FULL REVIEW: 2023 Honda Civic Type R FL5 -- The definitive, undistilled hot hatch

Disclosure: Honda Cars Philippines Inc. kindly lent me a 2023 Honda Civic Type R FL5 for nine days. It arrived with a full tank of fuel and loaded RFID cards. AutoFun Philippines paid for additional fuel, toll, and a carwash.

The word “legend” gets thrown around an awful lot nowadays.

Social media is awash with so-called legends, supposedly because they achieved some incredible metric online (a gazillion followers/subscribers) or for some insane (and often extremely dangerous) act.

A little etymology here – legend comes from the Latin word legere, which means “to read.” By the Middle English period, when the English language became heavily influenced by the French following the Norman Conquest in 1066, legend took on a more mythical form.

The word now referred to the story of a saint’s life, given the overwhelming dominance of Catholicism during that period. As time progressed, legend also pertained to stories of popular figures (like Arthurian legend) and individuals who have achieved great fame or notoriety.

But a legend could also result from overhyping – whether on social media or in cars. Some argue that the Honda Civic Type R is a legend for being one of the finest hot hatchbacks the world has ever seen.

Indeed, when the latest version of this “legendary” car arrived in the Philippines on January 2023, we reported on irate buyers who were being fleeced to high heaven. One even got a quote of ₱5 million, some ₱1.2 million more than the ₱3,880,000 pricetag.

To find out what all the fuss was about, I tried out the FL5 Honda Civic Type R to see if it was the real deal or just a Honda Civic with an abundance of “fanboy inflation.”

Much cleaner appearance

I want to make things clear now – I didn’t like the look of the old FK8 Type R.

There was far too much going on. The bodykit seemed like an afterthought, while the enormous 20-inch wheels and triple exhaust pipes were too boy racer for my liking (and I’m an actual racing driver).

This new FL5 looks leaps and bounds nicer, although some say it reminds them too much of the lower-priced Civic RS Turbo sedan.

The front end still has an imposing presence, with the gloss-black grill, subtle chin spoiler, and gaping lower grill. The last item significantly improved cooling over the old model.

The Type R’s flanks are defined by the huge fender flares needed to fit the massive 19-inch alloy wheels with 265/30 series Michelin Pilot Sport 4S rubber. These are complemented by the small underskirt, also in gloss black.

The rear, presumably the only view most Subaru WRX owners will see, is where the FL5 starts to veer towards the boy racer. The large rear wing provides much-needed downforce at very high speeds, while the attractive diffuser still has triple exhaust pipes.

Functional interior

The Type R isn’t the first hot hatchback to come to the Philippines.

However, Honda is the only one that remembers the dual nature of a hot hatch – it must perform like a thoroughbred while retaining the versatility and practicality of a hatchback.

The cheaper Toyota GR Yaris may be an excellent performance hatchback, but the cargo area is puny, and the rear headroom is measured by how hard your skull is jammed up against the roofliner.

The Type R is a fabulous return to form – there is plenty of legroom and headroom for four passengers (the middle-rear seat is not designed for a passenger), while the 470-liter cargo area expands to 1,212 liters with the rear seats folded down.

As the halo model, the Type R is trimmed in plush Alcantara, which has the added benefit of not frying your butt on a hot day like leather. It’s also nice to see Type R traditions like the red front seats and red carpets still living on.

However, I wish Honda could have done more to distinguish the Type R from a regular Civic, including ditching the scratchy plastics on the rear door cards.

Infotainment system can be better

The FL5 Type R comes standard with a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system, including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

It also allows you to configure the settings for the Type R, such as the automatic revmatch system (more on that in a bit) and the aggressiveness of your dampers. However, the screen is a bit laggy and can be confounded if you rush it.

Something that is extremely welcome, however, is the excellent Honda SENSING active-safety suite. This makes this high-performance machine an absolute breeze to drive on long journeys, especially with its adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, and low-speed following.

More than that, it cranks up the safety protection with features like collision mitigation braking that can stop you from getting into an expensive crash in the first place.

Physics-defying performance

So, the Type R is stylish, practical, and very safe.

It is also mind-blowingly fast. And it will only reward drivers who know how to fully exploit its potential.

There are also four drive modes: Comfort, Sport, R+, and Individual. I used the last one because it allowed me to tune the Type R to my taste and driving style.

And everything about this Type R made use of all my motorsports training – my driving position had to be spot on for the proper application of the clutch, and the steering wheel had to be angled just right to make the most of its quicksteer rack.

