Hey! You there! Auto enthusiast! Are you excited for the impending invasion of the first Type R’d Honda to ever get shipped stateside? Do you dream of wings and red badges and 20-inch wheels and triple exhaust pipes? Do you spend your days fantasizing about 300 turbocharged ponies rampaging at the dip of your right foot? Well, you’re in luck, because all that goodness will soon become a reality with the arrival of the new Civic Type R. Word has it the first units will arrive sometime this spring, so to tide you over, Honda is offering up this 1-minute teaser video.

The vid is set in an industrial park and showcases the FWD maniac amid a host of hype-building effects – reverse smoke billows, red lasers... that sort of thing. It’s a fun little clip that does a good job in highlighting the CTR’s extreme exterior styling, as well as some of the goodies equipped in the cabin. But make sure to stick around for the end, where we get about eight seconds of burbling, popping exhaust noise as the CTR speeds away at full throttle, cracking through the manual six-speed shifter in the process.

Unfortunately, the whole thing isn’t much more than a shameless teaser to stoke the flames of desire amongst fans, and no new info can be gleaned from watching it. But hey – if you’re CTR lover, ain’t nothing wrong with that.

Continue reading for the full story.

Why It Matters

For JDM fans that grew up lusting after the top Honda performance machines, the arrival of the Civic Type R is indeed quite a momentous occasion. However, the timing is interesting, to say the least. While 300 horsepower is certainly nothing to sneeze at, the CTR will have to face down some pretty intimidating competition when it finally hits dealers.

One of the biggest challenges to Honda’s claim to hot hatch domination will come from Ford, and specifically the Focus RS. With more power, more torque, and a high-tech AWD system to put it all to the pavement, the Blue Oval hoon machine is looking to crash Honda’s party.

So, how do these two sport compact titans match up? Check out our take in the following comparison.

You can also read the full Honda Civic Type R review here.