(first posted 4/5/2017) It’s easy to forget or understate what an absolute bombshell Honda dropped on us, GM, and the small-car market in the fall of 1983 with its all-new 3rd generation Civics. It arrived in four completely distinct and unique body styles; the two-seater CRX, the relatively conservative four-door sedan, the sporty hatchback, and the Jack-of -all-trades hi-boy wagon. Nobody had ever attempted anything nearly as ambitious as this before; a full family of small cars, each perfectly optimized for its intended mission. Which was, of course, to utterly devastate and demoralize GM, Ford and Chrysler.
It must have been an ugly day on the 14th floor of GM’s headquarters when Roger Smith and his acolytes first realized what just hit them. GM’s new 1982 J-cars, although originally designed to compete against the Accord, stumbled at that goal right out of the starting gate. Now the J-cars were under attack from below, and GM had nothing except its ancient, hoary Chevette. The 1984 Civics were the coffin nails in GM’s small car program. No wonder Roger Smith went off the deep end and decided to launch his ill-fated Saturn moon-shot at about this time. The Civic made me do it!
We’ve have covered the sedan and the wagon and the CRX (sort of), but not the hatchback, which along with the sedan were the two highest volume sellers.
And given that the Civic had essentially defined the new sub-compact FWD hatchback genre (in the US), this does represent its seminal body style. But the new gen3 version was a huge jump stylistically, and one that would set the basic proportions right until the end of this body style.
As a refresher, here’s the gen2, which was a direct evolution of the original Civic.
The gen 3 was a clean sheet car, and pioneered the low-cowl and Kammback design that came to define Hondas and Civic hatchbacks in particular for quite some time. This black hatch is an Si, which arrived in 1986 for the last two years of this generation, and was the one to really want, and get. Instead of the regular Civic’s 76 hp 1488cc SOHC four (with carburetor), the Si had the same spunky 91 hp fuel injected version of the 12 valve four as the CRX Si.
Here’s what the Si engine looks like; it was the appetizer for what was yet to come; a first taste of so many legendary Honda high performance fours that would come to utterly redefine what a small car engine was capable of. It was an engine that made a GM’s pushrod fours feel utterly obsolete. The whole Civic-tuner cult started right here.
Needless to say, even more powerful versions were available in Japan and other markets, but 91 net hp in such a light and lithe little car made for superb performance at the time, with 0-60 in some 9 seconds or less. And needless to say, these cars were an absolute ball to drive, with their slick-shifting transmissions, highly responsive steering, and superb handling thanks to a low center of gravity and wide track along with a well-sorted suspension of struts in the front and a simple but effective beam rear axle. The way everything worked together was the key; there was simply no weak link.
These 1986-1987 Civics also had a revised front end with aerodynamic composite headlights. And the automatic transmission now had four gears. When was a four-speed automatic available on all Cavalier models? 1996. As in ten years later.
The interiors were every bit as ahead of the pack as the engines: a low dash with unparalleled sight lines and a instrument binnacle containing all the requisite instruments in simple and highly legible form. The tachometer in these was something that got plenty of eyeball time, as the FI Si engine was a happy revver at a time when that was still largely not the case. In just about every way, this generation Civic was a good 5-10 year ahead of much of the competition, at least that much in comparison to the domestic small cars of the time.
This is the interior of the blue DX 1500; it’s an automatic, and the interior is not as nicely trimmed, but it was all done cleanly and with good quality materials.
Am I biased about these Civics? You bet. We briefly had a gen2 wagon, and then a gen3, one of the first ones in Santa Monica at the time. It was a revaluation, on a number of levels, most of all the packaging, which has always bee a big deal for me, given my height and for whatever other reason. Maybe it’s a Teutonic thing. This little tall-boy wagon was amazingly roomy, given its tiny overall length. I used to hop in the huge back seat with our two little kids back there on road trips. I can see myself there now.
And although Stephanie’s wagon had the automatic by necessity, it was still a ball to drive, especially to our regular hikes up at Topanga State Park via Topanga Canyon Road, one the classic drives in the LA area. My kids learned early that experiencing centrifugal forces is a good thing. And you wonder why I drive an xB? It’s the closest thing there is to one of these Civic wagons.
No power and electric steering, just good old mechanical manual steering, which required just a wee bit of effort parking but was not ever a chore, back in the days when folks still had some muscle tone even if they didn’t go to the gym. And once the wheels were rolling, there’s nothing better than the unfiltered feel of the road through a mechanical steering system. Oh well; progress.
