1988 Honda Civic Wagon RT4WD Review

"Justin Hughes" (justinhughes54) 01/24/2016 at 08:59 • Filed to: honda civic

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With the Snowpocalypse upon us I’m sure everyone’s out driving their lifted trucks and SUVs like we !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! But before modern crossovers dominated our roads, and before Subaru enabled everyone to channel their inner Colin McRae, there were a few other cars with all wheel drive as I’ve !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . One of them was the Honda Civic Wagon.

Read on Right Foot Down or continue below

I’m already quite familiar with these cars. Before !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! made the Civic wagon as cool as the Doctor’s bow tie, I owned two of them myself - a 1991 front wheel drive model with a 5-speed, and an automatic 1989 with Real Time 4 Wheel Drive. I was a regular on the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . These cars are pretty rare now, but I just had a chance to take a trip down memory lane with Justin Abide’s 1988 RT4WD wagon. His is equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission. Yes, a 6-speed in a 1988 Civic! Like the Porsche 959, its lowest gear is below 1st, about 75% lower. I always thought SL gear (Super Low) was much lower than that, emulating low range in a true four wheel drive vehicle with a transfer case, but that’s not true in the Civic. For normal driving, the top five gears are fine.

Despite not wearing an Si badge, RT4WD models came with the same D16A6 motor as the contemporary Civic and CRX Si to offset their “hefty” 2,500lbs. That’s featherweight by today’s standards, but heavy compared to other Civics and CRXs that weighed less than a ton. Justin has replaced the Si motor with a D16Z6 from the next generation Si. The intake, header, and exhaust are all upgraded, and a Hondata S300 to run the engine and make it fully customizable. Justin plans to use a mish-mash of D-series motor parts, Suzuki Grand Vitara pistons, and some custom internal parts to build a turbo motor. At this point he’s laid the groundwork for that upgrade. The D16Z6 works best at the top of its RPM range after VTEC kicks in (yo) and has significantly more pep than stock when you wind it out. Justin also had to warn me that the Check Engine light doubles as a shift light so that I wouldn’t think I broke the car when it came on. You don’t really get the opportunity to use the extra power at high revs around town, but the turbo should fix that.

The winter wheels are from a CRX Si. He also has some Acura wheels for summer, and some strong E30 BMW bottlecaps (with Honda center caps) for rallycross. The rear brakes have been converted to discs. Ksport rally gravel shocks give the car far less body roll than stock, yet is still compliant enough to provide a ride only slightly stiffer from stock. He doesn’t run anti-sway bars. “I have a rear sway for tarmac,” says Justin, “but I don’t think it even needs it unless you just want to rotate every time you touch the brakes.” Where it excels is over bumps at speed. I barely felt a rather significant bump that we hit during a spirited back road romp. Justin assured me that if we’d hit it at 20mph, the car would have actually handled it far worse.

The interior is standard EF Civic, with lots of solid brown plastic everywhere. The seats have been reupholstered. I sat much higher than I did in my own Civic wagons, making me realize how worn out my seats were. The shifter has not so much a knob as a lever, by Fox Designs, etc., making throws quite long but with little effort. It also places the shifter much closer to the steering wheel, like the EP3 Civic Si. A gauge pod occupies the shelf in the center of the dash, which will help when the turbo goes on.

The stock headliner has been replaced with this pimpin’ plush houndstooth fabric, which also wraps the gauge pod and the rear speaker pods. “Look at this thing,” said Justin. “It’s an 80s couch on wheels!” It really is, but with the suspension of a rally car. Despite Hardrace spherical trailing arm bushings, Function 7 spherical rear lower control arms, and an Innovative crossmember replacement up front, the ride is still compliant enough to not beat you up on the street. Justin plans to upgrade the front to Kingpin Machine radius rod bearings.

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That rally suspension isn’t just for bragging rights. Justin regularly rallycrosses with the New England Region SCCA. He regularly beats many “faster” cars thanks to the lighter weight and great handling of his Civic wagon. Fortunately he hasn’t gotten “helpfully” moved to the front wheel drive classes because it’s a Civic, the way I did the time I rallycrossed mine. Justin’s no slouch behind the wheel, either, as you can see in his videos.

