How Much Faster Is The 2017 Civic Type R Than A 15-Year-Old Altezza?

Earlier in March, Alex of Car Throttle purchased a 15-year-old Lexus IS 200 to see whether or not the old sedan could be reasonably modified and tuned to compete against the best Toyota has to offer today, the 2017 Toyota 86.

In the first Project Lexus IS 200 episode, Alex set a benchmark around the Curborough sprint course: the GT86 set the fastest time of 39.92 seconds while the old Altezza, heavier and down about 50 horsepower, only managed the fastest time of 42.46 seconds.

An extra 2.54 seconds is difficult to find, but Alex and some helpful friends proceeded to install coilovers, exhaust, wheels, tires, and brakes to improve the car's handling. The interior is also completely gutted and replaced with a pair of bucket seats and harness for that extra weight advantage.

And how did the IS 200 do after the modifications? Alex managed to nail 39.61 seconds, more than 0.3 seconds quicker than the benchmark original set by the Toyota 86.

But could the IS 200 go even quicker still? A new clutch and lightweight flywheel gets installed in Car Throttle's latest Project Lexus IS 200 episode. And since Alex already knows his Altezza can go around Curborough quicker than a new 2017 Toyota 86, he decided to go against an even stronger final boss: the latest 306 horsepower turbocharged Honda Civic Type R.

The new clutch and flywheel certainly helped make the Altezza's motor feel livelier and more responsive, setting a new quickest lap of 38.33 seconds, which shaved away more than another second from his previous best. But how did it stack up against the new Type R? Unsurprisingly, Honda's latest pocket rocket set the fastest lap of 37.83, half a second ahead of the Lexus.

All in all, the Lexus still has a lot to be proud of. Alex purchased the old IS 200 for just £900 and added a slew of performance upgrades for another £3799.39. That's just £4699.39 in total and still a fraction of what the 2017 Toyota 86 and brand-new Honda Civic Type R would command.

Best of all, Car Throttle's IS 200 can be yours. You can bid for this car on an eBay auction, which is scheduled to end on June 3. 100 percent of the proceeds from this auction will go to charity for Prostate Cancer UK.

What do you think of Alex's project Lexus IS 200? Interested in buying one yourself? Check out the auctions listing here and be sure to watch Car Throttle's Project IS 200 series below: