2024 Honda Civic Type R Review

Honda introduced its first Type R in 1992, and its success led to the model’s expansion from Japan into Europe and, subsequently, the US in 2015. This “R” label stands for “Racing,” as Honda wanted to create a vehicle that could function as a track standout or daily driver. 

MotoPickers Rating: 9.4/10

Fast-forward to the model’s 2024 production year; you’ll find it has retained its hot hatch design philosophy. With a starting price of $44,795 and seating for up to four passengers, hot hatches are high-performance hatchbacks with sport-tuned suspensions and larger motors. 

Since there are no significant changes to the Civic Type R from its 2023 predecessor, we’re here to determine whether this carryover design stems from Honda not needing to fix a design that still works or a lack of effort. The 2024 Civic Type R is part of Honda’s 11th Civic generation, introduced for the 2022 production year, and its starting price has increased by $1,000. 

Honda reports that its 2024 Civic Type R is the model’s fastest entry, beating the 2021 Type R Limited Edition with a Suzuka Circuit lap time of two minutes and 23.120 seconds. This impressive lap time is partially attributed to its agility, which primarily comes from a four-mode drive system applicable to track or street settings. 

However, this model has received some criticism for its limited customization choices, road noise, and fuel consumption. Let’s take a closer look at the 2024 Honda Civic Type R to more accurately determine whether this vehicle’s potential drawbacks overshadow its strengths.

Exterior spotlight

Honda’s 2024 Civic Type R has aggressive, sporty styling that isn’t solely for show. The exterior’s eye-catching side underbody spoilers, integrated rear fender, and front fender outlets foster optimal airflow around the wheels, facilitating ideal stability when entering and exiting turns and avoiding pressure fluctuations.

The 2024 Civic Type R’s aluminum 19” wheels are lightweight for increased agility, and their reverse-rim configuration raises stability at greater speeds. Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S tires complement this wheel design with sharper cornering and wider treads than previous Civic Type R entries. Honda adds flashy Brembo brake calipers to these wheels and two-piece 13.8” front rotors, providing more capable stopping power. This car’s brake ducts are designed to cool the front brakes during extended or demanding drives.

Regarding engine cooling, the 2024 Civic Type R utilizes a 48% larger grille opening than its previous generation and its wide, low hood vents to keep the motor at a favorable temperature while reducing airflow resistance. This grille also contains a sleek look with gloss-black accents and a red H-badge.

Honda designed this model’s roofline and wing spoiler to offer a sporty appearance without drivers sacrificing rear view visibility. Die-cast aluminum wing stays provide ample support for the wing spoiler while the area experiences increased downforce. 

It’s clear that this Civic Type R’s exterior looks and plays the part well, but a lack of color options, including no two-tone configurations, is its primary drawback. Color choices include:

• Boost Blue Pearl
• Championship White
• Crystal Black Pearl
• Rallye Red
• Sonic Gray Pearl

Despite fewer exterior color choices, the Civic Type R’s exterior design leads and ostensibly reigns supreme over its segment, which includes competitors like Toyota’s GR Corolla and Volkswagen’s Golf R.

Interior analysis

Honda emphasizes performance within its 2024 Civic Type R via standard features like sport pedals providing solid foot grip and sport seats containing a heavily bolstered design. This bolstered configuration keeps your body stable during sharp turns while reducing driving fatigue. 

Available features enhancing the 2024 Civic Type R’s sporty cabin include an Alcantara leather-wrapped steering wheel with red contrast stitching and a red leather shift knob. This shift knob is aluminum in its standard configuration. Drivers can opt for all-season floor mats or stick with the original red floor mats within this hatchback.

Honda has designed its 2024 Civic Type R’s interior to provide expansive sightlines while reducing blindspots for increased awareness behind the wheel. When loading or unloading cargo, know that this vehicle’s hatch area offers 24.5 cubic feet (cu. ft.) of storage space, which is exceptional for its segment. Competitors like Toyota’s GR Corolla contain 17.8 cu. ft. of hatch storage, with Volkswagen’s Golf R sitting between the two at 19.9 cu. ft. 

