Would you pay $5000 extra for a manual 2023 Integra?
When Acura rolled out the reborn Integra as a reskinned, upmarket Civic hatch we admit to being a little disappointed. More than 200 horsepower would have been nice, and a standard CVT is a real head-scratcher. Unfortunately, the final pricing for the 2023 car doesn’t give die-hards much cause to change tune.
As promised, the 2023 Integra starts around $30K—$31,895, to be exact, for a CVT-equipped five-door with no limited-slip diff. (A helical-type diff is standard on the $27,000 Civic Si.) For the manual-transmission model, six-speed devotees must jump not one but two steps of the trim ladder—from base to A-Spec, and the optional Technology Pack on top of that. The magic number, destination included? $36,895.
For that lofty price you get the Si’s limited-slip diff, plus adaptive dampers not offered on the current Civic. A-Spec, Tech-Packed Integras also get unique aesthetics, including grey 18-inch wheels wrapped in 235-mm (rather than 215-mm) all-season rubber. There’s also the usual suite of gloss black bits front and rear, A-Spec badging galore, and a lip spoiler.
Consider that under $34,000 at the Hyundai dealer nets you 275 hp and a standard six-speed manual in either the Veloster N hatchback or Elantra N sedan, not to mention much stouter brakes for track duty.
We don’t expect the Integra to be a complete miss: Given our experience in the Civic, that six-speed gearbox should be a delight and the car’s handling will likely be entertaining. The interior promises the additional glamour you’d expect when graduating from Honda to Acura, including red, white, and black leather options and a standard 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster (the Civic makes do with analog gauges—so retro). That turbo-four powertrain, however, has zero tricks up its sleeve.
The new Integra arrives this June, packing cool-kid attitude but only mild spunk. Unfortunately for Acura, this revival of the Integra is likely to be completely overshadowed in the five-door enthusiast world by the bat-shit-wonderful GR Corolla that just debuted: 300 hp from a WRC-developed three-cylinder, standard all-wheel drive with dual locking diffs, and absolutely no CVT in sight.
Good luck, Acura.
