to day. The Golf R was capable but ultimately too dull for me, that was sold & I went back to another gen 2 997 C2. Having 18 month old twins & a need to move people & thngs about the 911 wasn’t really cutting it day to day (much as I tried to work round the space limitations). My wife’s car is pretty big but not available to me due to being in constant use with our kids, we live a reasonable distance outside Glasgow so another option was required. My dealer (Phoenix Honda in Linwood - not local to me but the best I’ve ever used) kindly gave me an extended test drive in a FK8. Initially I was horrified at how it looked, then I put all the junk I needed for my job in the boot as opposed to the front seat, the rear seats & the boot of the 911. How novel. Then I drove to the shops on the way home to collect all the stuff from the supermarket that my wife couldn’t get due to the kids kicking off earlier that day - IN SPORT MODE - & the ride was brilliant. Then I put it in comfort mode & it was even better on Glasgow’s chronic roads. The reason I sold the FK2 was primarily the ride. Ultimately unbearable for me day to day, this was a big deal for me. It was the weekend in late November when we had some snow in Scotland so the roads weren’t great. I got out for a drive on the Sunday afternoon for about an hour & was hooked. Pre all the reviews etc, if Porsche built a fwd hatchback, it would feel like this. It’s the whole thing, the ride, the engine, that gear change, all the contact points. I’d be amazed if they haven’t benchmarked Porsche GT cars. I’ve driven both gen 2 996 GT3 & gen 1 997 GT3 + owned 993/996/997 Turbos & everything naturally aspirated from SCs to 997 GTS & all points in between. I’m not the fastest but I know a sorted car when I drive one. The FK8 Civic Type R is one of the 3/4 best cars I’ve ever driven in my 48 years on this planet. It’s unbelievably good day to day, utterly addictive to drive anywhere & sensational whenever you get the slightest whiff of a chance to have fun. I also think it’ll destroy anything point to point on our roads. The FK2 was almost this good but too firmly sprung. The FK8 is sublime. Forget all this “must have individual mode” talk. The FK8 is setup up by engineers & drivers way beyond my ability. I’ve deduced that their combination of settings is fine by me, & sport mode as the default is the correct one 90% of the time. I only use comfort mode on the worst roads in my area. As for the looks? I don’t care & now even like them. Everything’s there for a reason, & once you’ve felt it on a good road you know at a decent speed you’ll understand why it’s all there. Anyway, I don’t have to look at it, I’m inside having fun in the best day to day car available to me at any price - & mine’s white!
Two years on how are you getting on?Edited by scmcc on Tuesday 26th December 21:54
Edited by scmcc on Tuesday 26th December 22:09
Your Porsche comment re it being like one they'd built is one Dicke Meaden has made, and frankly have test driven two now I see his point.
First, the bad bits
It's ever so easy to kerb the wheels
The fuel tank is a bit small
The standard Contis lose grip as they wear, especially in the current conditions
It doesn't like trackdays where the ambient temperature is over ~18 degrees - the temperature gauge tending to head northwards and retard power.
It will eat rear pads on track unless you completely disable the stability control
Infotainment system is a bit slow
I had to get the seat base replaced under warranty - the adjuster stopped working, but apart from that it's been flawless.
It's a really involving drive - great steering, ride, seating position, brakes, gearshift, neutral chassis and an engine that pulls hard to the red line.
We've had some great family trips in it. Down to the Ardeche, several (family) laps round the ring, NSX tour etc.
I tend to mooch around in comfort mode unless I'm on track.
I think I'd only be tempted to replace it with a Model 3, but haven't driven one yet.
Derek Chevalier said:
I thought I'd give my feedback of the last 18 months and 30k miles.
First, the bad bits
It's ever so easy to kerb the wheels
The fuel tank is a bit small
The standard Contis lose grip as they wear, especially in the current conditions
It doesn't like trackdays where the ambient temperature is over ~18 degrees - the temperature gauge tending to head northwards and retard power.
It will eat rear pads on track unless you completely disable the stability control
Infotainment system is a bit slow
I had to get the seat base replaced under warranty - the adjuster stopped working, but apart from that it's been flawless.
It's a really involving drive - great steering, ride, seating position, brakes, gearshift, neutral chassis and an engine that pulls hard to the red line.
We've had some great family trips in it. Down to the Ardeche, several (family) laps round the ring, NSX tour etc.
I tend to mooch around in comfort mode unless I'm on track.
I think I'd only be tempted to replace it with a Model 3, but haven't driven one yet.
Many thanks for your reply, real life experiences are just what I was looking for, plus you’ve done similar mileage to what I’ll be doing – many I seen for sale have tiny mileages.First, the bad bits
It's ever so easy to kerb the wheels
The fuel tank is a bit small
The standard Contis lose grip as they wear, especially in the current conditions
It doesn't like trackdays where the ambient temperature is over ~18 degrees - the temperature gauge tending to head northwards and retard power.
