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Acura Integra



  • only1harryonly1harry Posts: 1,136
    roadroach: When did we ever agree on anything? :)
    Just kidding. Yes the Celica GT-S would be a good comparison to the GSR but when you look at the prices the GSR is hard to resist.
    At right you can get the GSR for $19,580!!! That's over $800 under dealer invoice. (I paid $19,898 for a new '99 through carsdirect, that was the final price before tax)
    A stripped Celica goes for $20,150. Add ABS, sunroof, leather & spoiler to match the GSR's standard features and it comes out to $22,244!
    That's over a $2,600 difference. It's actually more if you count an estimated $200 tax you have to pay to uncle Sam.
    Buy the GSR and then bank that money minus half for mods and you have a faster and better handling car or leave it alone and you can give Celicas a good run for their money.. Don't foget, the GSR has the largest performance aftermarket at its disposal.
    But it's all personal preference and looks are subjective. I personally don't fit well in the Celica GT-S because most of them come with sunroofs from the factory and don't like its styling that much. I only have 1/2" of headroom left in my GSR and less than that in the GT-S.
    As far as accessories go, my dealer threw in the floor mats and the wheel locks, I didn't even have to ask. They said they do it with everyone and it was their policy but then again they 're a "precision" dealer or something like that. There are only 6-7 dealerships in the country that have earned that title from Acura.
    If you have your heart set on a security system then go with aftermarket ones. They 'll be cheaper and better but if a thief wants your car, that won't stop him. I didn't get one for that reason. I use the CLUB. My dealer said they don't install security alarms in Integras and most dealerships send them out to other shops to have this done.. As far as splash guards I probably should 've gotten them but I don't think Integras look good with them on.
    Sorry for the long post..
  • only1harryonly1harry Posts: 1,136
    I 'm hoping to get 240K mi. out my Civic some day but they way I beat on it, I doubt it :-)
    Not to be picky or anything but g1 Integras had 118hp. My friend had an '88 red LS too. I loved that car. He 'd let me drive it often. When it came out in '86 there was nothing like it in its class. Even the Prelude Si didn't have a 16V engine at the time, it was a 12 valve. What was shocking to us then, was how easy the Integra rev'd all the way to redline. I had driven Mazda 626's, Civics and Accords at the time (plus all kinds of American cars) and you couldn't go near redline without thinking the car was going to blow up.. The G1 Integra was smooth and quick to rev and also had a higher redline than most cars (6200 I think?). That plus decent handling made it fun to drive. It was also very quite on the highway, unlike G2 and G3 Integras.
    I remember getting in to my friend's LS and turning the key while the engine was running! I did this on several occasions because you could barely hear the engine running from inside the cabin. You had to be real quite and listen for it and even then! Also there was not a single vibration inside at idle. Only if you touched the shift knob you could tell it was running. Great car.
  • jalper12jalper12 Posts: 8
    FYI I got quoted a price of $20.7k for a '00 GSR with all the accessories I listed, which he said came out to over $24k MSRP. FYI, that was with a lojack system, not the standard alarm system. I know they aren't terribly useful and more a pain in the [non-permissible content removed], but I want the keyless entry and the insurance discount (I need it.. I think my insurance will be near $4k, ugh). The best part is they have one in the color I want at the dealership, as opposed to the other dealership which would've had to order one. Now if only my company's stock would stop correcting....
  • robertsmxrobertsmx Posts: 5,525
    Don't the 2000 Integras come with immobilizer as standard equipment? Keyless entry/alarm would be about $150 at the dealer.
  • owncav01owncav01 Posts: 4
    only1harry, 118hp is the accurate power rating...
    Thanks for the correction! As for your Civic, just
    change the oil regularly and it will last over 200k, no problem. There were several times where I redlined my 88' Integra until the rev limiter kicked in (red line was at 6400rpm) and it forgave me everytime!! Try that with a GM or Ford engine and you may have to pull over, walk back a 1\4 mile and pick up all the pieces that blew through the oil pan!!
    Honda engines typically start to burn oil after 150k (what engine wouldn't) but still run with a fluid, solid, smoothness they are known for. It's not uncommon for a Honda\Acura owner getting 200k+ out of them.
    At 240k, my 1.6ltr still had that very quiet, "can't tell if it's still running " idle you were talking about only1harry!! :^)

    I have always admired the Honda engine engineers for designing normally aspired motors to achieve their full operational power and potential without adding turbos or superchargers which both degrade the reliability and life of the engine significantly.

