I still have a number of my curbside finds to post, and obviously this one is from early winter. The bright orange Civic really popped out that dark, wet day, and I braved the traffic on West 11th to get a good profile shot.
It’s really a three-fer, as there’s genuine CC’s in front and back of it. Oh, and I misidentified the Civic; it’s actually a Ferrari.
Here’s the proof of that. The fact that it has all of 69 cavallinos under the hood did not discourage this owner from identifying it for what it really is, in spirit if not the flesh.
The other two: right in front of it was a fine Accord coupe (gen4), keeping company with its little brother.Or were they driven by two vintage Hondaphiles?
Bringing up the rear is the Geo Metro. Just another wet day in Eugene. But…after one of the longest wet winters ever, it’s over (although we’re having a bit of a shower at the moment). We planted our veggie garden this weekend, finally.
Nice car!
Appreciate your posts. 👍.However as I have previously posted, NOT ONE of these vehicles holds ANY appeal for this OLD 🐕 DOG who is deeply rooted in the GREAT AMERICAN 🇺🇸 LAND YACHTS!
Then don’t read the post. There isn’t only ignorant “American muscle only” people reading.
I wouldn’t hesitate to buy that car today if sold by Honda. That is what a Civic is. Straight and to the point versus what they call a Civic today. Alas I can’t and yet, being the old dog I am, I can see why this is the perfect car for around town and short hops saving the yachts for long voyages.
I had a 83 hatchback, model 1300FE with a 5-speed, A/C, and aftermarket cruise even. I miss it nearly every day.
Are you sure that’s a Geo Metro, and not a Pontiac Firefly?
Yeah, I know they’re all the same. :))
It does look like a Pontiac hood badge. I don’t think the Firefly was sold here in that generation; maybe a Canadian import?
Haven’t seen one of those Civics in a reeeally long time, so long I’d actually forgotten about them, thanks for snapping it! Honda in it’s prime, and as said above, just about the perfect vehicle for short trips around town.
I first saw one while visiting our camp in Spalding’s Bay on Lake Champlain, it was mid-Fall with colorful leaves just as in that picture above and someone there had just bought one, first one I’d ever seen, like a little Accord.
As the US (thankfully!) exited the Malaise Era, there were *so many choices* available to new-car buyers. Ranging from brilliant to awful in design and execution, but there were, seemingly, hundreds and hundreds of models for sale to the public in all possible shapes, sizes, and prices.
Those days seem to be behind us, sadly. Manufacturers reduce the choices to (mostly) high-volume, most profitable vehicles, and given up on offering the ones from the lower selling fringes of the market.
And if you want anything that’s not a truck or CUV, you’d better be content buying used.
I don’t know about that unless you’re confining yourself to American brands and even then…Tesla Model 3, Model S, Mustang, as well as domestically produced Accord, Civic, Camry, Corolla, Legacy, Impreza, Versa, Altima, Sentra, Sonata, Elantra, Kia K5, Rio, Forte as well as from overseas or south of the border Jetta, Mazda 3, Audi A3, A4, A6, A8, various Mercedes and BMW sedans and coupes…never mind Lexus and Infiniti and likely a bunch I’m forgetting. Seems like plenty of choices really, the ones that are gone are generally the ones that their makers for whatever reason couldn’t make money on, often through their own faults, current or remembered…
I can’t say I disagree with reducing choices to those of higher volume and profitable, it’s not like I myself generally like taking on work that produces a loss. If they keep selling unprofitable vehicles they won’t be around at all, how does that serve anyone?
@ Jim: I’m hyperbolizing a little, but only a little. And if you want a “domestic” — whatever that means in the age of NAFTA — the pickings are especially thin.
Yeah I figured, and yes domestic certainly isn’t domestic depending on where you are sitting. My own belief is a car that is designed and built in the States is far more domestic and benefits far more people on the ground here than a car whose badge may be HQ’d stateside but is built in Mexico, Canada, Korea, China or elsewhere, not that I have any particular loyalty beyond what happens to suit my purposes better at the time of purchase. All things being equal otherwise, a Camry or Accord or Outback seems more domestic to me than a Ford Fusion or Buick Envision, it certainly directly puts more bread on the table of more people a few states away to the east of me than the others do.