In the fall of 1983, this was the face of progress, and the Civic set a standard so far ahead, that none of the competition could ever really hope to match it. And for much of the time ever since, that’s been mostly true. But never as much so as then; the Civic’s finest moment.
CC 1987 Civic Sedan: The Gift That Is Still Giving G Beckenbaugh
CC 1987 Civic 4WD wagon (Shuttle): The Automotive Swiss Army Knife PN
And I can count on seeing at least 4-5 of these every second Saturday at Cars & Coffee. Invariably tuned within an inch of their lives.
I’d be surprised to see any tuned 3rd gens. 4th, on the other hand…
The 3rd gen Si hatch is my favorite Honda of all time.
I remember seeing all of these at the auto show in Boston when the were introduced. You’re right Paul, the impact of all 4 coming out at the same time blew me away. And yet, I’ve never owned a Honda. Too perfect maybe, I always end up with something awkward instead.
We had a pair of 3-door hatches, but the next generation (an ’89 DX and a ’90 base). Sold the ’89 when we learned we were expecting our first child, but the ’90 stayed with us almost eight years when it was succeeded by a ’98 Caravan (the boys simply didn’t fit in the back of the Honda any more on long trips with luggage).
It was simply (intentional choice of word) one of the best cars I’ve ever owned and driven. We shopped Honda when looking for a successor, but they had been priced right out of our budget by that late 1990s.
I’ve never driven or even ridden in a third-gen (although a college classmate had a CRX), but it sounds like ours had much the same DNA.
These two-door kammback hatches always looked like two door wagons to me, and as such appealed to me deeply.
These were huge. But the other 3 body styles made these almost invisible to me.
The first two generations of Civic were great cars but were niche products. This generation hit the mainstream and did so with a level of polish and refinement previously unknown in the segment. Two of my wife’s siblings bought Civic wagons and they were excellent cars.
It’s interesting that Honda completely revised the chassis on these cars from the previous generation, which had struts all around. Two notable technical points: the front struts have torsion bar springs, not coils, to keep the wheelhouse height down, and the rear beam is basically the opposite of a Volkswagen-style torsion beam, articulated to prevent it from twisting like a spring.
I think the success of Hondas of this era lay in the fact that Honda really sweated the tiny details even on low-end cars. They were also in that exciting phase where you’re starting to succeed, but you’re still growing and looking for ways to steal customers away from your bigger and blander competitors. Toyota in this era was also thorough, but the effect was of relentlessness more than vibrancy. Honda kept trying to impress you, and not just in the showroom.
It’s a pity that letting the young and enthusiastic engineers have their head eventually backfired somewhat (more in the home market than here), putting Honda on a much more conservative track.
(If anyone’s curious what I’m talking about regarding the rear axle, the American patent is US4458917A.)
Honda’s former, weird semi-premium positioning/pricing here in Australia meant these were much less common than the Corolla, Nissan Pulsar, Mitsubishi Colt and Mazda 323, among others. There was a significant gulf in pricing. Therefore, I’ve never seen this generation of 3-dr in the metal, although a childhood neighbour had the subsequent generation of 3-dr. This one was one of the best-looking Civics though.
Interesting the ride/handling was so lauded when it had a simple beam axle out the back. Not that that was unusual, as beam axles have been common in compacts well into the 20th century (see: Cruze, jetta). But I figured Honda would have had an all-independent set-up instead of the same basic suspension layout as the GM cars.
The current generation of Civic is EVERYWHERE now in Aus. The last one was also affordable, thanks to Thai sourcing, but the new one genuinely looks desirable and suddenly Honda sales are out of the doldrums.
So true about the unrealistic pricing. Ours always seemed to have a specification deficit, too – never as good as Car and Driver led me to expect….
Loaded ex JDM Civics have all the fruit ex GF had one I had a gen 2 NZ assembly with no plumbers nightmare on the manifolds, good cars not great.
Yes Hondas were severely overpriced in OZ for what you got, I remember that about them then back in NZ they were just another dunga cheap and nasty.
As a kid I had briefly an 81 civic. Tremendous car. I remember how easy it was to shift gears and it handlled nicely. Had it for about 6 months till the body succumbed to the police. Mechanically the 2nd generation was a marvel (all Honda’s esp at that time) were mechanical jewels. I remember wanting thew new 84 civic… But that was the first time I experienced a car without depreciation. Couldn’t buy thew new one even after ten years had passed.
Don’t forget that the bones of this car formed the basis of the first Acura Integra. These cars were that good.
