A 1986 Honda Prelude Si recently sold on Bring a Trailer for $7,500. This made me wonder why I hadn’t yet written about any Prelude.

“We are lots of fun.”

1986 brought few changes to Honda’s Prelude sports coupe, which continued in both base and Si versions. A visual distinction from 1985 was the high-mounted brake lamp, along with a few more exterior color choices.

The Si‘s salient feature was its engine—the B20A 110 bhp 2.0 liter inline four with three valves per cylinder and fuel injection. Making ten more horsepower than the base Prelude meant that it was about half a second faster to get from 0-60 mph—spritely but not fast at a little under 10 seconds.

A five-speed manual transmission was standard, with a four-speed automatic optional. Fuel economy was respectable at 25 city/30 highway by the day’s standards with the manual transmission (22/28 by modern standards). As might be expected, the automatic dropped ratings by 8% in the city and 3% on the highway. With a 15.8-gallon fuel tank, a Prelude’s Si‘s proud new owner could expect a range of 335 to 390 miles with a 10% fuel reserve.

By 1986 standards, the $12,955 Prelude Si—about $33,600 in today’s dollars or about what a 2022 Accord EX-L sedan goes for—came well-equipped. Standard exterior and mechanical equipment included a power moonroof (a Prelude trademark), power windows, power mirrors, power disc brakes, and Michelin 185/75R13 steel-belted radial tires (a size still somewhat available) on Custom 13-inch alloy wheels. Inside, air conditioning, cruise control, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and cloth front bucket seats were included. The stereo featured electronic quartz tuning, an autoreverse cassette player, a seven-band graphic equalizer, and four speakers.

These second-generation Preludes were a revelation when introduced for the 1983 model year, replacing the somewhat ungainly first-generation coupes that had been introduced in the late 1970s. They come from a period when Honda styling seemingly could do no wrong—Road & Track called the second-generation Preludes “handsome, satisfying, exciting.”

Second-generation Preludes attract collector interest, and there is some online forum support. They are sometimes available in the Hemmings Motor News classifieds, on eBay Motors, and at online auctions such as Bring a Trailer that cater to the eighties car market.

Make mine Sonic Blue Metallic, please.

Other Hondas I have written about include the 1983 Civic S hatchback coupe, the 1984 Civic DX hatchback coupe, the 1984 Civic CRX hatchback coupe, the 1985 Civic CRX Si hatchback coupe, the 1986 Accord sedan, and the 1988 Civic sedan.

The 1984 model year brought the third generation Honda Civic, which was available in hatchback coupe, notchback sedan, and wagon versions—along with the CRX, of course. The topic of this post is the hatchback coupe in the upscale DX trim. With its Kammback design, Honda’s new hatchback brought unprecedented style to the compact car segment.

The Civic’s standard powertrain was a 60 bhp 1.3 liter/82 ci inline four with a CVCC three-barrel carburetor and a four-speed manual. However, the DX received a more powerful EW 76 bhp 1.5 liter/91 ci inline four with three valves per cylinder and a CVCC three-barrel carburetor along with a five-speed manual. DX purchasers could also choose an automatic. In a DX with the manual transmission, 0-60 came in about 11 seconds—more than competitive in class in 1984.

With its standard manual transmission, fuel economy ratings for the DX were an excellent 35 city/45 highway by the standards of the day and a still respectable 27/32 by today’s standards. Despite the small 11.9-gallon fuel tank, a new DX owner could expect a range of from 315 to 425 miles with a 10% fuel reserve.

At the beginning of the model year, the base Civic hatchback coupe went for $5,242—about $13,500 in 2020 dollars. Standard mechanical equipment on every Civic hatchback included front-wheel-drive, rack and pinion steering, and 155/80R13 steel-belted radial tires (a size still available thanks to Kumho) on 13-inch wheels. Inside, every Civic hatchback included a day/night rearview mirror and reclining front bucket seats.

The $6,292 DX—about $16,200 in today’s dollars and almost exactly what a base 2020 Honda Fit hatchback sedan goes for—added the aforementioned engine and transmission upgrades. It also included tinted glass, a rear window defroster, and reclining rear seatbacks.

There were few factory options beyond the automatic transmission, but many accessories listed in the brochure. Air conditioning was a dealer-installed option for the Civic—and would be so well into the 1990s.

Overall, the 1984 Civic sold very well—at 184,846, it set a new sales record for Honda. Third-generation Civics rarely show up for sale in the Hemmings Motor News classifieds but have more of a presence on eBay Motors—though most are either highly modified or with substantial miles.

Make mine Claret Red Metallic, please.

Other Hondas I have written about include the 1983 Civic S hatchback coupe, the 1984 CRX hatchback coupe, the 1985 CRX Si hatchback coupe, the 1986 Accord sedan, and the 1988 Civic sedan.