    Well designed, well built, strong and trustworthy, know wonder they last so long..
    VTEC engine technology is a true masterpiece!!

    robertsmx: enjoy your Accord and Prelude, great cars, and I hope you get the NSX soon!
  • jalper12jalper12 Posts: 8
    robertsmx, yeah, immobilizer is standard. like I said, the two things I'm looking to get out of an alarm system are 1) keyless entry and 2) insurance cut. I don't mind paying a few hundred extra up front on the car to get a discount on my insurance. I'm 19 and have 3 tickets and 1 accident in the past 2.5yrs, not to mention I live in Boston. And now I'm going and buying a car like this... my insurance company is gunna love me :) Ah well.
  • robertsmxrobertsmx Posts: 5,525
    Another way to slightly cut insurance is looking for sedan version instead of coupe. You can get Integra sedan in LS/GS as well as GS-R trim levels. How much is Low Jack costing you? If it is not worth it, how about also taking a defensive driving school lessons. A friend of mine has sent three repair bills to GEICO and has had one speeding ticket (45 mph in 30 mph zone), took defensive driving lessons (to remove the speeding ticket points) and is paying $102/month (includes $3 monthly processing fee). He is 26 years old though, unmarried, in Dallas county (well, rates are higher in this part also!).
  • jalper12jalper12 Posts: 8
    Unfortunately I can't stand the colors on the GS-R sedan trim. Hm, I'll have to look into the driving lessons. Anyone know if they work the same way in Mass? I'm not sure how much Low Jack was costing, haven't gotten the actual price breakdown from the dealer yet, but I was quoted $20.7k for the GS-R with options that put the car at just over $24k MSRP.
  • only1harryonly1harry Posts: 1,136
    That's a pretty good price for the car including Lojack. Most people I know have paid $600-900 for it. You 're definetly getting the GSR for under $20K if you count all the other options you mentioned.
    Holy cow! I just went to the Edmund's section of REBATES & INCENTIVES (because I got suspicious of the good price you 're getting) and there is a $2,000 dealer incentive for all Integras!! I 've never seen it this high. When I bought my car it was only $1K.
    Go back to the dealer and tell him his cost is only $18,400 and ask him to drop it another $500.
    There is also 4.9% financing but you 'll probably never get it. They 'll tell you you're too young and don't have enough credit and you 're getting a good deal on the car, blah blah. They almost never give out these good rates because they make less money off the interest.
    Let us know how you make out.
  • jalper12jalper12 Posts: 8
    woops, wish i'd checked back here before buying. oh well, whats a few hundred bucks :) Anywaaaaaays, yeah, I bought the car, picked it up last night. my god its awesome! so much fun to drive. just a tiny bit faster than my previous car.. a '95 civic dx ;) anyways, thanks for all the helps everyone!
  • asindcasindc Posts: 1
    I'm looking to sell my 91 Integra GS, 80K, great condition, except for driver's seat, which has a rip that needs repairing. Anyone in DC area know of a good place to get that done? I'd rather not replace the seat.
  • sionsion Posts: 14
    Hi guys, i just bought a 93 manual RS which
    apparently has ZERO problems. I replaced
    the front boots because they were broken,
    changed the oil, added lots of fluids around,
    changed the tires and right now it runs great++.
    The car has almost 80k miles on it. Still there
    are several things:

    1. if the timing belt is to be changed at 90k
    (as written in the manual) and i don't have
    any more resources to do it right now, can
    something bad happen if it breaks ? (right
    now the car has 80k)

    2. one front secondary headlight bulb is out
    and it seems to be a big thing to change it
    because apparently i have to pull out the
    entire front cover etc etc just to get to the
    bottom screws for the headlights. anyone
    knows how to do this easier ?

