1999 Honda Accord

Honda pundits live by the acronyms ITR (Integra Type R) and CTR (Civic Type R). Add ATR to the list.

We were in Italy to visit Sparco (check page 269). During our time in the land of Gucci, we also got some seat time in the enigma of the Type R badge, the Accord Type R.

Fact is, three completely different Accords grace the planet. There's one for the Japanese home market, one for the U.S. market and one for the European market. Most striking about the European Accord is how much more attractive it is than the family hauler we receive. It looks like a B15 Sentra done well and is much the same size, which means it's slightly smaller than the U.S. Accord in every dimension.

Remarkably, the Accord Type R, which is H22A powered and debuted as a 1999 model, is not sold in Japan, or even built there. Each car is hand-finished for the European market in Honda's Swindon, U.K. manufacturing facility. Because of this, it's expensive. At around $28,000, the Accord Type R is pricey by European standards, and for this reason they're extremely few and far between.

Thanks to JAS Engineering, which is responsible for Honda Motorsport, we have our hands on a 1999 model with close to 50,000 miles on the clock. Immediately, it's apparent this car gets beat like the L.A. Clippers. The A in "Accord" peels off during a sponge bath, the motor mounts are in dire need of fresh rubber and the brake pedal feels like a bowl of porridge. Despite all this, the Accord Type R simply shines.

We jump straight into this car from a new European-spec Civic Type R (SCC May '02), giving us the opportunity to compare the two directly. Like the DC2 Integra Type R, the Accord Type R keeps a wide channel of communication open with the driver at all times. Exhibiting more body roll than the CTR, it sticks well enough to make all the lateral support from the factory Recaros completely essential. It is, in a sense, more of a true driver's car than the new Civic Type R, placing much of the onus of making the car fast in the pilot's hands.

The road leading from Lucca to the miniscule mountain town of Anticiana is one set of cambered switchbacks after another, interspersed with fast cliffside sweepers. Our sixth time up this fantastic stretch, toothless men tending the olive orchards communicate their displeasure with our sideways fun with gestures not taught in sign language class.

Both trail braking and dropping the throttle cause the ATR to rotate like few FWD cars. Drop throttle just a hair and the car points. Lift hard or left foot brake and the car shakes tail like a stripper. Fun stuff. A third lateral link in the rear suspension allows for some passive rear steer, encouraging such behavior. Plentiful H22A torque and the helical limited-slip differential make correction a cinch.

As far as suspension hardware, it's what you'd expect; shorter, stiffer springs are matched with revalved shocks and larger anti-roll bars front and rear. Sticky 215/45ZR-17 Bridgestones on 7-inch wide wheels offer huge stick and progressive breakaway. Often, stiffening a chassis for better performance also has payoffs in ride and NVH. This is the case with the Accord Type R. The Type R's body shell is 40 percent stiffer than its standard counterpart, accomplished by bracing the rear bulkhead and tying the front bulkhead to the strut towers.