[Oooof! I goofed. I scrambled to get this done this morning, got it all done, then forgot to post it before I went out the door. Here it is, late.
—Mike the scrambled egghead Ed.]
I'm driving a loaner car today—a 1.5-liter 200-HP Acura Integra that shifts its own gears. My Acura is in Rochester getting ready to kick my wallet in the butt. I gotta sell some cameras and lenses.
This Integra is a lineal descendant of Phred, my mother's 1978 Honda Accord, her first foreign car. The Accord famously went on to become the best-selling Japanese car for 17 years in a row and, in 1989, the first Japanese car to become the No. 1 best-selling vehicle in the U.S. She had Accords for something like 15 years before switching to Saab. And I think I drove most of them more than she did. At least the earlier ones. The Integra is based on the current Civic, which is now larger than Phred was; the Integra is the successor to my 2014 Acura ILX 2.4. The loaner is red (I guess you can see that) and has an automatic transmission (I guess it's a CVT actually) which, for me, takes a little getting used to.
I also got to test drive an Integra Type S yesterday while loafing around the dealership awaiting the verdict on my car. One reason I bought my ILX was that the model with the larger, better engine only came with a manual transmission, and buying that model was the only way you could get a stick. In those days, most cars that offered a stick only paired them with the worst engine—very frustrating to my way of thinking—so the configuration of ILX models came as a relief. The Type S has a larger two-liter, 320-HP engine and, true to tradition, only comes with a stick. Which makes me want to buy one just to support whoever made that decision. Unfortunately it's also a $50,000-plus car, so no soup for me. I'm probably three to five years away from a new car, something like that. I've had seven cars in my lifetime. Is that a lot or a little? I wish it had been more.
Acura Integra Type S camouflaged by reflections
But man, did I ever like it. The Type-S (it was black) has gobs of power and just the niftiest snick-snick short-throw shifter. Awesome/brilliant. The test drive with the Type S did exactly what it's designed to do: sold me. Which would have been great for the dealership had I been a potential customer. I love these cars. They hit the sweet spot for me. Of course, it's easy to love what you're used to.
But it's got me looking at reviews of the Civic Si, which has the 200-HP 1.5 engine, only comes with a manual, and has basically the same interior as the Integra. All in the family.
Black or gray or gray-black or silvery gray
As an aside, here's my theory as to why car colors are mostly so bland these days, my red loaner notwithstanding. When I was a teenager, most people in America owned their cars. So you saw more self-expression—clusters of whimsical bumper stickers, bright colors, decorations and customizations, etc. Now when you go to the car dealer, cars come in very predictable colors. Black, white, grays, and silvers are the default. Murky brownish/olive beiges of some indeterminate sort might be in the mix, with the occasional muted token red or blue thrown in so people don't lose the will to live. This is another of my many unpedigreed theories, but I think the reason is that most of us these days drive cars owned by banks. Banks like bland, so that their property can more easily be resold later. Rather than hard-to-remove bumper stickers, people now put fiddly little decorations on the windows, where they can be scraped off without a trace. The other day I saw a car with one decoration on it. On the rear passenger side window, about six inches high, was a white stencil of...a grenade. Wonder what that person's trying to say. Better yet, don't tell me. I probably don't want to know.
In case you're wondering why I willingly subjected myself to the dealer's service department—the one I'm convinced has an unofficial $600 minimum—it's because mechanics in my area don't have any openings. The local shop in town that I use told me the earliest they could look at my car would be next week. I can't limp along with no brake fluid for a week. The good mechanic up in the next town—the independent former racecar mechanic who specializes in Toyota and Honda (whose shop is begging to be photographed, by the way—it's got character out the wazoo, including pinup girls plastered all over the bathroom walls that must have been there since the '70s)—he has a six-week waiting list. Then again, that guy just inspected my car a month ago, and then this.
This culture is just sucking money out of people like me these days. As if to add insult to injury, the propane guy was just here, like I needed to spend more money this day in particular. My bills for propane refills used to start with a "1." Now they start with a "3." Got to get back to work on that book.
Call just came
Welp, the call just came in—my car's all done. Time to make the hike to Rochester again, gaze longingly at the Type S out front, give the red car back, and retrieve the old buggy. Later.
Mike
Original contents copyright 2024 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)
Featured Comments from:
Speed: "The Splash Screen image of the new electric Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Weissach Package (from $230,000) is...purple. But what a purple. It's a Porsche thing."
[Note: Link added by Ed. —Ed.]
Sean: "If, like me, you know very little about cars, the asymmetric relationship with a car mechanic is built on hope, not trust."
Cecelia: "I choose a color for three reasons: I do not want to stand out in often contentious city driving; it doesn’t show the dirt; and it isn’t too hot in the sun. This always leads to silver or white for my urban California life."
