Gents
A mate at work is contemplating buying a Honda Integra cos its the biggest discount for buying in Europe ( ~ £5,500 off I think). Please give me some ammo to put him off and tempt him towards a Scooby.

Mick

 

Hi Mick

Why don't you explain that the Integra is the best handling front drive car you can buy, just about the fastest car across country, handles beautifully and is a lot rarer than an Impreza?

Say it with a knowing smile and he'll wonder what you are hiding!

Kind regards

Ben

 

Don't knock it, I nearly bought one myself! The only thing that swayed me was the asking price!

£20k for a normally aspirated car or;
£20k for a Scooby!!!

If the Type-R was there was for about £15ish, I know what I'd have bought!!!

Regards
Andy

 

Why put him off?

Integra Type R is a fantastic machine (was also on my shortlist).

Only problem is, you have to be in the mood all the time in the Honda. If you are not in the mood its noisy, gutless, incredibly harsh and a pain in the posterior.

If you are in the mood, however, its a touring car for the road and arguably even more fun that the Scoob when conditions are right.

Personally, I'd have one of each if I could afford it.

D.

 

Mate of mine who is a complete Honda freak(Prelude,then CRX Vtec, then another, then Prelude Vtec, then Integra Type R, now an S2000 plus has use of his dads pair of NSX's) had one for a year or so. He was not happy with the car after 6 months rattly trim minor niggles etc.
Then he was going round a corner and just as the Vtec should have kicked in it didn't Mmmmmm whats happened here then? Turns out engine had only about 500cc of oil in it!
Big mystery, dealer didn't have a clue where oil was going, kept on using vast amounts of oil. Eventually new engine arrived from Japan and was slotted in and old one sent back to Japan for extensive tests.
There you go nice scary story for your mate to make him buy a Scoob
If he does get a type R tell him to keep an eye on oil level.

 

The Integra Type R is indeed a very capable car. Why not let him buy it? I would consider buying one. If he buys it you can get a drive off of it and experience a very rewarding car that is veery different to an AWD turbo car. Plus you don't want all your friends to have the same car as you do you?

If you still want him to get a Scooby, let him know that the Type R has to be worked very hard to be enjoyable, you have to get above about 6,000 rpm before you get any meaningful acceleration, and you have to keep really busy with the gears to keep going fast. You have to be very involved to go fast, you can't relax like you can with a Scooby. Other things-not as practical as a Scoob can be as it is only offered in two doors.

 

Paul,that interesting

I went for a test drive a couple of months ago and the salesman told me not to change gear until I hit the rev limiter,he said that they were built to take anything you could throw at them,he also said Honda were very proud of the fact that there had never been a warranty claim on one of their vtec engines.

The Integra was great fun and made me feel like a racing driver.It was very frantic though.

I also had a go of an Accord Type R,which was similar in character to the Integra but was a lot more refined.I really liked this car!

After a total of about an hour in these I got back in the Impreza and the first time I floored it I drove straight into the rev limiter.

Made me realise how flexible the engine is in the Impreza

Andy

 

Last weeks Autocar reckonned that the Puma Racing was better than the Integra-R.

So, Integra-R is not as good as a Ford Fiesta on steroids... nuff said

Paul L

 

I used to own a Japanese spec Integra type-r, slighly quicker than the UK version I believe.

Sold it to get WRX STI4

Integra has great handling, and more direct feel than the Impreza, which is a bit 'wobbly' in comparison. Although I suspect the limits of the WRX are greater, and traction certainly higher.

But the integra just doesn't have enough poke, even in the VTEC range the acceleration feel you get is no comparison to an STi. Especially when you have a few passengers, aircon, and are going up a hill...

One thing I didn't like with the Intgegra was the slight feel of torque steer, the effect of 200bhp going thru the front wheels. None of this with the Impreza dispite the extra power.

Throttle response of the type-r is probably better, e.g. blipping the throttle when downshifting.

Engine note of type-r is nice, esp if you change the air filter, sounds amazing. But drive it on an expressway and you'll really want a 6th gear.

You should tell him to have a go in a tweaked Impreza aswell, exhaust & downpipe make it a more more 'raw' experience. Seem to remember my WRX sounding a bit like a hoover before the mods...

I wouldn't necessarily put him off buying one, and would reiterate the previous post - he should test both.



[This message has been edited by Andy Banks (edited 11-01-2000).]

 

If he's looking at saving 5.5k, that's what he'd save if he imported an Impreza from Holland. (UK spec MY00 with aircon cost me just over 16k all in). Mail me for more details.

Hmm, level playing field now... I doubt that either car would disappoint.

 

I own a MY97 Scoob and the wife owns an MY98 Integra Type R. The difference in driving technique is MEGA!!. To drive the Integra is commitment at ALL times but very rewarding and as said previously its easy to hit the limiter on the Scoob after driving it. There are good and bad in both cars especially in the braking department( INTEGRA’S ARE AWESOME ) but the Scoob wins hands down on adrenaline rush. A test drive in both is the only way to decide.

JackC

 

AndyMc,

I read in Top Gear (I think) Honda supplement/article that Honda had never had a claim on the Vtec part of the engine, which could be correct as my mates problem was not with the Vtec system but with the oil level which is used as the working fluid for the hydralically activated Vtec system.

 

Just inspected an S reg Integra Type R in the car park. It has the usual dusting of road grime which any car travelling on the roads at this time of year picks up. Nice methinks, not sure about those white alloys though so take a closer look. There are nice furry white dots all over the spokes where they are starting to corrode already, plus the wheels nuts are starting to rust under their chrome coating. Where's Honda's legendary build quality?
Not very impressive to say the least.....

 

Just inspected an S reg Integra Type R in the car park. It has the usual dusting of road grime which any car travelling on the roads at this time of year picks up. Nice methinks, not sure about those white alloys though so take a closer look. There are nice furry white dots all over the spokes where they are starting to corrode already, plus the wheels nuts are starting to rust under their chrome coating. Where's Honda's legendary build quality?
Not very impressive to say the least.....

 

Before buying my MY98 i was able to test both cars in our swiss mountains...
I have to say, it was a difficult decision:
Integra
+ engine sound, Recaro seats, build quality, steering, saves money (cheaper tires, less fuel consumption...), even better suspension than MY98.
- goes only above 6000rpm and doesn't have a lot of torque, isn't really fast in straight line, doesn't look as well as MY98, white alloys look bad, not for everyday road use, takes a lot of money to get more bhp, bad on wet roads, only 2wheel driven.
MY98
+ TORQUE WOW, Looks wow, goes like the hell, good for tuning (downpipe, air filter and ECU =>260bhp!), 4wheel drive, very reliable engine, a very fast car for everyday use (Power from 2500rpm!), sound, boxer engine, REALLY A LOT FASTER THAN INTEGRA for everyday driver!
- suspension not as good as Integra, gearing, brakes (MY98!), color outside isn't very good quality, fuel consumption, costs

ric

PS I REALLY LOVE MY IMPREZA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Mick,

Silly Question: Was the Honda Integra you mentionad going to be the Type R? I think you can get lesser ones from Japan.

Moray

 

IMHO they're both cracking cars, in fact when i was looking at jdm scoobys i was almost tempted away by a very nice looking integra. Thing is though... I'd always be a bit peeved by the front wheel drive thing, even if they are brilliant steers.

Bet he'll be a bit smug when you talk mpg...

 

Third one down on the list is a cracker.

Stocklist - Performance Centre Manchester

 

I had an Integra a while back, great car imo, handling was superb and they rev to the skies....

 

Is it the DC5 you're talking about? I think they are one of the nicest looking cars... when in white . Never had the opportunity to drive or sit in one but heard great things about them. I've only ever seen 2 of them.

 

I think it will be the DC2 they talking about, because the thread is 8 years old haha

 

LMAO! just noticed that!!

 

Holly sh**** . this thing is fast. It did the same time at Tsukuba as the gtr-34

 

love the v-tec engine, always feel quick when i sit in one... sounds raspy too

wiley

 

Haha, does this highlight the problem with the Search Function.... trying to get relevant information about cars in recent times is difficult to find now IMO.

Thats not far off 9 years since this thread was started.


Cheers,
Grant

 

This could be fun digging out old posts.

 

Nice