---
title: "Next-Gen Honda Civic Type R Gets 395 Horsepower From Electric Rear Axle: Report"
description: "It sounds like the technological trickle down from the Acura NSX has begun."
date: "2020-07-14"
modified: "2020-07-14"
authors:
  - name: "James Gilboy"
    job_title: "Contributing Writer"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/james-gilboy"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/34810/next-gen-honda-civic-type-r-gets-395-hp-from-electric-rear-axle-report"
categories:
  - "Honda News"
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
tags:
  - "Civic"
  - "compact"
  - "Hatchback"
  - "honda"
  - "sports car"
---

# Next-Gen Honda Civic Type R Gets 395 Horsepower From Electric Rear Axle: Report

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2020/07/01-2021-Honda-Civic-Type-R-Limited-Edition-at-Suzuka-Circuit-source.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Given the current-generation Honda Civic's relatively short product cycle and the release of the ultimate performance model, the Type R Limited Edition, the world is due a new Civic sometime soon. This also means that [today's lap record-setting Type R](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/34702/a-2021-honda-civic-type-r-just-lapped-suzuka-quicker-than-a-ferrari-f40>) won't be around for very long, and if rumors are to be believed, it'll be succeeded by a Type R offering of higher performance thanks to goodies borrowed from the [Acura NSX supercar](<https://www.thedrive.com/new-cars/28906/2019-acura-nsx-road-trip-review-the-grand-tourer-you-never-considered>).

Japan's *[Best Car](<https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&pto=aue&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=auto&sp=nmt4&tl=en&u=https://bestcarweb.jp/news/scoop/171747&usg=ALkJrhgbMo32DBf5qsEu3PhWxcJGbiEihg>)* reports that a new generation of Civic Type R due in 2021 will allegedly repurpose the current model's turbocharged two-liter engine, which produces 306 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, but will allegedly produce a total of 395 horsepower. The outlet claims the Type R will adopt a torque-vectoring all-wheel-drive layout with an electric motor on each rear wheel. Think of it as the [Acura NSX](<https://www.thedrive.com/new-cars/26901/2019-acura-nsx-review-drop-the-nostalgia-and-love-it-for-what-it-is>)'s SH-AWD system, but on the rear axle rather than the front.

The debut of this hybridized Type R is said to be planned for 2022, one year after the normal Civic, by which time the hot hatchback segment will welcome both [the revitalized Volkswagen Golf GTI](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/32380/the-2021-volkswagen-golf-gti-still-rocking-a-six-speed-and-plaid-seats>) and a pair of less-conventional newcomers. Toyota will reportedly join the fray with a slightly less powerful, [AWD- and manual-equipped Corolla](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/33678/us-bound-toyota-corolla-hot-hatch-will-offer-six-speed-manual-awd-report>) called the Sport GRMN, while Hyundai is known to be planning [some sort of mid-engined sports car](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/32829/heres-hyundais-mid-engined-sports-car-prototype-out-testing-with-hybrid-power>).

Speculation so far points to this Hyundai having a power output closer to that of the Civic Type R's, at close to 400 horses, though statements from Hyundai suggest this car could yet be something more ambitious—potentially even [a Hail Mary aimed at the Porsche Cayman](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/31686/hyundai-n-division-wont-rule-out-competing-with-porsche>). All that's clear is that the new Type R will have its work cut out for it, and hybrid or not, it will need to uphold its status as the head honcho of hot hatches.

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## Author
James is a former staff writer for The Drive. He has changed the conversation around electrification, debunked misinformation online, and become a prominent hunter of what he calls "automotive cryptids."

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://instagram.com/jamesgilboy>)