Practical Justifications for the Type R

Dipz said:

What color you thinking of?

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Rallye Red

Simmons572 said:

Hey folks. Been mostly lurking in this forum for several months now and now that I am finally getting closer to purchasing my own Type R, I am trying to do the mental gymnastics to convince myself that the car will have practical benefits, as well as being a fun, badass car. (Also justifying it to the S/O so there's that lol)

I am coming from a '96 Civic LX. It's a great, and practical car, but it's not fast (it sure takes a while to get up to speed, especially when the A/C is on lol). I was already interested in the Civic Hatch before I was turned onto the Type R, but once I learned about this thing, I knew this was the car for me. Regardless, I can't help from having pre-buyers remorse (if that is even a real thing).

I will soon own an upright bass (double bass), and it does not fit in my civic whatsoever. However, I know that it will fit in the Civic Hatch. So that is one big perk to getting this car.

I am going to be buying either a 2019 or 2020 Rallye Red Type R by this point next year. I would like to get some forum input about the practical benefits for owning this thing. Any and all input is welcome for this one.

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You don’t need to be practical all the time. It is just plain fun. That is all you need to say.

stingray said:

You don’t need to be practical all the time. It is just plain fun.

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yes.

Simmons572 said:

I am planning on reducing the wheels down to 18's so I feel that would address the tire issue. But yeah, the fun aspects of the car outweigh the cost for some reason lol.

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One of the fun, practical things about the CTR is that with the rear seats folded down, you can fit all 4 OEM wheels in the back. So while there is the cost of going with different wheels, there is the practicality of easily fitting 4 wheels in the hatch when you do switch the wheels out.

When I swapped out my 20 inch wheels for 19s, the guys at The Digital Chassis (a highly recommended wheel/alignment/suspension shop here in Durham) offered to hold the OEM wheels for a couple days so I could come back and pick them up later. Digital Chassis does a lot of work on Porsches, and one of the benefits of going to them is you get to look at all the nice cars in the shop. They hadn't seen a CTR before, so I can't blame them for being surprised when I said the wheels would fit in the hatch -- after we popped the hatch they became believers.

You know how the R looks inside and out, you know it has 4 doors, 20in low pro tires, performance with a price tag after tax 40k+.

Since your not sure about your purchase, go test drive a sports hatch or even a si. MSRP on these R are now what, 37k? If your main concern is 'practical' and dont need a performance car maybe look at the lower models since they have pretty much the same storage space and getting 30+mpg is nice.

i say that if you can afford it go for it. It is the best bang for the buck out there and I smile every time I drive it. Every time I drive it someone inevitably says "nice car" and I say thank you. A few days ago it was a guy in a new Tesla. I use it as a daily driver and a 2016 Sedan Touring as my doggie hauler. I do some rescue stuff....

Simmons572 said:

Hey folks. Been mostly lurking in this forum for several months now and now that I am finally getting closer to purchasing my own Type R, I am trying to do the mental gymnastics to convince myself that the car will have practical benefits, as well as being a fun, badass car. (Also justifying it to the S/O so there's that lol)

I am coming from a '96 Civic LX. It's a great, and practical car, but it's not fast (it sure takes a while to get up to speed, especially when the A/C is on lol). I was already interested in the Civic Hatch before I was turned onto the Type R, but once I learned about this thing, I knew this was the car for me. Regardless, I can't help from having pre-buyers remorse (if that is even a real thing).

I will soon own an upright bass (double bass), and it does not fit in my civic whatsoever. However, I know that it will fit in the Civic Hatch. So that is one big perk to getting this car.

I am going to be buying either a 2019 or 2020 Rallye Red Type R by this point next year. I would like to get some forum input about the practical benefits for owning this thing. Any and all input is welcome for this one.

