When the 2024 Acura Integra Type S was first unveiled, I was a skeptic. After all, it’s a strong ask for what, on paper, seems like a slightly more luxurious, slightly softer Honda Civic Type R. After all, if you’re buying a raucous, manual-only, big-power front-wheel-drive hot hatch, wouldn’t you want the more ballistic option?
Well, what if you aren’t buying a hot hatch? Having now driven the Integra Type S, I have a feeling it will fly out of showrooms, and that’s not just because people want their Civic Type Rs with heated seats — it’s also because BMW doesn’t make the same sorts of cars it used to. Let me explain.
[Full disclosure: Acura Canada let me borrow this Integra Type S for a week so long as I kept the shiny side up, returned it with a full tank of premium fuel and reviewed it.]
Growing Up
It’s easy to view the Integra Type-S as a Civic Type R with softer suspension and heated seats, but the changes go deeper than that, even down to where the two cars are made. When Honda builds a Civic Type R for the American market, it first assembles an engine in Ohio, which is then shipped across America, across the Pacific, and to Yorii in Japan, where it’s then installed in a car. The car then goes through the rest of its assembly process, get shipped to a port, loaded onto a boat, sent to America, and finally shipped to a local Honda dealership so it can make a customer absolutely ecstatic. Needless to say, this is a hugely time-consuming and resource-intensive process, so for the Integra Type S, Acura’s cutting out the boats and building it in Marysville, Ohio. You know, right down the road from where the engines are made.
Of course, it helps that the regular Integra is built in Ohio, and it doesn’t share any sheetmetal or an interior with the Civic. The two cars share a wheelbase, a heart, a gearbox, and a litany of chassis components, but the outwardly facing experiences are wholly different. Instead of swallowing wide tires under subtly bulged fenders, Acura has gone wild, bolting on the gnarliest set of flares since the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody. Add in a liftback silhouette, and the result looks damn near close to a touring car for the road. It’s subtle enough to blend in at work, yet rambunctious enough that enthusiasts across the land know it’s something special.
Note, however, that the badge on the back says “Type S” instead of “Type R.” Acura’s been working on making this a softer, more mature package than a Civic Type R, and the most obvious visual proof of this is in the seats. Instead of thick yet wonderfully supportive high-backs with bolsters that hug you in all the right places, the thrones in the Integra Type S seem, well, pedestrian. If you’re built like a beanstalk, you’ll fall out of the seats long before the tires relinquish grip, but the tradeoff is heating to warm your back on cold winter nights. Likewise, the steering wheel is heated, and dashes of red leather brighten up the dashboard. However, neither of those minor concessions to growing comfortable with age dominate the creature-comfort experience.
No, the highlight of the cabin is a 16-speaker ELS audio system that goes to eleven. From crisp string plucks to audacious 808s, the clarity is surprisingly excellent for a system in this segment, and the soundstage is wider than Texas. If you really want a juvenile party trick, throw on “Starfall” by Salem, crank the volume up just past 20, and feel the cosmos vibrate at your feet. Yep, that’s worth the price of admission.
Another cabin upshot is the Integra Type S doesn’t share the trackpad infotainment setup found in other Acura models. Instead, it gets a touchscreen system nigh-on identical to what you’ll find in a Civic. It’s a huge improvement, but there are still a few quirks to the in-car electronics. Automatic rev-matching must be turned off in an infotainment sub-menu that’s only accessible while the car is stopped. In addition, the parking sensor beeps can only be disabled temporarily through the digital gauge cluster while on the go, which gets a bit annoying when the forward sensors jam up with ice in the winter because two of them are in the grille. Is that a minor gripe? Sure, but it might temporarily drive you mad if you live in the salt belt, but it’s a minor nit.
Spool And Lance
Remember how the Integra Type S uses the same two-liter twin-came 16-valve turbocharged four-cylinder engine as the Civic Type R? Like many parts of this car, it’s undergone some minor software tweaks, and with figures of 320 horsepower at 6,500 rpm and 310 lb.-ft. of torque from 2,600 rpm to 4,000 rpm, the Integra Type S claims a little more poke than the Civic Type R. Will anyone notice an extra five horsepower? Probably not, but that doesn’t mean it’s not appreciated.
Find a stretch of straight road, point the steering wheel dead-ahead, and hammer down, and you have a half-beat to ponder whatever you wish before the turbocharger really comes on song. Did you leave the bedside light on? What do you want for lunch? You should really call your cousin sometime, right? No matter, all those thoughts vanish once the effects of this boosted four leave an impression on the tarmac, especially on winter tires. This thing’s a bloody handful on Michelin X-Ice Snow winters, quick to light up both front tires at the first sign of moisture before traction control kicks in to shut the party down. Hitting the stability control off button doesn’t actually let this thing off its leash, as a preposterous pedal dance is needed to kill the nannies. Call it a digital manifestation of some petulant lawyer’s contempt for adult responsibility.
