It’s often been said to be more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow, and today’s Nice Price or No Dice Civic Si is the sort of car that thinking was based upon. Let’s see if this now-classic is priced to be quickly snapped up.
The broken windows theory posits that evidence of minor crimes begets an environment that invites greater and more serious malfeasance. The 2004 Volvo S60R we looked at yesterday suffered from a broken tail lamp lens as its most obvious visual flaw. And, packing nearly 300 horsepower (or however many ponies it has left after 20 years) and a six-speed stick, it portended all sorts of deviltry on the road. A $6,000 price tag wasn’t a crime, however, at least according to the 85 percent of you who awarded the Volvo with a Nice Price win.
Regarding hot hatches, the two longest-running nameplates are Volkswagen’s GTI and Honda’s Si. Of course, things are a little funky here in America, where VW only sells the Golf in its hot hatch GTI form, and Honda won’t sell the current Si in the Civic’s hatchback body at all. If you want a baller Civic and the ability to go antiquing on weekends, you’ll need to step up to the even hotter and wildly more expensive Type R.
Or, of course, you could always go the old-school route with this 1987 Honda Civic Si three-door hatch.
The third-generation Civic entered the U.S. market in 1984, spawning not only the Si hatchback but also the CRX two-seater, the funky Shuttle tall wagon, and the requisite for the era four-door sedan.
This 1987 edition rocks the factory arrest-me-red paint, but some non-standard plastic wheel covers in place of the car’s original Aero discs or phone dial alloys. They still have a stylized “H” at their centers, so at least they keep it in the family.
According to the ad, this Si has an impressive 216,000 miles on the clock and shows its age and those miles in the fading of the paint (down to the prime coat) on the roof and door tops, as well as a broken tail lamp lens (what, again?) in the back. Other than those visual blemishes, the car appears to be in fairly good nick.
The interior, too, has suffered at the hands of time, but like the exterior, it’s a mixed bag. Overall, it looks tidy and clean. The issues include a Turner & Hooch-style hole in the driver’s seat vinyl, some odd puckering and a hole in the plastic on the dash, and a missing cover for the passenger door speaker. Another, more minor issue: an aftermarket stereo head unit is resident in the dash, which kind of throws off the whole ’80s vibe.
Per the ad, the car “runs and drives great!” It is noted that it came from the factory without A/C, so no worries about having to deal with R12 here. Power is 91 horses, which come from the Si’s 1488 cc 12-valve fuel-injected four. That may not seem like a lot, but keep in mind that the little three-door Civic only tips the scales at just a hair over a ton. The five-speed manual on these has a fairly long throw and somewhat vague action, but they aren’t terrible to drive. Handling from the torsion bar front and coil spring rear suspension is also lively and fun.
Other issues of contention on this particular Si include a cracked moon roof insert that the seller asserts does not leak, and the non-operational registration, which it appears to have been under for the past four years. The moonroof glass is probably going to be a hassle to replace and the registration might prove an equally daunting challenge if the car can’t pass the smog test should that be required for title transfer. On the plus side, that title is claimed to be clean and clear.
This Civic is old enough to be considered a classic. Being an Si means it’s worth considering as a keeper. Even in its current, somewhat worn state, it would likely be a hit at most any Japanese Car show and could be fun as a weekend warrior as-is, or as a light restoration project. The hurdle to any of that is the consideration of the car’s $4,500 asking price.
What’s your opinion on that and the car as a whole? Does that seem like a fair deal for a classic Si? Or do the demerits outweigh this hot hatch’s cool factor?
You decide!
Los Angeles, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Phillip Moore for the hookup!
Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at [email protected] and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.