When discussing the modern Honda Civic Type R we should address the obvious right up front so we can get it out of the way. I’m talking about the looks. If we’re being diplomatic we could say the styling is an acquired taste. Pretty it is not. But woah baby does it have personality! It took 20 years—and five generations—for the Civic Type R to finally come to North America, and the one we got—code FK8—is about as subtle as a flying karate kick to the face. It’s also nothing short of the quickest production front-wheel-drive car ever sold to the public. This 5-door hatchback handily out-drags rear- and all-wheel-drive dedicated performance cars from rival Japanese manufacturers like Subaru’s WRX STi and the Nissan 370Z. It’s even more ruthless on a road course, lapping faster than its 570hp big brother the Acura NSX! And perhaps the homely hind-quarters are Honda’s way of trolling its rivals, adding insult to injury by making unsightly the only angle most of them are going to see a Type R from!
This story is from the Fall 2020 edition of Die Cast X.
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This story is from the Fall 2020 edition of Die Cast X.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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THE COMPLETE BOOK OF CORVETTE: EVERY MODEL SINCE 1953
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I had plans well underway for the big “Bargain Muscle Cars” feature story in this issue (p18) when I saw this lineup for the new Muscle Cars USA 2020 Release 3 from JL. I already knew I would be talking about the Dodge Dart GTS and AMC Rebel Machine, so I figured I’d just plunder those two cars from this set for that story and be all set. But then my conscience kicked in. Both because the other four cars in the set deserve their moment in the sun, and because they are all based on actual cars from the 2019 Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals show it just makes sense to talk about them together.
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Hot Wheels has been having full-size versions of its iconic 1:64 diecast cars made since 1998, and lots of fans have gotten to see them at various car shows and events like the Hot Wheels Legends Tours. But most of those appearances were static displays. About a year ago Hot Wheels decided to give fans a chance to see what it was like to drive the cars in its Garage of Legends by teaming up with MotorTrend’s streaming network to produce a series of episodes highlighting six of the most popular—and outrageous—creations.
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