FWIW, I read in automotive news the other day that sedan sales are showing an uptick, especially among younger buyers. It may be just because they’re cheaper but there’s also a sense that young folks may not want to be seen in the CUVs that they grew up in.
I may be a tad bitter that just as B-segment hatchbacks achieved a high level of overall competence (marred in the case of the Fiesta by Ford’s PowerShift experiment and I guess the infotainment system), they were basically all withdrawn from the U.S. market. Just as I had reached the point where I was thinking, “Y’know, a Fit or Mazda2 really makes more practical sense than a Civic or Mazda3 sedan, and is giving away little,” then poof.
My own family datapoint:
The 20y.o. is perfectly happy with her Jeep, at least while I pay for the gas.
The 16y.o. loves his Jaguar station wagon, at least while I pay for repairs.
The 14y.o. is angling for either an EV, a Fiat 500, or, get this, a black Ford Fusion hybrid. I’m not sure what happened there but he is somehow keenly aware of gas prices and probably thinks the trough might be empty when it comes his turn…he may be right!
Very nice Civic! And, well said Evan.
It’s all part of the overt and covert strategy to get Americans out of their cars.
Part A: we have the overt push to electric cars in the form of media and tax breaks; the covert push away from ICE for the reasons you mention, plus burdening ICE with stop/start, direct injection, turbos, CVTs–all more fragile than the systems they replace, costly to repair/maintain, first by pushing them to electric, and taking ICE vehicles off the road.
Part B: using electric platforms for driverless cars, which in practice will mean autonomous vehicle SERVICES. Uber/Lyft sans driver. The market will ration mobility to a far greater extent than has been the case in the US, and even in the West and Japan/Korea.
We are at entering a 2nd malaise era. Unlike the first, where technology bailed the driving public out and gave us a golden era of reliable cars, several of which ARE curbside classics, this 2nd malaise era will see technology used to get Americans out of their cars, especially those who can’t afford them.
this 2nd malaise era will see technology used to get Americans out of their cars, especially those who can’t afford them.
If they can’t afford them, then there won’t be any need to get them out of their cars, right? Or is your logic going over my head?
Many Americans own things they can’t afford (usually with a car loan/mortgage/revolving credit etc) so owning and affording are rarely mutually exclusive.
We’re getting into semantics. My definition is that if one qualified for the loan or mortgage, they could afford it. If not, they wouldn’t have qualified or it would have been repossessed.
Now whether these decisions are financially prudent is another matter.
Or perhaps:
Stop/start, DI, and CVTs all save me gasoline cost. I’m good with that, from strictly that perspective it’s a worthwhile tradeoff given even if they do break (which isn’t proven or universal, some are plenty better than others) I’d rather pay someone local to repair it than some sheik lobbing shells at our military to fill up. It’s not like a Dodge Caravan as a random banal example without any of the above tech is/was the most reliable vehicle in the world. Sometimes it’s not just all about the money.
Turbos add the power I crave, I’m good with that too. Never had a problem with any turbo vehicle I’ve owned, numerous over the decades now. It’s all about the engineering. But again, there seem to be plenty of non-turbo ICEs with engine issues. A V-8 has about twice the moving parts of an Inline 4, ergo twice as much to break, right? A four is worse than a three which is worse than a twin. Is your Utopia driving thumper-engined vehicles? I loved my KLR650 but don’t really want that engine in my car.
EVs do all of the above (same me gas money and give me power), and even better there is no Petro-state involved, less to break overall, less noise, more interior space, more power and so far fewer returns to the dealer than any other car I’ve owned over the same mileage for repairs and maintenance.
