The Drive’s Daily Mileage Champion: 1993 Honda Civic Del Sol
A 1 Owner Car With 364,832 Miles, Duct Tape, And The Wrong Transmission!
Hondas were every bit the equal of Toyotas way back in the early-90s - except when it came to this Honda.
While Toyota decided to take the conventional approach of the time, by molding the 78 horsepower jellybean styled Tercel into the 'practical and sensible' Toyota Paseo, Honda decided to take their 5th generation Civic, and turn it into a roadster that would lose two seats, but gain a personality.
The 1993 Honda Civic Del Sol you see in this picture was a rolling testament to the fact that by the 1990s, Honda had become the more youthful Toyota alternative.
While Toyota discontinued their Toyota MR2 in 1993 and neutered their Celica into a 130 horsepower snoozer for most of the 1990s, Honda spent most of the decade cranking out Preludes, CRX's, the Acutra Integra, the Civic Si, and this del Sol, which would later lose its Civic name and simply become the Honda del Sol.
Despite the corny commercials, the del Sol, had a respectable niche showing here in the USA. Honda cranked out approximately 75,000 units for its five year run in the USA, with the first two years representing the overwhelming majority of those sales. By the mid-1990s, America was getting older and two-seat cars that weren't named Miata or Corvette were finding themselves with few takers.
It limped on for a few more years in Japan, and if you want to get a grasp of the more techno side of the del Sol, you can find it on Youtube with an all too strange Japanese owners manual video. I wish I could post it here but I'm typing this in the Deliverance country of North Georgia and for some some reason my links to that particular video ain't a stickin'.
As for this del Sol, it was treated to the finest duct tape by its one and only owner before heading down to the wholesale dealer auctions with 364,832 miles. The seats held up incredibly well and other than mileage, this del Sol went through the block with no engine or transmission related announcements.
24 years. Base model. One owner. We all should be fortunate enough to find a fun car worth keeping like this Honda. Speaking of which, can you think of a car you would keep for 20 cars and pay for the maintenance? Feel free to let me know in the comments below.
