If you’re in the market for a true performance-grade sedan that will deliver the goods in understated style, a Honda Accord, or Torneo Euro R, is a good place to start

Over the years, the Japanese have cunningly set cars for their own local market apart from those destined for foreign shores by giving them up-rated engines, higher-spec interior and accessories, tweaked suspension, and sometimes slightly revised bodywork. The Euro R is a classic example of this.

Built on Honda’s CL1 chassis the Japanese domestic market (JDM) Euro R was sold in two very similar guises: the Accord and the Torneo. Apart from slightly varied front and rear exterior treatments, they’re the very same car. But compared with the standard Accord and Torneo, the Euro R has some crucial advantages. Look under the hood and you’ll find an H22A 2.2-litre DOHC VTEC mill. This isn’t just any regular old lump of iron like you’d find under the hood of your mum’s burgundy ’94 Accord. The hyped-up VTEC pumps out a handy 220ps, which in a car weighing only a tad more than 1300kg is a pretty sizeable figure.

ENGINE

Honda has long been regarded as the king of high-powered, naturally aspirated engines, and the H22A is no exception. While there are new cars being produced these days with N/A engines making 200hp-plus, back in the early ’90s when the H22A was first released in the Prelude Si VTEC and Accord SiR, it was absolutely revolutionary, and to a degree it still is.

The H22A has been subjected to many thousands of builds, in both N/A and turbocharged formats. It’s a solid, reliable and punchy unit that not only develops a lofty power figure but also a pretty respectable torque figure of 220Nm. This is usually the catch with small-capacity engines developing big power figures. It can be fairly easy to nudge the kilowatts up, but managing to do the same with the torque figure at the same time is harder, and since it’s the torque figure that determines how 'fast’ a car will feel in real life, that’s what counts. There are plenty of small- to medium-capacity Japanese V6 engines producing similar torque figures to the H22A, so keep that in mind.

What is quite typical of this style of engine is the level of revolutions required to actually reach the power band. In this case the 220ps isn’t attained until the engine is spinning at 7200rpm, while the torque figure isn’t even reached until a massive 6700rpm. What this means is that although on paper the engine is impressive, in real life you will have to work it pretty hard to realise its full potential. This is okay, though, because by reading this article you’re probably not the type who’ll buy this car and then drive it around town at 1500rpm to save gas. Speaking of which, with an 11.0:1 compression ratio, you’ll need to pump the good stuff when you fill up. The engine is also quite a lightweight unit as it consists of both an aluminium block and head handy for saving a good 15 to 20 kilograms off the total weight.

DRIVETRAIN

The Euro R came complete with a fairly standard 5-speed manual gearbox with typically low Japanese gear ratios, which while handy for quick getaways are not that enjoyable for extended periods of motorway action. It’s nothing you can’t get used to though, and since about 99.9 per cent of manual Japanese cars have very similar gear ratios, you’ll probably have experienced the same thing in your last car anyway.

The Euro R’s party trick is its limited slip differential, which helps to plant all its power firmly on the road.

SUSPENSION/BRAKES

There were one or two other differences above and beyond cosmetics that set the Euro R apart from its lesser-spec siblings. The CL1 chassis provided an excellent platform on which to mount the Torneo’s complex suspension, which consists of MacPherson struts and double wishbones up front, with struts, double wishbones and a tricky five-link setup out back. It’s typically firm but this is pretty much order of the day with any high-performance car, so don’t be surprised if the Honda’s a little skittish on less than perfect surfaces. The Torneo’s brakes, while nothing outrageously race-orientated, will still pull you up nicely thanks to ventilated discs and twin-pot callipers at the front end.

EXTERIOR

Remember what I was saying about this car being understated? If you see one in the flesh you’ll know what I mean. You’re not going to find any wild spoilers, front bars or nine-inch-deep side skirts on this car. It’s all about driving something that isn’t going to attract the attention of the boys in blue but which is still able to rip up the tarmac, and this is where the Euro R excels. It’s got the stance to suggest something’s up, but there are no obvious signs. The Torneo was, however, one of the first Japanese sedans to make use of HID headlight technology.

The wheels are only 16-inchers and are nothing special to look at, especially these days, when lots of manufacturers are equipping stock cars with massive rims.

INTERIOR

Hopping inside this high-spec Honda you will spy the usual Accord/Torneo dashboard of the era, which is still decent by today’s standards. But the main action is where your put your rear end and what you grab hold of, namely slick Recaro front seats and leather Momo SRS steering wheel. The alloy gear knob is a nice touch, too, and all in all the Euro R cabin is a pretty pleasant environment.

All the usual creature comforts are there too: climate control air conditioning, power windows and mirrors, and a set of clear, well-lit dials.

HOW MUCH TO PAY

For a decent example you should expect to pay anywhere from $10,000 upwards. Hondas are reliable, so high kilometres shouldn’t be too much of a problem. However, you can’t buy one with 160,000km on the clock and then expect it to be as fresh as a daisy and worthy of modifying. Aim for a sub-100,000km example with a service history and no more than some basic mods the rest you can do yourself with the security of knowing how professionally they’ve been done.

This particular car, a very original Torneo with 93,000 certified kilometres on the clock, was on the yard at Auckland’s A Grade Cars with a window price of $13,990.

MODIFYING GUIDE

I’m a firm believer in modifying a car to accentuate its underlying characteristics. For instance, while you can make an Evo look good with massive, heavy chrome rims and some weird kind of candy paint, they always look so much better when they’re packing a set of full race-spec lightweight rims and a standard red white or black paint job. An Evo is a rally car, and Evos are driven on the street, the best representation in modifying terms is to set them up to replicate a tarmac WRC car. You wouldn’t modify an Aussie V8 to look like a gravel-spec rally car or a drifter; you’ve got to keep things in perspective.

The Honda sedan was used at least in one form or another in touring car racing, so what better style to aim for? Drop it 50mm on a set of coil-overs, fit a set of lightweight race-type wheels and you’re on the way to making it look as good as it can. Follow the rims and coil-overs up with some standard engine work like a carbon airbox with free-flowing filter, a 2.5-inch exhaust and some bumpy cams and you’ll be away laughing.

Remember that the H22A is fairly highly strung as a stock unit, so you won’t want to spend too much coin or time trying to eke every last pony out from under the bonnet. It’ll cost you an arm and a leg and will probably shorten the life of the engine by tens of thousands of kilometres. As a stock figure, 220ps is plenty high enough, so gaining an extra 10 or 20 horses for a modest outlay should be what you’re aiming for. Aside from that, play to the car’s natural advantages, which are its excellent handling and low kerb weight.

Honda Torneo/Accord Euro R (CL1) – Specifications

Engine: Honda H22A 2.2-litre DOHC VTEC 16-valve, Honda PGM-Fi port fuel injection, 11.0:1 compression ratio, all-aluminium construction, closed-deck block design
Driveline: 5-speed manual gearbox, front-wheel drive, limited slip differential
Suspension/Brakes: Front — MacPherson strut with double wishbone, coil springs, ventilated discs, 2-pot callipers, Rear — MacPherson strut with 5-links & double wishbones, coil springs, solid discs, 1-pot callipers
Wheels/Tyres: 16×7-inch alloys, 205/50R16 tyres
Exterior: Front lip spoiler, side skirts, boot spoiler (optional), HID headlights, fog lamps
Interior: Recaro front seats, Momo SRS steering wheel, alloy gearkob, climate control air conditioning, power windows & mirrors
Performance: 220ps @ 7200rpm, 220Nm @ 6700rpm

Words: Rob Dawson Photos: NZPC

This article is from Performance Car issue 151, click here to check it out.