Scottish Elises

Blagged myself a wee test drive of the new Civic Type-R today. Was great fun to drive. I love the interior and the dash feels like something from a spaceship. I think the looks are great . . . it makes the new shape of civic look so much better. Pretty good handling on the twisties . . . it was wet so I didn't want to push it too much, plus the saleswoman in the passenger seat asked me to take it easy at one point!

If I didn't have the Liz and was looking for a hot-hatch type car in that kinda price bracket, I would buy it in an instant.

dezzy wrote:Blagged myself a wee test drive of the new Civic Type-R today. Was great fun to drive. I love the interior and the dash feels like something from a spaceship. I think the looks are great . . . it makes the new shape of civic look so much better. Pretty good handling on the twisties . . . it was wet so I didn't want to push it too much, plus the saleswoman in the passenger seat asked me to take it easy at one point!

If I didn't have the Liz and was looking for a hot-hatch type car in that kinda price bracket, I would buy it in an instant.

I'm not liking the interior one bit! Maybe I'm getting old .. Test drove the Golf GTi last week... considering poss replacement for astra. I liked the GTi, so it's prob running favorite at the moment. After the wright up in EVO (group test on hot hatches last month) I would not bother with CTR. For me, it would not have been in the running, but EVO confirmed that for me, for different reasons. Anyhoo, caterham/GTi, not all going to come at once, or instantly

The new CTR is not worthy of the Type R badge, its a Vti at best. Unfortunately Honda are selling out on the success of the previous version (even that was considering to be not a proper Type R by the purists) so we get a lardy lukewarm hatch with no more power and worse still, outdated torsion beam rear suspension.

Its not a bad car by any means, its just not what most of the current owners wanted.

You should see the UK CTR forum, its simply unbelievable the level of bitterness and sniping going on over a bloody car.

I'm with Dom - Evo killed the car IMHO, or Honda did depending on your p.o.v.

I can't believe that you guys are actually accepting what EVO said without even driving it!! Dezzy has driven it and liked it, until you do the same how the hell will you know?

simon wrote:I can't believe that you guys are actually accepting what EVO said without even driving it!! Dezzy has driven it and liked it, until you do the same how the hell will you know?

Fair point, however from my experience, the writers at EVO are usually fairly close to the mark.

Dominic wrote:Fair point, however from my experience, the writers at EVO are usually fairly close to the mark.

Apart from any group test involving a 911

I had a short test drive of it last week and wasn't keen (we're considering changing the main tin top). Love the looks, not as chav in real life as it appears in the mags. Engine and gearbox fantastic... but that was it. Oh, and felt like sat above rather than behind the wheel (but I'm 'big boned' ).

Agree with Dom re the dash. Was very disappointed TBH

I had the DC2 - superb car - EVO greatest fwd group test car - imho prb best fwd car ever made and nearest thing to a fwd Elise Engine is a dream, gearbox fantastic, lsd requires a fast driver to make sense but the more you push the more it gives. Can be a bit skittish in the wet but in the dry.. sound familiar.. but you can also jst back off in the Teg and it's reliable as a normal shopper Civic. Later products have become steadily less focussed, softer and heavier. At 6 10ths they probably feel faster, better but point to point with the revs screaming I think they lost the way - DC2 and NSX being noted exceptions.. and any early screamer - DC2, EK9 with the mugen inlet ports and spoon cams suddenly have the earlier vetec on command for some better low end response. I took the last CTR for a 48hr test drive and day to day it was very impressive but it missed the DC2 fireworks. I hear the DC5 is very good and haven't had the pelasure of a 9500rp 1.6 EK9 CTR import.

The problem is that the market has moved on - If the CTr still had the lsd and 200kgs less then it could easily live with the turbo hatches. With a lsd and a s'charger kit you fully appreciate what the Honda 4-pots can do.

Top Gear rated it as there top hot hatch with the Golf GTi 2nd and the Focus ST 3rd.

They raved about the thing. It actually made me think about getting one for the other half but didn't want to spend the 18k

If anyone is interested it was TG issue163 march 07, they tested a handful of Hot hatches.

simon wrote:I can't believe that you guys are actually accepting what EVO said without even driving it!! Dezzy has driven it and liked it, until you do the same how the hell will you know?

Agreed!

I've not driven a lot else in the same bracket as the CTR, but I really liked it. I generally like the new dash in all the new civics and I think it looks nice lit up in red in the type-R, compared to the blue in the standard Civic. I agree with Jason on the driving position, I did feel quite high up. I put that down to being used to the Elise though!

I admit the handling could have been a bit better, but again I think that's just because I'm used to the Elise. However, I felt it held the road pretty well and I did enjoy the drive. I'm not CTR expert, so I'm sure it probably isn't as pure to the Type-R badge as it should be, but I definitely like it.

Regarding reviews . . . I don't let reviews of films or albums stop me watching/listening to them, so I wouldn't let a mag review of a car stop me driving it to find out for myself. I'm sure most people are the same, so why not give it a wee shot and see what you think?

I agree with Jason on the driving position, I did feel quite high up. I put that down to being used to the Elise though!

As a CTR (04) driver I agree with this. I test drove an Elise last year, and even after 30 mins, getting back into the CTR, the driving position felt minibus-like. But so would any hatch.

The new CTR sounds like it's going to be softer than the outgoing model.....however, given that most owners of the old one opted for aircon, and many have installed 100KG of 'ICE', satnav, starter buttons and other superfluous bling, Honda obviously decided that 'show' is more important to the majority of their customers than 'go'.

simon wrote:I can't believe that you guys are actually accepting what EVO said without even driving it!! Dezzy has driven it and liked it, until you do the same how the hell will you know?

simple arithmetic old bean. Same powerplant as the outgoing model, but an increase in weight that equates to driving the old one 4-up. The old CTR was a rough diamond, but as pretty brilliantly shown in EVO with their 4/5 different tests, the new CTR is outclassed by its turbocharged contemporaries. As you've said in other posts, its all opinion, and we're each entitled to one

Dezzy, glad you enjoyed it mate Did you have a thrap in one of the old CTRs?

GregR wrote: Dezzy, glad you enjoyed it mate Did you have a thrap in one of the old CTRs?

I've never driven one. I actually used to have a Civic Sport (yes, I know there's nothing "sport" about it! ) and had always intended progressing to the Type-R, but the Elise kinda got in the way!

My bank manager has one - she admitted she didn't know what the Vtec was for, and hadn't been past 6k rpm

A modified version of that lovely engine will soon be powering my scaffolding contraption