Turbo EP3 Civic Type R is the 420 HP Grandaddy to the FK8 Civic Type R
Exhibit A for the case in favor of turbocharging K20-powered Hondas.
Why the sixth generation Civic? The EP3 could be called polarizing. Many, like us, really like the car and the opportunity it presents. Others hate the quirks. At least, in the U.S., we never got the Type R version, instead, we got the neutered K20A3-powered Civic Si. To us, that’s a big quirk.
Well, Luke Hancox is one of the former group and has been lucky enough to live abroad and actually have owned two Civic Type R’s. Ricky, from YouTube channel LivingLifeFast, interviewed Luke and they took the EP3 for a drive. Luke is pretty honest about the car, and explained that he’s experienced a number of problems. “To be honest, it’s kind of a money pit,” he said. The first EP3 Type R he had was totaled on Silverstone when he crashed into a wall at about 50 mph in the rain. Instead of giving up he found the current car he has as a rolling shell and put all of the good saveable bits on it from the first car.
Luke’s EP3 is making 420 hp on stock internals and has been turbocharged since 2012. He also added that it originally wore a Jackson Racing supercharger thanks to a previous owner. So, it’s been through some things. Despite all that, and racing it, the K20 has held up. If that’s not a testament to build quality, we don’t know what is! He does qualify that however, saying, “They are good engines to be fair. They can take a lot of abuse, as long as you look after them. If you’re just going to rag it around and you’re not checking the oil, the water, or anything like that… it’s gonna do itself over.”
ALSO SEE: FK8 Honda Civic Type R Track Tested by Honda-tech
During the drive, Luke explains how he overcame one of the EP3’s main complaints: steering feel. The shop he had do the majority of the work on his car, Area Motorsports, put in a different electric steering rack and changed out a few components to give it more feedback. That and the addition of a Wavetrac LSD also seem to have smoothed out what would have been some gnarly torque steer as well.
The video is well worth a watch, and the channel seems promising. And, if you’re like us, here’s the link to the EP3 section of Honda-tech. Maybe it’s time to pick up an EP3 for cheap, swap in a K20A and go have some hot hatch fun.
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