Learn me : 1987 civic 1.3

A 1987 Honda Civic 1.3 has caught my eye. 

According to Wikipedia 1987 is listed under 3rd gen and also 4th gen civics. With the 4th gen having better suspension. 
 

Is there a way to tell the difference from a 3rd gen to 4th gen, from the build date? 
 

Also how well do Sasquatch (6'5") sized people fit in these? 
 

Any easy engine swaps? Looks like stock hp is about 75hp. 

What is the price range for one of these, the one I have in mind is running driving, but definitely some rust around wheel wells. Interior is pretty well trashed. 

Does it look like this?

If so,  it's the earlier, torsion bar car--torsion springs up front, beam rear axle.  Despite sounding crude, they're great cars--dominated the scene back in the day. Roomy interiors. As you found, yes, they do rust.

We built an Integra-powered Si back in the day, and it was a staff favorite. IIRC, HASPORT has mounts for other swaps, including B-series. In fact, last I heard, my old '86 received a B16A. 

When my sister was first married she had a 1st gen Civic and her husband could drive it. He was over 6' and 250ish at the time.

In reply to Somebeach (Forum Supporter) :

you can do a swap on a 3rd gen. but the 4th gen cars have better suspension options and are better cars.

the front fenders on the 3rd gen cars are plastic and they're not aging perfectly.

4th gen cars have normal metal front fenders.

a 4th gen is a much better long term candidate for a swap.



 

Assuming this '87 Civic 1300 is US- not Canadian-spec, the stock HP was 60. The 1500 was listed at 76HP and the Si at 91. The 1300 model only came with a 4-speed transmission. The rather tall 1st gear made it slow off the line, but I could keep it in 1st gear for small parking lot autocrosses. I owned one in the early '90s.

spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Somebeach (Forum Supporter) :

SNIP
the front fenders on the 3rd gen cars are plastic and they're not aging perfectly.
 

Only on the 1st gen CRX models of Civic. Non-CRX Civics had normal steel fenders.

In reply to David S. Wallens :

Thanks for the info. Haven't gotten a good pic yet. But it looks like this. 

 

diffrent bumper and headlights than the one you pictured. 
 

In reply to Somebeach (Forum Supporter) :

That's an 86 or 87. I would buy that car if it's not rusty, regardless of mechanical condition or mileage. Or transmission type.

I love those cars but don't buy it until you can take a good look beneath it, preferably on a lift.  They rust nearly everywhere, and badly.  The panhard bar mount is notorious for rusting, cracking, and then tearing loose.  Also around the wheel arches as you mentioned, along the rocker panels and the seam where the floor pans are welded in, behind the seats, and in the spare tire well.  It is pretty common for the jacking points to fold up against the floor pan on older cars because the rockers are so rusted, and yes it can definitely be enough to make the car structurally unsound.  1g/3g models are pretty hard to find parts for, and the 4g has much better suspension.  

keithedwards said:

spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Somebeach (Forum Supporter) :

SNIP
the front fenders on the 3rd gen cars are plastic and they're not aging perfectly.
 

Only on the 1st gen CRX models of Civic. Non-CRX Civics had normal steel fenders.

which explains my snafu.. i've only dealt with the CRX. thanks for the clarification.

I had lots of fun with my 1987 civic over the years.  It was even mildly famous for a bit when I tried to sell it on Ebay.

I am pretty sure it was a carburated 1.5 liter though. 

Some of these cars still had carberators. If this one does then there are miles of vacuum hoses. It is always a leaking hose that is at fault for it running poorly. 

And here are the  mounts and a few other parts from HASPORT. 

In reply to David S. Wallens :

Thanks. 
 

In regards to the rust, I won't be able to check underneath beforehand.
 

The car is an auction  vehicle so I will probably just throw out a low bid. Thinking sub $500 but may go a bit higher.  
If I don't get it I will just keep an eye out for an 88+ so i can get the better suspension. 

thanks for all the good responses. 
 

The 1984-'87 cars might not have the "good" suspension, but they're even lighter and just work. Back in the day, that was a dominant chassis for autocross and road racing. But the 1988-'91 cars are excellent as well. Several of us here on staff have owned both. No wrong answer, really. How's that? 

In reply to David S. Wallens :

That's good. Makes it easy. Thanks. 

spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Somebeach (Forum Supporter) :

you can do a swap on a 3rd gen. but the 4th gen cars have better suspension options and are better cars.

the front fenders on the 3rd gen cars are plastic and they're not aging perfectly.

4th gen cars have normal metal front fenders.

a 4th gen is a much better long term candidate for a swap.



 

You might live in a not rusty part of the world, I'd bet.  I haven't seen a Civic as pictured above for well over twenty years.

pimpm3 (Forum Supporter) said:

I had lots of fun with my 1987 civic over the years.  It was even mildly famous for a bit when I tried to sell it on Ebay.

I am pretty sure it was a carburated 1.5 liter though. 

That was yours? I used to watch videos of that thing at the dawn of the interwebs with my friends. Memories....

You're a big guy?

In reply to Streetwiseguy :

That was just a random internet pic I found. The civic I am looking at does have some rust. I should've been more clear on that sorry. 

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

ha ha  I guess the hatches do have back seats  

David S. Wallens said:

The 1984-'87 cars might not have the "good" suspension, but they're even lighter and just work. Back in the day, that was a dominant chassis for autocross and road racing. But the 1988-'91 cars are excellent as well. Several of us here on staff have owned both. No wrong answer, really. How's that? 

fair point.. and the reality is.. the 5th and 6th gen are really the cars to do stuff with anyway.. they corrected a few issues with the 4th gen front suspension design.

 

Streetwiseguy said:

spacecadet (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Somebeach (Forum Supporter) :

you can do a swap on a 3rd gen. but the 4th gen cars have better suspension options and are better cars.

the front fenders on the 3rd gen cars are plastic and they're not aging perfectly.

4th gen cars have normal metal front fenders.

a 4th gen is a much better long term candidate for a swap.



 

You might live in a not rusty part of the world, I'd bet.  I haven't seen a Civic as pictured above for well over twenty years.

I don't know the last time i saw a 3rd gen on the street.. but i probably do see some form of an EF monthly in Texas.

you are correct. living in Texas means they don't rust away so they generally survive if they're taken care of.. even if they're daily driven for 30 years..

For what it is worth. I did not get the civc I set my auction limit at $508 max bid including auction fees. 
 

 It ended up going for a $607. I don't really have the time this week to pick it up anyways so it all worked out. 

I will keep these 3g/4g civics on my watch list though. 

Mine was a Canadian car so YMMV but they were a super simple engine to work on.  I was able to remove, disassemble and reassemble the carb in less than 10 minutes. By 87 i would think that emissions controls may have made things more complicated.

I may still have a book somewhere regarding parts interchangeability for the 1.3 and from what i remeber there was alot of different combinations. For example, I seem to remeber it saying a head for a Prelude or possibly Accord from a similar era bumped the compression to 13:1. I will look around for the book to see what else may be in there.