Two years ago, the Civic Type R set a new lap record for front-drive cars at the Nürburgring. That is, until the VW Golf Clubsport S beat it last month.
Nevertheless, Honda set out to conquer five more Grand Prix circuits across Europe… and achieved its goal at each and every one of them.
The effort started in April at Silverstone, the home of the British Grand Prix, where three-time British Touring Car Champion Matt Neal set a wet lap at 2:44.45, then returned the following month once the heavens closed up again and the track surface had dried to set a new lap record at 2:31.85.
Then it was off to Spa-Francorchamps, where the Belgian GP is held, and new signing Rob Huff clocked a lap at 2:56.91. Honda’s World Touring Car Championship driver Norbert Michelisz hustled the hot hatch around Monza in just 2:15.16.
Former F1 driver (and Michelisz’s teammate) Tiago Monteiro was set to tackle Estoril before he was sidelined in the WTCC race in Germany. So the series’ safety-car driver Bruno Correia stepped up at the last moment to take his place and set a blistering time of 2:40.08. Finally Michelisz returned to the cockpit to complete the quintet of records at the Hungaroring with a 2:10.85 lap.
Honda reports that all five attempts were made using a bone-stock Civic Type R with no mechanical modifications (aside, we’re sure, from some safety equipment) and on street tires. That’s impressive, and you can check the action out in the images and video clip below.
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