They don’t make cars like this anymore, and I wish they did. Sure, it doesn’t have Bluetooth, navigation, stability control, ABS, and eleventy zillion air bags. But it also isn’t a big, bloated, overweight crossover. This is a fun-to-drive small car with all of the utility of a crossover. Unfortunately these wagons have all but disappeared, being prone to rust like other Hondas of its era. I’d love to own a wagon like Justin’s, but even if I could find one at a reasonable price, I can’t justify driving another one through a New England winter and contributing to its death by rust. To get a similar package these days, I have to either get a crossover, which usually aren’t fun to drive (the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! being a notable exception but still not as fun as this Civic), or an expensive luxury sedan, since Audi has paved the way for BMW and Mercedes to follow with all wheel drive models. There’s also Subaru, which, in going more mainstream, has engineered the fun out of many of their cars to appeal to the masses. The WRX is an exception, which I’ll be learning more about very soon. But after experiencing the RT4WD Civic wagon one more time, I’m pretty sure that this will be the benchmark I’ll be comparing it to.

See more Civic wagon photos on Right Foot Down

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Kat Callahan > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 09:22

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This is a good thing. A thing that is good this is.

Justin Hughes > Kat Callahan 01/24/2016 at 09:40

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Not that you have a thing for AWD Honda boxes or anything. :) I love these cars. As if you couldn’t tell.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 09:42

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There are a few Wagovans trundling around my area but they’re all either rusted into the ground or hellaflushed, yo. Fortunately I don’t think any of them are 4WD so at least they aren’t destroying something *super* rare.

boxrocket > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 09:43

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Suzuki SX4 Crossover (and Sportback, I guess) are/were the spiritual successors to the small, AWD hatch. Honda could do well to make an AWD Fit (not the hideous HR-V) since it’s a shoe-in for a modern civic hatch, on size and weight alone. Though that would probably negate the functionality of the magic seat.

I miss Suzuki.

Kat Callahan > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 09:52

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What? No! Why I never...

I mean... Yes. Very yes.

smobgirl > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 10:50

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Oh do I love this.

Justin Abide > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:40

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This is hysterical. Thanks again!

https://www.instagram.com/theabide/ If you guys want to see what direction it goes!

SweynForkbeard > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:45

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I had the previous generation, a 1986 still one of my favorite cars. although i am 76" tall i used to throw some blankets in the back an camp in it. moved a 42"Sony WEGA TV, and was used to lanscape my mom’s house. It did everything and never complained or stopped working even when I warped the head pulling a trailer it continued to run with coolant steaming out of it, just had to fill it with DI water and ignore the pegged out temp needle. loved that car it just would not die.

Justin Hughes > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 12:46

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Thanks for letting me review it!

Spoon II > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:47

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If it were a pokemon, this would be it’s final form

MarquetteLa > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:48

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My good friend owns this car and I can attest that riding in it is an absolute blast.

http://instagram.com/theabide

LotsO'Cylinders > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:52

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Damn it, Honda! Reading this makes me angry by how you screwed things up. What happened?

mino > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:54

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Bought one as a beater some 5 years ago for $1500. Great little car that gave me the chance to live my guilty pleasure of being a ricer, buying cheap parts from eBay and slapping them on. Had to customize the header to fit the RT4WD trans. While I was at it, I had a mandrel bent exhaust made for it. Eventually I grew tired of not having AC on those hot summer days. Sold it for $3500 and got a locked FZj80 for the same amount. I was even a member of the old Hondacivicwagon.com forum, before it became simply “civic wagon”.

A kid from NorCal flew in to buy it. I think he took it to Hawaii.

Good times.

PS: I’ve got a pristine RT4WD factory muffler if anyone wants it.

Scrape > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 12:59

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Everybody knows the Colt Vista was where it was at!

vdubyajohn > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 13:00

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Always loved those little Honda 4WD wagons, too bad they got priced right out of my driveway.

Justin Abide > Scrape 01/24/2016 at 13:09

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That was actually on my list before i found this goldie. Wanted that rare 3rd row seating for legless children!

Justin Hughes > LotsO'Cylinders 01/24/2016 at 13:20

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They really need to bring the AWD Fit here to recapture that wagon goodness.

http://jalopnik.com/how-good-is-an…

Ropadope > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 13:23

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I had a ‘91 that was nearly flawless, with about 84K miles. The AWD was pretty incredible in the rain, at speed. I never met an Audi that I didn’t pass. But despite its virtues, which are many, I ultimately disliked the driving experience. It wasn’t nearly as fun to drive (prob height/weight issue) as my beatup beater ‘90 Civic wagon. And it was thirsty, routinely returning 21-24 mpg. Cool cool cool car, but I ultimately replaced it two years ago with a 4cyl 5spd 4Runner...same mpg, whole other experience.

Justin Hughes > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 13:24

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There’s quite a resemblance. The Vista even came in a similar brown/gold. As a kid I fit in that third row seat! My best friend’s parents had one.

jcm055 > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 13:42

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I've road tripped in that very RT4WD in stock form and it was super fun and compliant then. Glad to see Abide made the front page, and great article!

Justin Hughes > jcm055 01/24/2016 at 13:55

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Thanks! They’re awesome stock, and other-Justin has done a great job turning his up to 11.

chaos-cascade > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 14:30

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Hey Justin, since your also Wagovan fan. You might be interested in reviewing Eric Larsen’s AWD Rally Sol. It’s got some RT4WD wagon bits, some CRV bits, some EG hatch bits and a whole lotta custom bits. Definitely the path less traveled sort of car.

SirRaoulDuke > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 14:33

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I saw one of these on the road on Friday, driving in the snow like a pro.

nic > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 14:40

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Alternative 4wd drive cars were available and even more fun!

Scrape > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 14:42

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I'm sure the Vistas are really hard to find, and since some were 4wd, they tended to be driven in rust country. On the other hand, Hondas of that era were very difficult to kill, but the rust eventually got them, too. Honda needs to start making stuff like this again.

Justin Hughes > chaos-cascade 01/24/2016 at 14:48

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That sounds awesome! Drop me a line if you or he want to discuss it more - jhughes@rightfootdown.com .

Justin Hughes > SirRaoulDuke 01/24/2016 at 14:50

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I had one of these in Maine, and with studded snow tires no power in the ‘verse could stop us.

Doctor-G-and-the-wagen > vdubyajohn 01/24/2016 at 14:56

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Lowering a first-gen CRV aaaaaalmost works, but yeah not the same.

lambro > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 15:02

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I miss mine ;(

AutocrossTransAm > Ropadope 01/24/2016 at 15:48

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It must have been the AWD and was is manual or auto? My 91 manual, practically a stripper no power anything, regularly hit 36-40 mpg.

John Static > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 16:24

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I grew up in an ‘82 Civic Sedan and an ‘87 Civic Wagon. The wagon was so quirky and oddball but it was my intro into my love of Hondas. My wife and I had a 99 Civic that reminded me of the spirit of the ‘87 but all generations after that lose that original feel.

Shiftright > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 16:37

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I love this car and what you’ve done to it. Seriously, I find articles like thsi so much more interesting than areading about another hyper car that’s overkill 9000 and essentially pointless on the street.

prohome > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 16:43

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FWD and snows for me.

FWD and snows for me.

Sonar Taxlaw > LotsO'Cylinders 01/24/2016 at 17:32

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Seriously! I had an 84 Civic wagon that got 33-35 MPG. No 4WD, but the seats folded flat, either independently or all together for a double-wide road nap. Try to find that combo of mileage and function today.

Andrew P. Collins > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 17:53

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And I’m straaaaight to Craigslist looking for one. I am crazy for these, love that custom headliner on this one.

Bill > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 17:57

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I just purchased a rt4wd this year, took it out a few times during this east coast blizzard. I must say, I am impressed by these little wagons!

mino > Doctor-G-and-the-wagen 01/24/2016 at 18:27

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They at least kept the folding rear seat concept.

Justin Hughes > prohome 01/24/2016 at 18:44

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My first Civic wagon was FWD with snows. It worked well, too, though not as well as my B13 Sentra SE-R.

