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It may have been nearly 35 years since it appeared on the floor of the exhibition hall, but the old Accord is still very cute.

There is too much nostalgia for the scary cars of the 1980s and 1990s. Recognition of the truly outstanding vehicles of that era is not enough. In this spirit, this is a 1987 Honda Accord LXi sedan that appeared near the legendary Tee-Off Bar and Grill in Santa Barbara, California.

The third-generation Accord was put on sale as a 1986 model, and it was different in several ways. This is the only Accord that uses hidden headlights. The first is equipped with a four-cylinder engine with a displacement of 2.0 liters (actually 1955 cc). The first is equipped with electronic fuel injection on some models. But the most memorable engineering innovation is the use of a real double-wishbone front suspension to replace the previous MacPherson pillars used by the Accord (and almost all Accord’s direct competitors).

Honda first used a double wishbone design on the Prelude coupe in 1983. The suspension design allowed for a lower fairing height and a lower fender height than before. It gave Prelude a unique appearance and continued to Accord after three years. For many people, the Honda low fairing became the decisive feature that many people considered Honda's best design year.

Even the injected LXi of '86 and '87 have only 110 horsepower, but they are eager horses. The handling of the Accord is clearly superior not only to direct competitors such as the Toyota Camry, but also to much more expensive cars such as the Mercedes 190E. The five-speed manual gearbox shifts properly, the steering is a revelation, and the interior decoration is simple and logical.

Honda started producing the Accord in 1982 at its Marysville, Ohio plant. By launching the third-generation Accord, the company is cleverly modifying the car to better meet American expectations. This became most apparent when a two-door coupe was added to the Accord product line in 1988. Only produced at the Marysville plant and exported back to Japan, it is also mainly designed in the United States.

The third-generation Accord was produced until the 1989 model year, when the new "SEi" luxury version was launched. When the fourth-generation Accord appeared in 1990, it was larger and more in line with American tastes—it was indeed different from the Accord sold in most other parts of the world.

When I photographed this example under the "Magic Nails & Spa" logo, the owner approached me and asked me why I wanted to photograph it. "It's a bit rare to see one these days," I said. "Really?" He replied. "Yes, I work for Road & Track. So this is work."

"It's good for you," he said, turning back to the kick-off zone.