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I echo pretty much everything that others have already stated; I will add that I hope you have a decent place to park it, to eliminate chance of dings and scratches as well as bird droppings too. It is special, albeit yes a Civic, but still I do not like parking it just anywhere, especially outside for extended periods in the sun. Be prepared for people trying to race you too; which I have experienced to a greater degree than when I had my WRX.
Overall it is an awesome car that has 2 distinct personalities--you can leave it in comfort and drive it slowly and efficiently (well over 30 mpg on extended highway driv es at 70-75 mph), or you can put it in Sport or R mode and drive it spiritedly, and it is happy to do both.

The R does everything my two row SUV could do, with a lower hatch entry. I don’t regret losing the SUV at all. The R is very practical in my opinion.

Simmons572 said:

Hey folks. Been mostly lurking in this forum for several months now and now that I am finally getting closer to purchasing my own Type R, I am trying to do the mental gymnastics to convince myself that the car will have practical benefits, as well as being a fun, badass car. (Also justifying it to the S/O so there's that lol)

I am coming from a '96 Civic LX. It's a great, and practical car, but it's not fast (it sure takes a while to get up to speed, especially when the A/C is on lol). I was already interested in the Civic Hatch before I was turned onto the Type R, but once I learned about this thing, I knew this was the car for me. Regardless, I can't help from having pre-buyers remorse (if that is even a real thing).

I will soon own an upright bass (double bass), and it does not fit in my civic whatsoever. However, I know that it will fit in the Civic Hatch. So that is one big perk to getting this car.

I am going to be buying either a 2019 or 2020 Rallye Red Type R by this point next year. I would like to get some forum input about the practical benefits for owning this thing. Any and all input is welcome for this one.

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If you like it and you can afford it, go for it! Don't worry about the rest, be yourself.

As someone who drove a R for over two years Ill add my input. The hatch space can't be beat. First week I hauled a completed mounted set of four 20 inch tires in there with room to spare. The Fuel economy is great, The insurance if you got a good record is not much more than an SI but compared to my brand new 19 gt Im Only paying 6 dollars more for a v8 newer car so Maybe compared to other cars its not the cheapest? I personally had no issues driving 20 inch factory wheels on crap roads for 2 years but as they say your mileage will vary. most drop about 2k into new tires and wheels on these so there is that. If you plan to mod , for its class of car, it is rather expensive to mod. The parts aren't cheap when compared to other cars. The only downside is typical honda civics, it has the creeks groans and you'll have those little warrenty things. and if you have a crap Honda dealer like most of us seem too they love to say whatever is wrong with theses cars is your fault. so be prepared for that.

But, I loved my R. I have yet to hear anyone say they didn't like the car other than dumb butt media types who picked on its looks constantly. If you like manuals there is not many that can beat the R. It is the most enjoyable manual there is to drive. Like any car it has its pluses and minuses. You need to just sit in it drive it and if it connects with you buy it. Don't listen to me or anyone else. Oh and really make sure you like the seats before you buy. They are super comfy but if you are a bigger person they can be snug and you def don't want stuff in your pockets while in the seats. If you do get one enjoy Oh and get the spare tire kit. Trust me. A flat at night on a saturday having to call honda to get towed to a closed dealer who doesn't have the wheel or the machine to mount it is no fun. Then to wait till monday till they open to then wait 2 more days till they get it in .... anyway you get the picture

It’s a civic

It has 4 seats and plenty of trunk space. It's not going to be as practical as your base Civic but it definitely is practical for a performance car.

Though if you stick with the 20 inch wheels it isn't so practical if you live in snowy areas. The 20 inch low profile winter tires are expensive. I'm around Philadelphia where it's mildly snowy/cold and have been able to get by with 20 inch all seasons DSW's. I have a garage which also makes this more manageable. If you live in the North you would be best to consider getting 18 inch wheels for the cheaper winter tires.

Gas mileage wise - I do a lot of spirited driving and average 22MPG. I'm ecstatic about that.

Simmons572 said:

To address both of these replies, I am planning on reducing the wheels down to 18's so I feel that would address the tire issue. The lady and I are not anticipating having kids any time soon (we'll see how long that lasts, but neither of us have any interest). And the most passengers I ever have in my car is 3, so the loss of a middle seat isn't that big of a deal. I do appreciate the feedback though! Honestly, these are the thoughts running through my head as I try to talk myself out of it.



