HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

'Fun' is an interesting and perhaps misleading descriptor for the Honda Civic Type R. Fun is, of course, what hot hatches have always been about.

Shortcomings in ride quality, flimsy cockpits, poor economy-you'd forgive any and all of it as long as there was enough attitude, full-throttle potential and lift-off oversteer. Enough fun.

It was obvious with the previous-generation R, the FK8, that Honda had altered the game, because the new car was so precise and dialed-in, yet light on its feet and so rich in its feedback. With its long snout, two-and-a-half-box silhouette and ridiculous rear plumage, it looked like it had stepped beyond time-honored hot hatch parameters like the Escort Cosworth did.