Farewell to the Acura Integra

This summer, the Honda Integra sport coupe will finally reach the end of the line in Japan.

Tokyo - The Integra, which used to sell in the United States before it was superseded by the Acura RSX, has been a slow mover of late, so it is hardly surprising Hondas ending production; after all, the RSX is also nearing the end of its life span.

It is a sad but inevitable finale for a Honda sport coupe that is still a blast to drive but more recently has not had enough image to cut it with Japanese consumers against the usual German suspects, principally the BMW 3 Series.

The front-wheel-drive, four-cylinder Integra was originally launched in 1980 in Japan as the Quint and designed to fill the gap between Hondas Civic and Accord. Evolving through five generations, the Integras greatest claim to fame was unquestionably the Type R, the enthusiast special with a hand-built screamer of an engine and an 8,500-rpm redline.

The first Type R had a raucous 1.8-liter twin-cam engine that made 200 horsepower. The last one moved up to 2.0 liters and 220 hp, and it remained in every way a Honda classic.

At its peak, Honda sold 73,000 units a year in Japan, but just 3,000 Integras were sold last year. The car's still beautifully sharp, but market tastes have simply moved on.