CIvic Type R

[scammy]

Did you experience torque-steer when you floored it in R-mode? I couldn't get on with the over-light steering & clutch, as well as the lack of shove and lag before the turbo kicked in. Gear knob felt plastic and too light, and was slightly too far away for me. Apart from that it was ok - just felt like an airport hire car that could go a bit quicker than most...

Hi Nick since we were doing a bit of filming with it for M2 magazine most of the drives were at pace or trying to be consistent for the film car so torque steer was not an issue as the pace was up there so we were not trying to induce it from standstill if that make sense, the roads we took it on were quite twisty and bumpy typical tight back roads out the back of Auckland and it really behaved well and at pace the steering was spot on, after a couple of days I started to really like it even with the cheap feeling plastics inside. I must say too that the white car does not look as ugly but the red one does and I love red Honda's.....
I was also trailing it in my car filming so spent a lot of time beside it and behind it getting different camera views so did look at it a lot from all angles which is why I said it needed to fill out those wheel arches a touch and I struggled to hear the downshift blip at times so a slightly louder exhaust to help in the R mode would be good.

 

[NZNick]

Cam,

I got the torque steer when accelerating leaving a 50k area that changes to a 100k limit in 2nd or 3rd - after the initial lag, the speed increased and just when approaching the top of the rev-range there was a definite tug of the (very light) steering to the centre of the road - quite unsettling. This occurred every time i mashed the loud pedal, on a variety of road surfaces. I didn't floor it from a standing start.
The car I drove was a white demonstrator which had 8500kms on the clock

 

[scammy]

Cam,

I got the torque steer when accelerating leaving a 50k area that changes to a 100k limit in 2nd or 3rd - after the initial lag, the speed increased and just when approaching the top of the rev-range there was a definite tug of the (very light) steering to the centre of the road - quite unsettling. This occurred every time i mashed the loud pedal, on a variety of road surfaces. I didn't floor it from a standing start.
The car I drove was a white demonstrator which had 8500kms on the clock

Interesting I wonder if it's the same demo car, I will have to say that most of our pulls were at like 80kph as we were doing rolling shots and yes there was torque steer to a point but nothing that seemed bad to me but then we were on twisty roads so it wasnt a pull it was on off a lot between corners, does that make sense and possibly I just was busy at the wheel because of that and thought it was just part of the package

 

[Gansan]

I've been trying to get one, but around here they are sold within 30 minutes of being unloaded from the transporter.

 

[RYU]

I've been trying to get one, but around here they are sold within 30 minutes of being unloaded from the transporter.

Same with us Glen. Though we're not in any rush. I have 2 friends with them and both have overheated the car with not much effort.

 

[Gansan]

Same with us Glen. Though we're not in any rush. I have 2 friends with them and both have overheated the car with not much effort.

Yeah, that's something I will miss about my DC2 ITR. It was 100% reliable and worry-free on track. More than 50 two-day events, many in the summer, and it never once overheated or had any issue. I'm sure the oil ran hot but I changed it frequently anyway. OEM coolant and I didn't need water-wetter.

 

[jlsnyderNSX]

At first glance I wasn't all that impressed until one arrived in our little town unexpectedly. I've had it for 5 months now and it is an absolute blast to drive! I purchased the car as a daily, but I have found myself taking the NSX home in the middle of the day to trade.

 

[Gansan]

Just an update--I got my CTR a couple of weeks ago in red. It's been a super fun daily driver, and I finally got past the 600 mile break-in just a few days ago. I love how it looks, how the steering feels, and the engine is pleasantly revvy feeling. I was expecting something less responsive but it has a relatively light flywheel. The front end is extremely grippy. Wind noise is very low. Overall quite a bit more civilized than my NSX with NSX-R suspension. I'm slowly ramping up the RPMs, but every time I dip into the performance I'm going too fast as it is.

But take my opinions with a grain of salt. I don't buy cars very often. It's my first car with bluetooth!

 

[Peace Frog]

Care to share any pictures?

 

[bullithollywood]

It has a lot going on as it is extremely over styled. The interior is a plus though in my mind. But being over the age 30 or even 25, I wouldn't want to be seen in this car. I'd rather just buy a regular civic and slap a turbo kit on it.

Like so many cars available these days its performance numbers are really impressive and superior to the NSX, but a cars looks have to do something for me emotionally when I look back at it walking away. Regardless of its numbers, stylistically its still a civic with to many accouterments tacked on for the fast and furious crowd. Toned down 3db it might work.

