This is the ‘NEW’ Honda Civic Type R – Just like the ‘OLD’ Civic Type R…but Blue

The Honda Civic Type R gets a bit of a titivate for 2020 – although you’ll struggle to see it – including fake sound and a new Boost Blue paint job.

It’s not just Toyota rolling out Hot Hatches this week with the GR Yaris – Honda is doing the same at the Tokyo Motor Show, only it’s not really something ‘new’.

Honda has rolled out the 2020 take on the Civic Type R, but unless you have a detailed spec list for the 2019 Civic Type R and a magnifying glass  – or a degree in Type R Anorakness – you’re not going to be able to tell the difference between the two.

If you have the 2019 spec sheet for the Type R you will probably realise that the bright blue paint job Honda has used for the launch of the 2020 Type R – it’s called ‘Boost Blue’ – is a new one, but you’ll probably struggle to know the grille is just a bit bigger. But it is. Oh, and there’s a smidge of Alcantara for the steering wheel.

Other hard to find tweaks include better brakes – although they are hardly necessary – and suspension tweaked to make it more comfortable when you want it to be more comfortable. Oh, and Honda are promising fake sounds for the cabin. Which we would much rather they didn’t.

Apart from that all is the same, including the 316bhp and 295lb/ft of torque the 2.0 litre turbo sends to the front wheels.

It’s a very minimal tweak. But then you could take it as confidence that the Type R is so good it shouldn’t really be messed with.