2018 Honda Civic Type R Filmed in Southern California

This SoCal sighting is almost like seeing your buddy in a Golf GTI and him getting away from the lights in a hurry. There's no camouflage anywhere on this Championship White body.

Something we don't particularly like is the sound, which is nowhere near as violent as at the Nurburgring. But we know that instead of the "R" button, the new Type R has a sort of drive mode selector toggle.

As you all know, the Civic Type R has never really been available in America. But it takes a European factory to bring a supposedly Japanese tool across the pond. That's right; it's made in England with the rest of the Civic X hatchbacks.

Honda has announced that it will be available somewhere around the middle of 2017. That's about all we know for sure, though we can take a not-so-wild guess that a 2-liter turbo will be under its hood. The output should be around 300 horsepower.

The body kit is pretty self-explanatory, as it includes the usually flared wheel arches, spoilers, and wings. This car will likely go after the front-wheel drive production car record, not only at the Nurburgring, but also at famous American tracks.

The Golf GTI Clubsport S, which is the only other hardcore FWD car, can't even touch the current generation.

We don't like all this guesswork regarding any car, especially one we'd buy. So we're going to back the spy video up with a walkaround from TFL Car. In particular, it shows details that are hidden under the rear skirt and have interested us for ages.

The exhaust system comes in a single large pipe from the engine to three different mufflers. The one in the middle doesn't seem to have a particle filter and its red cap suggests it's designed for "special occasions." But we don't see the butterfly valve anywhere.

As for the suspension, it's a multi-link one, which saves space and allows for a larger trunk. The GTI has two independent arms, which is part of the reason why it's down on cargo space.