The impact of modifications on a car is profound, and usually leads to decreased value. The only exception to this rule, generally speaking, is if you are adding parts that have a close association to the factory, such as from an OEM approved performance catalog. In the world of Honda and Acura products, there’s the Japanese parts company Mugen that provides go-fast parts for the former, while Comptech builds upgrades for the latter. No matter which brand is your flavor, finding one of the factory hot hatches like this 1991 Honda Civic Si listed here on eBay in unmodified condition is a fairly significant find.

Thanks to Barn Finds reader Mitchell G. for the tip. The EF chassis Honda Civic is well-loved for a variety of good reasons. It’s light-weight, driver-focused, and a shockingly competent handler, even in base model DX spec. The sightlines are exceptional and you get to enjoy the wonder of a Honda-built manual transmission at any trim level. Then there’s that convenient hatch that gobbles up a surprising amount of gear. The Si takes all of those virtues and makes them sing, thanks to the additional horsepower and torque that came standard over the lesser models.

You also got some wonderfully supportive bucket teams with upholstery unique to the Si. The EF cars quickly rose to the top of the hot hatch charts, both for the appeal of modifying them for more speed and better handling, as well as their dominance in autocross events run by the likes of the SCCA. In fact, even to this day, if you want to build a car you can take to the national runoff event, many seasoned autocrossers will recommend starting with an EF hatch. Thankfully, this car remains a blank slate for the next owner, with no signs of the typical modifications we often see on these Civics.

The engine in the Si is known as the D16A6, which amounts to a 1.6-liter inline-4 good for 108 horsepower and 100 lb-ft of torque. These were rev-happy motors that could be abused day in, and day out. The seller reports everything works as it should, and really, the worst thing about this Civic is its exterior appearance, which shows some flaws. The black steel wheels do not help, and while I’m sure they are hard to come by, a set of the stock, Si-specific wheels would do wonders for the exterior appearance. The seller is asking $9,500 or best offer, and while that ask is strong, hopefully it’s possible to bring it home for less.