Nobi > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 19:19

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ONE OF US ONE OF US ONE OF US ONE OF US

Invinciblejets > mino 01/24/2016 at 19:42

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Sooooo......can this thing do donuts?

plak424 > mino 01/24/2016 at 19:44

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Not a huge Honda fan but that car is sweet!

Justin Hughes > Nobi 01/24/2016 at 19:47

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You still looking to unload that?

jk240sx > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 21:16

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These are very cool and sadly very rare. I’ve only seen one in person at that was back in ‘98.

I had a ‘89 323 GTX for about a year until I grenaded the tranny. The 323 wasn’t fast but it sure was fun in the Florida mud.

Justin Hughes > jk240sx 01/24/2016 at 21:26

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I love the 323GTX too! It was the WRX 15 years too early.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 21:39

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Those don’t look stock...

Justin Abide > Kat Callahan 01/24/2016 at 21:54

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Always yes to that! It really needs an Acty as a parts truck imo.

Justin Abide > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 21:55

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Trying to find me a spare already?! :D

Kat Callahan > Nobi 01/24/2016 at 21:56

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Mmm, purdy.

Justin Hughes > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 21:57

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Who said it was for you? ;)

Justin Abide > LotsO'Cylinders 01/24/2016 at 21:57

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you share my passion. As an owner of this lovely wagon, the s2000, and a first gen insight. I’m more aware of what honda is capable of in so many directions and so much more full of disappointment at the past 10 years. The new civic is getting interesting again though. Bring on the BOOOOST

Justin Abide > Andrew P. Collins 01/24/2016 at 21:59

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Hey, if you cant be classy and tacky, you’re missing out on the best part of reliving the 80s vicariously through a car right? Now where’s my hairspray and leather suit.

Justin Abide > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 22:00

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thankfully the diff no longer rotates up to smack rear seat passengers on really hard shifts :D

Justin Abide > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 22:01

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MarquetteLa the one who directed me to post some stuff here and further up in the comments has a fantastic 1988 323gtx!

Justin Abide > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly 01/24/2016 at 22:04

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not even close sir! d16z6 for one and don’t hate on me too much but that’s actually a $60 header off summit that has been hacked and sliced and welded back together to fit around the transfercase, not touch the oil pan, and not rest on my skid-plate..... i think a future downpipe is going to be a cakewalk in comparison. For anyone else attempting just buy the crazy looking PLM one it collects to a 2.5" pipe before going under the motor and would be a heck of a lot less fabrication time.

Grinding Gears > SweynForkbeard 01/24/2016 at 22:05

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Used to be a delivery man for Sears. The words “Sony WEGA TV” make me shudder.

Justin Abide > plak424 01/24/2016 at 22:06

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It has enough power to turn anyone into one! maybe not enough to get up that hill in 5th though.....

Justin Abide > MarquetteLa 01/24/2016 at 22:07

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Just wait until next time!

Justin Abide > smobgirl 01/24/2016 at 22:07

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Meeee too. It’s my favorite, and I’ve driving a lot of interesting cars.

Justin Abide > Shiftright 01/24/2016 at 22:08

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Just wait until you see the next one Justin is cooking up for another of my Hondas!

Justin Abide > Ropadope 01/24/2016 at 22:13

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I hate to say but your driving experience was diminished by the health of your motor. No d series should drink down 21 mpg. I’ve tuned this motor adequately rich for the timing and even on rallycross days it delivers 27+ driving to the events, racing on half tank, and then driving home on the rest. If yours was hurting that bad already im betting you were missing a lot of power too. Sounds like the wagons first motor, SOHC No-VTEC ZC. got mileage like that and drank a quart of oil EVERY tank if you were easy.

somehow it drug the car to a 16.3 in FWD before i found a driveshaft by launching off the limiter, but man was it hurting. If you find yourself in New Hampshire allow me to fix your perceptions!

Justin Abide > SweynForkbeard 01/24/2016 at 22:14

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heck yeah! fold flat seats for.....camping! my first motor dang near ran without oil for a bit too or maybe it was just running ON the oil and doing something else with the gas.

Justin Abide > lambro 01/24/2016 at 22:15

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Cleeeeean sir! I would miss that one too.

Justin Hughes > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 22:15

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That would help, yeah...!

Justin Hughes > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 22:16

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Ooooooo...

