As Jordan Katsianis wrote in Evo Magazine in 2021.. "The FK8 Honda Civic Type R has found plenty of favour in evo since it first wowed us back in 2017, so when time came for a mid-cycle update we were glad to hear the package had been only subtly refreshed. In addition to updating both the standard and GT models, Honda introduced two further variants, widening the Type R’s appeal at either end of the spectrum with the stripped-down Limited Edition at one end, and the more visually conservative Sport Line we’re driving here at the other.
So while the Sports Line was never going to turn into something that looks at home on the roundel in front of the Hôtel de Paris, it is an attempt to lower the visual volume and make it more attractive to a wider audience. Yet the changes have gone beyond the removal of that rear wing and some of its red pinstriping, as Honda’s engineers were also put to work on improving interior refinement and everyday useability, in the process downsizing the wheels, adding more sound deadening into the interior and throwing in all of the more expensive GT model’s toysHow does this relate on the road? Pretty well, in all honesty. The Sport Line is indeed more refined, and the ride quality, which is already pretty impressive in the standard model on 20s, is even better – it’s certainly not soft, but pliant, acutely controlled and well damped. But all of this extra comfort and conservatism is beyond the point when it comes to the Civic Type R because the Sport Line, like all Type Rs, is quite simply the most astonishingly brilliant hot hatchback to drive. In fact, calling it a hot hatchback seems a disservice to it, because like a DC2 Integra Type R, the Civic Type R isn’t so much a hot hatchback as a brilliant sports car that happens to be front-wheel drive."
This example is believed to be one of fewer than 150 left on U.K. roads and has had justone owner from new, who has maintained it with Honda, with it last being serviced in May 2024 by Yeomans Honda, who also fitted a new set of front tyres.