Which Year Accord to Buy?

I've been driving a 1991 Accord I "inherited" from my wife when we
upgraded her vehicle. I absolutely love it, lots of room, great
performance (considering it's age). It's got 210,000 on it and one of
these days I'm sure it will pass on. If I placed a limit of $10,000 on
a new Accord purchase, what do you recommend? Someone told me that
later models ( late 90's) were cheapened compared to the 1991. Anything
to look for? Thanks for the advice.

 

I *loved* my 2000 Accord EX. Of course, I got a 4 cylinder 5 speed
model, which drastically reduced the odds of issues; the 6 cylinder
models and their automatic transmissions had problems.

Anyway, this this was good looking, comfortable, great on gas, etc, etc.

That generation of Accord started in 98 and ended with the 02 model year.

 

I have a '92 Accord two door 5 speed that I've owned since new. I
reciently found an identical car at cars.com for my son. It was from the
Washington,D.C. area, and was in very good shape.
If I were replacing mine, I'd look for another '92, or'93 with low
miles on it.
My other son found a '98 acccord two door that he likes very much. Real
nice look to the car, and easy to find people willing to work on it.
bob

 

I never drove the early 90s Accord, but I did own a 94 Accord EXR (4cyl
auto) for almost 5 years. I absolutely loved it, because like you said,
it was fast for its age, had good handling and looked good. I traded it
in this spring for an 01 Prelude, and I was a bit sorry to see it go
because it was running like new with almost 200k km.

My dad had an 02 Accord SE (4cyl auto). The interior used cheaper
materials, and although it had the same engine as my 94 Accord (10hp
more, but the same torque), since the 02 Accord is heavier, the
performance suffered. Not to mention that Honda really softened the
suspension, making the handling worse.

A while back I asked people on this newsgroup whether I should keep my
94 EXR or take my dad's 02 SE, because at that time he was thinking of
selling his car. I guess everybody thought I was joking because I did
not get a single reply. I decided to keep m 94 EXR untill I had enough
money for a real upgrade, which was the 01 Prelude.

That said, my dad currently owns an 04 Accord EX V6. Even though the
interior is still cheaper than in my 94 Accord EXR, the rest of the car
is amazing. The acceleration, handling and brakeing are far amazing for
a family sedan.

So if you can find a mint 94-97, or if you can afford an 03-05 Accord,
they are great cars. I would skip the 98-02 generation, because I really
wasn't too impressed with them.

Cosmin

 

I never did like the '95 that Mom bought. The car wasn't as comfortable
as my '92, and the armrest was tilted so my arm slid off, and the clock
was in the radio instead if up on the top edge of the dash.
The whole car was designed to be cheaper to build, and it showed. Honda
didn't fix all the cheapness till the '98's came out. bob

 

I almost positive the clock was not in the radio, although the radio
might have had its own clock (my aftermarket one did, I replaced the
stock one 4 years ago). It was at the top edge of the dashboard, like in
all Hondas I've been in.

I'm not sure why you had a feeling they wre cheaply made, especially
when compared to the 98-02. I had a top of the line 94 EXR with leather,
so I don't know what were the fabrics Honda used in that generation, but
pretty much everything else I can think of was better than on the 98-02.

In any case, the op asked which Accord to buy, and quite frankly, they
are all great cars. I preffer the 94-97 and 03-05 generations, but there
isn't much wrong with any other Accord.

Cosmin

 

I agree with the person that told you to shop around for a shop that will
sell and install a new or rebuilt engine in your car when your engine
dies.

If you want a new car, I suggest that you buy one of the 2004 Accords--6
cyld or the 2005 model. The 2005 model will cost much more than the 2004.

 

Didn't the automatic transmission problems begin with the 1998-2002
generation Accords?

J. Perry

 

the euro 98-02 models (1.6/1.8/2.0) are known for their bad fuel
consumption

marcel

 

Heard it many times 98-02 had issues, atleast the one I have 02 EX
Manual Accord, had the moonroof unit replaced while it was still under
warranty, it still rattles, replaced air vents nobs a few times, still
rattle. There is just continuous noises in the car all the time from
the doors...