Sweet Yellow CVCC Honda Civic Zips back to Life

[@nickv4073]

What a concept. A reliable car with an engine bay that allows you to reach and work on any part. No crazy electronics to deal with. If Honda built this car today exactly the same way, I would buy one in a heartbeat.

[@4R8YnTH3CH33F]

Yeah until you have to manually choke it in the winter and then let it heat up for five minutes, finally get it out on the rode and grind all of your gears because they're unsynchronized. Or you could just get a modern car, turn the key and drive away.

[@pizzaguy58]

I feel like I’m driving a tin can on wheels in my 89 CRX, I cannot imagine how terrifying it is in that thing

[@shadow1fun777]

@@4R8YnTH3CH33F fully synchroed gear set...

[@threeparots1]

Nick V valve guides were kinda crap back in those day and would readily burn oil after 50000km and that was on the 1980 models. Neat looking car though..still looks good. I personally Had the 95 civic that was my first and best car..dad had the ‘80

[@RaquelBaranow]

I had a 1977, which I liked because it was easier to work on than a VW.

[@reelreeler8778]

When I got out of the Navy in January 1977, I bought a brand new "left over" 1976 CVCC Civic for $3000 even.. It was an unbelievably fast little car....and it got incredible fuel mileage too.

[@dashjeffreys6998]

We need more simple vehicles such as this. Enough of the huge trucks that normally only have one person in them. People have forgotten the joy of driving

[@tomasacevedo3932]

Dash Jeffreys I get what your trying to go for, simplicity and economical is what this car is all about. Simple cars like this are no longer allowed to be made due to today’s more stricter safety and emissions standards that would make this car unsafe for modern standards. Gone are the times of cheap and simple but well build and lightweight cars of the 70s 80s and 90s. Modern US safety standards require all cars to have dual airbags, side airbag curtains, stronger bumpers, and abs to name a few. All this increases vehicle weight and complexity. But what this car has that no other modern car has is fun, simple, and engagement. It’s a simple lightweight car that is zippy and fun to row through the gears while bringing back good gas mileage. It’s what a drivers car is about no letting computers guiding you with every turn it’s all about being an actual good driver. I hate how modern safety systems have made drivers more oblivious to their surroundings thinking all these driver aids are going to guide them through every possible situation.

[@ciello___8307]

@@tomasacevedo3932 You can get a subcompact Fit or rio or Yaris that is simple and easy. But theres no point if you can get a nicer civic for a similar price

[@mattdoe04]

@@ciello___8307 if you buy a 2 year old Rio, Yaris, or mirage, it is going to cost a lot less than a civic. Civics (especially used ones) hold their value stupidly well

[@ciello___8307]

Steve Doe thats not my point. Im saying new, the fit/ yaris is similar in cost to a affordable trim civic. Americans will take the bigger car every time

[@mattdoe04]

@@ciello___8307 true, but I'm also not American, I'm Canadian. Alot of people I know would happily take a car that would run, give them something with a bit more bang for their buck, Or they would buy something with AWD.

[@HugoHugunin]

When I had one in 1973, I loved the: • 3rd gear. Redline speed 68 MPH • Torque - could have easily blown through redline in any gear • "Superbrights" - headlight dimmer could be placed into a ½-way position and have both high and low beams on at the same time. • Sound effects to let you know that you had ≈ 1 mile until you were empty on fuel.

[@retrojoe1590]

I love these 70 model Japanese imports. I used to have a 78 Dastun B210 Honey Bee. Wish I would have kept it.

[@michaelbell8834]

4:51 If you look at the speedometer, you'll see one dot at about 25 mph, two dots at about 43 mph, and three dots at about 67 mph. Those reflect the point where the engine will be at redline at 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear. So it has a "passive tachometer" of sorts.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

My uncle had one. I was a little kid, and I remember one day he was changing the spark plugs and leaned slightly on the fender with his legs, and next thing you know there was 2 leg shaped dents in the fender🤣

[@walterchristen4502]

You utube channel has become one of my most favorite channels. Thanks for everything.

