Anyone else dissapointed by Honda cars?

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Originally Posted By: cousincletus
FWIW there are ads on the Columbus, OH radio stations for Honda assembly workers at a whopping pay rate of 10.50 per hour. With pay that bad, no wonder they are having quality issues. Also, they are the most expensive small cars out there. You don't get much for the money.


I work with someone whose husband works at Honda in Marysville. The only reason he gets more than that is, he has been there forever, can't miss a day, can't be late, can't screw up. Hardly overpaid.

John
 
Originally Posted By: rationull
The windows shake in the doors if you close the doors while they're rolled down. It burns a bit of oil.


My Mustang does both of those. But it has a good excuse. It's 21 years old.
 
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
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I'm with you on the cars filled with chrap issue these days.
Probably the most reliable honda ever made rolled of the assembley line in the early 90's, a basic 5 spd manual Civic or Accord with no power anything.

Simple, efficient, fun transportation and the car handled well with the double A arm suspension and light weight.


Same here about the over complicated cars of today, especially the ones that are supposed to be inexpensive and basic.

I know you need a certain level of safety, but seriously we need to re-examine our DOT and EPA laws.

All this complication adds cost, complexity, decreases reliability, and makes the product much more expensive to maintain.

I'll GLADLY take that kind of Honda you're talking about (if they still made them brand new, or for that matter a 83 or 84 VW Rabbit GTI.

Simple, decent quality, reliable, pretty darn safe, and inexpensive to maintain and purchase. That's what I want.
 
I think a lot of you have hit the nail on the head. I didn't start this thread to bash Honda, they make OK cars.

I can see that some of you are die hard Honda fans, that's great, it's your choice. I at one time was very excited to get my first Honda.

What I was trying to get across is why I paid such a premium price for such an average (at best) car(s)? It seems as though Honda manufactured great cars for a few years and has lived off the Honda name since then.

Personally, I have had better luck with older cars of different brand, weather that is foreign or domestic.

I believe people (wife and her family) are brainwashed into the Honda brand, when much better cars can be had for the pemium one pays for a Honda.
 
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Huie83, I think the 'brainwashing' you speak of happens with every brand. There must be millions of people who love GM cars and SWEAR Fords suck. And millions who believe just the opposite. It's your experiences and the experiences from friends and family around you. What you read/see/hear in the media, etc ... just reinforces those pre-existing beliefs.

I am a Honda fan based on my experiences with 3 of their cars in 2 decades. All have been good if not very good. Unlike some, I loved my 95 Civic Coupe 5-speed and got rid of it too soon. The car before my run with Hondas was an '86 Ford Escort GT. Really poor-quality car but I'm pretty sure Fords have improved a lot since then. Dad has had decent luck with the several Mercury Grand Marquis he's had but I don't care for 'em much. They are too clunky, I feel the quality is just 'fair' but the design is simple so they seem to be 'OK'. But even he is afraid to keep the cars more than about 3 years because he swears the tranny "isn't quite right" ... but I think he's nuts.

My current 2006 Civic is pretty good so far. Had it a couple months and a bulb went out ... but Honda doesn't make bulbs. Dealership in Saratoga is very good ... but very expensive. I do most work myself so I don't care too much about factory service.

Cars tend to get larger and pack more features as they evolve. sat-nav is on the verge of becoming standard equipment and probably will be before the end of the next decade.

As for size, the current Civic is as big as an Accord from a couple decades ago and the latest Accord is classified as a "full-size" car. It's what most (not all) people want and the rest of us (well, enough of us) grudgingly go along with the trend.
 
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I loved my 95 Civic Coupe 5-speed and got rid of it too soon.

Your old Civic is probably still on the road purring like a kitten after 14 years racking up miles for some fortunate peson who bought it.

Off Topic, I found a super low mile mint 1995 Civic VX that I was considering buying, but the owner wanted too much for his car. With hyper miling and proper driving you can get near 60 MPG with this hatchback.
 
I have more of an issue with my dealer than my cars. For example, today I wanted to buy an extra wireless headset for the rear entertainment system in our Odyssey since we're going on vacation nest weekend. The local dealer wanted $100. Went to Handa, an online Honda parts and accessories dealer, and I got the thing for $66 plus $14 to have it shipped 2nd day air. I'm sur I could have got it even cheaper, but I have used them before and trust them.

I still don't see what the deal is, though, with saying they are overpriced and low quality. Sure, the Malibu is a nice car, but even Lutz admitted that was the best GM could do, engineering and fit and finish-wise and frankly, I don't see how it stands out vs. the competition. Don't get me wrong, I do like it. But I can't see how you can say an Accord is low quality next to it or a Civic is to a Cobalt.

Don't get me wrong, GM and Ford make some great cars. I'd gladly slum and drive a Vette or CTS-V if someone that's the kind of car I wanted. Honda doesn't make anything like that!!! I even wanted my wife to look at a Caddy SRX when we got our Odyssey. She'd have nothing of it, though.
 
