2014 Paris - Honda Civic Type-R Concept II is a sign of good things from Japan

Honda might have discontinued the Civic for good in India but the model continues to play an important role in shaping up the Japanese brand's fortunes globally. Europe had always had that one bit of additional luck on their side for they always had a hot hatch variant of the Civic on offer while the rest of the world had to do with the regular sedan and coupe body-styles. The 2014 Paris Motor Show that concluded recently had an interesting Civic Type-R Concept II on display that previwed the future of the hot hatchback destined for Europe. What about this wild blue hatch makes us say so, you might wonder!

For starters, this is not just the most-extreme Civic ever. This is the most-extreme and hence, possibly, the fastest 'Type-R' Honda has ever dished out. And that, dear folks, include all previous Type-R iterations of the Civic, the Integra, the Accord and even the NSX. Now, that's something, isn't it?

Under the hood of this hatch, a turbocharged 2.0-lier i-VTEC engine from Honda's 'Earth Dreams' series produces more than 280 PS, giving the car some real firepower to go with its looks. With the turbocharger boosting low-end power delivery, the i-VTEC works its usual magic at higher rpms, making this a Type-R powerplant like no other. The new Civic Type-R will also mark the debut of Honda's new '+R' button located to the side of the steering wheel. It basically alters the steering, suspension and engine settings towards a more sporty set-up at the press of a button. Further, Honda claims that the innovative 'steer axis' system and adaptive dampers enhances the car's traction and handling characteristics, making the Civic Type-R more track-friendly.

Designers at Honda have made no qualms in declaring their intentions with this car. Shod with a bright blue paintjob with contrasting red decals, the Civic Type-R is, to put it in one word, 'hot'. The sharp headlights with those characteristic kinks, the full body kit, the tipped-forward stance and the racy decals do a perfect job of hinting what's in store. But, it's at the rear where things get a whole lot wilder. The huge spoiler and the split taillights that extend into it look unique while the diffuser, fender vents and quad exhausts screams sportiness. If Honda decides to retain these styling elements in the production version when the new Civic Type-R goes on sale in 2015, have no doubts that it will turn heads wherever it goes.

With all necessary ingredients brewing up nicely, the new Civic Type-R might mark the dawn of a new performance era for Honda, the brand that has, of late, been battling allegations of swaying away from being sporty to more mundane and, dare we say it, boring. Come on Honda, launch this as it is and kill those allegations once and for all.