[@2stroketurbo]

Hey thank you for the kudos

[@Seethenhagen]

First gear, its alright, second gear, I'll lean right, third gear, hang on tight

[@Wangholes]

faster, its alright!

[@johnfranklin5277]

I remember these...I was 17 in 76. Lots of these were running around in so cal. This was the most popular color. A friend of mine had one. Dont recall her having any problems with it. I just turned 60, and never thought I'd be seeing a video about these cars 43 years later!! .

[@2stroketurbo]

I know. I remember seeing lots of these in the Portland area in the 80's . Most all gone now, except few stragglers like this

[@danielpeters9190]

Compound Valve Combustion Chamber. I remember reading the 1976 Honda brochure as a teenager. Neat little cars.

[@jimdent351]

I had the opportunity to buy one of these back in the 80's as my first car, however it wasn't "Cool" enough for me back then. Hindsight's always 20/20!

[@IanMicheal]

This is the wife of pictured. I bought a 1976 like this in 1985... my first car. I loved it; it fit me like a glove (small stature). It was like an extension of myself. Zippy and excellent. Would still have owned and kept it, if not for extenuating circumstances. Thank you for getting it back on the road... I know the owner must really appreciate it. Never see them anymore. Wish they were still a new item to be had,.... because I would buy one again! Cheers!

[@steverandall5814]

Was a bit surprised to hear how difficult parts were to get. These things were as common as houseflies back in the day...but I guess "the day" was 43 years ago and there just isn't much call for them today.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

I haven't seen one on the road here in the Northeast since the late eighties....rust got them all within 10yrs. My uncle bought one brand new, and off the lot the door seams had rust already.

[@steverandall5814]

@@MrTheHillfolk Rust is not much of an issue here in Northern California, unless you live in the Sierras where they salt the roads, or right on the beach. I also follow Mustie1 and South Main Auto channel..such a stark contrast to what I'm used to seeing under a car. My year-round daily driver is a 1998 Mercury Grand Marquis with 140,000 miles on it... not a speck of rust.

[@Dan40049]

In Australia these were a common sight on the roads in the 80s-90s. A pity I didn't realize how fun they were. "You don't know what you've got till it's gone."

[@k8zhd]

I had one of these -- same color, maybe a year or 2 later. Mine was the fancier version with houndstooth upholstery inserts and a tach. I liked it a lot.

[@xxtravdamanxx]

LYING SACK OF SHIT!!!!

[@nightmathzombieethan]

Not trying to be rude but it's: Compound Vortex Controlled Combustion. Fascinating design, GM even experimented with its own variations of the concept of a dual stage combustion chamber and a dual fuel/air mixture, with the full cooperation and approval of Honda. Oh, and it sounds like you've got it dialed in really nicely! She's quite a gem.

[@SeventyEightCivic]

Actually Mr Honda approached GM to buy his technology and they blew him off. So he bought a 70s Impala had to flown to Japan where they developed CVCC heads etc... proved it worked on the Chevy Small block and then had it shipped to GM in Detroit as an F U.

[@bradlemmond]

@@SeventyEightCivic Didn't the CVCC Impala pass emissions without a catalytic converter?

[@mark_p300]

It ended up failing the 1975 NOx standard pretty spectacularly, the CVCC design made the air-fuel charge too lean. The CVCC-equipped Impala did show marked improvement with respect to unburned hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide over the stock 350 V8, but keep in mind this was a '73 model that didn't have a catalytic converter to begin with. The 1976 interim target NOx level was 2.0 grams per mile at the time of the test (1973), but by the time it made it to law the '75 standard was only 0.4 g/mi. They wouldn't have been able to meet the standard without a catalytic converter anyway. See www.carsandracingstuff.com/library/reports/402.pdf CVCC was a neat idea, but ultimately a technological dead end, and every Honda since the early '80s has had catalytic converters.

[@bradlemmond]

@@mark_p300 I'm glad I didn't state that as fact.

