2014 BTCC Honda Civic versus Austin A40 at Goodwood (sort of...)

Here’s something you don’t see very often: a contemporary racing car lapping the Goodwood circuit. And not only is this Andrew Jordan’s 2014 BTCC Honda Civic, but it’s also driven by the man himself. We’re more used to seeing him pedal his immaculately prepared Austin A40, which he shares with father and former BTCC racer Mike, in the St Mary’s Trophy. Drawing comparisons between the Austin and the Honda was inevitable…

We bet the A40 doesn’t have a drinks holder…

‘The Honda feels quick around here, especially in the wet,’ says Andrew. ‘I’m thankful it’s on proper wets and not on the historic tyres we use at Revival!’ Ah, the rain. As you’ll see in this on-board video from the day, there was plenty of torrential rainfall and puddles. In the dry, Andrew reckons the Honda would have 20 seconds a lap on the A40’s times. ‘But the A40 doesn’t feel like its hanging about, it still feels quick even though its just an A-series.’

The older car moves around a lot, too. ‘The A40 talks to you a lot more than the Honda,’ says Andrew. ‘This [Honda] has a lot more grip, but it can suddenly get away from you.’ Operating within the Honda’s huge levels of grips means that the on-board video looks remarkably free from drama. The feeling of the car operating in its high levels of grip is gone. More impressive than its acceleration and cornering, though, was the braking. 

And it was still remarkable, even though the conditions enforced a wet-weather approach. ‘I’d be using twice the braking pressure in the dry,’ Andrew casually says to his bewildered passengers. In the dry, he would trail-brake to the apex and be back on the throttle almost as soon as he’s off the brake. In the wet, all the braking is in a straight line and there’s a pause before getting back on the power.

Even so, Andrew is leaning hard on the car – something he admits wouldn’t perhaps be the case if he was in the Cobra he drove at Revival. ‘If we’d had these conditions in Revival on historic tyres, I think I’d had brought the Cobra back in and parked it!’

He’s also looking towards 73MM. ‘I’m not sure if the A40 will be eligible, but I’d love to drive something like a Capri.’ Competitions Department, take note!

Photography: Nicole Hains