Honda has done it again... as the Acura Integra took it's final bow in the US in 2001, the Acura RSX came nipping at its heels as a very worthy replacement. The 200hp Acura RSX Type-S is Honda's answer to the late Integra Type-R. It features an all new 2.0 liter iVTEC K-series engine that makes 200 horsepower at at high-revving 8200rpms while maintaining an average 30 miles per gallon if you can manage to keep the revs under control. Believe me - it's difficult.

Having not been able to afford one when they were released (nearly $25,000US when new and myself being one year out of high school at the time), come late 2006 I was ready to trade in my previous car, a 2005 Scion tC, for something a little more fun... a little more powerful... and a little more Honda.

Interior and Exterior

As with any car, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but in my opinion the Acura RSX is the best looking sport compact on the road - even though it's not the newest. The design of the RSX is fairly timeless. Honda didn't take too many risks in designing the RSX. Unlike some other manufacturers, Honda stayed away from some of the "fads" of the sport compact market when designing the RSX - things like clear tail lights, big wings, and gaudy multi-colored "tuner" style wheels, and I thank them for that - as the RSX that resulted is a perfect blend of a very proper looking car with a sporty looking compact.

During the entire run of the RSX from 2002 to 2006, the interior was awarded constant praise from nearly all car magazines, including Car and Driver, who repeatedly complimented the Type-S on having the best interior of any sport compact on the road. The seats are very sporty looking and supportive, like race buckets, but are nicely appointed with leather. The dash, rather than being a nice sea of plastic, is actually vinyl rapped and has a nice textured and spongy feel. The interior door panels, where you grasp them, are covered with a smooth rubber surface instead of hard plastic. The inserts on the door panels are nicely appointed with a very soft leather.

Performance

Having scanned the reviews on this site and on other sites, the point that usually catches my attention every time is one that's listed under the "Cons" section. The RSX Type-S, which is the model I own, makes 200hp at 8200 rpms, and has a very tight 6 speed manual transmission with very short gears. For anyone who has ever buzzed around in any of Honda's high-revving sport compacts with DOHC VTEC engines, including the 99-00 Civic SI, or the 94-01 Integra GSR or Type-R, this immediately sounds like a recipe for fun.

Revving a K series engine out to its 8200 rpm redline isn't something that feels dangerous in the least. This isn't a 1994 Buick Park Avenue we're in here, it's a high revving precision tuned 2.0L iVTEC 4 cylinder. Thanks to the short ratio 6 speed transmission the revs come quickly and smoothly, and short of hitting the rev limiter or keeping one eye on the tach, you probably won't even know that you're pushing the engine as high on the rev counter as you actually are.

The RSX Type-S is a performance vehicle in every sense of the word. It may not have as many cylinders as a Veyron or as much horsepower as a Viper, but as far as the naturally aspirated 4 cylinders go, the RSX Type-S' 2.0L 200hp engine can't be beat. There are 4 cylinder sport compacts that are faster out of the box, this is true, but most of them achieve this by means of some kind of forced induction, and none of them have Honda's claim to fame as far as reliability or resale value is concerned. After all, the largest engine manufacturer in the world does know a thing or two about building engines that hold up as well as they perform.

The high revving engine in the RSX Type-S that some list as a con, in my opinion, is one of the best parts. Driving the RSX Type-S down a curvy country road is the most fun I've ever had in a 4 cylinder car before - and I've owned 21 of them, from all different manufacturers. Being able to shift quickly though 6 short gears and rev freely throughout the RPM band with little blips of power from the iVTEC engine at the engagement point is pure joy. The power that's delivered is amazing for the size of the engine, and you would have to swear you had two more cylinders attached to those 6 short gears.

When you want to be civilized, the RSX is up for that as well. As with any Acura, sound deadening material is top notch. The RSX is very quiet at any speed - when you want it to be. The standard tires are Acura's pick for the best cross between noise and performance, and although performance isn't as good as track-ready Z-rated tires, you are also saved from the noise.

Fuel economy is better than one might expect. I usually average 30 miles to the gallon with a healthy mix of spirited back road driving, quiet highway cruising, and peppy around-town driving. Because the Type-S requires Premium fuel, the real life mpg figure is a bit of a relief.

Service

Being as the RSX is an Acura, service will cost as much as you'd expect. No bones about it - service costs are high. Oil changes at the dealer run in the neighborhood of $40 each. My local dealer happens to offer an "every 5th oil change is free" program, and also has a very nice lounge with free drinks (various fancy coffees and sodas) as well as free donuts while I wait.

On the flip side of that, aside from oil changes, the RSX has a relatively low volume of scheduled service appointments. Almost all services up until over 100K miles consist of simple checks of items that are considered "regular maintenance" (brake pads, brake rotors, etc.) and oil changes. That's it. Also, since it's a Honda engine and transmission, reliability is on your side.

For the do-it-yourselfers, OEM Acura parts from the dealer are usually pretty affordable as a last resort - if you can't find a quality after market replacement part (or used OEM part) on sites like eBay. As with most other Honda cars, working on them yourself is usually an option for a DIY'er with any sort of mechanical know-how with only simple hand tools.

Conclusion

So far, my Acura RSX Type-S is the best car I've owned. Being 24 years old and having owned 24 cars in the short amount of time which I've been able to drive them, my RSX Type-S is the first car that I've had for almost a year and haven't gotten bored with yet. Upgrades for the car can be had for fairly cheap and can do a lot to wake the car up even more than what Honda provides. I have replaced my stock suspension with Tein SS suspension and the difference in handling is night and day. Simple DIY upgrades like this are obviously on a as-you-want basis and really help to increment the car's fun factor.

I would recommend an RSX Type-S to anyone looking for an exhilarating sport compact who expects the best with regards to interior refinement, excellent resale value (if someone ever persuades you to), and unsurpassed reliability.
Amount Paid (US$): 17000
Condition: Used
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: Type-S