What got you hooked on golden-era Hondas?

[4DoorITR]

Grew up in a Ford family and was always playing Gran Turismo. The series engrained trim levels, stats, colors, etc of 1990s Japanese sports cars deep into my brain. Fast forward to 2019, was sitting on the toilet at work browsing Facebook marketplace. $1000 1992 Honda Civic DX sedan pops up just up the highway. Leave work and meet up with the owner to find out it is a bone stock EH9 Civic EX (every option available) that hasn't been washed in years. 207k miles with the original owners manual and cruise control hang tag still in the glovebox.

Fast forward to 2022, I have put ~32,000 miles on the car. I have taken it on road trips, driven it through snow,exercised the ABS system thoroughly and this car just keeps chugging. I've performed all necessary maintenance and some preventative maintenance just so I could get my hands dirty and learn about the platform. My positive experience with this car made me think, "If this old grandma-spec car is so good, the old 'fun' Hondas must be amazing." Amid my search for a PP1 Honda Beat, I stumbled across a 96 spec DB8 Type R for sale via a JDM exporter recommended by Team Free Spirit. Ran a CarVX, asked a bunch of questions, and finally purchased the car. It arrived in January with a few cosmetic issues not mentioned on any of the auction sheets or info sheets, but it is a mostly-original running and driving Type R. After performing some basic maintenance with skills I acquired from the Civic, this car has been everything I expected it would be. The 9000rpm shifts are intoxicating and attacking a curvy country road plasters a smile on my face. I'm slowly refreshing the car to get it back to near-original condition and having fun along the way.

[coolhandluke]

Excellent question, I'll work on a better respond w/ photos.

[AndyD]

My dad's 1986 Accord LX sedan he bought new.

I'm older than most on this forum. I had an interesting discussion with a friend about these car video games.

Many things we experience in our childhoods extends into our adulthood. Since many Gen Y (Millennials) and Gen Z played video games growing up, particularly car games and Guitar Hero, they will continue to like the cars and music found in those games

It's pretty neat.

I grew up when most of my peers had no interest in cars so I didn't have many to hangout with.

Before the Internet it was limited to magazines like Car and Driver and Motortrend and the TV show Motorweek.

[DC231]

First car I ever owned was a 72 Camaro split bumper. Cool car!!! It was a rusty bucket so I got rid of it and got a 1985 Nissan 300zx turbo and whoa that thing was something else man. Super cool car!!! I went for a ride with this guy I'll never remember his name but it was in a 96 GSR it had less than 1000 miles on it and he had a lightened flywheel and cold air intake installed and when he dropped into second gear at 45mph and floored it to redline I was hooked and always have been still to this day.

I own 6 vehicles and 5 of them are Honda's that range from 1991-2004. The sixth (Ford) is my dedicated trailer hauler for work and fun(mostly work)..

[Stin1]

My buddy Nick Geez bought a brand new 97 GSR from Scottsdale Acura in 97. The car was some type of replica type deal of the 97. It had a type r rear spoiler installed, white Fitipaldi wheels. Gold emblems, integra type r embroidered into the confetti seats, and a white faced gauge cluster that was oem and similar to the sir oem cluster.

We thought it was the coolest thing. The first day he got it we went to abandoned runs with it . The igniter failed and left us stranded. They even charged him to fix it because it was prior to the recall. Another time a real 97 R raced up to see another type R but was disappointed.

I certainly didn’t qualify for financing an integra fresh out of high school. I went to test drive a purple ek hatch. The car was $9999 plus $1200 for ac. After the dealership added some pin stripe, fabric protection, and some “ paint protection that you will never have to wax the car “ they wanted over $15000. After telling them I don’t want any of your upgrades they agreed to sell the car for the advertised price. I however just test drove the car and the salesman had me dukes of hazard jump the car so I asked for a different car. They refused, I went across the street and picked up a used 95 dx hatch for less. Haven’t looked back since.

[aw614]

Nice EH9 EX, it surprises me how well equipped those sedans were, especially when you compare decontenting and cost cutting occurred for the 96-00 models, yet the EH2 had some nice modern features like ABS and the hydraulic trunk struts.

I was mostly a VW guy with interest in the 1st and 2nd gen platformed Golf variants and a huge fan of 80s Audis. I still want one as a next project car. Still have a MK6 GTI, but it just doesnt have that feel I want from an older VW.

But what got me into the 88-00 Hondas as the 1000 dollar 97 Automatic Integra GS. It was in poor shape and worn even back around 2009ish when my brother got it as his first car, but there was something about driving it, like most Honda automatics of that era it sucked, but you could tell it was well put together and with a manual it would be really fun drive around in. I guess I finally saw why they attracted the crowd they did. Well what do you know, I got my 2000 Integra in 2012 and have kept it since slowing modding away and having fun with it.

[SWFL_NSX]

They're just really well engineered and still attract good people decades later.

The late 80's must have been a special time for Honda, and you can feel a little bit of that magic, and joy, in the cars.

[Klasse]

I was deadset on an AE101 Levin/Trueno, before going in a friends b16a swapped ef. The noise did it i think. This was 2001, got a da6 integra for my first car after that. Good times.

[oddomatik]

As a teen, I wanted a CRX because they are one of my favorite looking cars. My parents deemed my first car "unsafe to drive" (a rusty bug) so I got an Si at 16 with 160k on the clock for $2000 in very good shape. I bought some GS-R blades (sue me) off a friend and he drove me in his GS-R to go pick them up at 100mph+, which was my first taste of speed. We'd do stupid car mods in their driveway (like using dollar store oven cleaner to strip the wheels). We'd race on the highway, where I was able to pass them once their speed limiters kicked in on the GS-R and Ford Focus

I think what got me hooked was how easy they are to repair and to upgrade, which as a broke teenager was an important factor. I learned a lot about my passion with that car, how to drive fast(ish), how to improve handling and performance, and how to turn a wrench with that car.

I went through a few engine replacements in that car, which got me comfortable with working under the hood as a broke teenager. Once I was gainfully employed I obtained a GS-R engine and swapped that in. Coilovers, etc. Great upgrade but maybe not the best for such a light car with a heavy engine over the front axle (for the kind of driving I most like to do). I sold the car not too long ago with 260k on it and regret it.

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But Love of Honda is stronger than ever. It's what I know and what I'll stick with. Newer cars just don't interest me and I have no desire to impress the neighbors. My main goal is to preserve the feeling I get every time I get in and turn the key. The sound and the engagement... I'm stuck in the 80s/90s for sure...

[GeHonda]

Funny to look back now, but I was 15 years, 9 months old in June 2001, and watched The Fast and The Furious in theaters on release night. At the time I had a defunct 1973 240Z that I was restoring but it had a bad motor and my technical knowledge was limited. I abandoned it for something newer and flashier. I couldn't afford a 2G DSM (what I wanted in the moment), but Hondas were in the right price range.

I grew up just above the poverty line and had to pay my own way. I saved up changing oil and mopping floors at a local shop and purchased a 1996 Honda Civic DX Coupe. From there I went through over 20 Hondas and Acuras over period spanning 21 years now, including 2x ITR, 2x S2000, boosted builds, track builds, etc.


2002-2003:

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2004, meet in SLC with Dustin(?) and his 97R (I believe it was one of two ENDYN cars):

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2005, first "swap" into a 95 DX hatch:

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2005 another pic with Dustin's R (if anyone knows where this is now I've got a few more pics I'm happy to share):

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2006, first track time outside of autocross in 92 EH3 w/ B18 GSR swap:

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2006, EH3 in final form:

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Fast forward, dozens of cars later, including AW11 and SW20 MR2, MKIV Supra, S13 coupe, S14, a subaru (gasp), and I keep coming back to the 88-00 Honda Platform. My most recent ITR was 98-0046, and I owned 98-0408 for a bit before it was K-swapped. I currently have a 100% stock 1998 GSR that I enjoy daily. Honda's will always remain a part of my automotive life due to their simplicity, reliability, and the joy of pushing them around the track.

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