At first look, one could easily dismiss this as “just another Japanese sports car” but to those in-the-know, it’s something quite special, particularly to the younger crowd. It’s up for bids here on eBay and has hit a whopping $32,000 with two days remaining! What’s so special about it? Read on to find out!
Those of you who know what this is can skip ahead, but for those uninformed, please allow me to bring you up to speed.
We all know that the 1980s and 1990s were a rather lackluster era in American automotive scene. Almost everything new that rolled off of dealer lots was rife with some form of defect, cheapness, and a weak-performance, throwaway vibe that made many hardcore gearheads sick to the stomach at the idea of having to even look at one, let alone drive one. Japanese marques, however, dared to be different in their offerings, conjuring up now-iconic marques like the GT-R, NSX, WRX/STi, and other acronyms drawn from the earlier days of driving excitement. Specific to the Acura Integra, Doug DeMuro did one of his famous reviews on them, and Edmunds wrote this some time ago: “In 1986, Honda launched the Acura brand to create a separate luxury brand to appeal to upmarket buyers. Its first model, the Acura Integra, was a sporty hatchback that emphasized Acura’s focus on engineering excellence and build quality. The Integra’s balance of reliability and performance made it an instant hit, especially for those buyers looking for a cheaper alternative to German imports.” The Integra Type-R hit U.S. shores in 1997, and is now widely regarded as arguably the best-handling, best-performing front-wheel-drive automobile ever sold in the U.S. market. For what it’s worth: A pristine one sold at auction for an astounding $63,000 in 2018, and then went for $20,000 more less than a year later.
So, why is this one so interesting? Well, apart from the fact that it is unmodified and appears to be in nice condition, it’s one of only 320 produced that year, and it’s only traveled 44,000 miles in the last 23 years. Its hand-assembled, normally-aspirated 1.8-liter 4-cylinder VTEC engine puts down 195 horsepower and 130 lb-ft of torque. That may not sound like much, but with a curb weight of 2,600 pounds, limited-slip differential, tight-ratio 5-speed gearbox, and special body/suspension, it can hold its own on the track against many of the aforementioned acronyms. Add to this the fact that younger enthusiasts are finally reaching a point in life where fun toys are more within reach, and their idea of “fun toy” is much different than previous generations.
All in all, this particular car looks like a -decent- example of a first-year-in-America Type-R, even if it does have more miles and may have had multiple owners than the pristine one mentioned above. I personally feel that it’s a neat car, but I wouldn’t spend in excess of $30,000 for something like it. Like many of you, I’d rather have a V8-powered machine as my fun toy, however I completely respect and appreciate the younger enthusiasts and their affinity for newer performance vehicles like this one. That’s my two cents, what do YOU think? Let us know in the comments!
Zoom Zoom! Oh, wait, thats Mazda. Gosh, being around senile old people is making me even more goofy.
Kinda rare to see one that hasn’t been turned into an SCCA racer. Saw my fair share of them get trashed at The Glen back in the day.
A change in automotive choices for the younger motorheads goes back a ways. Remember the slammed mini-truck craze back in the eighties? Coffee can exhaust tips and loaded with neon lights. Kinda like the tuner crowd with their Honda’s and such.
Hey, as long as the kids are still into cars no matter what kind,,,that’s fine with me.
“We all know that the 1980s and 1990s were a rather lackluster era in American automotive scene. Almost everything new that rolled off of dealer lots was rife with some form of defect, cheapness, and a weak-performance, throwaway vibe that made many hardcore gearheads sick to the stomach at the idea of having to even look at one, let alone drive one.”
How dare you!!! Everyone knows that Murica has produced nothing but high quality, amazing cars throughout eternity. Every decade, every year, everyday. Why is this little poorly built rice burner on here?!
Sorry, I’ll stop. Awesome car, lucky seller and new owner to be.
I don’t think the author would know a great drivers car if it bit him in the arse! One of the best drivers vehicles ever made!
So is the E36 M3 and those can be had for less than 10 grand. This Is more about buying the image of a driver’s car in addition to buying a driver’s car.
“We all know that the 1980s and 1990s were a rather lackluster era in American automotive scene. Almost everything new that rolled off of dealer lots was rife with some form of defect, cheapness, and a weak-performance, throwaway vibe that made many hardcore gearheads sick to the stomach at the idea of having to even look at one, let alone drive one.”
Umm….no. Well, ok, the early ’80s, yes. But by the mid ’80s, the auto universe was looking up significantly from the malaise that gripped it since the early ’70s. The late ’80s brought a lot of great cars that are just now hitting their stride in terms of collectibility and the ’90s were generally even better. Horsepower certainly wasn’t as high as modern cars, but they also weren’t laden with all the electronic nannies that afflict cars today. Much of the improvements were due to the introduction of electronic fuel injection. I really like many of the cars made in the ’87-’93 era. My current daily driver is an ’86 model of a certain brand and most of my dailies for the past 10 years have been from the same era.
What really strikes me here is how much of a rudderless ship has become American Honda, specifically as relates to the Acura brand. Back in the ’80s the Integra and Legend were hot stuff. Today the RLX and ILX have completely bombed in the marketplace. Similarly look at sales of the NSX, it’s virtually buyer-proof. Last I checked, they were on pace to sell comfortably under 200 units FOR THE YEAR. Yikes. As for what some knucklehead paid for this sub-200 HP rocket in 2019, I bought a Boss 302 Laguna Seca, a pristine air-cooled 911, a BMW GS adventure bike, and have ten grand in the bank account. I find that laughable.
I can’t see who would pay $32k for this one. It looks like it was in an accident. The gaps on the front clip stand out in the pictures. Oh wait, it was in an accident. $32k?, I don’t think so.
My 3.2 TLS V-6 from a bit after the mentioned era was a great driving car. The best ‘car’ (in non SUV) I’ve ever owned in terms of total experience.