You can drive a front-wheel drive with massive horsepower and torque; that would be in vain if you don’t have a ride tweaked with advanced mechanics and aerodynamics. And one of those special sports cars currently on the market is the all-new 2017 Honda Civic Type-R, recently completing the Ring in a lap record.
There are plenty of positive reviews that indeed make the new Civic Type-R the fastest FWD car on the Ring, and that thanks to the new mechanics and powertrain under the hood.
Speaking of lap record on the Ring, the 2017 Honda Civic Type-R managed just 7 minutes and 43.8 seconds. And even if we are dealing here with a pre-production car being put to the test, the Japanese carmaker has assured us that the production car will be exactly the same one as the record-setting model.
Just like the test-car, the future 2017 Honda Civic Type-R, available in dealerships this summer, will come with exceptional driving capabilities and characteristics, as they are explained below by Kijima-san, lead chassis engineer for Honda Civic.
“The cornering speed achieved in the new Type R is higher because the car features a wider track and tyres, a longer wheelbase, new multi-link suspension in the rear and optimised aerodynamics that improves stability. For example, drivers typically enter the corner after Metzgesfeld at around 150 km/h. Even at this medium-speed corner, the speed is around 10 km/h higher due to the new Type R’s excellent stability. So, with improved cornering performance, we can increase the speed throughout the lap, helping the new Type R to achieve a much quicker lap time.”
Performance wise, the 2017 Honda Civic Type-R features a 2.0-liter VTEC Turbo engine, developing 320 horsepower and 400 Nm of torque, being sent to the front axle via six-speed manual gearbox with lower ratios. Other high-end mechanics refer to multi-link rear suspension, updated aerodynamic package, and so on.