I even had to set the seatback relatively upright, like in a racing car, so that I could handle the cornering forces.

And boy, oh boy, can this car corner. Attacking a winding road draws up almost non-existent body roll, ferocious grip, and a general refusal to understeer. 

With the aid of the electronic limited-slip differential (LSD) and the rear brakes, the Type R handles more like a properly sorted rear-wheel-drive car. You can get on the power much earlier than you would in ordinary front-wheel-drive machines and just fly out of the corner.

And once you’re out on the straights, it will headbutt the horizon from as low as 2,000 rpm. This is largely because of the turbocharged 2.0-liter, twin-cam, 16-valve inline-4 gasoline engine that pumps out 330 PS and 420 Nm of torque.

Some issues I spotted were that the LSD sometimes lacked lock on full throttle, leading to some steering-wheel shimmy. And also, the stock exhaust was a bit too quiet, which can be remedied by piping in fake exhaust noises using R+ mode.

Visceral joy

Unlike some performance cars I’ve driven and raced, the Type R makes you feel you can use all its horses.

The chassis has much more reinforcement than a standard Civic to ensure minimal flex. This helps keep the suspension geometry stable even in hard corners, making the Type R absolutely planted.

The electric power steering is almost telepathic, requiring only very fine inputs to make it turn. The weight is also just right, especially in Sport mode.

The standard Brembo performance brakes are breathtakingly good, offering strong braking action and a solid pedal feel. However, after a few hard stops, the brake-pad compound starts to lose its initial bite, so a more aggressive pad is a worthwhile upgrade. 

And the suspension is actually perfect in Comfort mode – set it any harder outside of a race track, and you’ll need a new spine. 

But what sets this Civic apart is the 6-speed manual transmission. The throw is nice and short, with a good notchiness that requires a strong but measured input for a proper gear change.

And for those who don’t do well in manuals, the Revmatch System automatically blips the throttle when you downshift a series of gears. It makes for very smooth progress in the city or on the track, but heel-and-toe lovers like me can turn the system off and do it ourselves when we wish.

A fabulous daily!

In the nine days I had the Type R, it was all I drove.

Owners of older, non-turbocharged Type Rs would grimace at this idea. That’s because an old Type R is notoriously lumpy at low speeds, especially since all the power comes in at around 6,000 rpm when the VTEC system would cross into high-cam.

But the FL5 is the total opposite – outside of a race track, you can drive it like a diesel, changing gears at 2,000 rpm and getting surprisingly good fuel economy. I got 6 to 9 km/l in the city and 15 to 18 km/l on the expressway.

However, I wish Honda had put in a larger fuel tank. With only 40 liters, you will need to make more frequent stops at a gas station.

Nonetheless, the supportive reclining bucket seats embrace you at EDSA just as well as they would at Clark International Speedway. However, the 30-series tires produce quite a racket at speed and sometimes make the ride quite harsh.

The dual-zone climate control would give Nissan a run for its money. At 24 degrees Celsius, it was frigid. At its coldest setting, I suddenly understood what being a frozen fiesta ham was like.

Finally, the Type R has a huge turning radius resulting from its high-performance quicksteer rack. As such, you must either go wide as you enter tight turns or get speedy with your three-point turns.

Indulgence without guilt

A Honda Civic Type R that’s nearing ₱4 million simply will not make sense to ordinary car buyers.

Then again, most ordinary car buyers would likely send this hot hatchback into the nearest stationary object. The Type R is unashamedly aimed at monied driving enthusiasts, of which plenty exist in the Philippines.

It has also accomplished what so few high-performance cars have – hurdle the litmus test of cold rationality.

A Mazda MX-5 is pure driving joy, but it’s far too small to use for groceries or a family trip. A Ford Mustang V8 is fast and reasonably practical, but it guzzles fuel like a fighter jet on full afterburner.

And an old Civic – even if you hurl millions of pesos, a B18C or K20A engine, and a helical LSD into it – will never be as relaxing or easy to drive as the latest Type R.

The FL5 is a savage sports car that can carry four passengers or a single-tub washing machine while getting better fuel economy than a Geely Coolray.

It also looks perfectly fine in the parking lot of a supermarket or a five-star hotel, drawing wide-eyed gasps from car lovers wherever it goes.

Is it a legend? It could be, but it should be because of its numerous intrinsic merits, not because of overzealous Honda fanboys or greedy resellers.

The Honda Civic Type R is not quite my idea of automotive perfection (that would be something rear-wheel drive). But my God, does it get close.

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