| Looking for sports-car kicks, but with the | | | | with sport-compact fans. The price of a particular |
| abundance of speed parts and vast modification | | | | CRX can often depend on the various upgrades |
| potential of a Civic? Look no further than Honda's | | | | it's received. |
| feisty little CRX. | | | | Popular mods include body kits, custom paint, |
| These pocket-size coupes made their debut for | | | | aftermarket wheels, and hotter VTEC engine |
| 1984. Essentially a two-seat version of the | | | | swaps. As with any modified car, look closely at |
| redesigned Civic also introduced that year, the | | | | how well upgrades are executed. In most cases, |
| CRX was initially aimed at people who sought | | | | the work will have been done by the car's owner, |
| frugal commuting (base 1.3-liter versions had EPA | | | | whose talent, budget, and experience are |
| fuel economy ratings of 51 mpg city, 67 highway). | | | | unknowns. |
| But the real news for enthusiasts came the | | | | Most CRXs now sell for less than $5000, with |
| following year when Honda gave the CRX its | | | | many of them below $3000. Those sub-$3k |
| sporty Si version, which included upgraded | | | | CRXs tend to be unmodified. And unmodified |
| suspension, performance-oriented tires, and a | | | | CRXs also tend to be unrestored. |
| hotter 91-hp version of its 1.5-liter engine -- good | | | | That can be an important point, because all CRXs |
| for sub-nine-second 0-60 mph times in the | | | | are at least 14 years old -- a lot them are pretty |
| featherweight car. | | | | tired. You aren't likely to find a CRX with less than |
| For 1988, an all-new CRX bowed, based again on | | | | 100,000 miles at this point. Therefore buyers who |
| a new Civic platform. CRX's wheelbase increased, | | | | want a completely stock example to start with |
| and this second-generation design was somewhat | | | | will need to carefully consider how much money |
| heavier and bigger overall. Fortunately, | | | | and patience they're willing to devote to basic |
| performance remained in the same league, with | | | | mechanical repairs. |
| the Si's horsepower rating increasing to 105, then | | | | First-generation CRXs are getting kind of scarce, |
| 108 the following year. For 1990, CRX got | | | | but if you have your heart set on their lighter |
| four-wheel-disc brakes. | | | | weight and trimmer dimensions, those cars can be |
| As sweet of a car as it was, this generation of | | | | found with a little patience. And one plus is that |
| CRX was destined to be the last -- Honda | | | | they tend to show up in the lower end of the |
| discontinued the line after 1991, replacing it with | | | | price range. |
| the similar but open-roofed Del Sol several years | | | | Regardless of what generation or level of |
| later. | | | | modification, Honda's little CRXs can offer big-time |
| Today, used CRXs are pretty easy to find, but it | | | | fun. They're good performers to start with, |
| can sometimes be hard to gauge their true value | | | | there's plenty of aftermarket stuff available, and |
| -- completely stock ones are showing up less and | | | | prices are about as low as performance cars go. |
| less since these cars became immensely popular | | | | Check 'em out. |