When Acura opened for business back in 1986 it offered the larger Legend sedan and the three- and five-door small Acura Integra. As successful a product as the Legend was, it's the Acura Integra that nailed down the upscale division's prosperity.
Based on Honda's excellent front-drive small car chassis, the first Acura Integra was available with a 1.6-liter DOHC 16-valve fuel-injected four-cylinder engine making 113 horsepower. That first Integra wasn't particularly quick (and it didn't offer much low-end torque), but it handled well and featured such premium elements as four-wheel disc brakes. And the Acura Integra's interior was a step up from what was common among its competitors.
A second-generation Acura Integra appeared for the 1990 model year with an upgraded chassis that included a double-wishbone independent front suspension and a slightly extended wheelbase that increased interior room. Now available as either a three-door hatchback or four-door sedan with a trunk, the second Integra was significantly more refined, with both a more settled ride and better handling. The engine grew to 1.8 liters and 130 horsepower, but that was only the start of this generation's Acura Integra news.
During the 1992 model year, the Acura Integra line had the "GS-R" model added to it that featured the first use of Honda's VTEC variable valve timing system in a car outside the semi-exotic NSX sports car. With a walloping 8,000 rpm, the 1.7-liter GS-R engine wound up to a full 160 hp. However, low-end torque still wasn't an option on the Acura Integra.
The third Acura Integra arrived for the 1994 model year as a thorough updating of the second generation. And the GS-R engine went to 1.8 liters and 180 hp. But the big news was the utterly brilliant Acura Integra Type-R introduced for 1997. Maybe the best-handling front-drive car of all time, the Type-R was powered by a hyperactive version of the GS-R's engine making 197 hp. But even that wasn't enough to save the Acura Integra.
The Acura Integra was superseded by the RSX in 2002. Ironically, in Japan, the RSX was still known as the Integra. When the RSX was dropped after 2006, Acura had abandoned the loyal small-car customers the Acura Integra had won.