[@Alfonsodag]

Nice work! It's going to be better than new once you get the fan under control. The customer will be able to display it at car shows, it will promote a lot of conversations.

[@myperspective5091]

My dad used to have one of those. It was kind of funny to watch us go to church in it. We had a large family. At the time that my dad owned his civic when I was in 1st grade (1980) there was twelve of us. We sat four people in the front; my dad ,my mom holding a baby, and one kid inbetween them to worked the shifter, and then typically we packed six to eight of us all piled in the back sitting on each other's laps. We had to push it up hills because it wouldn't go uphill a with all the kids in it. We were lucky that the majority the route was flat and that there was only two small hills that we had use at the push the car over if we didn't hit them at a high enough speed. The kid in the middle usually got smacked upside the head if they missed that shift for the hill.

[@v.e.7236]

I owned a '79 CVCC and loved that car. As you noticed, its got a lot of zip. I got the best mileage, while keeping my foot in it. 30 + MPG all day long. Unfortunately, I had this car before learning about timing belts vs chains and ended up shearing off multiple cogs/teeth on the timing belt, bending several valves and destroying the head. Other than the timing belt, the vacuum box that was mounted to the firewall could become a nightmare, if compromised. Great little cars w/ gobs of fun-behind-the-wheel factor.

[@Ka9radio_Mobile9]

I had a 1978 CVCC Honda Civic loaded, with A/C, wood grain interer, 2 speed automatic, rear window defogger, deluxe interer. Boy was it a blast to drive, miss it so much. The fan on my Civic was controlled by a thermostat on the radiator. Its had to believe parts are so hard to come by. Thanks for the video!

[@leorickt.9604]

This is a great channel. My grandmother had this car and drove it from Montreal to Florida and back every year

[@teeroh99]

I remember when these things were everywhere. I'm old enough to have ridden in one, but don't think I ever did. This video brings back memories of riding in my friend's 1st gen. Accord back in high school.

[@TheDracfink]

reminds me of my 79 civic 1200, non cvcc. i won many of races bc people would underestimate the little thing. and you are right, they just love to go go go.

[@vivangreco1710]

I had a '78 yellow CVCC Civic as my first car. It was so much fun! In many ways, it was a Japanese interpretation of the Mini Cooper. Mine had the five speed box, which was as slick as any transmission ever, close ratio and effortless. The five speed cars got a tachometer, a real wood steering wheel and shift knob, and a few other niceties. Mine also had air conditioning, which made Southern summers a bit more bearable. That car would surprise many larger "faster" cars in a straight line (as long as you kept the engine up in the rev range) and handled like a sports car. It had fully independent suspension and factory anti-sway bars. I miss that car!

[@glenbo2464]

My aunt and uncle bought that same model and color new in California. I recall them coming to visit in it. Ive owned a few coupes and a wagon also. My over heating was due to having some air that needed bled off the cooling system and the fan wasnt coming on from a bad sensor. Once fixed i was good. Cool car.

[@anthonyprioletti7800]

I love how zippy that civic is. I would absolutely love one of those.

[@davidhutchison3343]

Those old Honda Civic's were fun cars to drive. Real zippy and handled really well, and cheap to run to boot. ,

[@sudsreserve5474]

That looks like the first honda i ever rode in back in 78

[@davidfuertes1973]

This brings me so many pleasant memories my brother had a 1975 Honda cvcc it was orange and had no air conditioner in Florida horrible during the summer but it was a great dependable little car

[@rhark25]

This looks like it might have been a transitional/early year model if it is an actual CVCC. I had a 76 and it had a CVCC badge on the rear hatch, a tachometer, a wood grain dash, wood steering wheel and shift knob and a 5 speed transmission. The only thing that would have made it better was an air conditioner. It was HOT in Florida! :)

[@barryphillips7327]

Neat little Honda, the engine sure is an eager beaver!

[@mdpetrick03]

My first car was a '74 Civic, which - for all intents & purposes - was identical to this gem. It too had issues with the cooling fan not automatically kicking on. We went the cheap route & installed a toggle switch on the dash to turn the fan on, which necessitated constant monitoring of the temp gauge. Still, it was a genuinely fun little car and I miss it.

