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Licence to thrill — race ready Type R

Riley Riley

Honda has taken the wraps off a race-ready version of the Civic Type R in the United States.

It’s designed as a turn-key solution for pro racers and skilled enthusiasts, who want to make the step up from a stock Type R to a fully built race car.

The race-ready Civic Type R TC race car is available to Honda Racing Line members with racing licenses, exclusively through Honda Performance Development (HPD) — at a manufacturer’s price of $89,900.

The specially outfitted Type R joins the TCA-class Civic Si and TCR-class Type R in HPD’s portfolio of Civic-based, turn-key racing solutions.

Designed specifically for TC-class competition, Civic Type R TC was developed and tested in-house by HPD engineers as a modified version of the production Civic Type R designed exclusively for track use, with final assembly done by Gradient Racing in Austin, Texas.

HPD engineers developed and tested the Civic Type R TC race car with experience gained from production car and race vehicle engineering, including development of the HPD Civic Si TCA race car.

The Type R race car begins life as a body in white from Honda’s Swindon, England, plant, and uses its road- and track-proven 2.0-litre VTEC Turbo engine supplied by the Honda of America Mfg. engine plant in Anna, Ohio, producing between 200 and 250kW, depending on series application.

The Type R TC retains the stock vehicle’s exterior sheet metal, but adds racing components developed in-house and in partnership with select suppliers to build a ready-to-race vehicle that saves racers the time and money of doing it themselves.

Major modifications to the production Type R include a high-flow front grille, a J’s Racing FRP vented hood, CSF-designed radiator and oil cooler; an HPD/Borla downpipe and turbo back exhaust; a 6-speed manual transmission with high-strength 3rd and 4th gears; an HPD/Cusco limited slip differential; HPD Girodisk 2-piece front brake rotors and HPD brake inlet ducts; an HPD/Pyrotect bolt-in FIA 60-litre fuel cell; a welded multi-point racing cage; and an OMP racing seat with 6-point harness.

In addition to providing a fully kitted out race car, HPD supports customers with trackside factory engineering and parts support, plus an exclusive technical support line that can connect racing customers directly with HPD engineers when they’re not at the track.

HPD offers a clear “ladder” of turn-key touring car solutions, from entry-level TCA all the way to pinnacle TCR series.

While all three vehicles are based on showroom-stock counterparts, they also feature distinct modifications to allow them to compete successfully in a wide variety of touring car race series in the US and around the world, fitting a variety of different budgets.

HPD Civic Si TCA

A turn-key race car solution based on the popular Civic Si Coupe. With significant modifications including an SRO-homologated roll cage and competition-specific suspension, electronics, and brake components, the Civic Si TCA race car is an affordable way to begin racing in Touring Car Americas competition.

HPD Type R TC

With more power and performance capability than the Civic Si TCA, the Type R TC combines HPD-designed components with specifically selected and tested partner racing parts to create a modern track weapon worthy of the legendary Type R performance heritage.

HPD Type R TCR

At the pinnacle of the Touring Car racing program is the Type R TCR, a joint effort with long-time Honda partner JAS Motorsport in Milan, Italy. Designed for worldwide TCR-class competition, the Type R TCR features special body work, a seam-welded body, a sequential transmission, and additional high-end racing modifications for the ultimate in Civic Pro Racing competition.

CHECKOUT: Civic Type R posts another lap record

CHECKOUT: We test drive Honda’s incredible Civic Type R

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