To increase your storage capacity, you can push down this Honda’s rear seatback via its 60/40 split fold-down design. The 2024 Civic Type R’s hot hatch area is all-resin, which may sound like a drawback. However, this plastic material is 20% lighter than a conventional steel hatch, which helps optimize performance. Honda communicates this car’s limited production run with an interior serial plate marking the model’s manufacturing number.

While the 2024 Civic Type R’s interior boasts an array of attractive standards and available features, its materials are slightly lower grade than rivals like Toyota’s GR Corolla.

Performance and ride feel

Honda’s 2024 Civic Type R is the most powerful Civic ever thanks to features such as a 2.0-liter inline-four Turbocharged VTEC engine with 315 horsepower, 310 lb-ft of torque, and an ideal power-weight ratio. It also contains four drive modes, including +R, for maximum performance on specialized areas like tracks. Separate modes are Sport, Comfort, and Individual. This hot hatch’s rear contains a triple-outlet exhaust with an active exhaust valve, which produces different engine notes as you cycle through modes. 

There is no automatic transmission option within the 2024 Civic Type R, which likely won’t be an issue for many, as this design fosters a closer connection to the car’s performance. Its 6-speed manual transmission excels with rev-match control, reinforcing balance while braking into corners and keeping motor and car speeds in sync during downshifting. Its R-exclusive shift link mechanism makes changing gears seamless, with a more direct connection between the gear lever and transmission. 

Almost every component on and within this Honda is lightweight, including the aluminum hood, crankshaft, and flywheel. However, you won’t be able to select an all-wheel drive (AWD) setup that competitors like Toyota’s GR Corolla offer. Most drivers probably won’t mind the Civic Type R’s single drivetrain choice of front-wheel drive (FWD), given its characteristics that lend themselves to performance motoring with dynamics like more even weight distribution and less understeer.

Suspension

The 2024 Civic Type R’s dual-axis front suspension facilitates more precise steering inputs by minimizing torque steer, allowing you to power through corners. An adaptive damper system optimizes this accurate steering, which you can program for performance or comfort. 

The rear suspension is multi-link, and its high-rigidity components provide more consistent handling characteristics. A helical limited-slip differential distributes torque between the front axle’s two wheels for increased traction, mitigating front-wheel slippage risks.

Technology overview

Honda’s 2024 Civic Type R contains some of the most unique performance-oriented technology within its segment. Its Driver Information Interface effectively helps you switch between its four drive modes, with custom display options streamlining your absorption of essential driving data, like performance metrics. Shifting into the high-powered +R mode activates an LED shift light above the interface to facilitate timely gear changes. The feature illuminates when you hit an ideal RPM shift range, so there’s no second guessing.

The 2024 Type R also contains a Datalogger Performance Monitor, which analyzes information like lap times, tire grip, motor temperature, and more via a 9” touchscreen. This 9” touchscreen also contains a volume knob for a more tactile experience. The Civic Type R’s Lap Score feature summarizes this data collection so you can more efficiently identify your driving strengths and weaknesses.

Honda makes it easier to read Lap Score data with its LogR smartphone app, allowing you to compare stats with other drivers. When cruising, this hot hatch contains wireless Apple CarPlay and Wireless Android Auto for seamless connectivity. A wireless smartphone charger complements these offerings to ensure you remain connected. The 2024 Civic Type R’s premium sound system from Bose contains 12 speakers, a subwoofer, and speed-sensitive volume control. 

Navigation is an upgrade within this Honda, like most cars nowadays. However, opting for the feature gives you perks like lane guidance for upcoming turns and access to maps with offline capabilities, eliminating the need for a consistent cell phone signal. Wi-Fi hotspot capability elevates passenger satisfaction.

