1989 Acura Integra LS Special

Do you remember the first car you purchased? Undoubtedly you do. For me, a car fanatic from birth, my goal for many years was to buy a car. At first, I longed for an old Datsun 240Z, a first generation Mazda RX7, or a AW11 MR2. Although not powerful by today’s standards, they were the attainable high performance cars of my youth. However, to my parents, these cars were not acceptable (read likely to get me killed).

When my father’s co-worker had their 1989 Integra for sale, my father recommended that we take a look at it; front wheel drive, practical, sporty. It had been well taken care of and carefully driven, something that could not be assured with the other cars I had looked at. Although it wasn’t exactly what I wanted, Honda’s reputation, Car and Driver recommendations and the cachet of owning an Acura while in high school persuaded me to part with my hard earned money.

The styling was a typical 80’s design. The requisite pop-up headlights graced a short, low front end. The greenhouse was large with a large, panoramic windscreen and big windows all around. However, the elongated roof that accommodated a power sunroof resulted in a relatively steep glass hatch and tall hatch that created a relatively tall looking car. The polyurethane spoiler attached to the back did help alleviate some of the awkwardness, but the look was tall and narrow despite the ground effects.

The colour scheme was black and with gold coloured badging and wheels; bling before bling was popular. But no, those wheels were not 20 inches, nor even 16 inches in diameter. Just two inches over a foot, they left lots of room around the wheel wells further contributing to a look of instability. Long after selling the car, I learned that you could reduce the ride height quite easily but such information was hard to come by before the advent internet and the rise of tuner culture.

The inside was typical Honda; not luxurious but clean and efficient. Sport-style seats with reasonably bolstering allowed for a lot of support and comfort. The uprightness of the body ensured a lot of headroom despite the sunroof. The five speed manual transmission sat low and felt a little ropy. I distinctly remember missing quick shifts between first and second. Grouchy synchros or a common flaw of this transmission, I never found out. HVAC controls were logically arranged on the centre stack although they were the old style mechanical type requiring hefty tugs to change the ventilation setting. Beneath, lied the stereo along with a graphic equalizer. Boasting 4 speakers and Dobly Noise Reduction for those high-fidelity tapes, the sound was reasonable and much more impressive than the 1 speaker AM radio in the Celica. A meaty, leather wrapped 4 spoke steering wheel framed a set of easy to read gauges bathed in white light. And there, to the left of the speedometer, was why I came love the car.

Today, the norm is multi-valve engines with redlines well over 6000rpm. However, my sport car experience had been limited to a 1980 Toyota Celica GT. Boasting a 5 speed transmission (written on the outside of the car, no less), the engine was the venerable 22R. Reliable? Yes. Sporty? No. With a redline of 5000 rpm, the cacophony of a threshing machine, a supposed 95 horsepower and a fly wheel that seemed to fear circular motion, sportiness was more imagined than perceived. In addition, my father warned of the engine’s dislike of “high” revs and admonished me to go no higher than 3500 rpm. Of course, I did venture higher but there only seemed to be wince inducing noise up there; no power.

Stepping on the gas of the Integra for the first time, the tachometer rose with a fluidity that I could not imagine. The sound was sublime. Even in the upper reaches, the sound was smooth and sporty, nothing like the mechanical agony that emanated from under the Celica’s hood. 9 years later, 8 more valves, a computer, carburetion replaced by fuel injection, another cam and a plethora of other engine advancements graced the 1.6L that resided under the Acura’s hood. The 7000 rpm on the tachometer held me spellbound. Could a car actually rev that high? With only 118hp and little more than 100 pound feet of torque, the engine was not powerful, but it pulled the lightweight Integra without much effort and made fantastic sounds as it went.

Over the course of three years, I enjoyed the Integra immensely. However, gradually, the love affair began to grow tepid. The ride was sporty but body roll was quite pronounced owing to the relatively soft suspension, narrow track and relatively high centre of gravity. The suspension itself, though tuned smartly, was quite a simple setup with struts and torsion bars up front and a coil sprung rigid rear axle. The steering, though communicative was a variable assist unit that had only two settings. Around town, it was light and comfortable but, at highway speeds, the boost was reduced and the steering suddenly became unnaturally weighty. Although not bad in theory, with minimal need to drive on the highway, it was always a bit of a shock to discover that the steering wheel weight had suddenly increased and I needed to adjust. Body rigidity seemed low and the rattling hatch did not help to allay this feeling. A failed fuel pump and ripped CV boots were the only mechanical problems I encountered. The engine, though smooth, provided very little punch. The styling had not aged gracefully and the black and gold colour scheme was becoming less and less appealing by the day. The new Integras were lower, wider and more powerful. I knew it was time for a change.

Overall, the Integra was a great starter car for me. A great engine but not powerful enough to get me into trouble; a sporty suspension that had no hidden vices (apart from a bit of tail happiness when lifting the throttle during aggressive cornering); a practical body shape that accommodated friends and sports equipment.

In retrospect, I wish I held out for an MR2 or a Mazda RX-7. These are classic sporting cars and the driving pleasure would have been much better However, at that time, front wheel drive was the future and rear wheel drive seemed to be a thing of the past. Even the Mustang at the time was a candidate for front wheel drive (Ford product planners decided to keep the Mustang rear wheel drive and introduced the Mustang replacement as the Probe). In addition, overt sports cars are probably not the best for a new driver. Something forgiving that provides some thrills in a safe way is probably the how everyone should learn to drive.

With the dreams of a Toyota MR2 Turbo and a Mazda RX-7 Turbo gracing my garage, I began plotting the demise of my Integra Although there was some sadness in letting it go, I never regretted my decision to abandon the Integra since I stayed within the Honda family and moved up to it’s angrier, more satisfying older brother.