It will eat rear pads on track unless you completely disable the stability control
Infotainment system is a bit slow
I had to get the seat base replaced under warranty - the adjuster stopped working, but apart from that it's been flawless.
It's a really involving drive - great steering, ride, seating position, brakes, gearshift, neutral chassis and an engine that pulls hard to the red line.
We've had some great family trips in it. Down to the Ardeche, several (family) laps round the ring, NSX tour etc.
I tend to mooch around in comfort mode unless I'm on track.
I think I'd only be tempted to replace it with a Model 3, but haven't driven one yet.
Have you had any issues with bent alloys given the 30 profile? I know two car mags long termers seemed to suffer from it. Having read up on it the previous gen FK2’s 19’s have more side wall and are the only one to fit with the FK8’s trick suspension – but it’s about 2.5k with tyres!
I did wonder re the fuel tank, same issue as my M3 which can sometimes need filling at 220 miles!
Does the infotainment bug you? Seems odd some of the HVAC controls go through it.
Lastly, though not that important, what type of MPG are you getting? It seems 30+ is easily achievable, almost unbelievable given the performance.
Certainly having test driven two it genuinely seems to be something different, with a breadth of ability from comfortable cruiser to road racer not seen before in a hot hatch.
acme said:
Derek Chevalier said:
I thought I'd give my feedback of the last 18 months and 30k miles.
First, the bad bits
It's ever so easy to kerb the wheels
The fuel tank is a bit small
The standard Contis lose grip as they wear, especially in the current conditions
It doesn't like trackdays where the ambient temperature is over ~18 degrees - the temperature gauge tending to head northwards and retard power.
It will eat rear pads on track unless you completely disable the stability control
Infotainment system is a bit slow
I had to get the seat base replaced under warranty - the adjuster stopped working, but apart from that it's been flawless.
It's a really involving drive - great steering, ride, seating position, brakes, gearshift, neutral chassis and an engine that pulls hard to the red line.
We've had some great family trips in it. Down to the Ardeche, several (family) laps round the ring, NSX tour etc.
I tend to mooch around in comfort mode unless I'm on track.
I think I'd only be tempted to replace it with a Model 3, but haven't driven one yet.
Many thanks for your reply, real life experiences are just what I was looking for, plus you’ve done similar mileage to what I’ll be doing – many I seen for sale have tiny mileages.First, the bad bits
It's ever so easy to kerb the wheels
The fuel tank is a bit small
The standard Contis lose grip as they wear, especially in the current conditions
It doesn't like trackdays where the ambient temperature is over ~18 degrees - the temperature gauge tending to head northwards and retard power.
It will eat rear pads on track unless you completely disable the stability control
Infotainment system is a bit slow
I had to get the seat base replaced under warranty - the adjuster stopped working, but apart from that it's been flawless.
It's a really involving drive - great steering, ride, seating position, brakes, gearshift, neutral chassis and an engine that pulls hard to the red line.
We've had some great family trips in it. Down to the Ardeche, several (family) laps round the ring, NSX tour etc.
I tend to mooch around in comfort mode unless I'm on track.
I think I'd only be tempted to replace it with a Model 3, but haven't driven one yet.
Have you had any issues with bent alloys given the 30 profile? I know two car mags long termers seemed to suffer from it. Having read up on it the previous gen FK2’s 19’s have more side wall and are the only one to fit with the FK8’s trick suspension – but it’s about 2.5k with tyres!
I did wonder re the fuel tank, same issue as my M3 which can sometimes need filling at 220 miles!
Does the infotainment bug you? Seems odd some of the HVAC controls go through it.
Lastly, though not that important, what type of MPG are you getting? It seems 30+ is easily achievable, almost unbelievable given the performance.
Certainly having test driven two it genuinely seems to be something different, with a breadth of ability from comfortable cruiser to road racer not seen before in a hot hatch.
The infotainment is mildly irritating - seems to be slow on startup - but all I really use it for is playing podcasts on journeys. It's certainly not a blocker.
On a motorway run at 70, 35 mpg is easily achievable. Around 20mpg on the autobahn (leaving a tailgating A3 behind once traffic clears is very satisfying) and 9mpg on trackdays!!
I remember reading a road test and the writer said the dampers feel expensive - and I'm sure they are and that's what helps it deliver such a broad range of ability.
I've just had some new Conti's delivered - P4S may give better wear rates but don't quite have the ultimate sharpness according to road tests
Would be good to hear what you decide to do.
Once again, many thanks for the reply, appreciated.
Unfortunately living in a rural area as I do I have to contend with roads dented by tractors, I think in the short term I’ll pump them to the 137mph+ pressures, as Evo did with theirs after their rims were damaged – don’t suppose it will do much for the ride!