And who the heck wants to leave their house anymore with random shootings everywhere? The people of Texas must be loving their freedom to go to the mall. And die there while trying on a pair of cargo shorts. Or at a graduation party. Or while at the supermarket. Or in second grade. Why can’t people “defend” their homes with a few cans of bear spray instead of shooting their own kid that comes home late and is mistaken for a prowler? Maybe take care of that issue first so people will actually even want to drive to the mall again…
But if your plan/vision/whatever it is gets our population out of their cars and on their own too feet to walk a few blocks or more every now and again, so much the better, I for one refuse to use Uber and Lyft if only to not perpetuate a non-living wage scheme for drivers that seem unable to do the math for themselves. We have an obesity epedemic anyway, let’s all walk or ride a bike. However if it ends up being cheaper to one day have a robot in a JohnnyCab come and pick me up and take me where I want to go, I’ll probably do it. I don’t personally drive the city bus when I take it (and don’t know if the driver is sober), I don’t fly the plane when I fly somewhere (and several pilots have decided to end it all with their passengers over the last decade or two, never mind the non-sober ones), and I don’t know who is really driving the train when I take that. So what does it really matter if it’s some unknown and perhaps unsatisfied with their life meatbag ferrying you around or a computer? For all intents and purposes you are already letting others control you. Don’t forget being tracked with tollbooth-devices, just don’t forget to take your cellphone with you…
As far as Evan’s original thoughts – it’s great to have hundreds of choices but if none of us actually PURCHASES those choices, manufacturers will (rightly) think we don’t want them. I’d like to see the list of which cars Evan has purchased new, I do not believe there are many recent small cars or any car that has been discontinued recently on there. So why would a maker keep making them? For who? Us desktop jockeys that clamor for them online but won’t buy them? It’s like the people here worshiping the Mustang yet moaning about how it will probably go away but at the same time refuse to purchase a new one to support it and show there is demand. ProTip: stop waiting for automakers to build used cars that you can buy for 50 cents on the dollar. Someone has to buy them new first…
Per my COAL series, I purchased two cars brand new. And you’re gonna laugh your head off, Jim. They were a completely stripped 1989 Dodge Omni, and a completely stripped 1995 Ford Ranger. 🙂
Haha, there you go! They waited you out for two and a half decades…I guess you gotta keep feeding the beast. 🙂
OMG this was a good read. 👍
Never paid much attention to these cars then. But this one looks nice. Esp. with these rims.
Ferrari? Looks more like a Triumph (Acclaim). 🙂
As in, OWNED by Vic Ferrari. So the bellhops at the diner could make sure they brought back the right car.
It is obviously not a Ferrari, because it is not bright red. No other reason whatsoever.
Anyone scoffing TOO hard at the idea that Ferrari might make something in this class should look up the ASA 1000 GT, informally known as “La Ferrarina.”
(An account, by no less than Karl Ludvigsen: https://www.collierautomedia.com/asa-ferrarina-1000-gt)
I forgot Tatra87 covered it as well:
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/automotive-histories/automotive-history-italian-deadly-sins-peninsular-peccadilloes-part-2-asa-1000-gt-a-tragedy-in-three-acts/
Clean design, colour, and wheels, really do give it a fresh appeal. Nice job by the owner!
Nice to see one of these old Civics. In retrospect, one of the strong points of the design was that they didn’t look cheap, somehow, compared to equivalent Datsuns or Toyotas, Mazdas or Mitsubishis. But Ferrari – really? I suppose it might be packing a more modern VTEC, but even so that’s quite some upbadging.
Not a sedan, but mine’s orange. 🙂
Very nice work, Peter!
Well, I mean, it’s got European headlamps on it, so really, it might as well be a Ferrari, no? Although these appear to be Hellas, and Ferrari usually used Marchals or Carellos.
I had the hatchback version of this facelifted (rectangular headlights) 2nd gen. I thought it was a fine car for everything from urban commuting to auto crossing to forest road exploring to long interstate road trips. And though I appreciated the lower cost and practicality of the hatchback for my use, I found these 4 doors to be superbly styled and quite upscale within my recent college graduate professional circle. I think the next gen hatchbacks and wagons were even more special, but I think Honda really dropped the ball with the 3rd gen sedan styling. Fortunately the 4th gen sedan recovered very nicely. After that the Civic sedan mostly got dull, or at worst hideous.
I had the wagon with a 5 speed in 1980. A very handy car for getting around the Bay Area particularly Berkeley and Castro Valley. Even took it down to San Diego twice with fabulous gas mileage.
Lane Transit District Emerald Express in the vanguard with a left-side door!
He should have badged it as a Triumph Acclaim