These days it isn’t enough to make a hot hatch quick, it has to be quick and comfortable. And economical. And efficient. And practical. It does, in fact, have to be a car that you can buy with your head as well as your heart.

Honda clearly understands this, because the fourth generation Civic Type R can be your family run-about when you need it to be and a hardcore performance car whenever you want it to be.

It currently holds the record for the fastest lap of the epic 20.8km Nordschleife circuit at Nurburgring by a front-wheel drive hatchback so, clearly, it’s a very quick car. And not just in a straight line.

However, it also boasts the excellent practicality, and no small measure of the comfort, of the of the 10th generation Civic hatchback upon which it is based.

Like the previous model the new Type R is no shrinking violet and the video-game styling will undoubtedly not suit everyone’s tastes but don’t let that aggressive profile fool you because this is a car that’s just as competent going slowly as it is brilliant at going fast.

The fourth-generation Type R is new from the ground up but there’s no confusing its ancestry. Honda have stuck with the wild styling that turned so many heads when the previous generation hit the streets.

That means gaping air intakes, aggressive bumpers and side skirts, huge 20in wheels wearing impossibly low profile tyres and, of course, that massive rear wing. Honda claims that everything on the car serves a purpose and is not just to impress, or distress, the neighbours.

It’s all about downforce, pushing the car into the tarmac to improve stability and grip. The bumpers, rear wing and vortex-generating scalloped roof all work together to maximise downforce.

The triple exhaust has been designed to minimise engine noise at motorway speeds and improve the Type R’s long-distance cruising credentials.

Climb inside and, if you’ve driven the mkIII, you’ll immediately notice the great strides in quality that Honda have made. Pretty much everywhere within reach looks and feels much improved both to the eyes and to the touch.

There are, still, some cheaper feeling plastics on the centre console which is a little disappointing but, overall, the cabin has a much greater premium ambience.

Standard equipment includes LED headlamps, air con, reversing camera, adaptive cruise control and alloy wheels. GT spec adds dual zone climate control, an improved audio system, LED front foglights and a wireless charging pad for your mobile.

The infotainment system is centred around a seven-inch touchscreen in the middle of the centre console. Despite the great strides Honda have made on improving perceived quality in the cabin the firm’s Honda Connect still requires a bit more spit and polish.

The graphics aren’t especially sharp on a screen that could do with a few more pixels packed in and it can take a hefty prod to produce a response. There is a column of capacitive shortcut buttons down the side but without looking it’s hard to be sure that you’ve selected the right one, something that makes it tricky to use while you’re on the move.

The front seats are snug – and that’s not just because of my generous stature – and supportive. The deeply sculpted bucket seats wrap themselves around you and sit you low in the car, enhancing the already very pronounced sporting credentials.

The new Civic is much wider and longer than the previous model. In fact, it’s one of the largest hatchbacks on the market so it’s no surprise to discover that head and legroom is generous in the front and back. You can easily fit two six foot-plus humans in tandem without compromising comfort.

What you don’t get in the rear is a middle seat, so the Type R is a strict four-passenger runabout. It seems a strange decision as, given the exceptional width of the car, there’s certainly room for a third passenger across the rear bench.

Also lacking are the Magic Seats. They could be folded, tumbled or even removed entirely to create a cavernous cargo area but changes to the car’s packaging meant that there was no longer any space to accommodate them.

There’s one engine – the 2.0-litre turbo from the mkIII fitted with a new exhaust system that increases power output by 10bhp to 316 – and two trim levels. It’ll fire the Type R to 62mph in 5.7 seconds on its way to a top speed of 169mh.

There’s some turbo lag, though it’s less noticeable than in the old car, with maximum torque available from 2,500rpm.

A Comfort setting has been added to the dampers and, while it does make living with the Type R on a day-to-day basis a little more forgiving, you shouldn’t be fooled into thinking that it’s gone soft. The ride is certainly a bit more compliant, marginally more supple, but the set-up remains firm and you’ll still feel every nook and cranny that passes beneath the wheels.

At the rear there’s a new, more sophisticated, multi-link suspension set-up that replaces the torsion beam on the previous model. It lends the new model a great deal more composure and control as across rapidly changing topography.

If you need to dial things up a little – and even Comfort mode offers enough grip and poise to bring a grin to even the grumpiest of faces – there’s Sport and +R modes to flick through. They add weight to steering, sharpen up throttle response and tighten up body control – not that it could ever be described as loose – to turn the Type R into a proper racer for the road.

A limited slip differential helps keep things tidy at the sharp end, generating a prodigious amount of grip as it fires you from corner to corner. The brakes are consistent with, as you would hope, strong stopping power while the short-throw six-speed gearbox is slick and weighty, letting you flick through the gears with speed and precision.

There’s not a huge amount of aural drama. That new exhaust system doesn’t quite produce the soundtrack the looks, perhaps, promise.

The Civic Type R is more civilised that the previous generation; if you need it be. The good news is that, despite the inclusion of a comfort mode, the Type R’s ability to surprise and delight with its agile chassis, outrageous grip and thunderous power remains undiminished.

Indeed, it’s safe to say that the differences between the last generation and this one are profound. It is more practical with a much-improved interior in terms of both quality and usability, and it is more agile, more exploitable more of the time quicker, grippier, funner…

If that’s not enough, if you’re looking for a hot hatch, the Type R is also reasonably kind to your bank balance.

Honda Civic Type R GT 2.0 VTEC Turbo Manual

Price: £33,525

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder VTEC turbocharged

Transmission: 6-speed manual

Max power: 320PS @ 6,500rpm

Max torque: 400Nm @ 2,500 – 6,500rpm

Max speed: 169mph

Acceleration (0-62mph): 5.8 seconds

Urban: 28.8mpg

Extra urban: 43.5mpg

Combined: 36.7mpg

Emissions (CO2): 176g/km

For more information visit www.honda.co.uk