In the lastest series of #TopGear, Chris Harris drives the new Honda Civic Type R and arranges a meetup with some of the greatest hot hatches of all time.
Join Chris in conversation with Top Gear Magazine’s Jack Rix where they discuss how the FL5 Type R stacks up to its predessors, where it sits in the pantheon of hot hatch greats, and potential death of the hot hatch category all together.
Watch Chris Harris’ full power test in the latest episode of Top Gear on BBC iPlayer → https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001fhy8/top-gear-series-33-episode-4
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Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:18 The Death of The Hot Hatch?
1:17 The New Honda Civic Type R
3:33 FL5 New Features
5:14 What Makes A Hot Hatch
5:51 FL5 Type R Verdict
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A MK1 Focus 1.6 Zetec had the most amazing FWD chassis. I know it's not a hot hatch and never was just an everyday hatchback. But the lift off oversteer was there for the taking. Beautifully balanced and you knew you probably wouldn't lose your license. I had several as company cars and they where all sublime to drive quickly. Always put a massive smile on my face zipping past faster cars and carrying more speed into a corner or roundabout and having it cock it inside rear wheel or rotate if you fancied some lift off oversteer. God I miss all of em..
So disappointed that audi didn’t make the new generation of audi S1. It would have been epic I for one would have bought one for the mrs!
Surly it’s gotta be all about the 306 Gti-6 / 306 Rally. One of the best all-round hot hatches surly! Sadly mostly forgotten.
What idiots pay that much for badge?
I agree, the a45/s is too expensive but very capable but it misses the point. That's why I love my a35, it's still got all the creature comfort for daily but a different animal in s+, enough to put a smile on my face. The new civic type r is a true hot hatch and an enthusiast's car that's more performance driven oriented than daily comfort but it looks the part and i'm glad it's here. Too bad they're also expensive, limited and probably going to be garage queens.
We need a high reving vtech engine that screams to 10k redline.
50k with the carbon pack though chris! come on really!
New type R starts from £46k. I died on the spot.
thing looks more like a sedan.
I'm 20, and completely agree with Chris. I currently have a MK7 GTI, very nice car for my age. But I would never want a mapped golf R, a45, m140i, rs3, that so many people my age want.
Hot hatches should be about driver engagement, fun and affordability. Things not available with those cars. I really appreciate the civic type r and I yearn to own one next. As a young petrolhead I really want to grow up driving a real drivers car, learning about the best gear change rev match, heel and toe and becoming the best possible driver. Not like these automatics 4wd that's like a fairground ride just plant foot and go.
The Ep3 was so popular because so many young people could afford (at a push) to own one. I am hoping that the price of fk2s and fk8s drop post launch of the FL5 so I can hopefully get behind the wheel in the next year so. Who agrees?
Civics had 150bhp in 89 and in the mid 90s they had models up to 170bhp
I had that civic VTi 4 door saloon. 1.6, DOHC VTEC, 160bhp, revved to 8k. Looked like an ordinary saloon, until I opened up the taps on it. I loved that car.
Chris Harris is so right
I absolutely love the look of the FK8,
Hot hatches are meant to be revvy, lightweight, naturally aspirated, fwd, relatively powerful and something that you can drive hard and barely brake the speed limit but you get the fundamentals of steering feedback, agility and something you can thrash…has just enough done to it to look a cut above the rest…don’t get me wrong I love speed and power…but cars these days are ridiculous…we don’t bat an eyelid at car with 250-300bhp… why can’t a manufacturer make a 1000-1200 kg fwd car with a round 180-200bhp and does everything an 80’s -90’s hatch did…if manufacturers focussed on making cars lighter they would make cars more efficient, faster and they would have less emission control devices that play up like egr valves etc
Rant over 😅
But the new Civic is hardly affordable either. What about the Integra DC2, EK9 and before that the EG6 and CRX vti?
FK2 all the way
"The competence of the vehicle is not paramount, it's about how it makes you feel."
Well said.
But seriously…47K?? For a Civic (!!!). Save 10k and buy an i30N imho.
The hatch that looks like a sedan until you pop the boot. 🤣
It may be good but journalists love bumming these Honda type R’s Jesus Christ
You cant buy one. They're demanding 70k US.
Every vehicle I've ever owned has been a Honda/Acura 5 cars and 6 Motorcycles all brand new, but I refuse to pay 70k for the same model as my first car, a white Civic, which is the color I'd get. 😔
I think what Chris said at the end is most poignant, it's 1400kgs!!!
That's too big to be called a hot hatch, and it's I what I dislike about most modern cars.
There's just too much crap in them, they need to stop pandering to the US market, and give us some proper drivers cars, eff all this bloated interiors, full of tech, and unnecessary comforts, or at the very least have a base model, like something that even starts with wind-up windows, and a basic radio.
We've got a few years left where light cars are actually going to be possible before everything is weighed down with half a tonne of batteries, we need one good last hurrah!
Someone revive Colin Chapman to sort this shit out!!
Anyone else think the fk8 looks better?
Super Hatch / Hyper Hatch?
Hyundai in the last 5 years; I'm I a joke to you?
1:41 Uhh, NO. That car's one problem was actually that every single one of them were blowing head gaskets with between 5,000 to 20,000 miles on the odometer because the engine design was CRAP.
what's a jarbo?
The fastest car I have been in was a Triumph Spitfire. I think we got up to 47 mph
Tbh given the on road price of the Civic type R it too looses some of the hot hatch back to basics bank for your back hot hatch feel of yesteryear.
I get the impression it's an amazing vechiles with outstanding track performance but yeah that's what it is a track car. 300+hp FWD LSD manual. Its basically a BTC you can drive on the road but you have to fork out some serious money for it these days.
I feel like the Swift sport is more of a spiritual successor to the hot hatches of yesteryear. 1.4 turbo FWD manual and most importantly under 1000kg.
It's that car that feels fast and exciting but won't put your licence of life at danger like the ubur hatches of today which you may find yourself going twice the speed limit without even thinking about the speed trap or hairpin comming up you forgot about.
I guess the new Civic Si has more of that old skool hot hatch feel also however unfortunately not available in my Country although the 120N seems to be filling in that light weight manual hot hatch market atm.
They forgot about the EK Type R. But I feel like the next generation will not be enthused about Cars in general.
Hot hatches got too complex, too big and too expensive. They used to be a bit of a twist on a small hatch, now they’re heavy monsters with 300 bhp costing 35k+ that people can’t afford.
How can you fail to mention the EK9?? the greatest Type R there ever was.
I’ve got a BMW
Imagine saying Honda were late to the hot hatch game I mean just wow what ignorance
Death of hot hatch?
– renault clio rs
– abarth 500
– yaris sport
– civic type -r
– vw up gt
the list goes on and on….
If only it were affordable…
i dont feel like the new honda type r can be considered a hatchback. its only a hatch in a technical sense, but it looks exactly like the sedan. old type r was already pushing it and this one all but eliminates it from the category.
People can hate on the fk8 design etc, but it's the only car I have ever been in that puts such smile on my face….the in your face styling is actualy something i love about it in a world of golf's etc….