Honda G20A / G25A

Honda's inline five — the 2.0 G20A and 2.5 G25A — in the Vigor, Ascot and Acura TL.

⚑ Honda built a five-cylinder engine, mounted longitudinally, in a front-wheel-drive car, and every part of that sentence is unusual. It is the reason the family exists and the reason almost nothing about it generalises from the rest of the catalogue.

A five-cylinder is inherently unbalanced and this one has no balance shaft, so its idle character and its sound are design rather than fault. An owner reporting vibration is usually describing the engine.

Its recurring items are the era's: a distributor that fails with heat, a belt that is an interference design, and oil leaks from seals that are now decades old.

Parts and specialist knowledge are very thin — the family was short-lived and sold in small numbers — which is usually what decides whether one of these is worth repairing.