We've seen these two cars duke it out before, the last time being with drift king Tsuchiya behind the wheel. Even though it's the Golf GTI's 40th birthday this year, the Civic Type R just won't allow it to celebrate. "You're fat and old," says the UK-built Honda.
Things are going to get even nastier next year, when the new Type R comes out. After years of being laughed at, the mighty Civic is bullying every other front-wheel drive car currently on the market, and the confidence is beginning to show.
The fact that it wins the drag race is a victory on so many levels. Frist of all, this is Honda's first 2-liter turbo engine and also the first hot hatchback it has built in about five years.
VW, meanwhile, has never stopped making 2-liter turbo engines in the past decade. The Clubsport was supposed to be the best of the best, yet even with the added benefit of the DSG gearbox and launch control, it couldn't cut the mustard.
For the automakers themselves, this is a hollow victory, as demand for regular Civics is really low, while the Golf is Europe's most popular hatchback. But we don't care about what regular people want because we have boy-racer blood.
There are several reasons why the Type R should win. It's got 20 more hp, even when the overboost function of the GTI is taken into consideration. It's also very light at 1,307 kilograms because it has no diff, no complex gearbox or fully independent rear suspension. Of course, the 50 more Nm of torque also contributed to the victory, but the higher top speed of 270 km/h doesn't get a chance to play its part.
The price to pay is... the price. While the 2007 Civic Type R retailed for £17,627, the newer model is close to £30,000.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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