 

[docjohn]

only 5500 miles so far...but like many of the magazine testers I have had to replace 2 rubberband conti6 due to pothole destruction.

 

[RYU]

I had a 2018 CTR for the entire Spring/Summer. That car is impossible to keep cool on track. Anyone have any success?

The integrated exhaust turbo manifold is challenging to keep cool.

 

[goldNSX]

Only 10k miles within 2.5 years, still like it.
No potholes here but 3 punctures when the tires were fresh (sticky?). Can't blame the car for that. Not sure if I go with Conti next time.
No problems at all.
No track events. I guess Honda has sorted out the heat problem with the newer 2020 model.

 

[docjohn]

I had a 2018 CTR for the entire Spring/Summer. That car is impossible to keep cool on track. Anyone have any success?

The integrated exhaust turbo manifold is challenging to keep cool.

what tires?...

 

[RYU]

what tires?...

Take a guess... Conti tires are...

That was after 1 session. Granted I could have been less of an a-hole on the tires but I didn't expect it to be that bad so quickly.

Switched to better ones later but on 19" Rays Volk wheels on RE71R on the same alignment and they lasted as expected. This car is in dire need of more neg camber out front.

@Gansan - have you done any cooling mods? do you track yours?

 

[docjohn]

I have not tracked but will get a 19 set of wheels with dedicated R compounds for next season. What were your hot pressures for those corded contis?

 

[RYU]

I have not tracked but will get a 19 set of wheels with dedicated R compounds for next season. What were your hot pressures for those corded contis?

Honestly, I don't recall exactly. We tried a few pressure changes that day. I want to say that session was 33 psi cold? Don't quote me on that.

The good news is.. there are a lot of people dumping these tires so I found a cheap set of takeoffs fairly easily.

 

[docjohn]

More CAMBAAAAAAAA

 

[Gansan]

Take a guess... Conti tires are...

That was after 1 session. Granted I could have been less of an a-hole on the tires but I didn't expect it to be that bad so quickly.

Switched to better ones later but on 19" Rays Volk wheels on RE71R on the same alignment and they lasted as expected. This car is in dire need of more neg camber out front.

@Gansan - have you done any cooling mods? do you track yours?

They there Regan!--funny you should ask. I have tracked mine once at AAA Speedway. However, the overheating was so bad that it kind of made it not very fun. From cold it would overheat in about 5 laps in the morning, and 3-4 laps when it was warmer later in the day. So I haven't tracked it other than the one 2 day event. However I love the car suspension wise and overall performance wise. Just needs some cooling.

According the discussions and feedback in civicx.com, the *only* radiator that has proven to be significantly more effective than OEM is C&R's racing radiator for the FK8 also branded as PWR. So I just bought one and it's sitting in a box in my house, obviously not installed yet. They make a street version and a track version with more vertical tubes and correspondingly smaller fins. However people running the C&R street version have still overheated. The fins are louvered. C&R is having a 15% off sale right now so you can save significantly at the moment.

Reference:
https://www.civicx.com/forum/threads/c-r-pwr-radiator-feedback-and-testing.53076/

https://www.crracing.com/product/2017-2019-honda-civic-type-r-track-version-radiator

I do have some concern about a very densely finned race radiator being used mainly for street driving like my car, but it seems like the few people running it say it's ok. The C&R guy said the car would run warmer in street driving but it should be ok. Fingers crossed.

It's possible that only upgrading the radiator will not completely solve the problem. Many people are running oil coolers also but those have little effect. However, I'm going to just do one mod at a time and test. It's a daily driver anyway and not a track rat.

 

[furinax]

Yes, the 2020 CTR has a bigger grill leading to cooler intake temps. I think this was people's main complaint so they figure fix that.

Do people run smaller wheels on the CTR so they can get more pothole protection?

 

[RYU]

Hi Glenn! I've done a fair bit of testing for the CTR cooling problem. I can echo PWR/C&R's perspective that there is a fine balance between a the benefits of a dense core vs a "street' core. As you eluded to, the dense (aka. Track spec) core is denser/bigger for greater heat dissipation capacity but also requires a lot more ventilation thru additional ducts and vents. It will also heatsoak a lot faster during low airflow, heavy traffic street driving in my experience. The CTR is so at the bleeding edge of cooling it makes it tough to have a one-fit solution for all situations. My question for you, if you don't mind.. once you put the Track spec C&R radiator, do you plan to add all the additional ducts and vents?