Justin Abide > Bill 01/24/2016 at 22:16

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It knows what to do! You just give it a few suggestions along the ride.

Justin Abide > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 22:16

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Roadtrip to Denver when you’re ready. I’m way overdue.

plak424 > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 22:17

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I’ve got a 1.6 miata, I share the sentiment about it too lol

Justin Abide > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 22:17

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I’M trying to! it just isn’t working apparently!

Justin Abide > plak424 01/24/2016 at 22:19

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back when i had the first beat to death motor and some ignition switch issues killing power over 4500, it was 0-60 sometimes.

smobgirl > Justin Abide 01/24/2016 at 22:53

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I keep an eye out here but they're getting out of my price range.

Nobi > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 22:53

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After winter, yes

WayDude > Justin Hughes 01/24/2016 at 23:06

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Isn’t a Suzki SX-4 essentially this thing? Except with the modern niceties, you can tune it up and go crazy.

lq9e39 > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 07:45

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I miss mine, but at the same time I don’t. I got one with 102k on it and a blown HG. I replaced the HG and all of the hardware that goes with it and 3k later it let go again with the clutch. The clutch on that car is an absolute nightmare. Oh did I forget this was during the whole earthquake thing in Japan so sourcing a throwout bearing for a 1991 civic wagon realtime was a fun time. I could only get it from Japan and the dealership there was too busy dealing with making sure their workers were ok (I was ok with that I’m not a total monster.) The one thing I do not miss the piss poor acceleration onto the highway. Ever try to get onto 128 going uphill and thinking well it’s been a good run this is where my life ends? I did do some fun stuff with it like toss on a set of ssr type c’s because why not throw on 3k in wheels on a car I bought for 800 bucks. I hate you now I am looking for one but I might go fwd this time so I can k swap it.

superhead > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 09:00

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I love my wagovan. Not the RT4WD version, but I’ve got a D16ZC SOHC VTEC (basically a JDM version of the D16Z6 with a different cam). It’s recently gone from DD to project car, so I haven’t driven it in a while. :(

Justin Hughes > WayDude 01/25/2016 at 09:07

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Kind of. It’s jacked up like a crossover/SUV. It doesn’t have a ton of power (though neither does the Civic). It’s also kind of lousy on gas mileage. It’s kind of a not as good version of the Civic wagon.

On the plus side, Suzuki did run these in the WRC briefly.

Justin Hughes > lq9e39 01/25/2016 at 09:09

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My first car was a Pontiac 6000 with an Iron Duke motor. I kissed my life away every time I “accelerated” (and I use that term VERY loosely) onto 128.

Hank Scorpio > Spoon II 01/25/2016 at 11:20

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I didn’t know what I wanted most in the world until this second.

Sam-that-was-fun! > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 11:25

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“Let me be different” says Cyl 1 Exhaust downpipe.

Hank Scorpio > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 11:26

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Somebody needs to give this a good home:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2318169364…

lowflyin > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 11:48

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Justin Hughes > lowflyin 01/25/2016 at 11:49

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Here’s mine:

lowflyin > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 11:57

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These cars + snow tires are fun. Can’t wait to get the DOHC ZC and turbo in mine!

BarryDanger > Justin Hughes 01/25/2016 at 12:26

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That snow rally course looks like so much fun!

mino > plak424 01/25/2016 at 12:46

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haha! Thanks! Me neither. I really loved driving this thing and it relieved the stress of taking my ISF anywhere.

mino > Invinciblejets 01/25/2016 at 12:53

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In the right conditions... easily. Not a chance on dry with the stock power.

Took it to the local mountains to play in the snow a few times. The 4x4 bros had a good laugh seeing what this civic can do.

Ropadope > AutocrossTransAm 01/31/2016 at 11:56

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It was a 6spd manual. My leaky beater ‘90 Civic wagon gets into that 34-38 range (even 40 once) when I drive like a good Christian. Otherwise, you can beat the hell out of it, redline it on every shift, cruise at 85-90 mph on the turnpike and still get a reliable 27 mpg. Love that car.

Gcivic > Spoon II 08/25/2018 at 09:57

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I used to own a 91 civic wagon 6 yrs but shit nice work never thought about  this style