So ready for this, Charlie? Stay with me. My old skiing buddy, Matt Watson at Carlyle has his Stick of Truth, and I have my Chopstick of Shame. But what does irritate me is how much of it is fake. Now, whether you like it or not is purely subjective, and I certainly enjoy its sense of theater. It's like Mini's designers took one look at the Honda Civic Type R and said, hold my beer. The Mini Cooper S that won the Monte Carlo rally still looked like my mom's shopping machine. That first, classic Mini really was a work of genius, a genuinely pioneering family car with trick suspension that just happened to be good on the track and rally stage. And I'm sure we can all agree what a tragedy that would have been. It was my mom's first car, and legend has it that if she hadn't broken down in it and asked my dad for help, then I wouldn't have been here. To be honest, I've always had a bit of a soft spot for Minis. But before all of that, be sure to subscribe to the Edmunds channel, and check out the link below for a companion piece on that reveals all the testing data. We're going to put them through the full Edmunds testing procedure, and then we're going to drive them on the track and declare a winner. Both are either new or updated, both are over 300 horsepower, both are front wheel drive, and both are uncompromising in their pursuit of performance. I'm Alistair Weaver, and we're here at the Edmunds Test Track with two of the hottest hatchbacks ever produced. ALISTAIR WEAVER: The Honda Civic Type R has long been Edmunds's favorite hot hatch, but now its crown is under threat from the limited edition 2021 Mini John Cooper Works GP, the most powerful, most extreme, and the most expensive production Mini ever. It is also equipped with a limited-slip differential, a sport-tuned suspension with adaptive dampers, bigger front brakes, sport seats, and a unique gauge cluster. The Si coupe builds off the EX and adds a few performance bits, including the more powerful engine. The Touring goes back to 18-inch wheels and also gets LED headlights, automatic wipers, leather upholstery and a navigation system. Stepping up to the EX secures the turbocharged 1.5-liter engine, along with a sunroof, 17-inch wheels, Honda's LaneWatch blind-spot camera, dual-zone automatic climate control, heated front seats, and a 10-speaker audio system. The Sport adds upgrades such as 18-inch wheels, sportier bodywork, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, keyless ignition and entry, a 7-inch touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration, and an eight-speaker audio system. It includes adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and keeping assist, road departure mitigation, automatic high beams, and forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking. Though it may be the base trim, the standard Civic LX coupe comes with a lot of equipment for the money, including 16-inch alloy wheels, automatic climate control, a 5-inch central display screen and a four-speaker sound system.Īlso standard is the Honda Sensing safety package. The six-speed is the only transmission offered with the Si. Most models come with a continuously variable automatic transmission, though the Sport is available with a six-speed manual. The Si uses a more powerful version of this motor that produces 205 hp and 192 lb-ft. The LX and the Sport are powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine (158 horsepower, 138 lb-ft of torque), while the EX and the Touring step up to a turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder (174 hp, 162 lb-ft). While it's still worth checking out rivals such as the Hyundai Veloster or Toyota BRZ, the Honda Civic continues to set the benchmark. The Civic is also one of the few small cars that's available as a coupe, which helps give it a sleeker and sportier look. At a time when automakers can't get rid of the old-school stick shift fast enough, this move is a refreshing commitment from Honda to keep the connection between car and driver strong.Īll of this adds to the 2020 Honda Civic's other strengths that include quick acceleration, crisp handling and cargo-carrying versatility. Honda is also expanding the availability of Civic's optional six-speed manual transmission to the hatchback's top Sport Touring trim. Inside, there are a few new features in different trims (a power-adjustable driver's seat in EX trims, for example) plus additional sound insulation, which should help quell some of the road noise complaints we've had with this current model. This year, the Civic hatch gets front and rear styling updates that include revised foglight housings and blacked-out front trim accents. While most Civics stay par for the course in 2020, the hatchbacks get a host of updates - several of which debuted on other body styles last year.
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