BETTER PARTSHonda employees are bored and convert the Acura Integra into a rally car
A project of the Honda of America Rally Team
A bunch of employees at the Honda Automotive Development Center in Raymond, Ohio, had had enough of working on sensible SUVs. It was time to have some fun in the sand. That's why the group of colleagues pulled an Acura Integra off the shelves and converted the upgraded Honda into a rally car. You can see the result above.
The group of Honda employees calls themselves HART, which stands for Honda of America Rally Team. HART previously converted a Civic Type R and a Passport to rally specifications. The team even became American champions with the SUV last year. They also supplied a modified NSX for this year's Pikes Peak climb. Now it's time to explore the off-road terrain with the four-door Integra.
Specifications of the Honda Acura Integra rally car
The rally car will participate in the Limited 2WD class of the ARA (American Rally Association). In this rally class the maximum cylinder capacity is 1.6 liters. That is why HART falls back on the 1.5 VTEC engine from the regular Integra instead of the 2.0-liter VTEC found in the Type S. Still, 204 hp and 260 Nm should be enough to go fast.
The rally team tells Top Gear Netherlands that it has left the chassis alone 'as much as possible'. Only some reinforcements have been made and the springs and dampers have been exchanged for rally-specific ones. Furthermore, a roll cage and a five-piece set of LED lights have been added, there are special 'aggressive' brake pads and the Integra has thick rally tires from Yokohama.
This weekend, the Honda employees' Acura Integra rally car will make its competition debut. In any case, the shakedown for the Lake Superior Performance Rally went great according to the team. Let's see if HART can also take a shot at the championship with this Integra.