[@stevevarholy2011]

My folks had a 1975 CVCC Civic. I loved it because it was small and proportionate to 5-year old me. By 1980, it was sold, because the headgasket blew at least twice.

[@paulv1498]

I love these old Hondas you just can't beat em, I've seen an 88' Civic hatchback with over half a million miles on it and it still looked like it came off the lot back in 88'! I now own a 2000 model coupe that has 263,000 miles on it and still ticking, A/C still works and everything.

[@jeffking4176]

Cool. Needs a Tach. Though. I remember when these first came out. Great little cars. Cool video.

[@45AMT]

Growing up in the 80's our neighbor had one of these up the street from me who always kept it in there carport It always looked mint. Wow what a gorgeous car! Did you know back in the 70's Honda experimented and took a Chevy impala and modified the 350 engine to incorporate the CVCC system. It reduced emissions and it got a few miles per gallon better as well.

[@16Alain]

Wow! I had a 1977 but not cvcc, same colour. Had an awful lot of fun with it.

[@michaeldion8798]

Had 6 of these cars back in the day. Easy to work on and fun to drive. Was the best car for winter driving.

[@k.j.g.9601]

I had one of these in high school. Great torque and was decent up to 70ish...I drive a Porsche now, ironically I have a great desire to drive one of those again.

[@squeakD]

My best friend in high school had one of these! His may have been a 79. It had black and white checkered seats. If you want to piss off the driver..., that bar running across the passengers footwell is how you do it ;-)

[@xnotx2]

Sounds nice. Has a good buzz to it. Hope he doesn't put a fart can on it lol

[@lsswappedcessna]

I've encountered a newer civic (probably early 90's) hatchback with a fart can and it sounds horrible. Definitely hope this doesn't get a fart can.

[@Shawnbfromsd]

As a Honda enthusiast, I support this statement.

[@kangokidkidd4037]

@@lsswappedcessna I kind of love those fart cans it makes me feel as if I am on a race track...just wouldn't want to be neighbours...

[@MrBluoct]

Hard to describe what it was like in the 70’s seeing one of these up close for the very first time. Big old Italian dude purchased one He and his chubby brother squeezed in this - similar to a circus clown car. But that little Honda moved right alone- Nearly everyone I knew was running around in their parents repurposed massive sedans And here sat a micro car Fascinating / altered reality type stuff...

[@PaulinesPastimes]

What a fun car. You must be pleased that you were able to sort it out so well. Cheers.

[@noelaguirre7104]

Mine was a manual 1978 silver with black stripes that run from the fender to the rear light, It was our first and last Honda. The charm didn't blossom.

[@danebeck7900]

I had a 1980 Honda Accord CVCC in high school that ran pretty rough until I rebuilt the engine. Yeah, they really do RIP when they're running right!

[@P7777-u7r]

The 70s. Where every car looked badass even the little compact cars

[@BangBang-hk4rg]

Awesome video! I remember seeing a bunch of these on the roads back in the 1980’s and on into the early 1990’s. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen one though.

[@dodgeramman7521]

Owned a few of these they are the best civics ever made had a 77 with hondamatic trunk not hatch 2speed trans.was only thing I didnt like wish it had 5spd.as it only got 63mpg.on trip to fla.a 5spd.would have got 70+mpg.I had a zero rust one 79 last yr.that was garaged whole life with 27,000 orig.miles looked new smelled new got 79 accord aluminums for it took to several shows took 1st place award for all orig.import class.miss that car to this day.Was a deal @$1700 in 2004.

[@larrysnyder3475]

Absolutely incredible little car's. Always wanted one but, never found one.

[@elijahhodges4405]

I had one. I wish i still had it. I'd buy another if they built them still. It had rack and pinion steering. My 5 speed front wheel drive Honda Civic was yellow and could keep up with anything on the road.

[@walterpchrysler9446]

Awesome little car looks like a blast to drive.