    3. any experiences with unchanged clutch at 80k ?
    it feels ok but makes a little noise when
    the stick is on parking and i release the
    pedal ... any advice ?

    4. would you recommend to install alarm on it ?
    i heard many stories about alarm circuit
    installment messing around with the normal
    circuitry and that noone actually gets it
    right on the G2's ... is this true ?

    5. on the engine there is a small, round,
    plastic cover which leaks a little bit of
    oil ... just a little bit but i haven't found
    that part in any part store. should i go to
    the acura dealer or does anyone have any
    solution ?

    thanx allot.
    please email
  • only1harryonly1harry Posts: 1,136
    Now make sure you break in the engine properly. No trips to redline for the first 1K mi! Just shift 1st,2nd & 3d around 4-4,500rpm. Then after 1k mi. increase the RPMs but gradually. Don't go straight to 8100..
  • only1harryonly1harry Posts: 1,136
    I 'd recommend to take it in to your mechanic to have the oil leak checked and maybe get the headlight bulb replaced there too.
    If your timing belt goes it will damage the valves! Get the timing belt replaced around 90K.
    An alarm won't help if thieves want your car bad enough..
  • ejc1ejc1 Posts: 2
    to any prospective integra buyers out there, please don't get the auto transmission. the only trim i would consider is the gs-r. i wish i had known better two years ago...i hear acura has improved the auto transmission for '00 (a little late for that, huh?), but i am skeptical of what an "improvement" means to them (i have a '98 ls).
    it's a fun car overall; however, i would be more than happy to find it gone tomorrow morning. just my .02 and wishful thinking...
  • robertsmxrobertsmx Posts: 5,525
    what does your post mean?
  • ejc1ejc1 Posts: 2
    sorry, did that seem incoherent? yeah, it was late, i was rambling. i just don't think the integra was made to be driven automatically; everytime i drive i feel like it's missing something. it lags and doesn't pull when you need it most (i.e. merging onto freeway). i was naive - just bought it for looks and convenience. wish i had a gearhead friend to car shop with back then!
  • jalper12jalper12 Posts: 8
    hmm, I was a bad boy and wasn't entirely nice. only really got it into high rpms a few times in the first 1k tho, and never higher than 7k. fortunately I had an 800mile roundtrip this past weekend so that took care of the breaking in!

    hey here's a quick question.. if I replace the stereo, will the new stereo still control the power antenna? I really have no idea how those work.. anything else I need to be careful about?
  • only1harryonly1harry Posts: 1,136
    Well we always advise against automatic Integras on this board. Takes away about 1 sec. from the acceleration to 60mph and a little more to the 1/4mi.
    On the other hand I would not limit everyone to the GSR. An LS with 5-sp is a very good performer. It's also 70lbs lighter than a GSR.
    It has the same torque as the GSR and it pulls well in all 5 gears up to 125mph (my brother had a '95 LS manual). Although it's not as fast as a GSR, a 5-sp. LS is not slow at all and it actually gets your adrenaline going when redlining 1st,2nd & 3d. With two 6'2 200lb adults in it, my brother's 95 LS pulled very well and had good passing power.
    I have been in an automatic Integra once and I know what you mean. I was disgusted with the amount of power that was wasted by the automatic tranny. The only thing we can do to help now is discourage people from getting automatics unless they don't care at all and the car is only basic transportation to them.
  • dgsgdgsg Posts: 29
    My wife's 1990 GS needs the a/c recharged. Dealer can no longer recharge with R12 freon and recommends conversion to R22 (?). I have that converting to the NEW freon does not work well with the old compressors. Has antone had this done? Does the a/c still work as well? Is it still possible to get a R12 recharge anywhere besides a third world country? (they were exempt from the R12 ban)
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