Still, if you find a stretch of dry road, you’ll find the Integra Type S about as quick as you want. Figure zero-to-60 mph in the low five-second range, and passing power just about everywhere thanks to the gearing. Delicious, and just enough pace to actually have fun with in the real world. Plus, unshackled from EU regulations, Acura’s engineers have been free to craft a more stirring aural soundtrack, with spicy yet restrained burbles on the overrev in Sport+ mode and a fuller tone when you’re on it. It’s still tasteful, but it adds an extra dose of specialness to the fast Integra.
However, outside of the odd on-ramp and overtaking maneuver, you won’t have to lean on the throttle in the Integra Type S often. When the road gets curvy, this thing scythes tarmac like Astaire could a rug. It feels like it’s made of Gore-Tex the way it’s stiff yet breathes with the road, with even the full Cialis Sport+ adaptive damper mode absorbing blows from broken tarmac without fuss. While not abundant in feel, there are missile guidance systems less accurate than the 11.62:1 electrically assisted rack in this quick Acura, and a firm brake pedal will rein in the fun if things get too hairy. Although the Integra Type S isn’t as eager to engage in lift-off oversteer as the Hyundai Elantra N, its default into gentle understeer is exactly what most drivers are looking for. Combine that with a comfort mode ride to rival that of most small luxury sedans, and only the odd bit of exhaust boominess prevents this car from settling down and becoming invisible. Depending on who you are, that near-invisibility might be a problem.
While I was testing the Integra Type S, Toronto experienced its single biggest snowfall event of last winter. On my way home from my office-share, it quickly became apparent that I was in a front-wheel-drive car with an electronic handbrake and a stern yet fair electronic safety net. On these winter tires, during this drive, the primary difference between the Integra Type S and a 200-horsepower Honda Civic Si was that the Acura had a more defined clutch bite point. Although that’s not a bad thing, it does speak volumes about the car’s character.
It’s a more grown-up sort of fun than a Hyundai Elantra N or Toyota GR Corolla. There’s pantomime without much delinquency, a quiet sort of excellence that almost makes you forget this platform pushes the boundaries of front-wheel-drive sport compacts. This isn’t the sort of car to replicate feats of youth in, it’s a symphony rather than a drum and bass track — tens of thousands of thoughtful parts working together for a superlative on-road experience. The revs rise and fall exactly how you’d expect them to, the bite point of the clutch is clear as day, and the shifter is beyond brilliant in Honda tradition, crisper than a fresh Benjamin and with the perfect amount of throw. So what if the metallic knob gets a bit cold in the winter? That’s what driving gloves were made for.
If there’s one noticeable hair in the driving experience, it’s that the fuel tank is the size of a Zippo. A 12.4-gallon tank is plenty for the standard Integra, but with observed fuel economy right on the EPA’s combined figure of 24 mpg (9.9 L/100km), you end up with a range of less than 300 miles. That gets a little bit annoying. However, it’s hardly a fly in the ointment of this wonderfully livable performance car. After all, storing more fuel onboard means storing more weight, and a little extra lightness has its upsides too.
Don’t Call It A Hot Hatch
In the end, the 2024 Acura Integra Type S is a fabulous entry level sports sedan. With a delightfully notchy shifter, more than enough grunt to be wasted on anything less than dry tarmac, a beautifully made interior, and a stereo that goes up to eleven million, it’s a more involving alternative to an Audi S3 or Mercedes-AMG CLA 35, even with only half the driven wheels. While it’s expensive for a sport compact car, with a price tag of $52,995 including a $1,195 freight charge, or $58,195 in Canada, it’s actually well-priced to fight the more anodyne Germans.
If anything, it reminds me less of sport compact cars of old and more of what the BMW 330i ZHP used to be decades ago — an expertly-tuned, well-crafted compact sports sedan. The sort that’s hard to find anymore. In fact, perhaps the most direct competitor to the Acura Integra Type S is the Cadillac CT4-V. Sure, one’s rear-wheel-drive and one’s front-wheel-drive, one’s six-speed-or-bust while the other’s automatic only, but they’re both similarly sized, similarly priced, similarly upscale compact sports sedans that hit a certain satisfaction switch in the corners. Decisions, decisions, am I right?
(Photo credits: Thomas Hundal)
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