).She’s beautifulhello! this as of me writing this, i have owned this car for two days. a majority of the miles come from me driving home 3 hours from the dealership. i have never done anything related to reviewing cars, so i apologize if this review is ass lol. i’ll keep it short, but to the point. feel free to ask questions, i can try to answer. i also have never owned a honda in my life, only toyotas and lexus’.
driving:
first of all, this car is pretty damn big in person. it’s like an inch longer than the fk8 and it’s pretty wide, giving the car such an aggressive stance. the car is also heavier than the fk8. despite all of this, the girth and “weight” goes away when you drive. the car feels incredibly nimble and light. there are different steering modes; comfort, sport, and r+. i like to keep it at r+ as it gives weight to the steering and a lot more precise feedback. all modes feel great, comfort just takes away the weight and aggressiveness. never tried sport as of this moment. i’ve only driven an fk8 once and honestly don’t remember much, so i cannot compare well, but the car is absolutely nuts. i have felt 0 oversteering while pushing the car aggressively (not too much since i still want to break it in), and i have never felt so confident taking bends at 80 mph. i could probably go faster if i had the balls to. i also have 0 complaints about the shifter and clutch feel. the shifter is veryyy narrow and precise, i swear i could orgasm by just shifting the car. the clutch is very easy as well. i had no problems getting home and driving everywhere as it’s my first manual car. there are two settings for auto rev-matching; comfort and sport. sport just makes it rev higher and faster. i prefer keeping it in sport. it’s pretty damn quick, no complaints for it. compared to the fk8’s rev-matching? it’s quicker for sure, but i haven’t driven an fk8 in a while so i can’t say it with confidence. i also don’t like the fake engine noise as well hence i put the exhaust setting on comfort (which disables fake engine noise) and everything on r+ besides suspension and throttle response. the gauge cluster is very cool as well on r+, reminds me of the s2k’s cluster. you can see everything from boost pressure, oil pressure, etc.
car is too quiet as well
probably my only true complaint has to be the suspension. it’s really good when you need it, but’s too rough for daily driving. it’s too reactive and bumpy even in comfort mode. not punishing, but could wear out a person for a bit. i live in seattle and i know bad roads. road noise floor is also pretty loud, could be the tires, but probably not the main cause of it.
exterior:
i LOVE how wide this car is. in videos and pictures, it’s not the most noticeable thing. in-person though, it’s very noticeable. i’m in love how the door is wider to accommodate the widebody. it’s not weird and tacky, like the fk8 as it’s “widebody” is just like a fender flare that anyone could do. in the fl5, it’s the actual body panels itself. the only body panel it shares with the normal civic is probably the front doors. i see a lot of complaints about the rear wing, but i like it a lot. very cool to see it in the side and rearview mirrors. build quality is nuts as well.
interior and build quality:
the seats. the seats are the best part of the car. they look amazing and look very race car-like hehe. a bit hard to get in and out, but it’s pretty good to daily. they feel amazing, minimal back wear after long drives. they grip the body hard and the bolster are aggressive while being comfortable. as what you guys have seen in in reviews, the interior is intuitive and is just a great place to be. logR is fun and gimmicky, not gonna explain what it’s gonna do since honda has a video on it. (talked about the cluster in driving).
red carpets are also not a distraction, they attract a lot of men.
the car’s build quality is definitely a step-up. 0 body—panel gaps, good paint quality. my car doesn’t have orange peel. it’s just such a well-built car, comparable to my family’s 2019 rx350 honestly. love how the door has that high-end door weight to it. because it’s a little longer than the fk8, the car is an absolute cavern on the inside, especially with the seats down. i can fit all of my girlfriends and gold bars in it with no problem.
the sound system is quite bumpin. it sounds super clear and there’s great balance between bass, treble, and mid (i’m not certified to review audio systems, i don’t know shit about them). i’m not an audiophile, but i would honestly sometimes sit in this car just to listen to music. it’s an amazing sounding system. it’s also able to drown out the noise-floor and adjust loudness with the car’s speed.
conclusion:
so far from me driving from my university and work, it’s a super dailyable car. feels like i’m driving a bigger fwd go-kart. i know why people call the type r’s the 911 gt3 of hatchbacks. amazing engineering and passion flow through this car, i can feel it. i’m driving the shit out of this car, i don’t care if it’s the only one in washington state as of this moment, i bought this car to drive. people’s opinions on it can also go down the drain, don’t let the insecure fk8 owners that only talk shit let you down when you guys get your fl5s haha. this car, imo and i guess factually, is an improvement in every single way. i have many road trips and drives planned for this car. super excited to see what brands like j’s racing and seeker can do to this car as well. but for now, i’m gonna enjoy it as is. it’s amazing.
(i really like kpop if you can't tell lol)
can’t wait to get my paws on these bad boys (in 4 years) enjoy my friend.
My guess is that the change in final drive is to accommodate the shorter tires being that they are 19s with same profile ratio. Then again, my guess is as good as yours. Hopefully more info to come as folks are getting their hands on the car.
Understood on the final drive ratio being reduced by 6.5% but with new FL5 running 19" wheels compared to 20" wheels on the FK8 there is no question that the Honda engineers took that issue into consideration.
