2023 Honda Civic Type R spied

Honda’s hot hatch hero has been snapped taking on the Nurburgring, as its reveal nears.

The 2023 Honda Civic Type R will be revealed mid-year ahead of a late-2022 arrival in Australia, and it’s already picking up the mantle laid down by its predecessor.

A development prototype of the new Civic Type R hot hatch has already set a front-wheel drive car lap record at Suzuka International Racing Course (Suzuka Circuit) with a 2:23.12 lap time.

Given the previous-generation Civic also owned the lap record at the Nurburgring Nordschleife, it’s likely Honda will have a crack at taking it back after being usurped by the Renault Megane R.S. Trophy-R with a 7:40.1 in 2019.

Once it’s here the new Civic Type R will compete against the upcoming Toyota GR Corolla, Cupra Leon VZx, and Volkswagen Golf R, as well as the Hyundai i30 N, Renault Megane R.S. Trophy and Audi S3, among others.

Like before, the new Civic Type R is expected to be petrol-powered and have a six-speed manual transmission.

Honda is expected to slot an evolution of the current 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine under the bonnet. In the previous model it produced 228kW of power and 400Nm of torque.

Up front, it looks like the fussy, low-set air intakes of the current model will be replaced with a cleaner central intake and simpler bumper inserts.

There’s an ankle-breaking splitter and swollen guards, complete with a vent on the back of the front arches to lessen pressure at high speeds. Honda made a big deal of the fact the last Civic created real downforce, expect this one to be no different.

The swollen guards are matched with unique side skirts, which are no doubt similar to those on the current car.

Down back, the biggest news is the new rear wing. Unlike the current unit, it’s mounted on slim, motorsports-inspired struts and sits higher on the boot lid. It’s not quite the swan-neck spoiler of the new Porsche 911 GT3, but it’s the hot-hatch equivalent.

As before, there are three exhaust pipes down back. They’re surrounded by a diffuser that looks like it could actually contribute to the overall downforce of the car, rather than just sitting there and looking pretty.

When it arrives, it’ll sit alongside the all-new Civic hatch, HR-V SUV, and ZR-V SUV in a revitalised Honda range.

MORE: Everything Honda Civic