![1974 Honda Civic](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/Screen-Shot-2019-09-26-at-12.02.47-PM.png)
Honda began running its “We make it simple” television and radio campaign in the late Seventies. The ads, which included an arguably catchy jingle, made the point that Honda automobile ownership was simple and uncomplicated. One 1978 television ad, for example, demonstrated that the Civic came with just a single key which worked in the ignition, doors, glove box, and locking fuel-filler door.
If you’ve driven a late-model Honda car or crossover, you’ll find that the Japanese carmaker still tries to keep its controls and digital interfaces as uncomplicated as possible.
There’s another area in which Honda has kept things simple, and that’s in model proliferation. By our count, Honda has sold just 17 different models in the U.S. since 1970–11 of which are still part of the brand’s lineup. By comparison, Toyota will have a total of 17 models in its dealership for just the 2020 model year.
We mention Honda’s modest model count because you will be seeing a number of ads for the same nameplates in the classic Honda ads gallery below.
If you owned one of these “simple” Hondas, please tell us about it. The place for comments is down below.
Classic Honda Ads
1966
![Classic Honda Ads](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1966.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1966
1966
![Classic Honda Ads](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1966a.jpg)
Paris Madness! 12 Classic French Car Ads
1968
![1968 Honda N600 Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/10665046595_5ab78f2e02_b-1.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1968
1972
![](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1972.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1972
1974
![Some car manufacturers actually believe women buy cars for different reasons than men do. So they build "a women's car." Oversized, hopelessly automatic and dull. At Honda we designed just one thing. A lean, spunky economy car with so much pizzazz it handles like a sports car. Honda Civic. We don't make a women's car.](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1974.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1974
1976
![Classic Honda Ads, Hatchback](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1976-1.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1976
1978
![Classic Honda Ads, Gas Pumps, Unleaded](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1978.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1978
1978
![1976 Honda Accord Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1978a.jpg)
The 8 Best-Looking Cars of 1978
1980
![Second-Generation Civic, Classic Honda Ads](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1980.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1980
1980
![1980 Honda Accord Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1980a.jpg)
5 Cheapest American Cars of 1980, Inflation Adjusted
1981
![1981 Honda Prelude Ad, Sun Roof](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1981.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1981
1982
![1982 Honda Civic Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1982.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1982
1983
![1983 Honda Prelude Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1983.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1983
1984
![1984 Honda CR-X Ad 1.5](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1984.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 15 Sporty Car Ads from 1984
1984
![1984 Honda Civic 4WD Wagon, Real-Time 4WD](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1984m.jpg)
5 Wagons You’ve Completely Forgotten
1985
![1985 Honda Civic HF Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1985.jpg)
Model-Year Madness! 12 Classic Ads From 1985
1986
![Classic Honda Ads](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1986-Aussie.jpg)
5 More Cars I Never See On The Road Anymore
1986
![1986 Accord LXi Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1986.jpg)
1988
![1988 Honda Civic Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1988-2.jpg)
Honda Civic Growth Curve: 1986 Versus 2016
1992
![1992 Honda Civic Ad](https://blog.consumerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/09/1992.jpg)
Classic Honda Ads