Comments on: 2008 Honda Civic Type R review

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 12:36:03 +0000

PS And for all those readers who listened too much to the topgear review, the torsion beam rear suspension works bloody well! The new Megane RS250 also has a torsion beam rear, and it is one of the best performing cars in the group. Seems like Renault Sport is also switching on to the idea

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 12:32:26 +0000

I just purchased a second hand 2008 type r with 22500kms a week ago and I absolutely love it. It is a real drivers car. I came from a Peugeot 207 GTi; great car, the 1.6T has amazing torque and is very good for daily driving; finished off with good materials and I love how it looks. Down side is that I have some niggly reliability issues, the gear changes were very sticky and notchy, and that because it was a small car it there was a lot of road noise, wind noise etc. I wouldn’t trust the reliability of a golf GTI or Peugoet after 100,000kms, hence why a second hand (out of warrenty) GTI was out of the question. Furthermore why purchasing a good trusty Honda is the way to go when purchasing a used vehicle.

The type r is very different to drive, I love how it looks inside and out, the sound of the exhaust and engine, the smooth 6 speed, the quality build and how solid it feels on the road. My brother has a 2010 xr5 turbo/ST with the leather seats but I much prefer the type r. Just amazing. As for the topgear review everyone was talking about, I believe you need to actually DRIVE the car yourself (and learn how to drive the car) to really understand how fun it is. It is a real hot hatch, a real drivers car.

By: Hayzel

Hayzel — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 16:01:39 +0000

How about learning to speak ENglish before trying to comment. You are right about the Honda though.

By: rhys

rhys — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:20:56 +0000

own a civic type r ep3, and it kicks ass over the new one. is a good day to day car, and if u can drive will thrash a scooby, nevermind a peugeot, bye bye gti! im 31 still love 2 race, in the blood, so f all u dorks with ooh the speed limit! theres a time and place and i dont rip it up round town, schools, or places with people before u start whining. go hug a dolphin or something. any type r is a wicked drivers car that the missus can drive too, buy without a hesitation. owned fast fords all my driving career, apart from 1 or 2 hiccups, after the honda will never look back, except in a nostalgic kinda way! peace!

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 05:47:42 +0000

I think the best way to help people understand this car is to say.. buy it if you love to ‘drive’. Not to blast off from traffic lights or compare figures on paper, but a true love of cars which completely engage the driver’s senses.. in many ways similar to the MX-5 philosophy.. YOU drive the car, the car doesnt drive you..

Not too mention the fact that in 5 years time the design of this car will still seem modern and fresh..

By: Niz

Niz — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:05:51 +0000

I have always driven either V6 or turbo cars, and never considered type R. I drove one today, and yes it does lack some torque, but it handles really nicely, the gear changes are sweet and you feel a real connection to the car. I wish I could hire it for a week or two, cause I feel that you have to learn to drive it before you can really appreciate it.

The only thing stopping me from bying it today is lack of torque while driving at 40kph – 2nd gear is still not in VTEC range, and not sure if you can downshift into 1st gear.
Does anyone know if you can hire them for a weekend?

By: Hayzel

Hayzel — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:29:16 +0000

People like frugal one and flying high shouldn’t really comment on anything that involve cars *sigh* damn kids on comment boxes. The new generation Civic type R is never designed to be driven on a track. It is designed to be a driver’s car and it is a complete car in that sense. It’s not about which car will win in a “race”, it is a car that will emphasize enjoyment everytime you commute. Seriously what kind of childish idiot would try to race in typical road with all the speed limits. The context of such minds is really what causes all the accidents on the roads. If you fail to understand that then you should not and do not deserve this car or any other car in that regard. Shawn when will you ever try to race people on the road? Never will be the perfect answer. Frugal one and Flying high really pisses me off with their childish comments leading me to believe that either 1) they are far too young to be driving a car or 2)They are just a trailer thrash hoons that put other innocent drivers in danger. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON’T RELY ON WHAT JEREMY CLARKSON SAY.

By: Shawn

Shawn — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:58:20 +0000

Reading through the comments…I actually wonder how many of you have actually driven this car? All I see are people comparing the numbers on the brochure.

I can tell you from personal experience that this would beat any of those turbocharged (GTi, MPS, RS, Megane Sport) equivalent around a tight and twisty track or public road. Probably the closest thing that even comes close around a track would be the Megane Sport. The Gti would be absolutely raped around anything that is tight or twisty…

By: Paul

Paul — Wed, 06 May 2009 13:59:03 +0000

This car will reward drivers who aren’t too lazy to change gears (why would you, it’s actually fun here) and who prefer to feel that real time feeling of traction on high revving engine every time they twist at a corner. If you like to cruise at 60kmh on 6th gear, then chance is you are more suited to a larger car with an auto transmission.

This car has a sweet spot between 3,500 and 4,000 rpm and it’s really easy to get the engine to that rev range. 3rd gear is the best gear around town while 4 is the best gear to overtake (aggressively) on the highway. 5th gear has reasonable pick up over 100kmh and 6th is mostly fuel saving mode.

Honda has that character, drive it that way and you’ll love it.

By: Hayzel

Hayzel — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 18:14:31 +0000

Seriously…those who based their decisions on buying sportscar on wheter or not they can be masters of the road should get shot. Sportscar like this is about experience in driving and the civic type R has that as well as practicality as an everyday car. It doesn’t have the brute power since it’s not meant to be a car to defeat other cars. This car is built on refinement. Sure WRX is great on performance but look at their interior, the general quality and comfort and feel. Subaru sacrificed quality for performance. CIVIC type R has a prety good standing in that regard. Seriously when you are on the road when will you speed out and defeat other cars? Only stupid hoons and young arseholes do that and ended up crashing their cars into innocent drivers. If you think of this car as a car to compete you are sorely mistaken….. The spirit of the R in Honda is about the driving experience not the “My car is faster than your car”. GOD i hate people who thinks that….

TOP GEAR is a bullshit entertainment show, the reviewer will almost always be biased..but it is very entertaining. When you start basing your decisions on their reviews only you really should go back to school since I believe you are lacking in the area of inteligence.