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# Honda’s luxury Civic Type R isn’t coming to Australia
- URL: https://torquecafe.com/acura-news-japan-integra-type-s-honda-passport/
- Published: 2026-03-02T05:30:44.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-03T05:36:50.000Z
- Description: The Acura Integra Type S - a Honda Civic Type R in a different body - is set to go on sale in Japan, but won’t come to Australia for one key reason.
- Author: Jordan Mulach
- Tags: News, Performance

Honda’s North American luxury division Acura is about to do something it hasn’t done in the 40 years since it was founded: sell cars in Japan.

As a part of a new trade deal between the US and Japan, Acura is set to sell the Integra Type S - its own more luxurious version of the Honda Civic Type R - in Japanese Honda showrooms.

While the Civic Type R is produced in Japan, the Integra Type S is exclusively made in the US, specifically in the factory in Ohio which built the second-generation Honda/Acura NSX.

It will be joined in Japan by another US-built Honda product, the Passport TrailSport Elite, a rugged-looking SUV made in Alabama.

![](https://torquecafe.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/acura-integra-type-s-2.jpg)

In the case of the Acura Integra Type S, the incoming-to-Japan liftback is almost mechanically identical to the Civic Type R, with its 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine making 239kW (up 4kW) and 420Nm, driving the front wheels through a six-speed manual transmission and mechanical limited-slip differential.

Also standard are wide 265mm section tyres and big four-piston Brembo brakes at the front, though the Integra Type S dials back the theatre of the Civic Type R by swapping a big rear wing for a smaller lip spoiler.

The interior too represents a step back from the full-blown sportiness of the Honda, with more comfort-oriented leather seats and a wider range of colour options.

Though this all sounds like a promising recipe for success in Japan, the more understated Acura won’t sell in great numbers due to one important factor: it won’t be produced in right-hand drive.

![](https://torquecafe.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/acura-integra-type-s-1.jpg)

Despite being sold in the right-hand drive market of Japan, Acura - or more specifically in the context of the trade deal, Honda - won’t make the mass production changes to convert the Integra Type S from left- to right-hand drive.

This of course means it continues to be a non-starter for Australia, where left-hand drive vehicles cannot be registered, unlike Japan and even the United Kingdom.

The same situation applies to the Honda Passport, which too is left-hand drive only.

As reported last week, Honda Australia has been struggling to match demand for the Civic Type R, with a fresh shipment of cars arriving last week, resulting in a price increase to $85,500 drive-away, a huge $12,900 increase on when it launched in Australia back in 2023.

> [Honda Civic Type R returns with an eye-watering price tag](https://torquecafe.com/honda-civic-type-r-price-australia-2026/)