Honda’s hardcore Civic Type R HRC could hit production next year

Earlier this year, Honda debuted the Civic Type R HRC Concept, which was an exercise in pushing the FL5 to its performance limits. 

Since then, reports of the hardcore HRC car entering production have been swirling, but a recent one out of Japan looks to be the most promising. 

According to a report published by response.jp, this high-performance hatch will be entering production as soon as early 2027. 

While the Type R is already a hardcore performance variant, Honda could be looking at trying to take some of Toyota’s GR audience, which leans heavily into high-performance vehicles. 

What is the HRC Concept?

Shown at the Tokyo Auto Salon at the beginning of the year, the Civic Type R HRC builds upon the performance of the road car, and takes elements from Honda’s Super Taikyu racer. 

The biggest change should be beneath the bonnet, where this Type R HRC is said to gain a K20C engine from its racing counterpart. 

This should push power outputs well over the 234kW currently offered in the Civic Type R. 

Backing up this increased performance is a wild aero pack, consisting of a new front bumper, vented guards, a wider track, a new diffuser, and a larger rear wing. 

The concept wore an Akrapovic exhaust and HRC-branded components could be seen sitting behind the new bumper. 

As you’d expect, this racing pedigree injected into the Civic Type R will come at a serious cost, and some Japanese outlets have already estimated a price. 

According to Best Car, this Civic Type R HRC will reportedly cost around double the price of the standard car. 

Considering the Civic Type R will set buyers back $77,000 in New Zealand, you are looking at around $150,000 for a Honda, which is astounding.