Honda Accord Euro R (CL7) | Spotted
There aren't many four-door Type Rs, but those that do exist are worth seeking out...
It was a quarter of a century ago that Honda launched the Accord Type R in the UK. What a time it was for the red ‘H’ over here, too, the Accord following the epic Integra and arriving just three years before the first UK Civic Type R. With the S2000 launched in the meantime. Once upon a time in the early 21st century, along with the Logo and the CR-V and the Legend, Honda was selling more than one Type R, a 9,000rpm sports car and the NSX. Quite some line up.
As a huge fan of fast four doors and a child of the PlayStation generation (do people still say that?), I have a huge soft spot for the Accord Type R. Given the choice of my first PH Heroes car almost 10 years ago, it was the Honda minicab with the big spoiler that was chosen - no, seriously. This wasn’t misplaced affection, either; the Accord tends to get forgotten about now in Type R history, but it was a proper thriller of a small sports saloon, sharp enough to make its front-drive rivals feel a bit tepid and often pitched against 4WD rivals like the Impreza Turbo for proper competition. A screaming four-cylinder engine was a given, of course, but the Accord also impressed with its ride, handling, and steering - it was a much better driver’s car than the Civic that came a few after.
Sadly, the Accord Type R only lasted for one generation (the CH1) in the UK, Honda (rightly) guessing that in the early 2000s it was wiser to pursue hot hatch Type Rs rather than saloon-shaped ones. However, that wasn’t quite the end of the story; in the UK, the fastest version of the replacement Accord was the 190hp Type S, but certain markets received something called a CL7 Euro R, a Type R by a different name. It packaged a lot of the DC5 Integra Type R’s running gear into a four-door bodyshell, creating something of a Japanese Domestic Market legend in the process.
Because even by Honda’s standards, this was a very, very unassuming fast car. There are so few clues that this Accord is powered by one of the world’s great 2.0-litre engines, will rev comfortably past 8,000rpm and outhandle pretty much anything else with four doors and four cylinders: the wheels are modest, the tracks narrow, the badges almost invisible and the car basically indistinguishable from any other early 2000s Accord. In the days of Evos and Impreza with big wings and even bigger attitudes, this must have seemed strange. 20 years later, the subtlety has aged well.
The interior looks great, too, heavily bolstered green Recaros famous from the first Accord Type R still fit to hold you tight and titanium gearknob in good condition. And check out the rear legroom: there is a family friendly Type R out there that isn’t a new and expensive Civic…
Speaking of cost, the Euro R is so under the radar that values haven’t soared. For the moment, at least. It just isn’t as well known (or as well loved, you’d have to assume) as some other Type R icons. There are older, higher mileage Civic Type Rs for sale at thousands more, and £13k doesn’t go as far as you might think buying a UK car, either. Look at the asking prices for Integras of any kind, too, be they UK or JDM; the demand is clearly there for the best ones. To the overwhelming majority of folk, this money for a 20-year-old Honda Accord with 86,000 miles just won’t compute. But if ever there was a fast car for the knowing few, the unassuming Euro R was it.
SPECIFICATION | HONDA ACCORD EURO R (CL7)
Engine: 1,998cc, four-cyl
Transmission: 6-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Power (hp): 220@8,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 152@6,000rpm
MPG: N/A
CO2: N/A
Recorded mileage: 86,600
First registered: 2002
Price new: N/A, JDM only
Yours for: £12,990
Not sure that I'd want such a low torque engine in a family setting, as we've been spoiled by turbos - but still I'd love to have a go.
Great price from an expensive dealer - so this will surely be a great example, despite the mileage.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
I do think the 'low torque' criticism of these Hondas is a bit unfair, they are no worse than any equally sized engine.
It's the car that allows you to pootle around town and sit at 70 on the motorway with the family in, but then when you get sent to the shops on Sunday morning to pick up some bread you take the long way round and give it an absolute thrashing.
I suppose if you were bothered enough you could do the whole K24 bottom end and K20 head thing, which nets you a good 15-20% more torque iirc and can see 250+ bhp with the right supporting mods, but that, again, isn't the point.
They're still really light comparatively and they still have seam welded chassis etc...
Kind of missing the point to an extent but it would feel like hard work and take a while to acclimatise.
Plus it looks at first glance like an older American airport rental car and is 13 grand. Not like its a sleeper either, unless you fit a turbo.
Not sure that I'd want such a low torque engine in a family setting, as we've been spoiled by turbos - but still I'd love to have a go.
Great price from an expensive dealer - so this will surely be a great example, despite the mileage.
Sadly, its replacement threw it all away and went off on a flat-panelled/cheap-looking Acura TSX wild goose chase,
Torque's only a function of gearing, so one merely wastes a bit of squirt by keeping the revs up and enjoys the engine's sweet nature.
I guess if one is used to juddering the bearings using 3rd/4th gear everywhere, it'd be a real pain.
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