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Generations

Sporty fun with access to the Acura brand [/B]


It was the Civic and Accord that established Honda as an automotive presence in the United States in the mid-'70s, and it would be the Integra that would lead Acura's quest for legitimacy in the mid-'80s. And Honda needed Acura to succeed if for no other reason than that it had too many cars to sell and not enough dealers to sell them.

It's impossible to separate the history of the Integra (which evolved into the RSX) from the birth of Acura itself. So first, a little trip back two decades to the business pages.

The birth of Acura
In the early '80s, the popularity of Japanese brands with American buyers was undeniable and increasing. GM, Ford, Chrysler and the United Auto Workers still had plenty of political pull, however, and together they were pressing politicians to impose import quotas on Japanese cars. To avoid such a dire predicament, the Japanese makers agreed to voluntary import restrictions beginning in 1981. In 1984, for instance, only 1,850,000 cars would be imported into the U.S. from Japan — and just 360,000 of those would be Hondas.

For Honda, the restrictions were ominous because while its cars were popular in the United States, they weren't so popular in Japan. The company was (and still is) dependent on America for its profits. So the company built a big assembly plant — the first for a Japanese manufacturer in America — in Ohio that by 1983 was churning out up to 300,000 Accords, and constructed another plant in Canada to build Civics. With those plants working, Honda could pump 700,000 cars into the U.S. market during the 1986 model year, even though the company could only import fewer than 400,000.

But Honda only had 800 dealers across the country — nowhere near enough to move that much metal. Honda could have established a lot more Honda dealers, but that wasn't likely to make the 800 they already had too happy. The solution to this problem, Honda decided, was to establish Acura as a second distribution channel that would sell more upscale vehicles under a different name.

"Some 3,000 applications for Acura dealerships — which may not be combined with any other car dealership, even Honda's — have poured into Honda's Gardena, California, offices," Fortune Magazine reported in a 1985 article. "Robert and John Eagle are typical of the fervent group: 'We went for the Acura dealership because Honda is behind it,' says Robert, who, in partnership with son John, owns Honda and Acura franchises in Dallas and Houston. 'We have very high customer satisfaction with Hondas,' he adds. The Acura franchises cost the Eagles $3.5 million. 'I know we might lose a little money for the first few months with Acura,' says Robert, 'but long range it will be one of the most sought-after franchises in the country.'"

In fact, those first Acura dealers would have to be at least 10 miles away from the closest Honda dealer. "We don't expect buyers of Acura models to be those who are likely to come into a Honda dealership," explained Clifford G. Schiffsen, then a senior vice president at American Honda, to Business Week in 1985.

When Acura opened its dealers' doors in 1986, the first two cars in the new division's line were the small Integra coupe and sedan hatchbacks, and the luxuriously large Legend sedan. The Legend would eventually evolve into the RL and the Integra would become the RSX.







First-generation Integra: 1986-1989
The first Integra in 1986 was a straightforward car. "The foundation of the Integra models is Honda's highly adaptable and capable Civic chassis," wrote Car and Driver upon its introduction. "The three-door version is based on the 96.5-inch wheelbase of the Civic four-door sedan and five-door wagon. The five-door Integra rides on a 2.8-inch-longer version of the same chassis. Both models employ the Civic's strut front suspension, located by lower control arms and sprung by torsion bars. The Civic's power-assisted rack and pinion steering is standard. In the rear is the familiar coil-sprung rigid axle located by two trailing arms and a Panhard rod; just as on the Civics, the ride-side trailing arm is free to rotate on the axle tube, preventing the axle's torsional rigidity from restricting suspension motion."

The Integra shared a lot with the Civic but it was also better than that car. The brakes were upgraded to larger discs up front, and discs replaced the Civic's drums in back. The tires were big (for that time) P195/60HR14 Michelin MXVs. But the biggest step forward was under the hood.

The Integra engine was based on the 1.5-liter all-aluminum four then being installed in the Civic but it displaced 1.6 liters, wore a new twin-cam 16-valve head and had programmable fuel injection. That all resulted in 113 horsepower at 6250 rpm (22 more than the '86 Civic CRX Si's injected 1.5-liter SOHC four) and 99 pound-feet of peak torque at 5500 rpm.

