A CAR expert has urged petrolheads to seek out a surprisingly affordable hot hatchback that once cost a pretty penny.
Motoring guru Shahzad Sheikh, who runs the YouTube channel the , specialises in bargain car recommendations - and recently he waxed lyrical about the much-loved Honda Civic Type R hot hatchback.
Talking up the Civic Type R, which has been produced since 1997 and has ran for six generations, he said: “I drove them here, there, on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates on some mountain roads - I had a whale of a time in them.
"The thing about Type Rs, as anyone who has a Honda and VTEC engines will know, is you have to rev the nuts off them.
“If you're below 6,000 to 7,000rpm, it'll just drive like a normal Civic, but once you get through that rev range, that's when you'll be impressed."
While the current generation Civic Type R - which was released in 2022 - is priced at over £48,000 from new, earlier models can be found for snip.
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That includes the FN2 generation, which was built from 2007 to 2011 and boasts a 2.0-litre VTEC engine - capable of a top speed of 146 mph.
Despite costing around £25,000 when they were new, Shahzad said these can now be found for as little as £3,000 from specialist car dealerships.
Shahzad isn't the only fan of the little motor, as another YouTube motorhead - Jonny Brighton of Cars With JB - has also revealed himself as fan.
Jonny said: “In terms of value for money, size of aftermarket and capability from standard, there aren't many cars that are as solid as the Honda Civic Type R.”
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He even believes the Japanese set of wheels has “future classic potential," which could mean they raise in value in years to come.
Meanwhile, a rival to the Civic Type R, the Suzuki Swift Sport, is set to be discontinued - along with three other Suzuki models - towards the end of 2024.
And a major car brand that makes UK best-seller could stop selling ALL of their petrol motors in just months.