While the LED shift light helps drivers optimize their performance more intuitively, the 2024 Civic Type R lacks in-demand technology features like a head-up display, which projects vital driving data, such as speed and navigation, onto the windshield within your road line of sight, eliminating the need to avert your eyes and reference separate displays.

Safety capabilities 

The IIHS (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) and NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) haven’t issued crash protection scores for Honda’s 2024 Civic Type R. Still, examining its standard and available safety features will shed more light on its ability to securely transport passengers and keep other cars, cyclists, and pedestrians safe.

Standard safety features

Honda’s 2024 Civic Type R contains an ACE (Advanced Compatibility Engineering) body structure exclusive to its brand. This structure increases occupant and crash protection during frontal collisions with:

• Specially designed crush zones
• A multi-cell structure pushing collision forces away from passengers
• Structural reinforcement mitigating intrusion

This automaker anchors the 2024 Civic Type R’s safety prowess with its Honda Sensing suite.

Honda Sensing

Honda sensing is a suite hosting several additional active and passive safety features, including:

• Collision Mitigation Braking System
• Road Departure Mitigation System
• Adaptive Cruise Control
• Lane Keeping Assist System
• Forward Collision Warning
• Lane Departure Warning 
• Traffic Sign Recognition
• Auto High-Beam Headlights 
• Driver Attention Monitor
• Blind Spot Information System 

Civic Type R drivers will also receive a standard multi-angle rearview camera with normal, top-down, and wide perspectives. Honda couples the BSI (Blind Spot Information System) with rear cross-traffic alert during reverse maneuvers.

Are there multiple 2024 Honda Civic Type R trims? 

Honda offers a single Civic Type R trim for the model’s 2024 production year. Drivers can expect to receive 22 MPG in the city and 28 MPG on the highway, which is competitive for this vehicle’s segment. 

Rivals of the 2024 Civic Type R providing multiple trim options include Volkswagen’s Golf R and Toyota’s GR Corolla. The Volkswagen Golf R and Toyota GR Corolla both offer three trim options.

Final verdict

The Honda Civic Type R is our favorite 2024 model year hot hatch for a myriad of reasons. Its exterior styling is some of the flashiest, if not the most, within its segment. Competing models like Toyota’s GR Corolla are more conservative regarding exterior design, which may deter some drivers looking to own a vehicle with an outside reflecting the car’s high-performance capabilities.

Despite the IIHS and NHTSA not yet rating the 2024 Civic Type R, the model emphasizes passenger well-being with an extensive selection of standard safety features, some of which are typically upgrades within other luxury cars. The IIHS and NHTSA did award the standard 2024 Honda Civic its highest scores of Top Safety Pick+ and Five Stars, respectively.

The 2024 Civic Type R’s displays are exceptional, even if they don’t contain certain presentation features like Unreal gaming engine technology, which adds more advanced graphics in models like Volkswagen’s Golf R. We especially love the shift light that optimizes gear changes when you’re in +R mode, and its ability to analyze and communicate performance metrics via synchronized technology is second-to-none.

Regarding performance specs, the 2024 Civic Type R is the most powerful Type R ever, and its horsepower and torque beat many significant rivals, such as Toyota’s GR Corolla. This Honda can efficiently serve as a daily driver, especially considering its competitive fuel economy, comfortable interior features like sport-bolstered seats, and optional Alcantara leather. 

Honda matches the 2024 Civic Type R’s performance with equal parts handling. Its suspension configuration is well-rounded, allowing it to simultaneously foster precise and stable turns at various speeds. However, some drivers have noted that this hot hatch produces more road noise than they’d like, specifically regarding its engine and tires. While Honda succeeds in making the cabin comfortable, prospective customers within this class generally don’t prioritize a silent interior environment.

The 2024 Civic Type R genuinely reflects the sentiment of “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” and that’s why it’s receiving a 9.4/10 MotoPickers overall score.