And that's where I am at at this point. I am planning on reducing the wheels down to 18's so I feel that would address the tire issue. But yeah, the fun aspects of the car outweigh the cost for some reason lol.



Thanks for the insight mate!

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There are some good threads on reducing the wheel size on a Type R - and the upshot is that you will absolutely be messing with the optimal handling performance and design of the car.

You, know, the things you are buying it for.

Please check that out before you base your buying decision on what appears to be an easy swap, but in fact may not be such a hot idea.

The wheel size and tires are part of the reason I drive an SI vs a Type R - the SI comes with 18's, and is designed for those wheels.
Much cheaper, still a blast, quick enough, handles, steers and brakes like a dream, but only comes in coupe and sedan. My sedan has plenty of storage. It held 2 30" suitcases and two additional carry-ons all in the trunk with room to spare.

So buy the Type R if you want to drive a legend, leave the wheel size alone, and just enjoy it. And avoid potholes.
If you live in an area with seriously bad roads, the Type R is probably not a good match anyway.

Cornercarver said:

There are some good threads on reducing the wheel size on a Type R - and the upshot is that you will absolutely be messing with the optimal handling performance and design of the car.

You, know, the things you are buying it for.

Please check that out before you base your buying decision on what appears to be an easy swap, but in fact may not be such a hot idea.

The wheel size and tires are part of the reason I drive an SI vs a Type R - the SI comes with 18's, and is designed for those wheels.
Much cheaper, still a blast, quick enough, handles, steers and brakes like a dream, but only comes in coupe and sedan. My sedan has plenty of storage. It held 2 30" suitcases and two additional carry-ons all in the trunk with room to spare.

So buy the Type R if you want to drive a legend, leave the wheel size alone, and just enjoy it. And avoid potholes.
If you live in an area with seriously bad roads, the Type R is probably not a good match anyway.

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Uh, it's not as drastic as you're making it out to be. Sure, if you are going for optimal track handling and feel, I'm sure the difference between 20" and 18" is noticeable. Track time on the other hand....? I'll leave the track stars to answer that one. On the street, however, it's negligible. Just have to research the right wheel/tire combo.

Cornercarver said:

If you live in an area with seriously bad roads, the Type R is probably not a good match anyway.

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I think my area qualifies for this criteria... and I still use the stock 20 wheels so:

The ride quality sucks on a lot of these roads that are just plain crap. Comfort mode does a bit but I’ve noticed then it feels like my suspension is overdampened (like you’re just bouncing up and down as if your shocks were bad). In sport or higher the ride quality is jarring.

Potholes are a nightmare on any setting, but the really bad ones are made much worse sounding and feeling by sport mode or higher. Comfort mode you don’t feel it as bad but it still sounds pretty terrible.

I travel on roads on my commute that are not maintained well, and it’s a pure headache. I usually throw it into comfort mode to mitigate it but then I’ll find a road where it feels like my suspension is too soft and I just bounce up and down all over the place.

YMMV, but on smooth roads the ride quality is great even on the maximum setting. Once the road quality takes a crap you will feel it a lot more (I remember after driving it for a while in sport mode the crappy roads actually made my back and neck fairly sore after getting out).

Cornercarver said:

There are some good threads on reducing the wheel size on a Type R - and the upshot is that you will absolutely be messing with the optimal handling performance and design of the car.

You, know, the things you are buying it for.

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Almost everyone who seriously tracks the car is using downsized wheels (as well as hundreds of people who aren't tracking the car), so this theory is not even close to accurate.

The unsprung weight losses from switching to an 18" lightweight wheel/tire package are absolutely immense - something like 50 pounds or more. Those losses alone more than offset any increase in torque steer from the dual axis suspension not being perfectly aligned with the wheel size.

Not to mention lower cost and greater range of options for performance tires on 18" wheels.