Unfortunately HVAC is something you rarely truly know until you buy – my main daily is a MK7 Fiesta ST and I read before purchase many thought it poor, but probably because it has a button for everything I think it works quite well, certainly better than the touch screen on my old MK7 Golf.
Strewth, 9mpg, I reckon my M3 might achieve that on track! I’ve watched Car Throttles Autobahn blast and it seems to be stable right to the limit, quite incredible considering what you’d assume are relatively humble underpinnings.
Interesting comment re the damper cost, let’s hope they don’t need re-building as seemingly often as the Sachs ones on Clio Trophy R’s!
Is it Michelins it comes with then that wear so quickly, I seem to recall some stated 6k?
My intention is probably summer next year to swap the ST for one. I spent a long time looking for an Integra Type R in the past but gave up after all seemed to suffer from severe arch rust, and I can’t deny being a bit of a Honda engineering fan, so it’s great to see such an emphatic return to form, especially after they did say there wouldn’t be another CTR after the FN2.
Unfortunately living in a rural area as I do I have to contend with roads dented by tractors, I think in the short term I’ll pump them to the 137mph+ pressures, as Evo did with theirs after their rims were damaged – don’t suppose it will do much for the ride!
Unfortunately HVAC is something you rarely truly know until you buy – my main daily is a MK7 Fiesta ST and I read before purchase many thought it poor, but probably because it has a button for everything I think it works quite well, certainly better than the touch screen on my old MK7 Golf.
Strewth, 9mpg, I reckon my M3 might achieve that on track! I’ve watched Car Throttles Autobahn blast and it seems to be stable right to the limit, quite incredible considering what you’d assume are relatively humble underpinnings.
Interesting comment re the damper cost, let’s hope they don’t need re-building as seemingly often as the Sachs ones on Clio Trophy R’s!
Is it Michelins it comes with then that wear so quickly, I seem to recall some stated 6k?
My intention is probably summer next year to swap the ST for one. I spent a long time looking for an Integra Type R in the past but gave up after all seemed to suffer from severe arch rust, and I can’t deny being a bit of a Honda engineering fan, so it’s great to see such an emphatic return to form, especially after they did say there wouldn’t be another CTR after the FN2.
Im thinking of changing my own car for one of these.
Has anyone driven both a stage 2 mk7 fiesta st and driven one of these to compare?
I fancy a change from my car but mine is very playful and fun to drive but this looks to be on another level
BUT with my car id have to stump up another 15k on top of my part ex most likely so wondering how they are and how they compare.
The stage 2 mk7 fiestas are suprisingly quick but i imagine this is probably quicker.
Has anyone driven both a stage 2 mk7 fiesta st and driven one of these to compare?
I fancy a change from my car but mine is very playful and fun to drive but this looks to be on another level
BUT with my car id have to stump up another 15k on top of my part ex most likely so wondering how they are and how they compare.
The stage 2 mk7 fiestas are suprisingly quick but i imagine this is probably quicker.
Petrolsmasher said:
Im thinking of changing my own car for one of these.
Has anyone driven both a stage 2 mk7 fiesta st and driven one of these to compare?
I fancy a change from my car but mine is very playful and fun to drive but this looks to be on another level
BUT with my car id have to stump up another 15k on top of my part ex most likely so wondering how they are and how they compare.
The stage 2 mk7 fiestas are suprisingly quick but i imagine this is probably quicker.
Not exactly what you're looking for, but I've run a standard 2017 MK7 ST for the past year/11k miles and am still potentially looking at a CTR in the future. I've test driven two CTR's and both were extensive drives where the sales guys allowed me to press on and explore the cars, within safe limits.Has anyone driven both a stage 2 mk7 fiesta st and driven one of these to compare?
I fancy a change from my car but mine is very playful and fun to drive but this looks to be on another level
BUT with my car id have to stump up another 15k on top of my part ex most likely so wondering how they are and how they compare.
The stage 2 mk7 fiestas are suprisingly quick but i imagine this is probably quicker.
They're very different cars, almost chalk and cheese. Obviously one is much larger than the other and I believe this plays a significant part in their difference, the CTR is a super stable and agile platform, it also appears to pull off the spooky trick of breathing with the road, where as the ST does anything but, even a standard one down the B roads I'm surrounded on 'pogos' along them. The ST is a real hoot on such roads but makes a less than ideal daily for an reasonable commute, the CTR once dialled back is very compliant, has super comfortable seats and a low slung driving position, by far my preference.
I think even a ST Revo with circa 270 wouldn't see which way a CTR went, quite possibly as some journos have suggested it's the 'best' drivers car under £100k.
Re cost, they seem to be holding their value very well, so depreciation should be as good as you can expect - current situation apart. I've looked at them for over a year now and entry grey ones were 25-26, now they're just under 25.
Edited by acme on Wednesday 20th May 15:33
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