The DOHC 1.6 was a civilized engine, too. "Mated to a five-speed gearbox," wrote Road & Track in its test of a five-door '86 Integra RS, "the engine propels the Integra deceptively quickly. It's actually faster than it feels, perhaps because of its quiet smoothness, flat torque curve and aggressive gearing. While the linkage is slick and the ratios great for getting you up to speed, we'd like a more relaxed 5th gear. Turning 7000 revolutions per minute smoothly is a fine achievement in an engine, but why must we use nearly 3000 of them to cruise at 55 mph?"

The Integra wasn't perfect, but it was closer than most small cars had ever come. Many observers found the styling boring and the "DOHC Programmed Fuel Injection" lettering plastered on the cars' sides was just dopey. The interior didn't stray far from Honda's established themes, the ride was well controlled and the handling was the best in its class. And it was pretty quick, too. Car and Driver's Integra LS 3-door hit 60 mph in 8.8 seconds and ran the quarter-mile in 16.5 ticks at 82 mph.

In total, Car and Driver was impressed. "The Integra's 16-valve engine technology has been racing around European and Japanese streets and Formula 1 circuits for a few years, so it lands in America fully matured," the magazine concluded. "The modest Civic underpinnings have been elevated to a new plateau with minor refinements and a major upgrade in rolling stock. The interior fittings and exterior decor have class without being crass. The real magic, however, comes from refinement. The Integra's engine matches its suspension which jibes with the cockpit, which makes sense with the exterior envelope. What we have here is an automobile so nicely integrated that even its name fits."

The original Integra would change little over its four years in production. It was always offered in two trim levels (base RS and upscale LS) and in only the 3- and 5-door body styles. The interior was refined with a few minor tweaks in 1988 and a "Special Edition" SE coupe was offered during that model year. But otherwise it was very much the same car during 1989 that it was in '86. That was just fine.







Second-generation Integra: 1990-1993
"Though the base model is priced only slightly higher than last year's model," explained Road & Track at the introduction of the second-generation 1990 Integra, "it's a longer (by 3.9 inches), lower (by 0.7 inch), wider (by 1.8 inches), roomier car with styling cues that say upmarket Acura rather than reconfigured Honda." The first Integra was so good, that it was stunning how much better the second Integra could be.

While the 3-door hatchback body style returned, the 5-door was gone in favor of a conventional 4-door notchback sedan. Both RS and LS returned as trim levels, too, but a new GS now hovered above them and brought some real luxury to the line.

Based on the new-in-'88 Civic, the structure of the second-generation Integra was, said Acura, up to 30 percent stiffer than the original, and 90 percent more resistant to torsion stresses. The new suspension used A-arms (double wishbones) up front instead of MacPherson struts and the rear suspension was now fully independent with one trailing arm, two lateral links and one toe-control link per side. The original Integra's suspension was well sorted and expertly tuned, but the new one was all that as well as sophisticated and technologically advanced.

The front suspension design allowed a very low hood line and a very low cowl that gave the car a unique profile that would typify Honda and Acura vehicles through the '90s. Throw in thin pillars in the greenhouse and frameless window glass and the Integra's appearance was unique. "On both the hatchback and the sedan," explained Car and Driver at the time, "the glass extends up out of the doors with no metal surrounding it. When the windows are up, they press against a complex and highly resilient seal attached to the body's door opening... The benefits are obvious. The pillars look slimmer. The side glass fits nearly flush with the outer surface of the body. And when the door is open, the part above the beltline intrudes less into your entry-exit space."

But what stood out most about the new Integra was its all-new, all-aluminum 1.8-liter DOHC 16-valve four-cylinder engine. The new engine wasn't based on a Civic power plant, and beyond being bigger it was more efficient, producing a full 130 hp at 6000 rpm and 121 pound-feet of peak torque at 5000 rpm. Still, things would get even better.

"What we have here is the definitive luxury econobox," summarized Car and Driver. "That may sound like an oxymoron, but it perfectly describes the new Integra GS."

After carrying over through 1991, 1992 brought the first appearance of Honda's Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control (VTEC) scheme to the Integra. Fitted to a 1.7-liter version of the Integra engine, the VTEC system boosted output to a full 160 hp — that's 95 hp per liter. At the time that was the highest specific output of any normally aspirated automotive engine for sale in North America. Even better than the 3.0-liter V6 in Acura's near exotic NSX sports car, which introduced VTEC to America the year before.