[@stevenquigley4208]

i had a 77 or 78. surprising little car. wounnd up swapping the cvcc head for a 2 valve and had 2 side draft webers. was very successful autocrossing against stronger cars.. great little car

[@PigEqualsBakon]

glad to see the ray of sunshine back on the road! and you just reminded me I have to empy the gas out of my subaru....

[@mckreations5160]

I ha e owned 27 of these when i was in my late teens. Buy them in the 90s for $100 all the time, fix it and flip it. I drive one solid for the first 5 years of driving 35mpg and a blast to drive. They dont get stuck in any snow, they will push snow thats to the bumper. Been looking for a clean specimen to do a 1.6b swap in for a couple years. That one is sweet!

[@dillerdaller]

What a beauty! :D But that handheld camera of yours . . . I'm on the other side of the globe but still gets nervous looking at the chaotic (but usually succesful) attempts to use 4 hands at the same time ;) You should really consider a headmount of sorts... (y)

[@ngneer999]

I had one that color (1975) with a black Landau roof. I pulled a catamaran with it and could watch the mast above the windshield while driving.

[@dgriffin6074]

Awwww...wook at that widdle, baby water pump. Hahaha. I had a '77 CVCC Civic. Sorry I sold it. Only problem: in cold weather the clutch cable would snap, but easy to replace.

[@mrceleb2006]

By the 1980s, Honda retired the buzzer (at the 5:08 mark) in favour of electronic beeps! BTW, thanks for beeping the horn at the 4:59 mark!

[@barrythacker7281]

I had one of those cars when i was young, it was a good car. When i turned up a quart of beer it would hit the windshield.

[@Monkeywrenchmotorcycles]

I love old civics but they are almost impossible to find and when you do they are either, A: completely rotted away, B: restored and owner wants a fortune

[@davidmorris9204]

Back in the day, I purchased a 77' Civic CVCC station wagon (5 doors) with the semi automatic transmission, It was quite peppy but not as this manual one!

[@jm7983]

I had the exact same car, mine was tan color. AWESOME car.

[@tombollig612]

I had a 77 with the 4 speed. Loved it. It was zippy and ran/drove great. Issue with mine was that thin metal body. I stepped through the back seat floor board grabbing my book bag. That was in 1987, the car was 10 years old. But I lived in the midwest and winter ice/salt was brutal. Great designs.

[@servicarrider]

When I was a kid I bought several of these things. Best automobile sine the model-T. Loved just playing around in these things.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

My uncle leaned against the fender while changing spark plugs, and left two big dents in his

[@servicarrider]

So, did your uncle take the hint and get on a proper diet and do a little exercise or, did he ignore the obvious and die of heart disease?

[@thomaswilson517]

Memories of my old 74 civic

[@davidhutchison3343]

The biggest problem with keeping old cars alive is sourcing parts. My sisters 22 year old car was scrapped because the thermostat bypass pipe corroded, and the part was unavailable anywhere in Australia. The cost to get a part manufactured was more than what the car was worth.

[@CardboardSliver]

I have a Tonka car that looks just like this! Same colour too! Also, that woodgrain dash. I'm sure LGR would love that!

[@wolftmfg]

Got the same Tonka! 😁

[@aviatorsdream4686]

Didn't expect to see a LGR Viewer here?

[@Inkling777]

Looks lovely. I had exactly the same car but with the five-speed. I liked it so much, when I thought the head gasket went bad I replaced it myself, only to discover it was actually a cracked block. That was frustrating. I ended up getting a used engine from Japan for about $500 and putting that in.

[@obviousgreyman]

That thing is awesome, looks like a lot of fun.

[@coopercooper58]

I like your positivity dude! Have a good day!

[@enriquef8384]

Beautifull car l own one 1977 isnt driving yet but soon Will be, l Will try to keep it original w his carburetor.

