Civic Type R vs Golf GTI Clubsport S Standing Mile Drag Race Has Stunning Finale

That time has now been left behind and we're here to give you a quick x-ray of the front-wheel-drive manic hatchback world. This should be a fitting label for the drag race in the piece of footage at the bottom of the page, which brings together a Honda Civic Type R and a Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport S.

We're talking about the two quickest FWD hatches out there, machines that are seriously capable no matter what kind of challenge you throw at them.

We don't want to ruin the fun of the Auto Express-provided video, which brings everything you need, form the jaw-dropping figures to the detailed action, we won't throw spoilers at you.

Instead, as we mention the all-round performance assets of these compact beasts, we'd like to focus on their Nurburgring performance. As pointed out in the clip, both the Type R and the GTI can go round the Nurburgring in well below eight minutes. To be more specific, the German machine is ready to complete the task in 7:49.21, while the Honda needs 7:50.63 for the job.

So where does that place them in comparison with older machines, but ones that play in totally different leagues of the go-fast realm? Well, for instance, the recently-retired Ferrari California (no T here), can play the Green Hell game in 7:56. And at 7:55, we'll find the "standard" F10 BMW M5, a 560 hp machine you can still find in a showroom today.

Moving into a more lap time-orientated area (by quite a margin), we'll mention the 997 generation Porsche 911 GT3 RS' 7:48 time. Yes, the Zuffenhausen machine was released one decade before this pair of hot hatches, so, for instance, tire technology advances also plays a role here, but the gap between their Ring times is still amazing.

But enough about the Ring adventures - it's time to hit that "play" button and see how the two mad hatches cover the standing one-mile sprint.