Yes! The CTR suspension and chassis is so so so good! Just needs that little bit of front neg camber. I wouldn't even swap out the stock dampers.

They there Regan!--funny you should ask. I have tracked mine once at AAA Speedway. However, the overheating was so bad that it kind of made it not very fun. From cold it would overheat in about 5 laps in the morning, and 3-4 laps when it was warmer later in the day. So I haven't tracked it other than the one 2 day event. However I love the car suspension wise and overall performance wise. Just needs some cooling.

According the discussions and feedback in civicx.com, the *only* radiator that has proven to be significantly more effective than OEM is C&R's racing radiator for the FK8 also branded as PWR. So I just bought one and it's sitting in a box in my house, obviously not installed yet. They make a street version and a track version with more vertical tubes and correspondingly smaller fins. However people running the C&R street version have still overheated. The fins are louvered. C&R is having a 15% off sale right now so you can save significantly at the moment.

Reference:
https://www.civicx.com/forum/threads/c-r-pwr-radiator-feedback-and-testing.53076/

https://www.crracing.com/product/2017-2019-honda-civic-type-r-track-version-radiator

I do have some concern about a very densely finned race radiator being used mainly for street driving like my car, but it seems like the few people running it say it's ok. The C&R guy said the car would run warmer in street driving but it should be ok. Fingers crossed.

It's possible that only upgrading the radiator will not completely solve the problem. Many people are running oil coolers also but those have little effect. However, I'm going to just do one mod at a time and test. It's a daily driver anyway and not a track rat.

 

[RYU]

Yes, the 2020 CTR has a bigger grill leading to cooler intake temps. I think this was people's main complaint so they figure fix that.

Do people run smaller wheels on the CTR so they can get more pothole protection?

Unfortunately, that was more marketing than real life results. The improvement was very marginal. Like say... instead of 3-4 laps.. maybe 4-5 laps if even that. The temps still creep higher and higher in this car. The small turbo and the integrated "headifold" exhaust manifold is killer for heat dissipation from the block.

 

[Gansan]

Hi Glenn! I've done a fair bit of testing for the CTR cooling problem. I can echo PWR/C&R's perspective that there is a fine balance between a the benefits of a dense core vs a "street' core. As you eluded to, the dense (aka. Track spec) core is denser/bigger for greater heat dissipation capacity but also requires a lot more ventilation thru additional ducts and vents. It will also heatsoak a lot faster during low airflow, heavy traffic street driving in my experience. The CTR is so at the bleeding edge of cooling it makes it tough to have a one-fit solution for all situations. My question for you, if you don't mind.. once you put the Track spec C&R radiator, do you plan to add all the additional ducts and vents?

Yes! The CTR suspension and chassis is so so so good! Just needs that little bit of front neg camber. I wouldn't even swap out the stock dampers.

If the radiator is not sufficient, I'll add the 2020 grille for a bit more air flow. I'm hoping against hope that I won't need to add a vented hood. I would probably add an oil cooler before going with a vented hood, just because of the invasive nature of changing the hood out or cutting up a perfectly fine stock hood.

Many of the people who have modified or tuned their cars require correspondingly more cooling measures. With my stock car I'm hoping just get to the point of doing 8-10 laps without an issue and I'll consider the problem solved.

 

[RYU]

If the radiator is not sufficient, I'll add the 2020 grille for a bit more air flow. I'm hoping against hope that I won't need to add a vented hood. I would probably add an oil cooler before going with a vented hood, just because of the invasive nature of changing the hood out or cutting up a perfectly fine stock hood.

Many of the people who have modified or tuned their cars require correspondingly more cooling measures. With my stock car I'm hoping just get to the point of doing 8-10 laps without an issue and I'll consider the problem solved.

I've installed/reinstalled a radiator in that car countless of times in case you decide to do tackle the job yourself. If you need help let me know. I'm a bit far from you but we can Zoom it!

 

[Gansan]

I've installed/reinstalled a radiator in that car countless of times in case you decide to do tackle the job yourself. If you need help let me know. I'm a bit far from you but we can Zoom it!

Thanks for offering! I'll probably just have a shop do it since I don't have a lot of room nor do I want to deal with all the coolant, but if that changes I might come to you with questions. :smile: