200-mile EM1 Civic Si

[blee]

https://jalopnik.com/what-the-perfec...ike-1825392697

I never owned one of these, and at that point in my life I was decidedly anti-ricer, which turned me off to any version of this car that had been body-modded to hell (which was a lot of them). But at its core, this was a pretty amazing car, and I kinda wish I'd spent some time behind the wheel of one.

[John V]

My buddy bought one of these a few years after high school. It was.. Underwhelming, I thought. Good basic transportation but it didn't feel special, even at the time.

[Alan]

Kinda remember this car like John did .. I will say this brought back a memory of me of getting my 99 Acura CL 3.0 ... kept it for almost 2 years before getting my 2001 330ci which is the reason I’m actually a member of this board as well as many others here.

It all started with bimmerfest where a lot of us all met back in 2000 waiting for our E46’s

[JST]

Originally Posted by John V

My buddy bought one of these a few years after high school. It was.. Underwhelming, I thought. Good basic transportation but it didn't feel special, even at the time.

I never drove an Si, but a girlfriend had the del Sol with (I'm pretty sure) that same engine in it, and I disliked it intensely. I'm just not a fan of Honda's VTEC implementation, especially as it was rolled out in the late 90s.

EDIT:

To clyde's point, a different GF in HS had a CRX--not Si, just bare bones cooking spec, with an automatic. Even with an automatic and zero power, that car was hilarious fun to drive.

Honda as a whole peaked in the early 90s, IMHO. The 91 Accord that a friend had was just an amazingly well done car. Light, fun to drive, spacious; it had a 5 speed manual that was slick as hell to shift. It wasn't a sports car by any stretch, but it was just competent and satisfying.

The new ones haven't been as good, though I haven't driven the most recent iteration.

[clyde]

Originally Posted by Theo

My only Honda experience was buying my first new car. I 91 black/black CRX Si.

I loved that car. Terrific fun for all of its 108hp.

I had a 92 Civic Si and liked it a lot. I bought it new thinking, wrongly, "newer must be better." It's biggest flaw was that it wasn't the previous gen.

[wdc330i]

I test drove a CRX and loved it. It was, however, a death trap. I bought the Accord EX hatchback instead.

I loved the hatchback--Japanese-made (had it 9 years).

I replaced it with a 90s Accord EX-L Coupe (American-made, I think, with lots of rattles and squeaks) and hated it. (Sorry AF).

My parents had an Accord wagon for years. Those were hard to find--even in the 90s. They were ultimately much happier with their Volvo 850 wagon.

[3LOU5]

I’m with AF on the looks of the current Si.

If it drives as well as they say it does, don’t really give a damn about its looks.

[clyde]

IMO, the Civic Si peaked with the EF. Ever since, they've just added size and weight which has taken away what made the Honda Si models so much fun.

[Alan]

Originally Posted by clyde

IMO, the Civic Si peaked with the EF. Ever since, they've just added size and weight which has taken away what made the Honda Si models so much fun.

The new Civic Type R does look pretty cool and I've read some great reviews about it.

[clyde]

Originally Posted by AF

The new Civic Type R does look pretty cool and I've read some great reviews about it.

It LOOKS ugly as sin. I've heard mixed things from people that have them or have driven them in anger. It's definitely a unique and special car.

It's not a car that has any real realationship to what made Honda Si models special, though.