Mike replies: I try to buy silver cars for similar reasons. My brother prefers black, saying black cars look the best when they're clean and the worst when they're dirty, but my observation was that his black cars were far more often dirty. As for not wanting to stand out, great point. I have a friend here in town who has a bright iridescent yellow-green Kia, and she says her friends are always telling her when and where they saw her car around town.
Robert Roaldi: "I like car colour names. My current Jetta is Pyrite Metallic Silver. I owned an Escort that was Cayman Green. My favourite was a friend's Legacy Turbo in Cranberry Mousse."
One thing about cars is how democratic they are. No matter how much you spend on them when they're new, twelve or fifteen years later they're rusted, expensive parts start breaking and they're almost worthless.
Posted by: Robert Roaldi | Tuesday, 12 March 2024 at 09:37 PM
I used to love stick stick too. I had a manual Miata much like yours. But I've changed my tune. Here's why:
How would an ideal engine behave? It would have good torque, power, and economy at any speed. But real internal combustion engines can't be made to work like that. The gears are an attempt to make up for the deficiencies of the IC engine's inherent properties.
Now I have a Toyota hybrid with a continuously variable transmission. It acts much closer to an ideal engine system in terms of having good power and acceleration at any speed. I don't miss a manual any more.
Posted by: Tom Passin | Tuesday, 12 March 2024 at 11:09 PM
Emotionally speaking, collecting a repaired car from a mechanic is like retrieving your pet from the vet after a surgery.
My car is like a pet. I'm always so grateful for its years of faithful service.
In rare circumstances, you do form a bond with particular objects in your life. Bipeds are funny like that. Although... my chocolate Labrador carts her favourite three furry toys around like children. So maybe I should include quadrupeds in that assessment as well.
Posted by: Kye Wood | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 12:20 AM
I owned a 1998 Integra GS-R. The shifter was brilliant even back then. What a pleasure to row.
But I don't think we can blame the banks for bland colors. I think the owners themselves are looking towards resale value. A car is such a big investment these days, people don't want to feel like they lost (more) money when they sell it.
Posted by: Joel Becker | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 12:29 AM
Here's your choice of colours for cars today:
* Fleet Sales White
* Blacky-Greyish-Silvery Black-Grey Silver
* Massive Asian Market Red
* Marketing Said "Oh, for the love- we can't shoot an ad with these bland colours, we need something that stands out on a TV screen" Hypercolour Ultra Pearl Metallic Cosmic Chartreuse ($4500 premium)
[Ha! Maybe that's the reason for the occasional odd color! Acura does have a color called "Tiger Eye Pearl" which is very handsome, although it would make one stand out like a sore thumb as Cecelia noted. Closest description in standard English might be "gold." --Mike]
Posted by: Stephen Macquarie | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 08:43 AM
On the car colour question, I was told by someone with knowledge of the business that for many years Americans typically went to the dealership and bought (or leased) something from the lot. Dealers ordered boring colours to sell to the widest possible group of customers.
In Europe, so I’m told, customers typically ordered their cars, which allowed them to select the colour. So you see more variety in Europe.
Covid manufacturing delays may have changed this. When I bought my last vehicle, I had to order it and wait months for it to arrive. Buying from the lot was not an option. And no haggling on price!
Posted by: Andrew | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 08:48 AM
I have a 2023 Civic Si in what I think is the beautiful Aegean Blue. It's not the most powerful car, but it's a nice balance of fun to drive and economy. I can get close to 40 mpg highway, or I can step on it and have fun. It has a similar short-throw shifter to the ITS.
But also, being a bright blue, it's easy to find in a parking lot. It stands out in a sea of white, black, and grey.
Posted by: Mark Pfeifer | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 09:24 AM
I always buy white vehicles because they are so much cooler in the summer and, contrary to common “wisdom”, they hide dirt much better than black or other dark colours.
I agree with Joel Becker that bland colours (I don’t consider white to be “bland”) are more about resale value. Unusual or unusually bold colours are most often a passing fad, I think. A few years down the road, assuming you have purchased rather than leased, resale will be more difficult with cars with colours that are no longer vogue.
That said, I find the current offerings of the grey-blue (light dusky blue?) to be very appealing. I might spring for that next time, though my ‘09 CR-V shows no signs of needing to be replaced any time soon. By which time that colour will be long gone.
Posted by: Earl Dunbar | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 09:39 AM
200 HP from 1.5L is pretty good. My 2008 Honda Fit had 1.5L and only 117 HP. Yes, I bought it because it had a manual.
I too decided that I wanted the Acura ILX because of the manual option, but my wife wanted an SUV. I remember being quite excited when you bought the ILX. You have fine taste in vehicles!
