The next generation Japanese hot hatch FL5, driven by Argentinian driver Nestor Girolami, was able to pass the Nürburgring's legendary Nordschleife in 7 minutes 44.881 seconds.
The previous generation Civic Type R FK8 became the “front-wheel drive king of the Nurburgring” in 2016, but in 2019 this honorary title was taken from the “Japanese” by the French front-wheel drive hot hatch Renault Megane R.S. Trophy-R. At the beginning of this year, Renault announced the imminent end of production of the Megane R.S., he will not have an heir. Today it turned out that the «Frenchman» did not manage to go down in history undefeated at the Nurburgring: Honda announced that the new Civic Type R set a new lap record.
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The time of the «Frenchman», recalculated for the full length of the Nurburgring Northern Loop (20.832 km), is 7 min 45.39 s, the new record for the Honda Civic Type R is 7 min 44.881 s. Please note that there is no separate class of front-wheel drive cars in the modern official Nürburgring record table: Renault Megane R.S. The Trophy-R and Honda Civic Type R are classified in the compact car class, the absolute leader of which is now the 400-horsepower all-wheel drive Audi RS 3 sedan, with a lap time of 7 minutes 40.748 seconds.
Recall that the Honda Civic Type R of the FL5 generation debuted last year, it has no fundamental differences from its predecessor FK8, but the wheelbase and rear wheel track have been slightly increased, the suspension has been reconfigured, and all driving electronics have been updated. The 2.0-litre K20C1 petrol turbo engine on the European specification hot hatch produces a maximum of 329 hp. at 6500 rpm and 420 Nm at 2500-4000 rpm, the gearbox is only a 6-speed “mechanics”, a self-locking differential helps to control traction. The European Civic Type R accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds, with a top speed of 275 km/h. jpg» />The European press service of Honda notes that the new lap record was set on a stock car, but in a light version of the Type R S, which will be available only in Europe and only with left-hand drive (UK in flight). The technical features of this lite version will probably be made public soon. The curb weight of a regular Civic Type R in European specification is 1429 kg. The stock Civic Type R comes with Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires, but for the hot hatch record, they put on more efficient Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Connect tires for the track, and for the record to be counted as a production car, the new tires were immediately put on sale.
As Europe's hydrocarbon era is slow, but steadily heading into decline, the chances of the Honda Civic Type R forever being the «front-wheel-drive king of the Nurburgring» are very high — hardly anyone would dare to release an even faster hot hatch with front-wheel drive.
We add that in the US, the new Honda Civic Type R recently got a premium relative — the Acura Integra Type S.