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We’ll look at five Honda sports cars that left a lasting positive impression and five that we wish the company didn’t take past the drawing board.

Honda owes its reputation to its exciting sports cars, but this company started life as a motorcycle manufacturer who threatened the position of Harley-Davidson in the American market that Harley had to seek the intervention of the US government to stop the Japanese onslaught.

And while America’s biggest motorcycle manufacturer was under the threat of this Japanese brand, the Detroit automotive giants were also under Honda'sradar. After the company’s wild success in making motorcycles, Honda took the game up a notch and started building cars that were more efficient, powerful, and cheaper than American cars.

That is how the JDM landed on American shores. And what this Japanese brand and many more have created is simply astonishing. However, the brand also has a few undesirable lemons under its belt. And that is what this piece will be all about. We’ll look at five Honda sports cars that left a lasting positive impression and five that we wish the company didn’t take past the drawing board.

To drive the Honda S2000, you need to be an attentive driver. This is a key observation that was made by Car and Throttle when they first tested this car. And if you’ve happened to be behind the wheel of this Honda wonder car, then you’d fully agree with that statement.

RELATED: Why Honda's S2000 Is One Of The Greatest Sports Cars Ever Made

All S2000s are great cars. Moreover, Honda offers it in so many versions that satisfy the needs of the market while looking very familiar across the different versions. In 2008 – 2009, Honda built the greatest S2000 yet, the Club Racer, otherwise known as the CR. Its sportier tires, removable hardtop, and stiffened suspension made it a fan favorite.

The Honda CRX was produced between 1983 and 1991. Despite being a short-lived nameplate for the brand, this marque did not leave without making a mark. Its most significant contribution was in fuel efficiency. This wonder machine could do 50 – 70 miles per gallon, despite being a sports car, what is supposed to be one of the most inefficient cars on the market.

In 1984, 50,000 units of the CRX were sold. In subsequent years, the sales skyrocketed and remained quite stable until production stopped in 1991. Today, it is one of the most affordable cars in the used car market, asking $7,900 from your pocket.

In 2017, Honda introduced the Honda Civic Si sedan and Si coupe. And when reviewers wrote about it, everyone had different opinions about its incredible power and performance. To some, the Honda Civic Si was adequately powered. However, there was a bunch that believed Honda could have given this marque a bit more juice.

Under the hood, the Si packed a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine that could develop 174hp – 180hp. That power was sent to the wheels either via a six-speed manual transmission or a CVT. The pricing of this marque was very enticing, Honda setting the price at $24,775 with free paint selection.

Some consider this marque to be a classic of sorts. The 1968 Honda S800 Coupe was introduced in 1965 at the Tokyo Motor Show. It was the successor of the S600 in Honda’s S-Series. Back then, practicality was still a thing for Honda. Thus, they provided customers with the Coupe and Roadster versions.

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At this age, supercars were yet to become a thing. Despite that, the Honda S800 provided top-of-the-class performance. Under the hood, its power unit produced 69 horsepower and 48lb-ft of torque. That power unit sent power to the wheels through a four-speed manual transmission and did 0-60mph in 12 seconds.

This is the performance version of the Honda Civic. It thus packed a more powerful engine, upgraded brakes, and a redesigned body. The 2019 Honda Civic Type R FK8 was based on the civic hatchback.

Under the hood, the 2019 Civic Type R FK8 ran on a 2.0-liter four-pot turbocharged engine that developed 320hp. That power unit could also rev to a ridiculous 6,500RPM. It also packed a six-speed manual transmission. All these combined enabled this marque to hit a top speed of 169mph. Its quarter-mile record was also wild, with the FK8 managing 13.5 seconds on the dragstrip.

The CRZ was meant to be the successor of the incredible Honda CRX. Sadly, Honda created a lemon that simply couldn’t continue the CRX’s great legacy. The 2011 CRZ suffered from poor air conditioning. That system could rapidly go from cold to warm when the car stopped. That is not something you would want when stuck in traffic on a hot day

Another problem with this car was how quickly the engine would shut down when you stopped. To make matters worse, this car was so slow especially in the economy mode that jogging to your destination would be faster.

The 1993 Honda Del Sol S was launched in the middle of the Mazda Miata craze. And despite the pressure being on Honda to deliver a suitable competitor, the company missed all the marks for making a great Miata rival.

The first mistake Honda did was not equipping the 1993 Del Sol S with an RWD configuration. Its top was also prone to leaks and the cup holder was poorly designed by all standards. The car’s looks were also nowhere near aggressive. There were no heated leather seats, the paint was horrible, and Honda did not add a tow package.

The 2002 Honda Civic Si stands on record as the Honda Civic Si with the worst suspension travel in the Civic’s history. It was also the first Honda vehicle to have its steering wheel cumbrously connected to the struts. But those were not the only problems with this marque. RELATED: 10 Reasons Why The New Civic Type R Is Best Budget Sports Car On The Market

Many buyers reported issues with the exhaust manifold which was prone to developing cracks. There was also frequent transmission failure due to a design flaw and the sun visors deteriorated quite quickly due to the splitting hinge mechanism. The engine block also developed cracks quite quickly.

Anything that can go wrong with a marque went wrong with the 1988 Honda Prelude Si 4WS. And you can partly blame that on this marque being the first 4-wheel steering marque to ever be produced by Honda. Thus, it featured a highly complex mechanical steering system that was difficult to assemble right, consistently.

As a result, the car didn’t seem to know what it was doing. The power steering fluid would also occasionally leak. To make matters worse, this marque had no airbags or ABS, features that were supposed to be standard.

Some people still find the 1991 Acura NSX Automatic to be highly reliable. But to a remaining lot of buyers, this is one of the worst sports cars you could ever buy from Honda. The 1991 Acura NSX Automatic was commonly associated with clutch problems involving its master and slave cylinders.

The power windows were also problematic. The transmission didn’t help to make things any better. Several buyers reported having their shifter wiggle around pointlessly and pop out of gear due to a major transmission problem with the marque.

Charles Bravins is a car aficionado who loves anything on four wheels and a big engine (of course). He loves the petrolhead, cultural, Top Gear, The Grand Tour, and most recently farming thanks to Clarkson