Installed in the new Integra GS-R, the VTEC engine's 8000-rpm redline was thrilling. "The result is an engine with outstanding smoothness, response and flexibility," gushed Road & Track. "Peak torque is 117 pound-feet generated at 7000 rpm: good but not spectacular. What's notable is its Kansas-flat distribution of torque across the rev scale, with more than 100 pound-feet on call at just 2500 rpm... GS-R owners can enjoy the VTEC engine and keep a low profile, because exterior changes are thankfully subtle: slightly more aggressively styled front and rear bumper caps, body-colored side moldings, plus VTEC and GS-R logos... At an estimated $17,000, the Integra GS-R should whet the appetites of more than a few enthusiasts — Acura hopes to devote 10 percent of Integra production (400-500 cars a month) to this high-performance model. For the little bit of Senna in all of us, that's heartwarming news."

A "Special Edition" Integra coupe with a unique rear spoiler and wheels was produced during 1993, but the line was otherwise unchanged. It would be tough to top this Integra. And topping the GS-R in particular was almost unimaginable — at least to those of us outside Honda's engine lab.








Third-generation Integra: 1994-2001
Up until this time, Honda had set a firm four-year product cycle for itself with a new generation Civic, Accord or Integra appearing like clockwork every fifth model year. But the third Integra would break that cycle, living for a full eight seasons. At least it was good enough to merit that long life.

The third-generation car, both coupe and sedan versions, was close in size to the second, with the wheelbase on coupes now stretched 101.2 inches rather than the second gen's 100.4. Most of the suspension elements carried over, too. The big change for 1994 involved the car's looks, with projector beam round headlights and a cabin that seemed pushed further forward than the previous car. Trim levels were, at least at first, simplified into LS, GS or GS-R. Detail changes boosted the base non-VTEC power plant to 140 hp and the enlarged (to 1.8 liters) GS-R power plant now made 170. Both were evolutions of the second-generation car's power plant.

There were new wheels for a Special Edition Integra during 1995 and nothing new at all for 1996. But that was just the lull before the storm.

In the spring of 1997 Acura finally brought the near race Integra Type-R coupe to America. "When the Type-R's tach hits 5700 rpm (or even less depending on throttle position), the VTEC system switches over from Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde with an audible blare, and the engine sets about scaling its 195-hp peak at 8000 rpm with alacrity," enthused Car and Driver. "Yes, that's almost 200 hp from a 1797cc engine, but before you reach for that calculator we can tell you that it works out to a specific output of 108.5 horsepower per liter. The fabulous Ferrari F355 produces just 107.3 horses per liter from its 5-valve V8... It's also up 25 ponies on the already energetic GS-R engine thanks to some careful twiddling back at Honda R&D.

"Numbers aside, this high-performance stripper is a blast to drive. The leather-wrapped wheel swivels the nose with surgical precision, and the generously sized tires hang on like barnacles. Because of the taut undercarriage — particularly the roll-stiff rear — the Type-R turns in much sharper than its softer siblings...According to Acura it runs three seconds a lap quicker than the GS-R at Honda's Takasu proving grounds."

Honda's "twiddling" consisted of replacing the GS-R's intake manifold with a higher-volume one, throwing in higher-lift/longer-duration cams and lightweight, thin-stem valves and connecting rods, hand-polishing the intake and exhaust ports and specifying a special stainless-steel exhaust system. The special domed molybdenum pistons pushed the compression ratio up to a full 10.6:1.

But that was just the start of the Type-R magic. The R&D guys also tuned the chassis brilliantly to work well with Bridgestone 195/55VR15 RE010 tires on lightweight wheels. This was not a car for the faint of heart or wide of butt. "The Type-R's aggressive bodywork, thick-weave upholstery over bolstered seats and lack of such niceties as cruise or a sunroof promise exactly what the car delivers: great performance at the expense of greater noise, a harsher ride and fewer creature comforts," Motor Trend wrote. "Weighing in at just 2600...the Type-R accelerates like a midget muscle car on amphetamines. The trip from zero to 60 takes only 6.6 seconds and the quarter-mile is ravenously digested in just 15.1 seconds at 93.8 mph... Find a piece of road straight and long enough, and the Type-R will scream right up to 142.9 mph." And you could get it in exactly one color: Championship White.

