The Sleuth recently had an up-close and personal look at Honda’s sporty Type R that was on display and in action at the Goodwood Festival of Speed hill climb event in Sussex, England. Of course he naturally assumed that the same or closely similar four-door hatchback would be coming to North America as well. However he has since learned that the front-wheel-drive Type R that will be available here in 2017 (for the 2018 model year) will be based on the just-revealed Civic four-door sedan and possibly the coupe (but not the hatch). The surprise part of this news is that a regular-strength Civic hatchback will also be available. In any event we’ll get the same turbocharged 305-horsepower 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that European Type R buyers will enjoy.
