Acura Integra Review
The Acura Integra, also called Honda Integra outside of North America, is a sporty front-wheel drive vehicle. This model is the smallest and least expensive in the Acura lineup and is available as a hatchback or a sedan. It was designed to be a competitor to the Volkswagen GTI, which was the most popular sport hatchback at the time. The Integra first debuted in Japan in 1985 before going on sale in North America a year later until it was replaced by the Acura RSX in 2002.
First Generation
The first generation integra was available as a 3 or 5-door hatchback, powered by a 1.6L DOHC 16-valve four-cylinder engine putting out 113HP. Despite having this much power and a high redline of 7100 rpm, the engine had little torque and needed to be revved high to make full power, leading to some criticism. This model was based on the less sporty civic, but had upgrades such as larger 4 wheel discs, reworked suspension, better tires and the new DOHC engine.
Second generation
Acura’s 2nd generation Integra came out in the 1990 model year, powered by a new 1.8L engine making 130HP (140HP 1992-1993), giving it a nice boost in performance over the previous generation. The 5-door hatchbacks were no longer available and were replaced by a 4-door sedan but 3-door hatchbacks remained. Trim levels for 1990 and 1991 were the RS (base), LS, and GS. For 1992 and 1993 a more powerful DOHC VTEC engine was available in the GS-R model. Powered by a 1.7L engine putting out 160HP, it featured a variable valve timing system that at that time was only available on the Acura NSX. The redline for this motor was 8000rpm, very high for standards around that time. It is estimated that only around 2,200 of these GS-R models were ever produced, making it hold its retail value very well because of its rarity. Other differences in all 1992-1993 integra models were new front and rear bumpers, new steering wheel, new taillights, new OBD-1 ECU, and new camshafts.
Other small updates came on to all trim levels in 1992, namely new front and rear bumpers, a new steering wheel, new taillights, new ECU, new camshafts, and chromed interior door handles. A total of 262,285 units were sold from 1990 to 1993.
Third generation
Third generation model of integras debuted in 1993 in Japan and a year later in North America. It had an unusual four headlight front end design which was critisized by some enthusiasts. Power increased to 142HP for non-vtec models. the GS-R received a 1.8L DOHC VTEC engine, equipped with a dual-stage intake manifold, bringing power to 170HP. A Type R model was introduced for the 1995 model year in Japan and in 1997 in North America, powered by a fine tuned, hand-made variant of the GS-R engine. This engine put out 197HP and had an impressive rev limit, but was critisized by some because of its torque characteristics. The engine would have to be revved high to achieve the best performance, although this idea made it popular among some people. In 1998, Honda chose redesign the integra slightly. It had slightly larger headlights, a more aggressive front bumper, all red taillights, and a changed rear bumper, as well as some small cosmetic changes to the interior. A total of 301,103 Integras were sold from 1994 to 2001.