[@theeaselrider4032]

I had one for a very short time - no where near as nice as that one, which is partly why I got rid of it. But it was fun to drive. But the carb change you made likely does give a bit more, especially as the rpms start to climb. But the car really doesn't weigh very much either, which adds to the zippiness. The manual transmission really helps to get everything out of that motor too. Mine was the auto ( semi-auto?), which almost seemed to restrict any kind of acceleration.

[@roscoesomeone9764]

I had a couple of those but the non CVCC engines about the same year models. Maybe older ... I weighed one 1650 lbs. not so great on the highway but they scooted around town pretty well. Nice power to weight ratio.

[@krimmer66]

We called it a 1500 lol.. it was my first car and to this day I would love to drive one again!

[@Chuck59ish]

I remember my 78 Civic had an electric with a thermostat in the bottom of the radiator, I had to replace it when the fan wouldn't work. I had a Haynes manual for it.

[@bigray2859]

I'm old enough to see these when they were plentiful. Neat little fun cars. I don't remember seeing many lasting into the eighties though......short lifespan throwaway cars? I don't know...

[@kevinpatrickmacnutt]

Depends on where you were living. Rust took many of these in the Northeast in the 1980s.

[@johnlavender242]

FYI The CVCC (Compound Vortex Controlled Combustion) engine debuted in 1975.

[@JoeHynes284]

just found and subbed to this, time to binge watch

[@rexjolles]

much better than those new sushi boats honda makes today

[@Nograc_]

I love that thing so much. Would love to find one

[@carlmoffett6632]

Love it. Needs bumpers.

[@minilife1481]

I rode in the hatch when I was 5 my mom had a 76

[@maxcarter970]

That carb sounds great

[@gosportjamie]

A well set up Weber carb will always give you a lovely intake noise. The problem with that is then you always want to give it the beans to get that noise and the fuel consumption goes through off the scale...

[@andgate2000]

Had one...1974... gee it was quick for then....four speed....just under 100 mph.

[@mikerinck8523]

I think the CVCC badge would go in those blank holes on the right side of the rear license plate.

[@geraldinalagos]

My golden dream on my sweet sixteen.

[@Italian144]

The civic will look nice with its original bumpers

[@frankdenardo8684]

CVCC means Control Valve Combustion Chamber. Interesting thing is that it didn't have a catalyic converter but can run on leaded or unleaded gasoline.

[@daveogarf]

Glad to be proven wrong, re: the Weber carb. Wish I'd known about that back in the day. Great job!

[@alexblackburn2247]

this makes me really want to own one

[@johnfalkenstine8377]

They had bad wobbly torque steer. The other manufacturers at that time had some horrible emission controls under the hood, my shop had an exhaust gas analyzer which was almost mandatory to get anything running right. Then Honda showed up with this engine, no smog pump or complicated stuff under the hood, made other manufacturers look backward.

[@FMHammyJ]

All the first generation Civics in Canada rusted away....mine was a second generation(I had two....the second was a 1500 GL) it rusted away as well. You see more Volkswagen Beetles in Canada than first or second generation Civics. Japanese steel doesnt like Canadian road salt, and Honda's rust proofing at the time wasnt exactly state of the art.....Still the best cars I ever owned.....the 1500 died on me twice in 11 years of driving....a computer chip blew, and I wore out the ignition switch...lol

[@caroliciouschannel1870]

My summer car called , it wants its car back.

[@Anthony-qj7qe]

Nice lil Civic, like the color too :)

[@Super_Charged4life]

Damn. That thing seems faster than my dual carb prelude

[@kevinkasperson694]

I owned this exact car.put sunroof in it at age 16.kept it till about age 26.

[@scottyjones27]

Fine machine!! I've only seen one of these n person!! This is the second one!! Not many of these made it to Kentucky!!

[@theguitfiddler6111]

I have a 1978 that I have been trying to start my friend bought this car it wasn't running this is when I learned more about cvcc than I ever knew before thee auxiliary valves were getting flooded with gas and plugs fouling out i ended up sending the head to be rebuilt we have a weber carburetor i am going to put it back together see if I can get it to run maybe I can get some tips from you if I run into issues of getting it started