I now drive a 2018 Subaru Crosstrek, mainly because it came with a manual. It was probably the only remaining model of SUV style vehicle with a manual. I hear the manuals are now being discontinued by Subaru. Mine is NOT the base model, which I find amazing! It's under-powered and the suspension is soft, but I like it. It's very good in the snow and relatively easy to maintain. It's a bland metallic dark grey, which isn't the colour I wanted (white, the only non-bland option), but it is what they had. No surprises there!
I do ramble on, don't I?
Posted by: Dillan | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 11:09 AM
Living in Texas, land of the scorching Summers, I have to whole-heartedly agree with Earl Dunbar that white is the preferred color for survival.
Never thought though about the reverse in really cold climates were white cars are hard to differentiate from white snow. Could be a problem.
So, maybe selecting certain car colors can also be a regional preference.
Posted by: Kirk | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 11:23 AM
Back in the day I had a third generation GS-R four door. Put a Recaro in the driver's seat and a CompTech exhaust on it (more low roar as opposed to loud). Ranks right up next to my '85 VW GTI as a most fun car to drive.
And can't forget the 8,000 rpm red line. We visited that neighborhood many, many times. Boy do I miss that car.
Posted by: Leon Droby | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 11:59 AM
66 Falcon, blue, used
75 LeMans, silver, new
83 Accord hatchback, blue, new, best car ever
96 Caravan, blah red, new, about the worst
04 Accord Sedan, blue, new
16 Fit, Blue, new.
I'd buy either of the Accords again if they showed up new. The Fit is coming up 130,000 K (not quite 81,000 miles for Americans) and still going strong. I hate the thought of having to buy another car. I really dislike the so called 'infotainment' screen. An ugly word for an ugly concept.
Posted by: Keith | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 12:00 PM
As long as we are on the subject of cars I'll add my 2 pennies worth.
My "daily" driver is a 16 year old Toyota. Never have I had a more reliable friend. Color: silver. It gets washed when it rains. Always looks not dirty but not clean as in just washed. Now, I'm wondering If I should replace it. I should remember never to replace a good, reliable friend with an unknown quantity. But variety is the spice of life be it cars or cameras.
Posted by: JoeB | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 12:16 PM
The one colour choice I can't understand is brown. A fine colour for a variety of things - chocolate, coffee, trees - but on a car, it's just terrible.
Posted by: MikeK | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 01:48 PM
Our daily driver is a 2015 VW Passat 1.8 turbo. It is silver and it looks like old money. Love the car even with an automatic transmission which I occasionally use in manual mode.
Near Honda reliability (we have had two CRVs) and a 600 mile range on a tank.
Over the years Mrs Plews and I have owned two Saab 900s sedans. Glorious cars with the reliability of something from East Germany.
Never saw cars that loved the hook like those two beauties. I swear if I got behind a tow truck in traffic the car would try to climb up on it by itself.
Least reliable cars I ever encountered and I have two Triumphs in my past.
Still when they were running driving one was sublime.
Love is strange.
Posted by: Mike Plews | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 02:02 PM
As a driver in a major metro area that includes drivers from 3 states and DC, with so many crazy/bad/incompetent drivers, what I want is some kind of super high visibility paint job, like black and fluorescent yellow or orange, or blue and fluorescent yellow livery like British traffic police drive.
Also, I used to drive a stick and loved it, but my sales manager told me I was crazy when I picked him up in my Subaru Outback in downtown Boston. Got me thinking, so now I'm automatic---but with paddles! Thanks F1!
Posted by: Tex Andrews | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 02:24 PM
I had sticks until I got tired of shifting in the Chicago traffic. My 3er wagon's eight speed auto shifts even better than me in sport mode.
BTW, If I remeber correctly, the Integra was always based on the Civic.
Posted by: Dan | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 02:51 PM
I saw a sticker on the back of a pickup truck that said "Millennial Anti-Theft Device" with a drawing of the familiar manual shift "H" pattern.
Posted by: KeithB | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 02:59 PM
That description of an "ideal engine" above—that's what an electric motor is like.
I believe I'm on my 5th car right now (2010 model year Camry; actually purchased in 2009). My first-ever automatic; while that year Camry theoretically had a manual option, no dealer here had one, and I bought it when driving diagonally across the metro during rush hour most weeks, and the automatic got the same mileage. As I expected, I'm perfectly happy with the automatic.
Posted by: David Dyer-Bennet | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 04:03 PM
The 1995–2001 Integra Type R is widely regarded as one of the best front-wheel-drive cars of all time.
Wikipedia
Mine was red and delivered 60,000 trouble-free miles in just two years. Fun to drive and easy on gas.
Posted by: Speed | Wednesday, 13 March 2024 at 08:15 PM
When I retired from photography(food photographer) I worked at an auto auction.
There were a lot of used Mercedes on the lot. Problems were mostly electrical. Interesting
to learn that. Bill
Posted by: William Giokas | Thursday, 14 March 2024 at 08:46 AM
For your cruising pleasure:
-black or other very dark color for the night because they catch the gleams of street lights
-light toned colors for day driving.