“Fuel injected fun.”

For 1985, Honda put one of its hottest four-cylinder engines into its tiny CRX, creating the Si. Si stood for Sports, injected and the new EW3/4 engine was a multiport fuel injected version of the carburetted 1.5 liter/91 ci engine that had been the top of the line in 1984.

Horsepower was 91 bhp at 5,500 rpm, up 20% from the carburetted engine. This increase doesn’t sound like much, but the CRX only weighed about 1,800 pounds—to get the same power to weight ratio in a 2014 Honda Civic coupe you would need 143 bhp (interestingly, the 2014 Civic coupe has a … 143 bhp engine). Car and Driver recorded a 0-60 time of 9.1 seconds (Motor Trend reported 8.5 seconds) and a top speed of 112 mph. The EPA fuel economy rating with the required five-speed manual transmission was 32 city/36 highway by the standards of the day (27/33 by today’s standards).

The $7,999 base price (about $17,700 in 2014 dollars) included a power sunroof, a rear wiper/washer, 175/70R13 tires (a size last seen on the 2005 Hyundai Accent) on 5.0-inch-wide alloy wheels, and a rear spoiler molded of soft urethane instead of the hard plastic in other CRXs.

Since the CRX Si came pretty loaded by Honda standards, there were few options. The Si received an exclusive black paint option in place of the white available in other CRXs—red or blue were also available. Air conditioning was available only as a dealer accessory, as were a rear speaker and a choice of various car stereos: Honda would continue to sell AC as a dealer accessory well into the 1990s.

I don’t see a lot of first-generation CRX Si’s come up for sale in either the Hemmings Motor News classifieds or on eBay Motors. However, there is good club support for the CRX at Red Pepper Racing.

Make mine Black, please. It looks sharp with the red band on new for 1985 charcoal gray body cladding.

Finding detailed information about the 1983 Honda Civic S turned out to be surprisingly hard, so this is my first “Short Take”—a post that I don’t consider long enough to be a full discussion.

“We Make It Simple”

Honda continued to hit on all (four) cylinders in 1983 with the introduction of the Civic S. At $6,399 (about $16,400 in 2019 dollars), the 1500 S was the top of the two-door hatchback line and over 30% more than the base 1300 model.

The engine in the S was not specific to it, but was the optional EM 1.5 liter/91 ci inline four with a three barrel carburetor, making 63 bhp. Mileage with the standard five-speed manual transmission was 35 city/46 highway by the standards of the day. 0-60 came in a little under 13 seconds, and top speed was about 99 mph for the last of second-generation Civics.

A handsome little car, the Civic S was fitted with firmer suspension (with rear stabilizer bar) and 165/70R13 Michelin tires (a size still available thanks to Vredestein) on 13-inch wheels. A red accent stripe encircled the S and set it apart from other Civics as well as a black grille and blackout paint around the window frames. Standard equipment on the S included a front spoiler, a tachometer, and a quartz digital clock.

Standard equipment on all 1983 Civics included front wheel drive, rack and pinion steering, power-assisted front disc/rear drum brakes, and MacPherson struts on all four corners. Inside, full carpeting, reclining front bucket seats with adjustable headrests, and a fold-down rear seat were included.

There were only two color choices for a 1983 Civic S. Make mine Black, please.

Updated February 2019.

“Are you using the right car for your gasoline?”

Even for the 1980s, the 1984 Honda Civic CRX two-seater was absolutely tiny, with a length of a little over 12 feet and a weight of around 1,800 pounds. The CRX debuted as a new model included with the introduction of the all-new third generation Civic line.

There were two engine choices for the CRX in 1984. The CRX HF (High Fuel economy) got a 1.3 liter/82 ci inline four with a three-barrel carburetor and all of 60 bhp—but this got you 46 city/52 highway by the standards of the day (still 38/47 by today’s standards). It also got you a 0-60 time of about 12 seconds.

Moving up to the DX got you the EW1 76 bhp 1.5 liter/91 ci inline four with a three-barrel carburetor—enough to reduce the 0-60 time to a little over 10 seconds and still get 32 city/38 highway by the eighties standards (28/35 by the current standard).

A five-speed manual was standard, but you could get a three-speed automatic with the DX—though I’m not at all sure why you’d want one. All CRXs included a front air dam, rear spoiler, flush-mounted glass, vented front disc brakes, and front and rear stabilizer bars.

The first generation CRX found its markets and sold quite well, with over 48,000 in 1984 and a total of 218,000 over four years. In 1985, the fuel injected 91 bhp Si would come along—but that is a topic for another blog post.

I see early CRX’s occasionally, but they’ve become rarer and rarer on the roads in the northeast. I have yet to see one at an auto show, but I’d love to.

Make my 1984 CRX a DX in blue (with the standard metallic gray lower rocker panels), please.

Updated February 2019.