The standard production-spec Honda Civic five-door hatchback hasn't even been revealed yet (we've seen the concept), though it's expected to have a live debut in a few weeks at the Paris Motor Show. But our spy photographers have just snapped something even better, the next-generation Civic Type R hot hatch prototype road testing in Spain. Specific details, obviously, are still to come but what we can tell from this latest batch of images is that the hot hatch will sport an aggressive body kit and a big rear wing.

In fact, sources have further hinted to us that Honda may even offer a Track Package in addition to the "base" Type R. What could the former have the latter won't? It's possible that rear spoiler will be an exclusive item for the more hardcore variant. As far as what'll be under the hood, expect a turbocharged 2.0-liter four banger with a still undisclosed power output. A pretty good guess is around 340-350 horsepower. Front-wheel-drive and a six-speed manual transmission are guaranteed. The hot hatch segment was, once upon a time, a niche model mainly dominated by the Volkswagen GTI. Not anymore.

Today we live in a world with the GTI and R, the Ford Focus ST and RS, Fiesta ST, and the Civic Type R. Point being, hot hatches are more mainstream than ever and our expectations are high. Something tells us Honda is going to deliver big time with the new Civic Type R. It has a Nurburgring lap record to reclaim, after all.