In my experience, you don't meet anyone coming *from* a Honda to another brand. That's just how it is. I won't say everything about my car is perfect, but many things are...perfect.

I grew up in TOYOTAS as well as Hondas. My Mom's 1986 Accord basicly never seeing the inside of a shop in 10 years.

I just feel comfortable in and around their engineering and aesthetics. I don't know how else to say it...everything feels "right" to me....definately a subjective area and I can see someone else not sharing the ~same~ aesthetic with me. If I spent 10-20 years in another brand, shure I would "appreciate" it like a Martian appreciates Mars.

For me, Audis, VWs, Porsches and Honda/Acuras as well as Saab simply feel right, although I spent a lot of time in Mercedes and some in Nissans. I would never own a Nissan. I worked on my cousin's Eclipse, it was horrible aesthetics and everything I touched broke or stripped, and I'm usually good about not doing that. So, do you think I would ever buy one over a Honda? lol, how about a Honda Passport?
 
Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie


I grew up in TOYOTAS as well as Hondas.



wooh, that sounds pretty boring really.
 
Hardly. I learned to drive on a Porsche at age 9 and was tweaking them by age 12.

That's where the aesthetic appreciation for them comes from.

I've owned 15+ Audis, 5 or so VWs, a BMW, Saab, 4-5 Hondas, a FJ-55 and that's about it. I'd like a nice Porsche for my next car.
 
Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie
Hardly. I learned to drive on a Porsche at age 9 and was tweaking them by age 12.


oh...you didn't mention THAT :)
 
Originally Posted By: FXjohn
Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie


I grew up in TOYOTAS as well as Hondas.



wooh, that sounds pretty boring really.

If you were in the 1980s, instead of the boring Camry and Prius, they had some exciting cars like the Celica, Supra, Cressida, the AE8x RWD Corollas, and the 4Runner.

I grew up in a 1983 Cressida. The 1991 Lexus LS400 we have is close to one as I can get.
 
Cressidas were great. My 1st car was a early Gremlin, but I had 2 plain Corollas from then, a Tercel Hatchback, a Tureno and a new black 89 Tercel 2-dr (trunk) before my 1987 Accord LX-i 5-sp.
 
What family cars weren't boring in the 80's. For me, we rolled over into 1980 with my mom's Plymouth Volare wagon and my Dad's Duster. The Volare got traded in for an 83 LeSabre. That car was awful. Horrible.

Dad's Duster met with a drunk driver on New Year's eve of 1983 and into a Chevy Chevette he went. Need I say more? Of course, at the time, the only disappointment I had was that unlike the Duster, there was no 8 track player to listen to my Dad's favorites: Waylon, Willie, and Boxcar Willie. The Chevette soldiered on thru two engines and 18 gillion bottles of Quakerstate to the tune of 600,000 miles. By that time, there was no cloth on the seats, the seats had come unbolted from the floor, and the area where he parked it became our own little Superfund site thanks to said Quakerstate. We actually became close family friends with the mechanic he used to fix it.

In the meantime, supremely disappointed with the LeSabre, my mother thought she was getting a completely different car in her 88 Bonneville. Yes, she was. No longer she suffer through repeated false "low coolant" idiot lights, randomly delaminating trim pieces, and lost power anytime we went over....maybe 150 ft AMSL. Now she was in the big time, with a couple of randomly failing fuel pumps and at least 4-5 alternators. She soldiered on until the tranny decided to grenade, and made it to 1996 before buying...another Bonneville. I guess she was addicted to the sound of that 3.8l, which to me, always sounded like a bowl full of walnuts dumped into a food processor.

Yes, they were exciting cars indeed, if your idea of excitement is the anticipation over what's going to break today. I thought the 96 Bonny was a big improvement, but after seeing how much I liked my CR-V, as well as seeing how our neighbor who'd been buying Accords since the 80's never had car trouble, she crossed the Tiber in 2004. My dad, after going thru 2 Cavaliers in the 90's, made the BIG switch to a Sunfire coupe in 04. He retired at the same time so he just doodles around in it anyway. But he's not had a minute's trouble from it, I have to say.
 
Originally Posted By: BrianWC

I still don't see what the deal is, though, with saying they are overpriced and low quality. Sure, the Malibu is a nice car, but even Lutz admitted that was the best GM could do, engineering and fit and finish-wise and frankly, I don't see how it stands out vs. the competition.


GM overpriced the Malibu. An Accord LX auto goes for $19k and a similar Malibu goes for $20.7k. WTH is GM doing? They need to undercut Honda by AT LEAST $1k to get people to buy it
 
I haven't been in too many brand new Honda's lately. But plenty of the 2000-2004 Honda's. Overall I really like their cars. A lot more fun to drive than a Toyota for me (a newer toyota that is).

