Hottest Honda Civic Type R to launch in 2027 - report
The high-performance Honda Civic Type R HRC will reportedly go on sale in 2027 as the hottest front-wheel drive hatchback ever.
Honda has dropped enough hints that there’s still plenty left in the tank of the current FL5-generation Civic Type R, having previewed a red-hot HRC (Honda Racing Corporation) concept version at the Tokyo Auto Salon last year.
At the time, Honda didn’t provide any details on if and when it’d launch, though its aggressive aerodynamic upgrades would surely be wasted if it didn’t turn into a production model.
According to Japanese outlet Response, insider sources have said the Civic Type R HRC could join Honda’s model lineup in 2027, something which adds to comments made by HRC president Yasuharu Watanabe in May.
“We are developing the Civic Type R with the aim of further enhancing its potential as a base model by incorporating racing technologies such as those honed in Super Taikyu and aerodynamics from Super GT,” Watanabe said in May, as reported by Car Watch.
“You’ll have to sleep for a hundred more [days until its reveal]… It’s not quite a close three-digit number, but please look forward to it.
“These are aftermarket parts, and we plan to distribute them mainly in Japan and the United States. We want to deliver them as soon as possible.”
Those 100 days he spoke of have come and gone, but the possibility of a hotter Civic Type R launching is still alive, especially when the current generation appears to be on borrowed time.
Given the FL5 Civic Type R launched in 2022 but has slowly been phased out in a number of markets, it’s possible Honda is gearing up for a send off of its current hot hatch.
Earlier this year, Honda’s US division said the “Civic Type R will receive updates this year, including exterior and interior styling changes”, though did not include any photos or teasers of the changes.
Honda engineer Tomoyuki Yamagami told UK publication Auto Express in July last year that the Type R doesn’t need an engine.
“Type R can be anything in future, depending on what the market demands. Type R is not dependent on a turbo powertrain,” Yamagami told the outlet.
“[The] Type R badge is about the ability to enhance dynamic attributes to the max.”
