Honda is turning up the performance on the 2021 Civic Type R with a new Limited Edition model, the automaker announced. The new Limited Edition model features lower weight, improved handling, a higher-performance wheel and tire combination and an exclusive Phoenix Yellow paint.
The 2021 Type R Limited Edition will come in an exclusive Phoenix Yellow color, with gloss black paint on the roof, outside mirror caps and intake vent on the hood, along with a dark chrome Civic badge on the rear hatch. Inside, each Limited Edition has a special numbered plaque on the center console designating its build number.
The 2021 Civic Type R and Type R Limited Edition carry forward the numerous updates made to the 2020 Type R, including the freshened front and rear exterior styling, larger grille opening and radiator for improved engine cooling and interior updates such as the Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel and a new weighted shift knob. Both feature the Honda Sensing suite of safety and driver-assistive technologies as standard equipment, including Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) with Forward Collison Warning, Road Departure Mitigation with Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keeping Assist and Adaptive Cruise Control.
The 2021 Type R Limited Edition embodies multiple engineering and feature changes designed to maximize performance, Honda says, without sacrificing Type R’s unique combination of razor-sharp performance and civilized daily-driving manners.
A number of measures were taken to reduce the curb weight of the Type R Limited Edition by 46 pounds versus the standard Type R, Honda says.
Replacing the standard Type R wheels with lightweight forged-aluminum alloys from BBS saves the Type R Limited Edition an additional 18 pounds of unsprung weight, which has an important impact on agility and road-holding with a side benefit to ride comfort. The lighter weight results in lower rotational inertia, an effect amplified by lightweight two-piece floating front brake rotors that were applied to all Type Rs in 2020, which yielded a 2.5 pounds of weight savings per side. Going further still, 28 pounds of sound-deadening materials have been removed from the roof, rear hatch panel and front fenders and dash; even the cargo cover, rear heater ducts and rear wiper mechanism were removed to save weight.
The Type R Limited Edition also features grade-exclusive Michelin Cup 2 tires with improved cornering performance. To take full advantage of the lighter weight wheels and extra-grippy tires, Limited Edition features unique programming for the Active Damper System (ADS), which was already updated just last year to sample inputs 10 times faster than before. Similarly, the electrically assisted power steering has been reprogrammed to match the elevated dynamic performance and lighter weight of the BBS alloys.
Under the hood, the 2021 Civic Type R and Type R Limited Edition draw power from the same 2.0-liter direct-injected and turbocharged 4-cylinder engine with VTEC valvetrain, putting out a peak 306-horsepower (SAE net) and a peak 295 lb.-ft. of torque (SAE net), with power to the front wheels delivered through a close-ratio 6-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential. Both Type R models allow drivers to choose between three driving modes – Comfort, Sport and +R – that vary throttle mapping, damping force and steering assist.
The Civic Type R Limited Edition (European spec) recently stormed to a new front-wheel drive track record at Suzuka Circuit, Honda’s 3.6-mile Formula 1 racetrack in Japan, with a time of 2 minutes 23.993 seconds.
