Motor Trend – September 2019

A

bout a month ago, I proudly
shared with associate road test
editor Erick Ayapana a photo
of the Civic Type R’s self-reported fuel
economy, showing 33.3 mpg. Spying the
car’s odometer below that impressive
figure, Erick responded, “You have
about three months to add 8,000 miles
[laughing/crying emoji].” To which I
replied “[big eyes emoji].”
Our goal is put 20,000 miles on a
long-term car in a year, and because
most of us don’t drive our cars 55 miles
each day, that requires several road
trips, of which the CTR has had few.
This also means the car’s average fuel
economy has been lingering around the
EPA’s city estimate of 22 mpg. In the two
months since the a-ha moment, we’ve
added nearly 2,000 miles and brought
that average up to 23.5 mpg.
The first long drive I made was an
overnighter to Honda Proving Center,
north of California City. Thanks to
cooperative traffic, I managed a
29.5-mpg tankful and tempted fate by
putting more miles (296) between fills
than anyone had previously. The next
mile-piling opportunity came from
McLaren, which was hosting an event in
Arizona. The 750-mile trip netted 28.5-,
29.2-, and 25.3-mpg tanks. Finally, Erick
feather-footed a trip to Santa Barbara,
the highway to which is highly patrolled,
and netted a 32.1-mpg average.
The driver’s seat is perfectly suited
for long drives. The navigation system
displaying the posted speed limit is
handy, especially when the permitted
speeds change from 65 to 70 to 75 mph.
With a few months to put 6,000 miles on
the car, more long drives are needed.

2018 Honda Civic Type R

Avg CO2 0.83 lb/mi Energy cons 140
kW-hr/100 mi Unresolved problems
None Maintenance cost $96.51 (1-oil
change, inspection) Normal-wear cost
$1,380 (four new tires) Base price $35,595
As-tested $35,595 E PA Cit y/Hw y/Com b
Fuel Econ 22/28/25 mpg
Real MPG 23.7/33.5/27.3 mpg

“Driven prudently,

the Civic Type R

can achieve over 30

mpg and travel in

excess of 300 miles

on a tank of gas.”

Chris Walton

Service life: 9 mo/ 13,939 mi
Avg Fuel Econ: 23.5 mpg

MT GARAGE

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