The Honda Civic Type R Might Be Getting a Throwback Color and a Smaller Rear Wing
The 2020 Honda Civic Type R has been spied at the Nürburgring, showing a new color and a possible new variant.
Phoenix Yellow, a color from the Acura Integra Type R, could be offered.
One of the spied Type Rs has a small spoiler in place of the regular car's large rear wing.
Now that Honda has facelifted the standard Civic and its sporty Si variant, the brand is setting its sights on the raucous Type R. Our spies caught two different Type R prototypes lapping the Nürburgring, revealing some new options that the hot hatch should be receiving for the 2020 model year.
The first of the two cars is painted a bright yellow, but it's not just any yellow-it looks like Phoenix Yellow, which was made famous in the United States by the Acura Integra Type R from 2000–2001. The fake vent inserts on the bumpers have some new strake elements, and it looks like the Type R will be getting a new grille, too. It also has a new wheel design that looks the same as the existing wheels at first glance. Aside from those subtle changes, the rest of the Type R's unsubtle design looks exactly the same. The camouflage on the roof lends us to think it might have a carbon-fiber roof for reduced weight.
The second prototype is a little more interesting. It's got the same camo-covered styling differences as the yellow one, but there's one thing camo can't hide: a much smaller rear spoiler in place of the regular Type R's giant wing. The wingless car also has a deeper front splitter, likely to gain back some of the downforce lost by the lack of the wing. We think this could be the rumored luxury-oriented Type R model, which would be less track focused and more about on-road comfort. While this pictured car has the standard Type R cloth seats, a luxe Type R could receive different buckets covered in leather. It could also be an entry-level model, or even just a stand-alone wingless option-we're just speculating here.
Additional changes for the 2020 model year should be fairly minor. Like the other Civics, the Type R will finally get an upgraded infotainment system with a volume knob. It's also likely that the Type R will gain more standard active-safety features. We doubt the Type R's power will get a bump-with 306 horsepower already, it doesn't really need one-but it could receive some chassis tweaks. The refreshed Type R should be on sale by the end of the year, and a small price increase is likely.
('You Might Also Like',)
