Honda has a reputation for producing cars of excellent quality for decades. One of these cars is the Honda Civic Si. This car has been on the market for nearly thirty years and has continued to reinvent itself each year in a better form than the last. It has come a long way since its first inception and continues to be one of the most popular models on the market.
The Hot Hatch
The Honda Si is referred to a "hot hatch" car because of its hatchback style. A hatchback is defined as having a "sloping back with a hinged rear door that opens upward." Hatchbacks are similar to station wagons in their design. Another popular "hot hatch" is the Volkswagen Golf GTI. The two cars are in competition with each other today but Volkswagen was the first out of the gate. The first Volkswagen Golf was introduced to the market in 1976 and monopolized the competition until the Si came along a decade later.
Birth of the Civic Si
The automobile market was introduced to this classic Honda in 1985. Si is an acronym that stands for "sports injected." The Si was seen as giving a much needed boost to the Honda Civic's 1.5-liter engine. At the time of its inception, it was capable of achieving a horsepower of 91, which was previously unheard of. Honda was obviously making a statement with the Civic Si and many people stood up and took notice. They also came out with a new sub-brand of the Civic Si called the CRX, which was seen as the sportier model in that day.
Evolution of the Civic Si
In the late 1980's, due to the runaway success of the Honda Civic Si, Honda took to rethinking their line of models. They remodeled the Civic Si, increasing its horsepower to 108 and giving it a 100 lb.-ft. torque. Honda was met with great success with this new model and upped the ante in 1992. They remodeled the Civic Si to give it more curves. This form of the Civic Si was now rounder and sleeker. Now known today as the EG hatch, it was met with a bit of skepticism in its early days that has now been replaced with a hindsight appreciation for its cool and vintage style.
The Current Day Honda Civic Si
Like all cars, this classic Honda has gone through a number of transformations. It went from the EG Hatch to the B-16 powered Civic Si in 1999, which was sold in the form of a coupe. In 2002 it was remodeled into its most distinct hatchback styling, leading some to believe it more resembled a minivan. Today, the car has gone back to its coupe style and is better than ever. The 2012 model has a 2.4-liter engine with 201 horsepower and 170 lb.-ft. of torque. It is a 5-occupant car that sits on 17-inch alloy wheels. Honda also has plans to come out with the Si in the form of a sedan, which would be the first of its kind.
