Why the 2023 Acura Integra Is Such a Big Deal
There’s an all-new 2023 Acura Integra, and it’s a big deal in the car world. The Integra is one of the most beloved cars of all time, so any news related to it will surely get gearheads riled up. And, indeed they are. The new Integra has managed to stir up some controversy. “People are very passionate about the Integra. It was such an iconic car earlier in the history of Acura. I understand: big expectations,” said Jean Marc Leclerc, CEO of Honda Canada, in an interview with SHARP.
Since not everyone is steeped in the lore of Acura’s first sports car, here’s a quick explainer on why this relatively affordable sports sedan is such a big deal, plus what you can expect from the 2023 model.
The OG Integra
It began in 1986, when the OG Integra helped launch the Acura brand. The very next year, in ’87, the Integra landed on Car and Driver magazine’s prestigious 10Best Cars list. That’s an astounding achievement for a new car from a totally new brand, but the Integra was no one-hit wonder. It appeared on the list seven more times in the following years.
Why? The compact Acura offered a pretty unbeatable combination of refined performance, handling, and value in its day. It was a practical sports car to which every teenager might reasonable expect to own someday. No wonder it also became a tuner icon, immortalized in the first Fast and Furious film.
Don’t forget: the Integra had VTEC, the most meme’d piece of automotive technology ever. Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control (VTEC) was first introduced on the NSX supercar, and then brought to the 1992 Integra. To make a very technical story short, it helps generate more power at higher RPM. Hence the “VTEC just kicked in, yo!” humour found in certain circles.
Most famous of all was the Integra Type R, offered for the first time in the U.S. market in 1997. It was a factory-built racecar for the road: lightweight, with a seam-welded body, revised suspension, limited-slip differential and a beautiful hand-built 195-horsepower four-cylinder motor that still ranks among the all-time greats. (Think: Porsche GT3 for those on a much lower budget.)
The Integra evolved through three generations, until the name was retired in 2002 and replaced by the Acura RSX.
Integra, reborn
The all-new 2023 Acura Integra will arrive in Canada in late spring 2022. The price has yet to be revealed, but given that the Integra is supposed to be an, “affordable, introductory gateway model” for the brand, it’ll surely be somewhere in the $30,000 range.
The basics are this: it’s a premium sport sedan, err hatchback, with a four-cylinder turbocharged 1.5-litre engine. (Yes, it has VTEC still.) A limited-slip differential and six-speed manual gearbox will be on offer, alongside an automatic ‘box.
The controversy around the new car was almost exclusively limited to gearhead websites and Car Twitter. Some fans loved it. Others were upset it wasn’t a coupe. (The premium sports coupe market is but a shadow of its former self.) Others were upset it shared much of its basic architecture with the Honda Civic. (Most of the past Integras shared a lot with the Civic too.)
“Were they expecting a vehicle with pop-up headlights? I don’t know,” said Jean Marc Leclerc. He read the comments on social media. “The vehicle has to evolve with the brand, the sophistication, the visual cues. The proof really, to me, is going to be in the performance of the vehicle. I think people should really reserve judgment,” he added.
Leclerc joined Honda in 1995, so he was there during those heady days in the mid-90s when the Integra Type R was on every teenager’s most-wanted list. He knows what he’s talking about here. But, when asked if there might be a new Type R, he kept his lips sealed. He did, however, mention Acura’s sporty Type S sub-brand several times. Nothing is confirmed, but we’d put money on an Integra Type S coming soon.
“I know people who’ve driven [the 2023 Integra] and said, yeah, it’s gonna live up to the Integra promise, and the promise of the brand in terms of performance,” Leclerc said. “We’re confident.” The rest of us will find out if it lives up the name when the 2023 Acura Integra lands in Canada this spring.
Learn More about the 2023 Acura Integra here