I think it was light blue that photographers in the olden times film days liked best for new model events because it showed up best on film.
Posted by: Mark Jennings | Thursday, 14 March 2024 at 08:58 AM
I finally sold my 2009 Pontiac G8 GT. It was beginning to have problems. I bought it new for $32,000 at 0% and just sold it for $12,000 with a minimal repair history.
I seriously looked at a Civic SI but it was too tight a fit both in terms of the very bolstered seat and foot well (small with 3 pedals). I've read that the 1.5 turbo engine isn't Honda's best, with a number of people having problems.
I ended up purchasing a Mazda 3 Premium with a manual transmission. After a bit of a adjustment period, the G8 being a very different car, I think I made a good decision for my probably last car. Nice manual, very comfortable seats, and beautiful interior. Given your Mazda history, I'd seriously look at this one.
Posted by: Tom Duffy | Thursday, 14 March 2024 at 11:46 AM
If you want gobs of power, test drive an EV. A study up here in Canada just calculated that the lower cost of running one will offset the higher initial cost of purchase in 7 years for an average driver. And their mechanical simplicity obviates most trips to a mechanic. No more oil changes!
We just got a 2024 Hyundai Kona EV which suits our low-mileage rural needs, but you'd probably prefer the Ioniq 6 which is a sedan. The Kona's rear suspension is nothing to write home about but the Ioniq has been winning awards.
Coolest part on the EV experience is regen, the ability of the car to recharge its battery when slowing around corners or coming to a stop. In the Kona, paddles behind the steering wheel turn the regen level up and down. With a little practice you can use them to decelerate/accelerate through corners. Driving our winding mountains roads feels just like driving manual with paddle shifters, except you have even smoother control!
(My comment links to a short photo essay about the new Kona.)
Posted by: Jeff Hohner | Thursday, 14 March 2024 at 03:23 PM
A recent article documented that yellow cars had the best resale value. I'd guess that's because yellow is available only on a few performance cars now, and these low-production models are holding value better. Those buyers want to be seen in a fast car, so it's not all about the color. With non-automotive products, rarity greatly increases value. If a person wants a yellow car (or even brown, yum), they'd have to buy it from me. I'd know that when I set the price.
Sadly, modern drabness doesn't stop with cars. Last month I went out to buy a couple of flannel shirts. All I found were dingy gray plaids that looked fit for a lumberjack's funeral! When I tried that joke on a store clerk, she patiently explained that you wear a bright t-shirt underneath, for contrast and color. I left without a new shirt; when I'm at a thrift shop, I'll look for an old one.
When looking at real estate online and on cable TV, it's an endless stream of black countertops and white cabinets, or - let's get kwayzee here - the reverse. No warmth, no ornamentation and definitely none of the woodwork that the Boomers loved.
I'm going to stop now, and try to envision the coming colors of spring.
Posted by: John McMillin | Thursday, 14 March 2024 at 09:03 PM
Two cars ago, I had a purple Honda Fit. It was purchased for my now-ex wife and I ended up with custody of it in the divorce. The color was not bad, for purple, and it was very easy to find when parked. My current and previous vehicle were both silver Honda HR-Vs; they are practically invisible in the sea of silver compact SUVs out there. This is great for anonymity, but really awful for trying to find your car on a public street or parking lot (esp. when your ADHD brain often refuses to retain the critical "parking location" datum). My next car will be green or red or blue or something, because there is definitely such thing as a car that's too anonymous.
[Mike replies: My very first car, a Mazda 323, was silver and as anonymous as can be. It also had a physical non-retractable antenna. Parked on the street in DC once, a breast-cancer awareness group came along and left flyers on all the windshields and also tied little red ribbons to all the antennas of the parked cars. I tried to take it off, but they had really knotted it on there and I figured I'd attend to it later. Well, that red ribbon was there for the whole rest of the 11 years I owned the car! At first it was just laziness, but as time passed the reason became what you mentioned--it made it a lot easier to find the darn thing.
Nowadays I'm in the habit of always parking in the same place at the places I go to regularly. It's curiously humiliating to lose your own car in a parking lot. It shouldn't be; it's not like anyone else can tell you've lost it, so you're not being laughed at. But it's not a good feeling anyway. --Mike]
Posted by: Nick | Friday, 15 March 2024 at 12:20 PM
It's always easy to find your car if you park as far away from the business as possible. My Silver Storm Metallic Honda Fit is the lone car parked 1.5 football fields from the entrance of the store.
I don't do it for that reason -- I'm trying to keep uncaring people from parking next to me and dinging my car -- but it's an added bonus. Plus, free exercise.
Posted by: ASW | Friday, 15 March 2024 at 04:39 PM