Auto Express – July 30, 2019

80 SpecialIssue http://www.autoexpress.co.uk

ROADTESTS RenaultMéganeR.S.vsHondaCivicTypeR

1 st Honda Civic

Award-winning Honda performancehatch is still toohot forRenault’snewcomer to handle

THEHondaCivicTypeRispartofalonglineof
impressivehothatchbacksfromtheJapanese
brand,andthislatestonehassatatthetopofthe
classsinceitwaslaunchedbackin2017.
Previousmodelswereknownfortheirhigh-
revvingengines,andwhilethe2.0-litreturboisn’t
asexcitingastheoldnaturallyaspiratedmotors,
it’sstillamodernmarvel.Itproduces316bhpand
400Nmoftorque,soperformanceissuperb,butit
alsoretainsanappetiteforrevsthat’smissingfrom
manyturbounits.Itsexhaustnoteisn’tasfruityas
theMégane’s,buttheHonda’smotorissomuscular
andvisceralthatit’seasilyamatchfortheRenault’s.
InourperformanceteststheHondamanaged
0-60mphin5.9seconds,whichwas0.1seconds
behinditsrival.Thatdoesn’ttellthewholestory,
though,becausetheCivicrunsintoitsrevlimiter
justbeforethe60mphmark,requiringanextrashift
togettothatspeed.TheTypeRisalotquickerthan
itslesspowerfulandheavierrivalinmostsituations,
astherestofourperformancetestsshowed.
Ittookjust4.3secondstogofrom30-70mph
throughthegears,0.7secondsfasterthanthe
Mégane;anditmanagedatimeof3.4seconds
from30-50mphinfourth,wheretheRenault
took4.0seconds.TheCivicwasalsoasecond
quickerfrom50-70mphinfifthgear,at3.8
seconds,andthegapwasevenbiggerinsixth.
Thatperformanceisn’tjustimpressivewhenyou
analysethenumbers,becausetheTypeR’spower
deliveryissoexciting,buildingasyouaddrevs.
TheHonda’sstandardlimited-slipdifferential
meansyoucanmakethemostofthispowerasyou
exitabend,leaningonthetraction.It’sastonishing
howwelltheCivictightensitslineasyougeton
thethrottle,andcombinedwiththeincrediblelevel
ofgripithas,thismeansit’soneofthemostcapable
hothatchesever.It’snotaone-trickpony,because
theHondarespondsjustaswelltoamid-cornerlift,
bringingthebackaxletolife.Itdoessomore
naturallythantheR.S.,withitsfour-wheelsteering.
UnliketheRenault,adaptivedampersarefitted
asstandardontheJapanesemodelandtheycan
besettoComfort,Sportor+Rsettings.Thelatter
isbestsavedfortrackdays,butbothSportand
Comfortarenicelyjudgedforroaduse.
Comfortmodemeansyoucangenuinelyusethe
TypeReveryday,becauseit’sevenmorecomposed
thanmanystandardfamilyhatches.Sportisalittle
stiffer,butitstillrideswithrelativecomposure,
suchisthequalityofthedamping.Thesteeringis
alittleheavyinSport,butotherwiseeachsetting
hasitsownplaceandaddstotheHonda’sappeal.

VERDICT★★★★★

THE Civic Type Risn’t justthe best hot

hatcharound, it’salso among the most fun

youcan have in anycar.Its sophisticated

damping and ballistic performancemean

the Honda has no trouble holding on to

its crownhere, shortly afterits thirdwin

at the Auto ExpressNew CarAwards.

ROADTEST

★★★★★

HONDA

CIVIC TYPE R

JULY2019

SPACEThe Civic Type Ris

surprisingly practical. It has

a420-litreboot, which is

bigger than most carsinthis

class –including the hot

Mégane, which has 384 litres.

The Honda also has more

spacefor passengersthan its

rival, because there’sslightly

morelegroom. Headroom is

about the same and enough

foradults, while those in

the back can slide their feet

under the frontseats more

easily than in the Renault.

ȸȸ 4 L 4 L

ȗȗ 4 L 4 L

ȏȏ 4 L 4 L

score

4.8

score

4.1

score

4.4

GEARBOXThe Honda’s

manual boxisone of the best

ever.The six-speed unit has a

short throw with amechanical

feel. It’s acontrasttothe

Mégane R.S.’s unpleasant

shift.The clutch action is

sweeterinthe Civic, too.

DEPRECIATIONBoth cars

hold on to theirvalue pretty

well.Apredicted residual

figureof48.7per cent means

the Honda will shed £17,211

overthree years; the Mégane

will drop by £16,659 in the

same period, at 47.7 per cent.

RUNNING COSTS

Fueleconomyof31.2mpg

isimpressivegiventhe

performancefromthe2.0-litre

engine,althoughtheMégane

returned33.3mpg.Thatmeans

you’llspend£2,231and£2,090

respectivelyonpetroleachyear.

DRIVING

Wellplacedcontrols,agood

drivingpositionandbrilliant

sportsseatsmeantheHonda

issatisfyingandfuntodrive.

Itcomesaliveonatwistyroad,

butit’salsobetterthanthe

Renaultasadailydriver.

PRACTICALITY

Despiteitssplitrearwindow

andbigspoiler,visibilityisokay.

There’sasinglecup-holderinthe

centreconsole,andahugestorage

bin.TheUSBportsareawkwardly

placed,however,soit’sgoodGT

modelshavewirelesscharging.