After taking 1999 off, the Type-R returned for 2000 in more colors. And the sedan was now available with the still wonderful GS-R engine and drivetrain. But by this time the Integra was feeling old in the details and it made it through 2001 basically unchanged, with enthusiasts eagerly awaiting a new Integra. They'd get one. Sort of.






RSX: 2002-present
In Japan what we now know as the Acura RSX is still sold there as the Honda Integra. Why the name change for America? No reason. Whimsy? Maybe. But in spirit, the RSX is still very much an Integra.

The Integra was sold here as a 3-door coupe or a 4-door sedan but since its introduction in July 2001 as an early 2002 model, the RSX has been available only as a coupe powered by two versions of Honda's latest "K-Series" 2.0-liter DOHC four (eventually the TSX sedan would take the place of the Integra sedan in Acura's line).

The RSX has been available as either a base 160-hp RSX or a 200-hp Type-S. Both fours feature Honda's i-VTEC variable valve-timing system, with the plain RSX's VTEC working only on the intake valves using only two roller arms per pair of intake valves. The Type-S uses a three-rocker-arm system that plays games with both the lift and duration of both the intake and exhaust valves.

Besides the VTEC shenanigans, the major difference between the base RSX and Type-S engines is compression ratio — the regular engine gets 9.8:1 of squish and the Type-S a full 11.0:1. And while the regular RSX redlines at 6800 rpm, the Type-S spins until 7900 rpm before the tach says stop. All that means the RSX engine makes its peak 141 pound-feet of torque at just 4000 rpm while the Type-S motor must wail to 6000 rpm to peak at just one pound-foot more. So the choice between the RSX and RSX Type-S engines comes down to a classic battle between low-end torque and thrilling, rev-happy horsepower.

The Type-S uses a 6-speed manual gearbox (better to use those zinging revs) while the RSX comes either with a 5-speed manual or a 5-speed automatic that can be shifted manually. The Type-S transmission is a solid piece of work, but to get the most out of the engine it could use even more gears. It's a challenge to stay in the VTEC sweet spot above 5900 rpm on a road course. None of the RSX transaxles are equipped with a limited-slip differential and they all could use one.

In our comparison test of the 2001 and 2002 model-year sport coupes the RSX Type-S was chosen as the winner. "The RSX dominated the acceleration tests, earning a 0-to-60 time of 6.7 seconds and going past the quarter-mile mark in 15.2 seconds at 92.7 mph," reported our Brent Romans. "If the RSX has a nemesis, it's the Celica. Each makes 100 hp per liter from its advanced engine, and each has a 6-speed. The RSX does have an advantage of 20 more horsepower and 16 more lb-ft of torque, but it's also about 200 pounds heavier.

"Given the nearly equal power-to-weight ratios, the cars should have had nearly equal acceleration times. A likely explanation for the RSX's quicker times is the difference in shifter quality. The RSX's shifter throws are short and precise, allowing faster shifts. One item in our 20-point evaluation category rates transmission performance. The Acura earned the highest score; the Toyota earned the lowest."

There were few changes to the RSX for either 2003 or 2004. But for 2005 the Type-S engine was boosted from 200 to 210 hp thanks to more aggressive camshafts and a larger-diameter exhaust system. Also, the suspensions on both RSXs were retuned and lowered slightly, and the Type-S moved from 16- to 17-inch wheels with bigger 215/45R17 Michelin tires. Finally, the front and rear fascias on both cars were redesigned and the Type-S now came with a small rear spoiler.

socalprelude

Very interesting. Now can we do this for every Honda model? hehe

M Type X

:sad:

It's tough, man.

CPL

My first car was a 1988 Integra 4-door in white. Back then a lot of us would make or jimmy rig parts either cause we did'nt have money or there was no application. Only known companies around back then was HKS , Lightspeed , Comptech , Mugen , DC Fabrication ( now DC Sports ). If I still had that car to this day with the mods I did back then , it would have RICE all over it. Man , those were the days.