There will always be a faster car...Enjoy the ride.
With that said; What great days we are living in as automobile enthusiasts. The performance renaissance is right now.
Go on out and get yourself some!
Good article. Baruth is spot on.
IMHO, CTR is not a sports car. It is a capable, performance oriented hot hatch. It's at/near the top of the food chain within it's category, but still on the porch when the big dogs run.
Silly fan boys; Civic is not a sports car.
NSX, Corvette, 911, Viper, GT350 and ZL1 are sports cars (to name just a few).
Civic Si is an economical, fun to drive, sporty, easily modified, exceptionally handling economy car.
In the real world anything with 4/5 doors is a sedan, not a sports...
I assume that is why the 2016 Honda Global Rallycross Civic is AWD.
It must be that it is the only way a Civic can run with Ken Block's RS.
No matter how many specs you throw, AWD generates considerably higher levels of traction.
*Please note the lack of 5 doors on this monster...
I agree... Their only gripe was pedestrian power.
How about a twin scroll to help eliminate the turbo lag. Combine that with a return to 2.4 l., which would boost BHP and ft/lb torque. It's already in the arsenal. Look at what the Ariel Atom has done with that motor. Drop that power plant into...
Fastest in class is all that matters. It does not matter whether it is AWD, FWD or RWD. It won't compete with AWD's at the track or autocross.
Honda needs to counter.
A coupe would be lighter and more rigid (not to mention aesthetics). AWD would probably take 5+ seconds off of the already...
I'm not certain that there will be much competition from type R, Golf R or WRX STI... torque vectored AWD + over 44 more BHP and higher lb/ft torque levels = RS domination. Hopefully Honda will counter.
There are many reasons that most performance cars have only 2 doors. Other than a far superior appearance, weight and body rigidity are two. If you want 5 doors, buy a minivan.
The 5 door is quite pedestrian... build the 2 dr. coupe. Honda has the capability to build this car in the US/ Canada. That will keep the cost down and more attractive to the North American market.