This car, and the 1986 Accord were really the final 1-2 punch to Detroit.
Ya that 86 accord was one of the greats. Everything about it was perfect.
In 1986 I was comparing the Accord hatch to the VW GTi (I know they are different sized models, but they were the two I was considering. I really liked the Accord, but even back then you had to move up in models to get what you wanted, in my case I already had fuel injection on my ’78 Scirocco, and wanted it also for my then new car, but I could only get it with the LXi model that year (later of course it moved down the line until you could no longer get carburated model). Otherwise, I really didn’t want to get the LXi, plus it was significantly more expensive (and the Accord was already pricey)..the GTi had more of the “sporty” features like close ratio transmission, 4 wheel disk brakes, (manual) sunroof and steering, and of course fuel injection…which I was more of a fan of back then (not so much anymore). I went with the VW, which I owned 15 years, until my current car (also a VW). I still have the Accord brochure somewhere; I was sorry they dropped the hatchback in 1989, and later even the Civic hatchback was dropped…wonder what I would have replaced the Accord with had I gone for it back then (probably wouldn’t have held onto it for the full 30 years).
The 1983 model year new Hondas (the Civic line and Prelude) were beautiful and dynamic. The seating position was a fresh and pleasantly new experience, due to the low cowl and forward position of the steering wheel. The double wishbone front suspension delivered wonderfully flat cornering at speeds uncanningly higher than a driver would expect from such small, economy tires. And the high revving engine was mated to accelerator linkage that encouraged such frivolity. They were far ahead of the competition (except for A/C performance), and Honda dealers capitalized on it (no discounts, but plenty of “market availability” mark-ups).
No double wishbones in Civics of this generation — struts with longitudinal torsion bars in front, sway bearing beam axle in back.
One of my friends bought a new 84 Civic kammback. I was impressed with it’s quiet and visibility, as well as how tight it seemed.
Another one bought a CRX and had it for 20 years, he may still have it for all I know.
And a co-worker had the facelifted version {89 ? 90?} [ a mistake to my eyes, the squashed front and crisp details were tampered with and ruined the 84’s styling themes. They still don’t look as good]. 4 door sedan. And when the engine finally gave out he replaced it with ….. a used or rebuilt engine and kept driving it.
Definitely accelerated the exodus away from the Big Three.
In 1989 I walked out of a tavern and ran into an old high school friend who showed me his new Civic Si Hatchback. We were just out of college and it was his first major post-graduation purchase. I was driving an ’86 Conquest at the time, and while I looked the car over and was appropriately complimentary I walked away thinking, “He spent that much on THAT?!?” A few years later I remembered that evening and realized how blind I’d been.
Honda engines did make GMs iron pushrod fours obsolete, yet, remarkably, GM still sold those Lordstown Lemons by the bushel.
These materpiece small cars did us all a favor. If it wasn’t for Civic, Corolla, and Sentra, we’d all be driving domestic $40,000 cars on par with Cavaliers, Reliant Ks, and Escorts.
A dear family friend bought a new ’86 Buick Skyhawk which lasted ONE. YEAR.
And the dealer laughed at her when the engine died at one year old.
She went to Honda and NEVER looked back. Her ’87 Civic lasted 15 years and 200,000 miles. Replaced with a CR-V and then 11 years later, the CR-V she drives today.
Multiply that experience by about a million, and it’s not hard to see why, even with the great small cars GM builds today, it’s hard for them to make headway. Of course scandals like the faulty ignition switches don’t help. But it can be argued that had the General built competent small cars all these years, the automotive landscape would be vastly different today.
I remember when the apartment manager where I lived (in a GM and Chrysler parts factory town) bought a new early 1980s Pontiac J2000 wagon with a timing belt that had a 40K mile replacement interval.
The timing belt broke at 36K miles!
A co-worker and I bought new cars the same week of March, 1984. He bought a Chevy Cavalier four-door in blue. I bought a Honda Civic four-door in blue. He was very proud of his car, offered me a ride in his, which, to be polite, I accepted.
I then offered him a ride in the Civic. Within minutes, the color was draining from his face and he grew very quiet. He knew he’d chosen poorly.
My girlfriend back in the Summer/Fall of 1986 had one of these 3-doors… an ’84 DX if memory serves, in that light blue metallic color that was so popular. I think her Dad bought it for her new for when she went off to college. Having had a few friends with the previous generations of Civics, I was less than impressed, not really being much of a small car fan.
Then one Saturday, I surprised her by taking her car over to my parents house while she was studying to change the oil in it (she had let it go WAY too long). Thinking that I would be quite bored with what I perceived to be an econobox, I was quite surprised and impressed. She had the 5 speed stick, that great high revving and smooth engine, and to top all of that, it handled great. Still I thought, a Civic is just not a car I’d ever own…
…yeah right…
30 years later, Honda impressed me once again, and I bought a new daily driver…
This reads like a love letter. I love the Civic myself.
The suspension wasn’t the greatest on this generation though. Didn’t have enough travel.
For me peak Civic was the 5th generation. Amazing DOHC VTEC engine (sorry you guys didn’t get it in the US), double wishbone suspension all around and super sleek styling.
In fact the 4th, 5th and 6th generations are all awesome. They share basically the same architecture.
One afternoon about 25 years ago my buddy Lee and I were out at his dad’s farm trying to get his ’74 Alfa GTV running right; something about the fuel tank not venting properly. When he thought he’d figured it out he would take off down the road and I’d follow in his well-used Civic 2-door. Those Tennessee roads were twisty devils and Lee as a driver had just two speeds, Stop and GO!! He was also very familiar with both the roads and the Alfa, and it was my first drive in the Gen 3 Civic and on those roads, but by the time we’d hit three corners I was fully locked in – the car was that good.
We made I think four trips out, and covered probably 50 very quick miles or more on that loop, before the tank and fuel line were sufficiently cleared to be long-term reliable. At that point I was almost disappointed that we weren’t going to go play some more, but Lee was too bushed for anything but to put the Alfa away and have some beers.
I’d been a fan of Honda machinery since my first rides on a 150, 160 and Super Hawk, and driving an N600 and early Civic, but that put a big bright cap on it.
Remembering these competition-crushing Hondas is a sad reminder of how contemporary Honda has lost its way.
No doubt this car, along with the progression of the Accord, finally put Honda on the map in the Midwest. At the bottom end, I knew a few girls that received new CRXs from their dads, instead of the Fieros that a few others got.
And, the kids getting out of college that were reading Consumer Reports were shedding their Pintos and Monte Carlos for Honda products in droves by the late ’80s.
We had an ’84 for five years, mostly trouble free, ’til the head gasket started leaking in ’95. Oddly, I barely remember it now.
I think this might actually be peak functional car as well. It has everything folks actually need. Sure there are not too many luxuries but as far as getting from point A to B with minimal cost AND having a connection to the road they can’t be beat. Its too bad no took up the design and marketed to developing nations like the boxy Sentra in Mexico.
I’ve never actually ridden in a 3rd-generation Civic, though I remember when they were seemingly everywhere. Still see them from time to time, but getting pretty rare these days. I’ve ridden in several 4th-gen cars though, which shared the same virtues in slightly more streamlined form. The only ones I’ve driven have been much later (8th and 9th-gen).
My next-door neighbor would be able to appreciate their virtues though. He’s told me of how he had to wait 6 months to get the CRX he wanted back in ’84 (he wanted a white one, and none of the area dealers had or would order one so he just had to wait it out.) Kept that car for 15 years until it failed inspection due to rust, then sold it to a neighborhood kid who fixed the rust and drove it for another couple years. He currently owns two Civic hatches, a ’93 Si and a ’99 EX.
One of my bucket-list cars. I’ve driven only one but damn it was fun. Any my 87 Integra only added to my enthusiasm for 80’s Toyotas/Hondas. Best cars ever built.
My parents then the wife I had an 87 sedan with the automatic. No fuel injection either. That was the most horrid car I have ever had the misfortune to drive. Staggeringly underpowered, a press on the throttle would get you two gears lower and an increase in the already intolerable noise level, but no real increase in speed. Seats that were hard as a rock and not shaped properly that had me in pain in fifteen minutes or less. Terrible aero design as one couldn’t drive on the freeway with all the windows down without a brain pounding air thumping resonance in the cabin. No ac in this one and it lived in southern CA. The absolute worst shitbox penalty ride ever. This car and my dad’s 75 CVCC that he bought new and cancered from the inside out without ever seeing snow put me off the Honda car brand for life.
I still remember when I first saw the Kammback Civic in the metal; it was that stunning. It was in fall 1983 at the Panorama entrance to Skyline Drive in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park.
And I later got to drive one, a friend’s blue ’84 with a manual as I recall; what a hoot!
Honda at its finest. Released when Mr. Honda was still the company’s “Most Senior Adviser.”
Browsing the classifieds as a kid “scouting out” what my first car might be (or daydreaming more realistically) I gravitated again and again to these and their fourth gen equivalent. They popped up often in decent nick and felt (to my adolescent imagination) like a possibly-attainable version of my Mum’s Volvo 480 (She had two between 1988 and 1994, both of which I idolised).
Of course I never saved up enough to buy my own car (teenagers owning cars in 1990s Britain was almost unheard of) and, before I got my license in ’95, Mum’s early retirement saw her 480 down-sized for a FIAT Panda (which I got insured on and – a few years later at University – was lucky enough to get as a hand-me-down) I never did get to drive a little three-door Civic and remain somewhat wistful about them.
Peak Civic indeed! And in many ways, peak Honda as well. I only owned a 2nd gen, but had many friends with 3rd (and 4th) gens and spent a lot of time behind the wheel and as a passenger in these cars. Aside from the styling and packaging, which were really innovative for the time, I think it was the driving experience that really sealed it with these cars. The previous Civic was in my opinion a highly under-rated driver’s car, but the 3rd gen, especially as an Si really hit the mark, unique for any Japanese car of the time, and (again my opinion) equal or better than the VW GTI which felt heavier and harsher to me, especially the Mk2. The only “miss” I think was the 4 door version of the 3rd gen, with awkward proportions that were totally addressed by the 4th gen.
Great piece!
Does justice to a great car. I say, “if I could buy a new one, I would”. I probably would, actually. It was simple, fun, economical.
However, over the course of 30 years, the roads in the US have deteriorated (rougher), highway speeds have increased (traffic permitting), and A/C has become universal.
So, would it work so well today?
Replacing a three-year old Toyota Starlet, my brand-new ’86 Civic Si, nicknamed “Siborg”, in white, moon roof, was the best overall car I’ve ever owned. Power-to-weight was good, thanks to hand-crank windows, no air-conditioning or several other bloated luxuries (even came without a radio!)
So ergonomically comfortable, responsive, attractive (for an econobox), durable, flexible and reliable through the day I gave it away 17 years later (it was rusting through at the moon roof corners, not good for our move from San Francisco to the Mid-Atlantic winters & spring rains.) It *never* left me stranded.
For the first years, commuted 120 miles a day, and maintained it faithfully. Later my interest drifted to BMW motorcycles of the era, and my ’86 Si sat forlorn except for moving it to the other side of the street on street cleaning days (the worst thing you can do to an engine!)
The closest this car ever came to leaving me stranded was a fuel pump failure, but even that occurred right at a service station, where the mechanic was able to replace the part promptly.
Though my beloved ’99 Crown Victoria ran a very close second, that ’86 Si comes out on the top of my list. It did so well what it was designed to do. Since 1986, I’ve always had some kind of Honda in the garage (two, currently), but none ever had the charisma of that ’86 Si-borg.
Hatchback? No, that’s a shooting brake.
I must have missed this the first time around. I remember these well, because a Gen3 was the first Honda I ever drove. The car was a few years old by that point but I was blown away by how silky smooth and tight it felt compared to the clapped out domestics I was used to driving.
A real eye opener for me, and when I heard people disparaging Hondas after that I would always ask “but have you driven one?” and the answer was usually no…
These hatchback Honda Civics were very common here not long ago a girlfriend had one but not the SI she had the poverty version it went ok for what it was which is basically a tin can on wheels it was of course a used import and as such was on its last legs the engine was shot with 140,000 kms on the odo plus it had been in a minor prang on the passenger side that caved the B pillar badly, I drove it a few times and had just sold my gen2 5 door Civic hatch so was sort of used to Hondas but the sporty looking model put me off them.
I had this exact car – 86 Civic Si; but in red.
Best all -around car i’ve ever owned.
When I see that sedan I think of Richard Bucket’s car, it’s even the same color! Only Honda could have pulled off a car with enough attributes and quality to be able to get away with calling it a Rover in England. Cheeky!
I had a new ’90 SI model, best car I’ve ever had. A few years later I bought a really nice low mile, ’77 280Z 2+2 five speed. The Civic was just as roomy for the driver, and the back seat could actually hold the three high school kids that were in our car pool. Performance and handling were about the same, though the Honda got at least ten mpg better than the older Datsun. These older Hondas were really the peak of the marque. The ’97 Acura CL (four) I later had lacked the hatch, but the folding rear seat, added some utility.
I don’t know why I drifted away from these types of efficient cars, I probably just wanted something different .
The 1992-95 version is better, more safety equipment and crumple zones. Also, better performance. Buddy had an ’86, then a ’92, both Si models, a night and day difference.