The Acura Integra is back! After a 21-year absence, the model name is making its return to the North American market. The new Acura shares its foundation – as in the past – with the Honda Civic, but goes its own way in appearance.
The appearance of the new Integra comes as no surprise. The production version looks like two drops of water on the Integra Prototype that Acura showed last year. The Acura Integra was available under that name in the United States from 1986 to 2001, after which the model was renamed Acura RSX. Until 2006, it was only available as a coupé. The new Integra is a five-door liftback that sits on the platform of the Honda Civic. Acura thus harks back to the first Acura Integra, which was also available as a five-door liftback.
The Integra looks a lot sportier than the Civic, which is mainly due to the sharper-lined headlights and the larger, angular grille. The rear lights are slightly more rounded and widen outwards. There is a subtle spoiler lip on the boot lid. Under the hood is the same 1.5 four-cylinder turbo engine with VTEC as in the American Honda Civic Si. That power source is good for 200 hp and drives the front wheels. As standard, Acura couples that power source to a CVT automatic transmission, and a six-speed manual transmission is available as an option. If you opt for the manual gearbox, you will immediately receive a limited-slip differential.
Acura Integra
The exterior of the Integra was no longer a surprise, the interior can now be seen for the first time. Compared to the Civic, that is hardly surprising. The Acura has a slightly different design of the dashboard and the center console, where the ventilation grilles are not spread over the entire width of the dashboard as with the Civic. The central screen and the controls for the climate control are in the same place. Digital instruments and a touchscreen that can handle Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard.
In the United States, the prices of the Acura Integra start at $30,000, or €27,311. This makes the Integra $2,700 more expensive than the Civic Si, which is in the order books in America for $27,300 (€24,853). In Europe and therefore in the Netherlands, we should not expect the new Acura Integra.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl