The
Honda Civic CRX del Sol was a 2-seater front-engined, front wheel drive,
targa topTarga top, targa for short, is a semi-convertible car body style with a removable roof section and a full width roll bar behind the seats. The rear window can be fixed or removable, making it a convertible-type vehicle...
convertibleA convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle. Many different automobile body styles are manufactured and marketed in convertible form....
manufactured by
Hondais a Japanese multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles. Honda is the world's largest manufacturer of motorcycles as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume. Honda surpassed Nissan in 2001 to become...
in the 1990s. Based on the Civic platform, the del Sol was the successor to the popular
Honda CR-XThis article is about the first and second generations of the CR-X. For the third generation, see Honda CR-X del Sol.The Honda CR-X, originally launched as the Honda Ballade Sports CR-X in Japan, was a front-wheel-drive sports compact car manufactured by Honda. The first generation CR-X was sold in...
. It debuted in 1992 in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, and 1993 in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
name
del Sol translates as
of the sun, and refers to the car's opening roof. It was not a full convertible, featuring a removable
hardtopA hardtop is a term for a rigid, rather than canvas, automobile roof. It has been used in several contexts: detachable hardtops, retractable hardtop roofs, and the so-called pillarless hardtop body style.-Detachable hardtops:...
that stowed in the trunk and a retractable rear window for that "convertible" feel.
The
Honda Civic CRX del Sol was a 2-seater front-engined, front wheel drive,
targa topTarga top, targa for short, is a semi-convertible car body style with a removable roof section and a full width roll bar behind the seats. The rear window can be fixed or removable, making it a convertible-type vehicle...
convertibleA convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle. Many different automobile body styles are manufactured and marketed in convertible form....
manufactured by
Hondais a Japanese multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles. Honda is the world's largest manufacturer of motorcycles as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume. Honda surpassed Nissan in 2001 to become...
in the 1990s. Based on the Civic platform, the del Sol was the successor to the popular
Honda CR-XThis article is about the first and second generations of the CR-X. For the third generation, see Honda CR-X del Sol.The Honda CR-X, originally launched as the Honda Ballade Sports CR-X in Japan, was a front-wheel-drive sports compact car manufactured by Honda. The first generation CR-X was sold in...
. It debuted in 1992 in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, and 1993 in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
name
del Sol translates as
of the sun, and refers to the car's opening roof. It was not a full convertible, featuring a removable
hardtopA hardtop is a term for a rigid, rather than canvas, automobile roof. It has been used in several contexts: detachable hardtops, retractable hardtop roofs, and the so-called pillarless hardtop body style.-Detachable hardtops:...
that stowed in the trunk and a retractable rear window for that "convertible" feel. Trunk space was reduced from 10.5cf to 8.3cf while the targa was stowed.
In many markets the CR-X naming convention was dropped from the del Sol line as it was distinctly different from earlier models, which were hatchbacks and not targas. Starting with the 1995 models, Honda dropped the 'Civic' name from the del Sol in the Americas. In Europe, the del Sol tag was dropped in 1995, and the car was known as the new CRX.
Production and sales ended with the 1997 model in the U.S. and 1998 elsewhere, with a total of slightly fewer than 75,000 models sold in America. The car was replaced by the high-performance
S2000The Honda S2000 is a roadster manufactured by the Japanese automaker Honda Motor Company. It was launched in April 1999 and was created to celebrate the company's 50th anniversary....
roadster in 1999.
Specification
The CRX del Sol, known as the Civic del Sol in the USA and the new CRX in Europe (CR-X del-sol until 1995 when the del Sol was dropped in Europe) was first introduced to
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1992, and
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
and
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
in 1993 in two trim levels, The
S and the
SI (The European market came with the Japanese-market SiR (called the VTi in Europe) and the US-market Si (called the ESi in Europe). The base "S" model (called the VXi in Japan from 1992-1994, but after 1995 called the VGi) came with a 1.5 liter SOHC 16-valve four cylinder engine and rode on 13" steel wheels. The Japanese VXi/VGi versions came with a Honda D15B engine. This was an entry level VTEC engine that produces , matching the power of the 1.6 Si version. Despite the body resemblance to a mid-engined car design, the del Sol shared a front-engined design with the contemporary
Honda CivicThe Honda Civic is a line of compact cars developed and manufactured by Honda. In North America, the Civic is the second-longest continuously-running nameplate from a Japanese manufacturer; only the Toyota Corolla, introduced in 1968, has been in production longer...
.
The uplevel "Si" (called the "ESi" in Europe) model came standard with a 1.6 liter SOHC 16-valve four cylinder engine with Honda's
VTEC-DOHC VTEC:Honda's system is a simple method of endowing the engine with multiple camshaft profiles optimized for low and high RPM operations. Instead of one cam lobe actuating each valve, there are two: one optimized for low-RPM stability & fuel efficiency; the other designed to maximize high-RPM...
. The Si also came with 14" alloy wheels which were offered in an optional body color-matched paint scheme on Samba Green models, power side mirrors,
cruise controlCruise control is a system that automatically controls the speed of a motor vehicle. The system takes over the throttle of the car to maintain a steady speed as set by the driver.-History:...
, rear disc brakes and a front anti-sway bar for improved handling.
The
VTEC-DOHC VTEC:Honda's system is a simple method of endowing the engine with multiple camshaft profiles optimized for low and high RPM operations. Instead of one cam lobe actuating each valve, there are two: one optimized for low-RPM stability & fuel efficiency; the other designed to maximize high-RPM...
trim level (called the "SiR" in Japan and the "VTi" in Europe) was added in 1994 in the United States (The CR-X Model in Japan had the B16A engine with though), with the first appearance of a 160
hpHorsepower is the name of several non-SI units of power. It was originally defined to allow the output of steam engines to be measured and compared with the power output of draft horses. The horsepower was widely adopted to measure the output of piston engines, turbines, electric motors and other...
(119 kW) Honda DOHC
VTEC-DOHC VTEC:Honda's system is a simple method of endowing the engine with multiple camshaft profiles optimized for low and high RPM operations. Instead of one cam lobe actuating each valve, there are two: one optimized for low-RPM stability & fuel efficiency; the other designed to maximize high-RPM...
B-series engine in a U.S.-spec Honda; similar to the B16A found in the JDM
Civic SiR-IIThe Honda Civic is a line of compact cars developed and manufactured by Honda. In North America, the Civic is the second-longest continuously-running nameplate from a Japanese manufacturer; only the Toyota Corolla, introduced in 1968, has been in production longer...
. This trim level came with bigger front brakes, larger front anti-sway bar, additional rear anti-sway bar and wider tires.
On all models, the only options were a rear
spoilerA spoiler is an automotive aerodynamic device whose intended design function is to 'spoil' unfavorable air movement across a body of a vehicle in motion. Spoilers on the front of a vehicle are often called air dams, because in addition to directing air flow they also reduce the amount of air...
, custom floor mats, an automatic transmission, heated mirrors, front fog lights (95 onwards) traction contol system, limited slip diff, and
air conditioningAn air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area, or provide heat to an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
.
TransTop
An option available in Japan and Europe was the TransTop, an electric mechanism which retracted the targa top into the trunk via a push of a button. The roof is operated by flicking two catches above the windows, then holding down a button. The trunk lid raises vertically and two arms extend into the targa top. After the latches have been flicked back up, the arms pull the targa into the trunk lid, which lowers back down with the targa inside. Several enthusiasts have made the conversion from targa to trans but it is not recommended as it compromises structural integrity.
Model updates
Changes for 1992:
- CR-X del Sol launched in two trim levels - SiR (VTEC) and VXi (S) (Japan)
- CR-X del-sol launched in two trim levels - VTi (VTEC) and ESi (Si) (Europe)
Changes for 1993:
- Civic del Sol launched in two trim levels - S (VXi) and Si (ESi) (US)
Changes For 1994:
- Added VTEC trim level, with B16a3 engine (DOHC VTEC) (US), and improved suspension (US)
- S trim level receives front sway bar
- Dual airbags standard (US)
Changes For 1995:
- Civic tag dropped from US del Sol name. Model is now called del Sol (USA)
- del Sol tag dropped from European CR-X del-sol name. Model is now called CRX (Europe)
- VXi trim level becomes VGi (Japan)
- Added B16a3 engine (DOHC VTEC) (US)
- Redesigned targa top seals to help prevent leakage (US)
- Added Anti-lock brakes (VTEC model), base weight now (US)
- Added remote trunk release (US)
- New seat materials (US)
- Low fuel light (US)
- New alloy wheel design (US)
- Added power steering (US); standard on Si, VTEC
Changes For 1996 (mid-model refresh):
- Elimination of B16a3 engine (US)
- Added new VTEC engine B16a2 (DOHC VTEC) ( less than original) ( B16a2 enigne is the same as 99-2000 Civic Si)(US)
- Elimination of front auxiliary headlamps (US)
- Small airdam / rear deck aesthetic treatment (US)
- New front bumper and air dam (US)
- Length increase to (US)
- The base del Sol S receives the 106 hp 1.6-liter engine, a four-hp increase over previous year's 1.5-liter. (US)
- The del Sol Si receives the 1996 127 hp Civic engine, as well as the suspension and steering of the VTEC. (US)
- All del Sols now have 1.6 liter engines: , and (US).
Changes For 1997:
Changes For 1998:
- Production ends (Japan, Europe)
Sales
Number of del Sols sold in the USA:
| 1993 |
25,748 |
| 1994 |
21,075 |
| 1995 |
14,021 |
| 1996 |
8,489 |
| 1997 |
5,603 |
Miscellanous
The del Sol has been featured in all Gran Turismo games to date, with a special
LMLe Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans....
edition featured in the first two games.
VIN Decoder
VIN Decoder for US Domestic Market del Sol:
Example Description
Vin #
------- --------------------------------
J ╗
H ] - JHM = Honda Motor Co. passenger car
M ╝
E ╗ EG1 = D15B7 (93-95 S)
G ] - Engine: EG2 = B16A2 (96-97 VTEC), B16A3 (94-95 VTEC)
2 ╝ EH6 = D16Y7 (96-97 S), D16Y8 (96-97 Si), D16Z6 (93-95 Si)
1 ] - Body/Transmission: 1 = 2-door manual 5-speed 2 = 2-door automatic
6 ] - Vehicle Series: 4 = S 6 = Si 7 or 9 = Si with ABS, or VTEC
? ] - math check digit
R ] - Model Year: P = 1993, R = 1994, S = 1995, T = 1996, V = 1997
S ] - Assembly Plant: C = Sayama, S = Suzuka, T = Tochigi
0 ╗
0 ║
5 ] - Serial number, based on the sequence off the
7 ║ production line
9 ║
3 ╝
See also
Porsche 914The Porsche 914 was a mid-engined sports car built and sold collaboratively by Volkswagen and Porsche from 1969 through 1976.- Development :...
-- the original targa top with vertical rear window
www.dsoc.co.uk for all technical literature and repair manuals.