2023 Honda Civic Type R prototype showcased at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon

KUALA LUMPUR: The 2022 season of Japan's premiere high-performance and custom car show, Tokyo Auto Salon, has recently been organized in Tokyo. The event introduced us to several new concepts of the auto giants, including the Honda Civic Type R that made its first live appearance at the show in the prototype form.

Wrapped in an exclusive camouflage, the high-performance Civic Type R is also featured in an action-packed test-driving video during the show. The clip revealed the behind-the-scenes development of Type R with Honda engineers. It previews the car doing circuits around the Suzuka Circuit and returning to the garage for new tyres and other changes.

While Honda packed the car with camouflage, its design is mostly visible. The new hot hatch features a honeycomb mesh grille with an R logo in the centre, a more aggressive front bumper, new air intakes, and a ventilated hood on the front. The rear fascia, on the other hand, is dominated by a prominent rear wing, and a centrally-positioned triple exhaust system. Also part of the kit is a ventilated bumper and a modest diffuser.

On the sides, we can see sportier side skirts and lightweight wheels. The latter is paired with a Brembo braking system featuring red calipers.

Honda touted the new hot hatch as the best-performing Civic Type R ever, however, it remained tight-lipped on the power and performance figures. For that matter, we expect the car will continue to get energy from a tried and tested 2.0-litre VTEC Turbo engine pumping out a maximum power output of 320 hp and a peak torque of 400 Nm. The engine is likely to be paired with a slick-shifting six-speed manual transmission.   

The road-ready version of this performance hatchback will be officially unveiled this year, Honda confirms.

At the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon, the Japanese automaker also unveiled the Modulo X sporty avatar of the third-generation HR-V. The kitted-up concept boasts exterior and interior styling upgrades with suspension tweaks. 

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