For the 1984 product yr, the model-new third-technology Honda Civic grew to become a ton bigger and bought a new suspension, endlessly distancing itself from its N600 ancestry. That created the 1983 Civic the ultimate vehicle of a very significant period in Honda background, and I’ve observed a single of these scarce equipment in a Denver-location vehicle graveyard.
The second-generation Civic was a bit more substantial than its 1973-1979 predecessors but was continue to recognizable as the surprisingly responsible and fuel-efficient automobile that arrived below just in time for the 1973 OPEC oil embargo. This car’s curb fat was still beneath a ton, at 1,973 pounds (the base ’83 Civic 1300 3-doorway hatchback scaled in at a mere 1,773 lbs).
The Civic sedan for 1983 arrived with just one motor alternative: this 1.5-liter 12-valve 4 geared up with the impressive CVCC twin-combustion-chamber process. It was rated at 67 horsepower, seven a lot more than the 1.3 engine in the more cost-effective Civics that year. Unfortunately, the sporty Civic S trim level was available only on hatchbacks below.
The CVCC program obtained increasingly complicated in purchase to continue to keep up with ever-stricter emissions requirements, top to the terrifying “Map of the Universe” vacuum-hose tangle in the 1985-1987 autos. The 1983 diagram under the hood of this automobile appears to be scary, but could continue to be comprehended by common mortals.
In exercise, the CVCC-outfitted Hondas were being very trusted, irrespective of the bizarre two-carbs-in-one layout and all those people vacuum strains. I’ve owned a half-dozen CVCC engines more than the many years.
What truly helps make this distinct Junkyard Gem a exclusive piece of historical past is its transmission: the Hondamatic. 1983 was the past calendar year for this oddball bike-derived gearbox in the Accord and Civic, right after which Honda produced the transition to standard computerized transmissions.
Some make the declare that the Hondamatic was the previous two-speed automatic transmission you could get in a new American-market place auto, but I disagree (the past two-speeds went into 1973 Chevrolet Novas and Vegas). The Hondamatic did have gearsets for two forward ratios, but it didn’t change routinely and it highlighted torque-converter multiplication to give it what amounted to a third ratio. Consequently, it was neither an computerized nor a two-velocity. The driver could put the shifter in D— which set the transmission in the tallest equipment range— and let the torque converter do the rest, which produced for some miserably sluggish off-the-line acceleration but did function if you ended up affected individual. In follow, you were being meant to begin out in 2 and then upshift to D once you received the vehicle rolling at a first rate clip (previously Hondamatics applied 1 and 2 shifter positions to carry out the similar point).
Honda United states of america experienced just gone to six-digit odometers a few of several years previously, so we are equipped to see that this car or truck just squeezed past the 150,000-mile mark throughout its 40 decades on the road. I’ve seen a ton far more miles on other Hondas of this era, but 150k isn’t really undesirable for a Late Malaise Era motor vehicle.
Most 2nd-technology Civics you can uncover will be hatchbacks, so which is a further purpose this is a notable Junkyard Gem.
Handles 4 individuals comfortably. Handles the road effortlessly. Handles fuel costs economically.
Its Japanese-current market counterpart, the Ballade, bought a lot classier ads.
While Honda labored with British Leyland to build the Sterling and Legend, the second-era Civic was made into the Uk-sector Triumph Acclaim.