Is the 2023 Honda Civic Type R the ultimate hot hatch? Volkswagen Golf R, Hyundai i30 N and Mercedes-AMG A45 rival detailed but how much will it cost?

Feast your eyes on the car that will add some much needed spice into Honda’s line-up.

The Japanese carmaker has finally ripped the covers from its new-generation Civic Type R hot hatch after a lengthy teaser campaign.

And in great news for Australian hot hatch fans, the new Type R will land in local dealerships in early 2023.

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Honda says the Civic Type R was developed to achieve “pure sports performance that attains the ultimate in speed and the joy of driving”. In other words, it’s going to be fun.

Based on the current 11th-generation Civic hatchback that went on sale in Australia last year, the new Type R features a sporty bodykit, but it’s been toned down compared with the wild design of the previous-generation version.

It features wide guards that are integrated into the body, additional air intakes in the front bumper, a rear diffuser housing a triple exhaust, and a massive rear wing.

Type R badges and a red version of the Honda badge adorn the tailgate.

That red theme continues inside with the floor mats and synthetic suede seats, the latter adopting significant bolstering to keep the driver and passenger in place “even while driving on a racing circuit at the vehicle’s full potential”.

Honda is holding back some significant details, like the wheel size and type, although the previous model had 20-inch alloys. Some reports have suggested they are 19-inch hoops on the new model.

Honda has included a +R mode for the display which shows the engine rpm, rev indicator and gear position indicator, while the lower section is a multi-information display showing other vehicle information.

Under the bonnet is a revised version of the 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine from the previous Type R, however, Honda has not revealed the engine outputs.

The outgoing Type R produced 228kW and 400Nm, and the new one is expected to exceed that.

It will continue to be front-wheel drive and exclusively use a six-speed manual gearbox.

Honda has tweaked the gearbox and other mechanicals to improve throttle response and handling.

The carmaker said the development team focused on high-speed stability, speed and ensuring the driver becomes addicted to driving the Type R.

One of the other unknowns is price. When the previous Type R was released in 2017 it was priced at $50,990 before on-road costs, which at the time was seen as expensive for the segment.

However, these days, many of its mainstream-branded rivals have upped the prices of their own offerings.

The Volkswagen Golf GTI and R are now priced from $54,990 and $68,990 respectively, while the Ford Focus ST starts from $47,490.

Hyundai’s i30 N starts at $45,000, but something like the Renault Megane RS and newly launched Cupra Leon are priced in the low-$60,000s.

Also, Honda has increased the price across its model range since shifting to an agency sales model last year, and the brand is favouring highly specified variants.

It’s almost guaranteed that the 2023 Type R will be more expensive than its predecessor, the question is, by how much?

Given the sole Civic variant available now - the VTi-LX - costs $47,200 drive-away, and the anticipated hybrid variant may be even pricier, then the new Type R could easily be more than $60,000.

That would put it up somewhere between its mainstream rivals and premium hot hatch contenders like the Mercedes-AMG A45 ($99,895) and Audi RS3 ($91,400).

Stay tuned for more Honda Civic Type R news soon.