Honda’s used to rule to quick and agile segment with their early Civic models. From 1983, a whole family of new Civic models came to Malaysia and made driving history with new generation of yuppie Malaysians working towards owning one of these cars. Here we are looking at the Civic model that started the Honda craze in Malaysia. The 3rd generation Civic.
There was a four-door sedan that the just married family man wanted, then the hot hatchback that the single guys dreamed about, the outrageous little CRX which was rare and expensive, and the rather unusual tall wagon that carried the additional name of ‘Shuttle’ (pictured below).
There were many units in the market both local assembled and also grey imported at the time but today only a few have survived time and rust.
Depending on your budget and criteria there is a model for you. If you are looking at a reasonable sedan to run then the 1.5 sedan is best. There are many abused hatchback units (and lesser modified sedans) which have been modified and used for street racing so better to look at one that is still in its original condition. This means no fancy bodykits, alloys, with its original engine and not a transplanted one.
Interior trim was good quality, so if very worn and with cracked plastics, then better to avoid. Body damage on a car this old will be common, but check to make sure chassis is okay. A quick look in the engine bay to make sure the rivets and panels on the side of the engine bay are in-line and with no unusual weld points is good news. Open the boot and check in the spare tyre well to make sure that the welds are all in-line and the spare tyre sits in flushed. Body panels should also be relatively straight and on your test drive make sure no excessive noise is heard in the engine bay. Also make sure that the rear suspension is not sagging.
Consumable components like brakes, clutch, suspension and pumps are relatively cheap to buy and easy to source anywhere. A full service history will be a bonus but rarely as it is common for a car like this to have changed hands a few times. Having 5-7 names on the registration card is not all bad if well looked after. Best places to find a good used unit will be in smaller cities and towns like Ipoh, Kota Bahru and Alor Star. Prices start from RM2,000 for an average unit and can go as high as RM15,000 for an immaculate hot hatch 1.6i imported unit. Might sound like a lot but it is well worth it.
