2024 Honda Civic RS headed to Japan as Type R hot hatch’s distant cousin

The gap between the regular Honda Civic and high-performance Type R may finally be filled in right-hand-drive markets with a new RS model, unveiled as a prototype.

While it has been confirmed for Japanese showrooms between September and November, Honda says the Civic RS – sold with a manual transmission only – is not planned for Australia.

Few details of the Civic RS have been revealed, however it is pitched as a sportier version of the standard 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder Civic hatch – rather than a lightly watered-down version of the extreme 2.0-litre Type R.

The RS badge is currently used by Honda in Australia, Thailand and other markets to denote sportier looks but no changes to engine power or handling.

Honda in the US already sells the Civic Si sedan, which adds a more powerful 149kW/260Nm version of the 1.5-litre engine – up from 134kW/240Nm – plus stiffer suspension, larger brakes, a sports exhaust, and mild styling tweaks.

It remains to be seen if the RS adopts this engine tune to deliver on what Honda claims are "further refinements to the joy of driving."

Visual differences compared to the regular Civic hatch include a sportier front bumper with a larger central air intake, RS badges, and a black finish for the 18-inch alloy wheels in the same design as the standard car.

Japanese magazine Best Car claims the front brake discs are slightly larger – shared with the Civic e:HEV hybrid at 293x25mm, up from 282x23mm – and the turbo engine will be boosted to 147kW, however Honda is yet to confirm these details.

More details on the 2024 Honda Civic RS are due closer to its Japanese launch in the northern autumn of this year (September to November).

A Honda Australia spokesperson told Drive the company has "no current plans to bring [the Civic RS] to the Australian market at this time."