We can barely get the words out of our fingers and into the keyboard--it's that sad. The kick-ass Honda you see before you, the Civic Type R, IS NOT COMING TO AMERICA.
This means, of course, that we won't get to slip into its Alcantara-lined sport seats. We also won't get to flat-foot its 198-hp, 2.0-liter i-VTEC four until it tops out at 146 mph. And we won't get to experience the Type R's stiffer body structure and retuned suspension, either.
But none of that is why we're depressed. After all, the U.S.-market Civic Si has pretty nice sport seats, virtually the same engine, and pretty hard-core handling characteristics itself. No, the most disheartening thing is that Honda is going to offer a stripped-down, 90-pounds-lighter Type R with no audio system, no rear parcel cover, no engine undertray, and reduced sound insulation. Would it kill American Honda to make this an option for the Civic Si? We can't imagine that there aren't a few thousand Honda fanatics here in the U.S. salivating at the prospect.
There will also be an equipment-heavy Type R with standard cruise control, fog lamps, auto wipers and lights, and dual-zone climate control, and an optional, voice-activated navigation system. Like the Type S, the Type R will be built at Honda's manufacturing facility in Swindon, England.