Honda Civic Type R inside line - Paris 2014
PH grills Honda engineer Hisayuki Yagi on Type R secrets ... he doesn't give them up easily
It looks mad; this has to be a good thing
Speaking with Honda UK's Civic product manager Leon Brannan before our chat with Yagi-san confirmed a sub-£30K starting price for the new (and still Swindon-built) Type R, though the upper of the two spec packages will push it over that boundary. He's hopeful the new turbo engine will open the Honda up to a new audience while still satisfying the Type R fanatics raised on a diet of high-revving VTECs. How? Back to our (actually averagely sized) Large Project Leader, Yagi-san.
First the thorny topic of how the high-revving character that has defined Type Rs of the past can be carried through to the turbo era. "It is not that Honda has just developed a turbo version of the existing engine," he says through his interpreter, having asked what we think the key characteristics of a performance Honda should be. "All the typical Honda attributes ... these are characteristics that will remain intact." Cryptic, but talk of the VTEC 'just kicked in' shove suggests that same shift will be there, just delivered by forced induction. New age turbo lag then? Our man's not saying.
Active damping among the trick bits
Has he driven the SEAT and the Renault? A nervous smile and a yes. And a nod and unexpected "good question" from our European PR minder. What key attributes of these cars must the Type R beat to achieve that development target then? "You can make cars go fast with a certain driving style," he says, somewhat mystically, "and you can make cars that make you feel fast, even if you are not. In the Type R you feel fast and the data backs you up and this feeling is very important."
Pressed on exactly how this is achieved the answer is wide ranging. Or, to put it another way, vague. "There is no specific technology that achieves this, it is a combination of small steps," he offers before again raising body stiffness as a key foundation for effective suspension. Tyres also come up as crucial, though nothing specific is mentioned. Then a glimmer of hope - the promise of a "concrete example" of technology that'll see the Type R hit that target.
Body stiffness a key development goal says our man
So there's a limited-slip differential too? A smile. "We can't tell you the details but the functionality will be there." Whether that's a mechanical system or something along the lines of the Haldex based VAQ 'diff' in the SEAT remains to be seen but, with the hinted at torque steer-reducing kingpins (surely a Megane/Focus RS style offset steering axis strut) and adaptive dampers it's clear Honda is throwing plenty of tech at the Type R and if even a hint of the bonkers looks make it to production it'll clearly make a compelling alternative to the fast but sensible looking Golf R.
When will we know more? Market launch is next summer, the official debut for the production car at Geneva in the spring and - just possibly - a taste of the real thing beforehand. We'll be lobbying for first dibs on the latter...
Steve
I hope this Type R will destroy the seat and Renault. I think its great looking car. Unlike Seat, the designers haven't held anything back
Btw, if it doesnt have the devil brake lights im not buying it!
I don't see why they won't be able to keep them, the spoiler clearly bolts in and plugs the holes where the standard light clusters fit. Honda are notorious(can't think of the right word)for displaying concepts that make production virtually unchanged. All they've ever seemed to do in the past is end up with smaller wheels and that's about it! Just go back and look at the FN2 concept vs production. There's naff all difference.
Besides, with this not coming out until next year and this generation Civic having been out for a couple of years already, how long is it actually going to be available for before the replacement model comes along?
If it handles as well as it should, looks' got nothing to do with it.... I didn't think the Megane was much of a looker either.
king s
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