The Acura Integra marks its 40th birthday in 2026. If you, like the Integra (and in fact, the whole Acura brand), were born in 1986, I apologize for reminding you of the inescapable passage of time, and I also hope you have fun plans for your party.
When Acura introduced the fifth-gen Integra for 2023, reactions were mixed. The performance-oriented Type S was well received, but the other trim levels were critiqued as being a bit too close to their Honda siblings to justify the increased starting price of about $32,500 and up. Why pay more, some felt, when the Civic Si, which started at just under $30,000 in 2023, was already so good, and the underpinnings of the Integra were basically the same?
That opening price spread between the Si and the Integra remains in place today, but Acura has made some changes to the 2026 Integra lineup to bake in more value and better justify its higher price. It gives the Integra some unique visual and technological features that set it apart from other sporty sedans.
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Manual, Saved
The 2026 Integra retains the turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder with no changes in output, which remains at 200 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque. A CVT automatic comes standard, but move up to the A-Spec trim with the available Technology package ($40,395 to start), and you can nab a six-speed manual. The Integra swims in rare waters by offering a stick not solely in its top-spec Type S model but in this midrange car as well. It’s a great transmission too, with a well-balanced clutch and throttle, a smooth shifter with an elegant metal topper, and anti-stall and brake-hold tech that offers confidence to a beginning stick-shifter and takes away any excuses about traffic fatigue for the veteran.
As a brand, Car and Driver must always recommend the manual when there is a good one, and I personally recommend it for this car as well. But I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge that the CVT gets better EPA estimates, at 29 mpg city and 37 mpg highway versus the three-pedal’s 26 mpg city and 36 mpg highway. I still say get the manual.
Our drive route took us through the gorgeous, but crumbling, hills of Palos Verdes in California. Seismic movement along the cliffs in the area means the twisty roads get even more twisted, rising and falling like a roller coaster, with uneven pavement and unexpected drops. The Integra rides high enough to avoid scraping in the dips, and its chassis is well controlled. It’s taut, but the A-Spec’s adaptive dampers soaked up the small bumps for a comfortable ride over challenging terrain. It’s a pleasure to drive a car that can handle being pushed on a good road yet doesn’t take its payment back in misery in a construction zone.
The Integra A-Spec provides four driving modes. Of them, Comfort is a bit sluggish, but Normal is great for tooling around in traffic, while Sport is nice and peppy off the line but jumpy in the stop-and-go. There’s also an Individual setting to mix and match your preferences. The views in this area are extraordinary, and the Integra is an exceptional medium for taking them in. I could imagine marveling at the cobalt horizon and doomed mansions until I, too, slid into the sea.
New Visuals
But all of this is old news. We’ve praised the Integra’s enjoyable driving dynamics in the past. If you’re here for the new news, let’s start with a walkaround. I noticed immediately that my Double Apex Blue Pearl Integra was sporting a matching grille in place of the 2025 model’s gloss-black inset. The color-matched front end comes standard with the blue (which is a new color for 2026) and Performance Red Pearl paint codes. A black grille is available as an option on those colors, and conversely, the Urban Gray Pearl, Platinum White Pearl, and Majestic Black Pearl cars come standard with a black grille, but customers can swap in a color-matched nose. Along with the Double Apex Blue and Urban Gray Pearl, Solar Silver Metallic also joins the paint options.
If you can extract yourself from the hypnotic glint of subtle metal flake in the Urban Gray Pearl, there are a few other changes worth noting on the front end. An aero body kit on the A-Spec caps off the lower fascia with glossy black side spoilers and runs a small lip along the side sills. The black accents are anchored with a new 18-inch wheel design for an overall more athletic exterior. The Integra is a well-proportioned machine but not a super flashy one. The new details along the lower edges give it a little width and attitude, closer to the Type S.
More Equipment
New color combos also come into play on the interior, where the Integra A-Spec now sports three snazzy upholstery options: black with yellow stitching, a ruddy oxblood, and the popular Orchid (white) with blue inserts that debuted first on the 2025 ADX. Other interior changes include a new patterned trim piece along the dash, wireless phone mirroring and wireless charging, and, perhaps most important for many buyers, a now-standard 9.0-inch touchscreen replacing the previous 7.0-inch version.
The larger screen is welcome, but the actual display still feels small, since it’s offset to give room for some fixed buttons; we like the idea, but they don’t need as much real estate as they’re given. The display itself is easy enough to navigate and quick to respond, but lacks the crispness of some of Acura’s competitors. It’s good, not great.
The rest of the Integra’s tech offerings are better and include a standard 10.2-inch digital gauge cluster, USB-C ports front and rear, and the available Technology Package that adds Alexa and a head-up display. The standard audio is an eight-speaker system, but the Technology package’s 16-speaker ELS Studio 3D stereo is the better choice.
The back seat provides plenty of space for adult passengers to sit in leg-stretching comfort and hat-friendly headroom. The folding seats and rear hatchback make the same area suitable for a massive amount of suitcases, sports equipment, or sandbags to prop up your sea wall. As a multi-use vehicle, the Integra is as flexible as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars.
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From a pure value perspective, it’s still hard to beat the manual-only Honda Civic Si, but the small changes here make a big difference. The dressed-up cabin, new exterior colors, and styling tweaks give the 2026 Integra more of a distinct personality. The nameplate may have entered middle age, but the Integra is still in its prime.
Specifications
Specifications
2026 Acura Integra A-Spec
Vehicle Type: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door hatchback
PRICE
Base: CVT, $34,595; CVT A-Spec, $37,145; CVT A-Spec Technology, $40,395; Manual A-Spec Technology, $40,395
ENGINE
turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 91 in3, 1498 cm3
Power: 200 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque: 192 lb-ft @ 1800 rpm
TRANSMISSIONS
6-speed manual or continuously variable automatic
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 107.7 in
Length: 185.8 in
Width: 72.0 in
Height: 55.5 in
Passenger Volume, F/R: 52/43 ft3
Cargo Volume: 24 ft3
Curb Weight (C/D est): 3100–3200 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
60 mph: 7.0–7.1 sec
1/4-Mile: 15.3–15.5 sec
Top Speed: 135 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY
Combined/City/Highway: 30–32/26–29/36–37 mpg
Like a sleeper agent activated late in the game, Elana Scherr didn’t know her calling at a young age. Like many girls, she planned to be a vet-astronaut-artist, and came closest to that last one by attending UCLA art school. She painted images of cars, but did not own one. Elana reluctantly got a driver’s license at age 21 and discovered that she not only loved cars and wanted to drive them, but that other people loved cars and wanted to read about them, which meant somebody had to write about them. Since receiving activation codes, Elana has written for numerous car magazines and websites, covering classics, car culture, technology, motorsports, and new-car reviews. In 2020, she received a Best Feature award from the Motor Press Guild for the C/D story “A Drive through Classic Americana in a Polestar 2.” In 2023, her Car and Driver feature story “In Washington, D.C.’s Secret Carpool Cabal, It’s a Daily Slug Fest” was awarded 1st place in the 16th Annual National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards by the Los Angeles Press Club.
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