Honda’s new Civic Type R hot hatch has posted a new lap record for the Nurburgring road circuit in Germany.
The latest version of Honda’s three-door hottie set a time of seven minutes and 44.881 seconds, reclaiming the title of fastest front-drive production car.
That’s a full half second faster than the Renault Megane RS Trophy R, which set the previous record of seven minutes and 45.389 seconds back in April, 2019.
The pair have enjoyed a great tussle over the years, repeatedly swapped records at the ‘Ring, nicknamed the Green Hell.
Honda says the new lap time record demonstrates that the Civic Type R, which underwent a full model change, further improved its dynamic performance compared to its predecessor model.
It adds the Type R was developed with the goal to achieve the “ultimate pure sports performance” by attaining the ultimate in both speed, which is the essential value of a sports model, and driving pleasure, which appeals to the emotion of the driver.
Honda’s Hideki Kakinuma said since the start of sales in Japan in September 2022, the company had received a huge amount of customer feedback from around the world.
“However, we still had one more mission to fulfill, which was to claim the title as the world’s fastest FWD car with a record Nürburgring lap time,” he said.
“Six years after the lap record was set by the previous-generation Civic Type R (FK8), we reached this new dimension as a result of all of the passions we poured in and all the advancements we made for this Type R model. Finally, our wish to share this title with all Type R fans all around the world came true.
“We sincerely hope that all current and prospective owners of the Type R will enjoy and love their vehicle with the pride we share with you.”
This time around the record-setting Type R was fitted with track-focused Michelin’s Pilot Sport Cup 2 Connect rubber instead of the usual Pilot Sport 4 S tyres, providing higher levels of grip.
Civic also holds the record for quickest front-drive production car at Japan’s Suzuka Circuit which it set in in April, 2022.
The 2023 Honda Civic Type R is priced at $72,600 drive-away, but you have to wait two years if you want one — that’s how long the waiting list is.
It’s powered by a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine with 235kW of power and 420Nm of torque, paired with a six-speed manual transmission.
It dispatches the dash from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.4 seconds, with a top speed of 275km/h.
CHECKOUT: Civic Type-R — the car’s in the mail
CHECKOUT: Civic Type R posts another lap record