I'd go with the Civic then. I have a friend with a 96 Accord LX, it only has 135hp. I've smoked him in my stock Civic EX sedan. The 6g Civic, if it isn't that much heavier than my 5g, probably has a better power/weight ratio.
A CD Accord with an H22 swap in it (Like the JDM Accord SiR) would...