Interiors in Honda's never bothered me either. I would say the build quality is a lot better than the newer Toyota's I've driven. My mother's 2004 Corolla has more rattles and squeaks than my 2002 Z28, and that car is not exactly quiet lol.
 
Originally Posted By: jigen
I haven't been in too many brand new Honda's lately. But plenty of the 2000-2004 Honda's. Overall I really like their cars. A lot more fun to drive than a Toyota for me (a newer toyota that is).

Interiors in Honda's never bothered me either. I would say the build quality is a lot better than the newer Toyota's I've driven. My mother's 2004 Corolla has more rattles and squeaks than my 2002 Z28, and that car is not exactly quiet lol.



I would say that on average the typical Honda product has WAY better handling and fun to drive factor than most ANY Toyota product today.
 
I agree that Honda has become complacent about quality. Seems like every Element that I work on has interior bits falling apart.

My dad has friends who owned some of those V6 Hondas with weak transmissions. Honda gives them no discount on the transmission repair.

Back in the 1980s, Honda often fixed cars that were out of warranty, and that made Honda famous.

Interesting thing happened to my parents... My dad bought a 1995 Accord new, and he never had a single thing fail until 131,000 miles. However my mom bought a 1999 CRV new and the AC compressor died 3 times within 3 years.

Honda give my mom a lot of deny and delay tactics during the 2nd and 3rd compressor failure. I then swore never to buy a Honda.

Mom then bought a 2002 Toyota Solara, and in 2003, the dealer was a royal pain when the oil pan gasket leaked.

I then bought a Saturn, and I regret it severely....

If I ever have to buy a new car, I might buy a new Toyota or Honda.
 
Originally Posted By: DeeAgeaux
Originally Posted By: Cardinal49


I also admire the Honda company. They are also made in the US (not like the Mexico Ford).








Honda Accords are also made in Mexico and imported into the United States. Some are also imported from Japan but most are made in Ohio.

Google 03 Accord Transmission failure or go to carcomplaints.com and look up the 2000-05 Accords and their respective transmission repair rates.

JD Powers named Buick LaCross most Dependable mid-size sedan sold in America.

JD Powers also ranked Chevy Malibu tops in intitial quality.


New "10 Lacross gets Direct Injection V6 and Malibu has a 6 speed Auto.

Accord has neither.

Honda is no longer adding to its reputation;it is living off of it.


Honda makes most of the models sold in the US in the US but they do import some from Japan and Mexico. I think at one point the Civic Si was made in the UK.

Only the Accord V6 automatic was impacted and Honda responded by extending the warranty.

JD Powers ratings don't mean that much. Initial relaibility and durability on a model introduced 4 years ago is not the same is long term durability/reliability. Let's look at durability 8-12 years down the road. Accords and Civics have been around for decades. How many different models has GM and Ford gone through in that time. What happened to the Regal, LeSabre, Century, Grand Prix, Park Avenue, Contour, Lumina, Baretta, etc. I won't even bring Chrysler into this.

I hope the Malibu and Buick are great cars. Then the bankrupt parent company can start to pay back the $50B it owes us.

Accord/Camry buyers really don't care if a Buick or Malibu has direct fuel injection or a 6-speed transmission. If so, the Accord would not be the best selling car in America.
 
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Originally Posted By: artificialist
I agree that Honda has become complacent about quality. Seems like every Element that I work on has interior bits falling apart.

My dad has friends who owned some of those V6 Hondas with weak transmissions. Honda gives them no discount on the transmission repair.

Back in the 1980s, Honda often fixed cars that were out of warranty, and that made Honda famous.

Interesting thing happened to my parents... My dad bought a 1995 Accord new, and he never had a single thing fail until 131,000 miles. However my mom bought a 1999 CRV new and the AC compressor died 3 times within 3 years.

Honda give my mom a lot of deny and delay tactics during the 2nd and 3rd compressor failure. I then swore never to buy a Honda.

Mom then bought a 2002 Toyota Solara, and in 2003, the dealer was a royal pain when the oil pan gasket leaked.

I then bought a Saturn, and I regret it severely....

If I ever have to buy a new car, I might buy a new Toyota or Honda.


Was it "Honda" or her dealer? I, too, had compressor issues on my 02 CR-V. I paid for it b/c I assumed it was my fault (and may very well have been) since I did one of those home top offs. But just after I bit the bullet, I learned that Honda does indeed replace those CR-V compressors free for pretty much unlimited miles/years because they are a known defective part. The issue seems to be asking for the repair. On HondaSUV.com's forums, it seems pretty much everyone who has gone in knowledgable about the defect has gotten their a/c replaced free. Mine did, indeed fail a second time, but only because it wasn't repaired right the first time. My dealer replaced everything free the second time and 2 years later it's not caused a minute's trouble.
 
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