Here’s why the ‘X’ in Honda CRX meant ‘Experimental’

In this episode I provide the history of the Honda CRX, first introduced in 1983 as a fourth body style option for the third generation Honda Civic. Although it had a very small back seat when sold outside of the U.S., it had no back seat for the U.S. models. Despite the missing seat, it quickly gained in popularity due to its gas mileage of over 50 miles per gallon. Higher performance models like the Si introduced in 1985 brought in more younger buyers. A second generation in 1988 maintained the CRX popularity, but it started to wane by 1991. Honda then made a big change for the third generation by changing it from hatchback to a 2-seater targa top, which could automatically raise and lower in the Japan and Europe versions. But since it lost the practicality of its hatchback, and was larger than before, popularity dropped each year, never coming close to levels the CRX once had, leading to its end by 1998. Background music by Nick Weiss - nickweissmusic.com