As we all know, Honda has stopped offering the Civic Type R in the Philippine market. The same goes with the rest of the world, except for Japan and North America.

Now for those two markets where the FL5 lives on, Honda has made a few tweaks for the 2027 model year. The update focuses on improving the aerodynamics, cooling, interior materials, and handling of Honda’s revered hot hatchback. 

For starters, the updated FL5 features a more aggressive front fascia design with larger grille openings, and a more pronounced front chin splitter to improve engine cooling and boost downforce.  Honda also introduces a new colorway for the Civic Type R - Meteorite Gray Metallic, adding to the list of colors (Boost Blue Pearl, Sonic Gray Pearl, and Championship White) that buyers can choose from.

Inside, the sports seats of the Civic Type R now has heating function, with the high-friction suede-like seat upholstery getting a new perforation design with distinctive black striping. Honda says the material reduces body slippage in high-G driving situations, while its breathability in high-contact areas helps reduce driver fatigue.

Furthermore, a new diamond-pattern trim panel is found on the dashboard along with black air vent knobs, while Ultrasuede has been laid down to the upper dashboard to reduce glare on the windshield. Much like the updates done to the local Civic and CR-V, the infotainment screen of the FL5 now gets Google built-in, along with two new USB-C ports above the wireless charger. The Type R’s signature aluminum shift knob also gets a darker gray finish together with the console trim and door handles, while an auto dimming rear view mirror has been fitted to improve nighttime driving.

Honda kept the 2.0-liter K20C engine unchanged along with its power output of 315 PS and 420 Nm, but the engine cover’s colors have been reversed and features more red – much like the early Type Rs, especially the EK9 with the B16B engine. 

In terms of driving precision and handling, Honda has tweaked the suspension damping of the Civic Type R when in +R mode, reducing the bump stiffness and impact harshness for better stability and enhanced handling. Honda says the Rev Match system on the 6-speed manual transmission also responds quicker for smoother downshifting. As for brake feel, Honda added a yoke spring to provide a more direct feel.

A few more tweaks were made to the Honda Sensing suite, which improves the performance of the Collision Mitigation Braking System, the Adaptive Cruise Control, and Lane Keep Assist, with the addition of Post Collision Braking to mitigate damage in the event of multiple vehicle collisions.

With the Civic Type R discontinued in our market, we can only appreciate these updates from afar. But of course, should some of these updates, especially the interior trim pieces, be available for individual sale in the near future, we wouldn’t be surprised if some local FL5s sport those eventually.