Honda Civic Enters FIA World Touring Car Championship

Honda today announced that the Honda Civic will race in the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC).

“We have made a decision” said Honda CEO, Takanobu Ito “to enter into the WTCC with the European Civic. We will develop a totally new engine for this project and we are all excited about starting this new challenge.”

For this project, Honda has formed a joint partnership with Mugen and J.A.S. Motorsport. Honda R&D is developing a bespoke racing engine, while Mugen will manufacture and maintain it. J.A.S. Motorsport will develop the race car, using the new Honda Civic 5 door produced in Honda’s manufacturing plant located in Swindon (UK).

The racing engine is a 1.6 litre 4 cylinder direct injection turbo-charged petrol engine, developed in accordance with FIA’s Super 2000 regulations.

Honda’s ambition is to join the WTCC as early as this season, with a string of “inaugural rounds”. Discussions are currently being held with the FIA, but these rounds would include Japan (held on 21 October 2012 at Honda’s Suzuka circuit), followed by China and Macau. Honda will then enter a two car team, managed by J.A.S. Motorsport, into every race in the 2013 championship season.

This activity is being run independently to the Honda Racing British Touring Car Championship winning team. Three-times BTCC Champion, Matt Neal and Gordon ‘Flash’ Shedden will be behind the wheel of the race-prepared Team Dynamics version of the new Civic and lining up on the grid at Brands Hatch on 1 April for the first race of the 2012 season.

Racing has always been a fundamental element of Honda’s DNA. In the late 1950s Honda first entered the Isle of man T.T and then Formula 1 in the 1960s. The FIA WTCC is the next chapter in Honda’s on-going commitment to world motor sport and provides a perfect platform to demonstrate its racing spirit to Honda’s numerous fans around the world.

Related Articles

Chopping Block: Acura RDX

Now that we’re well into the new year, it’s time to welcome the first discontinued model announcement of 2026. This one caught us a bit by surprise,...

First BMW M EV confirmed for 2027

You read that headline right – BMW M will begin its EV transition next year. The Munich-based carmaker will launch its first next gen or Neue Klasse...

TE37 30th Anniversary Release

RAYS is celebrating a major milestone for one of the most iconic wheels in the performance world: the VOLK RACING TE37 is officially turning 30. Since...

Toyota unveils GR Yaris Morizo RR Special Edition at TAS

Okay, we’ll get right to it. Yes, the Toyota Yaris (including the GR Yaris) isn’t sold in North America and, as far as we know, there are no plans to...

Nissan reveals Aura Nismo Concept at TAS

The Tokyo Auto Salon (TAS) is a vast collection of hot performance cars and concepts that rarely disappoints, year after year. Come January, it’s a...

KW Automotive Celebrates 30 Years of Coilover Innovation

KW Automotive marked a huge milestone at the Essen Motor Show 2025, celebrating 30 years of KW coilover suspensions—a product that helped shape the...