The Daewoo Arcadia was Daewoo’s version of the Honda Legend, the V6-engined executive saloon that Honda launched in 1985 as its flagship. In Korea the car carried Daewoo badges instead of Honda ones; underneath it was the same front-wheel-drive four-door that Americans knew as the Acura Legend.
Daewoo Arcadia at a glance
| Original model | Honda Legend |
|---|---|
| Class | executive saloon with a V6 engine |
| Legend production | 1985–2021 |
| Also sold as | Acura Legend, RL and RLX in North America |
| Layout | front-wheel drive, engine mounted transversely |
| Japanese engines | 2.0 L C20A V6, 2.5 L C25A V6; 2.7 L C27A from 1988 |
| Fuel system | PGM-FI electronic multi-point injection |
| Gearbox | four-speed automatic or five-speed manual |
| Body | pillared four-door saloon |
| First shown | Japan, 22 October 1985 |
| Built in Britain | 4,409 cars, 1986–1988 |
The English Wikipedia article describes the Honda Legend, the car Daewoo sold in Korea as the Arcadia. Based on one source.
History of the Daewoo Arcadia
Honda’s flagship
The Legend was introduced in Japan on 22 October 1985 as the first production Honda offered worldwide with a SOHC V6 engine only. It was created to take Honda above the Accord and to win buyers who had until then chosen the Toyota Crown, Mazda Luce or Nissan Cedric. The car also marked the launch of a new Japanese sales channel, Honda Clio, and in North America it became the first model of Honda’s luxury division, Acura.
Developed with Austin Rover
The Legend grew out of Project XX, a joint programme agreed with Britain’s Austin Rover Group in November 1981 to replace the Rover SD1 and to give Honda a luxury car. Development was shared between Rover’s Canley works in Coventry and Honda’s centre in Tochigi, and the design was finalised in 1982. Legends for the British market were to be built at Cowley, but few passed Honda’s quality checks and only 4,409 were made in Britain between 1986 and 1988; every American car came from Japan.
Engineering
Honda chose front-wheel drive for a nearly flat floor and better traction, accepting a 63/37 front-to-rear weight distribution. The Japanese range had three trims: the V6Xi with the 2.5-litre C25A, and the shorter, narrower V6Gi and V6Zi with the 2.0-litre C20A, the smaller body keeping the car inside a lower Japanese tax class. The 2.5 grew to the 2.7-litre C27A for 1988 and gained a variable-length intake manifold. A four-speed automatic or a five-speed manual were the only choices. The Legend was a pillared saloon rather than a hardtop, and it brought Honda firsts such as a driver’s airbag, speed-sensitive power steering and anti-lock brakes.
The Daewoo version
Daewoo sold the Legend in Korea under its own name and with its own badges, as the Arcadia. The car kept the Honda body, V6 engine and front-wheel-drive chassis, and it gave Daewoo a large executive saloon to sit above the Espero and the Prince in its home range.
Design and features
- V6 only: the first Honda sold worldwide with nothing but a SOHC V6 under the bonnet.
- Front-wheel drive: chosen for a flat floor and traction, with a 63/37 weight split.
- Two body sizes: the 2.0-litre Japanese cars were shorter and narrower to stay in a lower tax class.
- Honda firsts: driver’s airbag, speed-sensitive power steering and anti-lock brakes.
Daewoo Arcadia versions
- V6Xi: the 2.5-litre Japanese top model, later 2.7 litres.
- V6Gi and V6Zi: 2.0-litre cars on the smaller body, the Zi with reduced equipment.
- Daewoo Arcadia: the Korean-market car with Daewoo badges.
The Arcadia sat above the Espero and the Prince in Daewoo’s Korean range. More cars are in the Daewoo collection.
Sources
- Honda Legend, English Wikipedia: history, engineering, production
