The new 2023 Type R has been caught hunting in its natural habitat of the Nürburgring, presumably to take its crown of fastest front-wheel drive hot hatch on the famed Green Hell. 
As the highly anticipated Japanese model closes in on its debut, a teaser video shot by Honda earlier this year adds to the hype of the hardcore hatchback. The camouflage which has stayed with the model since we first caught wind of its testing and spy shots remains although we can begin to elaborate on some of the upgrades over the standard model as seen in the video courtesy of motorsport.tv.
The first of which include reliable stopping power in the form of Brembo brakes behind the black wheels, the triple exit exhaust system remains while the much larger rear wing immediately differentiates it from a standard Civic. The wheel arches too are flared out with revised aero with upgraded cooling closing the list of what we can see on the exterior.
This is how the rear light signature of the new hot hatch looks like.
The 2023 Type R will only be available in hatchback flavour and will come exclusively with a manual gearbox. We don’t know the exact details on its powertrain but we can expect a 2,0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder motor which might even offer hybrid power. Some rumours even mention it could offer an all-wheel-drive system but we are sceptical on this. Regardless of what is underneath the bonnet, Honda have stated that this will be the “most powerful, best performing Civic Type R ever.”
Considering it keeps its front-wheel driven layout, we can only expect that the extensive testing around the Green Hell in Germany means that Honda is hellbent on retaking their FWD production car record. One that is currently being held by the Renault Megane RS Trophy-R Nürburgring Pack. The 2023 Type R will need to beat a time of 7:40.1 in order to dethrone its French rival.
