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The Honda Civic Type R set a lap record at the Nurburgring Nordschleife with a lap time of 7 minutes and 44.881 seconds, regaining the title as the fastest front-wheel drive car around the famous test track. But the car that set the lap record isn’t the standard Civic Type R that you can now buy from a Honda dealership. Rather, it’s a lightweight version of the standard car.
A footnote that accompanies the European market press release states:
The lap time was set using a Type R that is a lighter version of the latest model. This model will be available to order in European LHD markets only, and will be referred to as a Type R S grade.
There we have it. Honda has just announced a hardcore version of the Civic Type R, and just like that it’s also now officially the fastest front-wheel drive car in the world.
According the Honda Europe, the Civic Type R S grade is lighter than the standard car thanks to the removal of air conditioning, electronic side mirror adjustment, satellite navigation, auto-dimming function of the rearview mirror, rear tonneau cover and parking sensors.
As yet, there’s no official figure on the Type R S grade’s weight, but it’s clear the lighter car is designed to be a base for a track car. To make it a true track day special, keen enthusiasts may further bring the weight down by removing items such as the rear seats and entire infotainment system. Lighter aftermarket wheels and exhaust system may also shed a few more kilos.
The Civic Type R is powered by Honda’s renown K20C1 engine. The turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine now produces 235 kW of power and 420 Nm of torque – improvements of 7 kW and 20 Nm respectively over the previous model.
Watch the Civic Type R S grade’s record setting lap around the ‘Ring:
