- The Honda Civic is one
of the most successful small cars of all time
but the Honda Civic is more than just a sales success.
The Civic has a history that dates back nearly 50 years,
totaling 10 generations.
Scoring big movie fame, built a reputation
for being reliable, economical, fun, and affordable.
It's praised for its ability to just sip on gas,
run to a million miles and has huge support
for aftermarket parts.
And the following behind the Honda's performance variant
of the Civic, the Si is nothing to be slept on.
It's no wonder these cars were so successful
and have such a huge following
and why you see so many on the road still today.
Along the way I think we've all probably considered one
at one point or another.
But what makes a good Civic Si
and what generation Civic Si is the best?
Which one is gonna be the most fun, the most reliable
and the most economical or even the most powerful?
Or rather which one has the best combination
of all of those desirable traits?
Well, buckle up boys
because that God damn Honda seatbelt chime
is pissing me off.
(dramatic upbeat music)
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Even though the Civic is coming up on its 50th birthday,
it wouldn't be until the Civic's third generation
that we received any sort of sport model.
And by we received a sport model
I mean Japan in 1984 got 122 horsepower Civic Si.
And the U.S. got an 85 horsepower Honda Civic S,
no i with the carburetor 1.5 liter EW1.
In '85 though Honda gave us the first-generation
of Si with the Civic CRX Si arriving in the U.S.
And that was supposed to be
the star sport model for the brand.
And although it did well enough, people were still sticking
to the slightly more convenient Sedan
and Hatchback variant of the regular Civic.
But the 1986 model year, the Civic Si Hatchback
would be born and both the CRX
and the Civic Si models shared the 91 horsepower
1.5 liter fuel injected single overhead cam engine.
Which sounds really slow and don't get me wrong
it really was, considering the nine seconds
zero to 60 and all, but it was fun.
It was lightweight.
It was very nimble for the time and the CRX
and Civic Si really took the practical hot hat game
to the next level in that mid to late 80's section.
It went on to win tons of awards
until its last model year before the new generation, 1987.
For the Civic Si's second generation ranging
from 88 to 1991, we were given similar treatment
in the U.S. as the third gen Si
as the third gen Civic with the only Si coming stateside
being the CRX from 1988 model year
with a 105 horsepower, 1.6 liter.
Come 1989 though in a Civic Si Hatchback
would be reintroduced again
and it was yet another smash hit.
Although arguably less good looking than the CRX.
Power would also get a bump
for both the Hatchback and the CRX Si
boasting a blistering 108 horsepower
from the same 1.6 liter D16A6.
But with a 2300 pound curb weight,
the cars were plenty quick for the era.
A relatively respectful 16 second quarter mile time
and dominate a tight road course.
But the new larger engine and power bump
wasn't the only thing Honda had up it's sleeve
for the second generation of Si.
In fact, there was a number of upgrades,
including a better flow in the exhaust system,
a five speed manual transmission sport front seats
and vastly improved handling from an A-arm suspension
in the both front and the rear
with stabilizer bars also making its way
to both the front and the rear of the car.
Needless to say, handling greatly improved over
the previous Si semi-independent rear beam suspension.
The second generation Si also gave us probably
one of the most missed front wheel drive Civic platforms
of all time, the CRX.
The CRX Si from this generation will go down
in history as one of the greats
and is a personal favorite of mine.
For 1992 through 1995,
the Civic Si's third generation Honda's Si nameplate
would only land on that of the Hatchback
and would ditch the CRX altogether.
Moving to a much more aerodynamically styled body,
the cars took a much needed turn to the future
although it does look pretty dated by today's standards.
Power was up to 125
from a 1.6 liter single overhead cam engine
thanks to Honda's variable valve timing system
famously called Vtech making its way to the Civic
which for this generation was only on the intake camp.
Now, you could also get this engine
in the Civic Sedan and the coupe in the EX trim
but the Si hatch was really the way to go
from a performance standpoint
with its four wheel disc brakes that
in 1994 got antilock brakes
and upgraded suspension components and all kinds
of other standard features like cruise control, a moon roof
and rear speakers were optional later in that generation.
Even though weight was up about 150 pounds here
over the last generation,
the third generation Civic Si was still a bit quicker
and out-handled the previous generation.
But the Si didn't actually sell super well.
Being able to get the same engine in a cheaper platform
despite the upgrades, by 1995 the last year
of the third generation
people were more interested in the cheaper version
that's still got the same engine instead
of having all that fancy Si stuff.
And then after a brief hiatus,
the Civic Si was back for 1999
for the Si's fourth generation.
And it was available in Coupe form only.
And really stepped up the bar from a performance standpoint.
The fourth generation Si's fully independent
suspension factory strut tower brakes
and four wheel disc brakes kept the car at the top
of its class from a handling perspective.
Power was up another 35 horsepower
over the previous generation, still using a 1.6 liter.
But this time we will see America's first
dual overhead cam D16A2 that made 160 horsepower
at 7,600 RPM with a peak torque at 7,000 RPM.
This engine was an absolute screamer with a 10.2 to one
compression ratio and an 8,200 RPM Revlimit.
The sprint to 60 now took just 7.2 seconds
and could run through the quarter mile
in about 15 and a half seconds, which was very respectable
at the time for a low displacement economy car.
And it was keeping up with much more expensive
and larger displacement cars at the time.
Not only did this thing perform
it was also a super solid looker.
And quite honestly is one
of my favorite looking cars from this era.
The 15 inch seven spoke wheels looked aggressive at the time
and the lip on the bumper of the larger side skirts and
that Vtech detail on the lower rear quarter panel
really let you know that this wasn't just
any regular old base model Civic.
I mean come on, you can not tell me that you don't
at least double-take when you see
an electron blue Pearl EM1 Civic Si
There's just no way.
Anyway, the EM1 Si would only be
in production for two years.
And after taking another year off,
the fifth generation Civic Si would land in the States
for the 2002 to 2005 model year.
Coming as a hatchback only this time around
the Si was actually on its very own platform
with base models coming in Sedan and Coupe only.
This time displacement was up almost a half liter
with a two liter K20A3.
Power remained the same as the outgoing model
with 160 horsepower.
But torque was up 20 pound feet with an emphasis
on usable torque from a lower RPM than before.
In this case, Vtech operation kicked in at 2300 RPM
instead of 4,500 as in the previous generation.
And this gave the new 2002 Si hatchback a 25% larger
and 20% more pokier engine giving more punch
in the RPM range that drivers actually used
on an everyday basis.
Welcome news for diehard enthusiasts
were five bolt wheel hubs
and the Civic's first 16 inch wheels.
But it would seem as if people didn't take too kindly
to the Si Hatchback for the fifth generation.
It probably had something to do with,
I don't know probably the RSX type S
getting the 200 horsepower K20 series engine
and an extra forward gear in the transmission.
Now, it would appear that this was pretty intentional
to drive sales to the newly Americanized Acura brand
which was supposed to be the performance
and kind of luxury brand of Honda,
but I still feel completely and totally ripped off.
Because these cars were actually pretty cool to look at
and it just didn't quite live up to the Si nameplate
by making it no more powerful and a little more
(engine running)
But for 2007, Honda really took complaints
from the people about that fifth gen Si seriously
and gave us the performance version
of the Civic that we were all asking for
with nearly 200 horsepower, 8,000 RPM K20Z
and that oh so special six speed trans
that we were begging for.
With peak power coming on at 7,800 RPM
this was exactly what the people wanted.
Taking that EM1 one Civic formula
and pouring it into the new model.
This time though, the Hatchback was dropped completely
and we got the Si in both Coupe and Sedan form
and people loved these things.
I mean, what's not to love about a high revving
lightweight economy car that also hosts the convenience
of a freaking Sedan?
With that, these cars were genuinely capable
of some pretty impressive numbers as well.
Quarter-mile times we're now dipping into the high fourteens
and 60 could be reached in under six and a half seconds.
The six gen Civic Si had its sights set
on the Volkswagen GTI of similar vintage and perform as good
without a turbocharger and for quite a bit less money.
These cars lasted until the 2011 model year
making modifications easily found for cheap
and parts can be found everywhere
for pennies on a freaking dollar.
This put the sixth generation Si on the map
for a lot of people and still is a popular choice
among enthusiasts for a solid fun, economical daily driver
with clean examples getting rarer by the day.
I think these will start becoming ironic cool very soon.
For 2012 we've seen the introduction
of the ninth generation Civic
and the seventh generation of the Si.
A bit more mild on the rev side,
we were given a bump in torque
with the addition of displacement.
Now up to 2.4 liters, horsepower is up just a kick
to 201 at 7,000 RPM.
And torque saw a significant gain up to 170 pound feet
in a very usable by Honda standards 4,400 RPM.
Although this did make the car technically more usable
and technically not slower, the seventh generation Si
was not an Si for the people.
People wanted a high revving machine of spirited joy.
And although this facelift did look a little better
people didn't super take kindly to the Si as a performer
and seemed to hold onto those previous generations
as far as fun having was concerned.
And with increasing competition in this segment
mainly the introduction of Focus ST and the upcoming GTI,
it didn't take long for Honda to take notice of this
and they immediately gave the ninth generation Civic
and seventh gen Si an emergency facelift
for the 2013 model year.
They made the car a ton more aggressive looking
as well as touch up on it's performance just a tad.
Increasing the power to 205,
it was accelerating the 60 in 6.1 seconds,
a pretty potent number
for any naturally aspirated four cylinder
until its generation ended there in 2016.
But for the latest in the current generation of Civic
and its eighth generation Si counterpart,
Honda took a completely new take on the Civic Si for 2017.
We saw the introduction of the first ever
Turbo-charged Civic Si with displacement going back down
to a history repeating 1.5 liters.
Where there once was a high revving engine
in the heart of the Civic Si,
we now have a 6,600 RPM turbocharged engine.
Peak power here is no different
than that naturally aspirated 2.4 liter at 205 horsepower
but comes on at 57 RPM.
But the real change here is with the torque
and the way that it's delivered.
192 pound feet of torque is a really solid amount
for a 2,900 pound car and a 1.5 liter engine.
Especially when it comes on at just 2100 RPM.
Now, at the end of the day
the car is only marginally quicker
than the previous generation, but the updated chassis
with adaptive suspension and the availability
of being able to do small bolt-ons
and get big boosts in power
is genuinely something to consider here.
For just $350 you can drive your Civic Si
over to a Honda authorized dealer
and instantly gain 30 horsepower
and 40 foot pounds of torque.
The 30 horsepower gain on one
of those older naturally aspirated units
would take quite a bit of work and a lot of money.
You've also got a really strong brake size here
and tons of modern tech
that can make the driving experience even that much better.
But it's not always about what's technically better,
now is it?
To label a generation of a specific vehicle the best
of all time, there are far more factors to consider
than how modern the tech is, how large the engine is
or even how quickly it accelerates or how good it handles.
It really comes down to which one has the best concoction
of all those things that makes it great
and which one caused the most waves to send it
down in history for doing something rather significant
and changing its segment forever.
And I think the car that really put this Civic Si
on the performance map, killed it with great looks,
took Honda's advanced engine technology
to the next freaking level
and will go down in freaking history
as the greatest Civic Si of all time
is gonna have to go to the EM1 Civic Si of 99 to 2000.
The car took the sport compact segment
to the next level and changed it forever.
It was the first of dual overhead cam
Vtech engine we got stateside.
And it was the first time the Civic Si really appealed
to people outside of the Honda circle.
And it's small year span makes it a pretty rare example.
As well as in my opinion, being the most distinguishable
from a base model.
Mark my words the EM1 Civic Si will be
the most significant Civic Si for years to come.
And with the quote unquote fast saga generation kids coming
to an age where they want to relive
this nostalgic generation of cars,
especially in the sport compact segment
the demand is going to rise with a dwindling amount
of nice examples to choose from.
But that about wraps it up
for this special Honda Civic Si episode
of the What Generation is Best series.
We will be making more of these videos just like this one.
So please leave a comment and let us know
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I'm Sean, SeanB.FI on Instagram.
Thank you so much for watching.
Please don't hate me.
Peace.