2008 Honda Accord LX 2.4 from North America

Summary:

This is my dependable ride to get to work. Will keep it until there are problems, then dump it

Faults:

Rear brake pads wore out completely at 23,000 miles for a car that is driven gently on country roads for 80 miles a day with few stops. Front pads are at about 80%. Have seen lots of complaints on the intranet and filed with NHTSA. Dealer says Honda changed the brake bias so that the rear brakes do most of the work, but I am highly skeptical. This is the first year for a new rear brake design. I think it's just poorly engineered. Front and rear pads on my wife's 2 Hondas have gone well beyond 40K miles.

Wipers smeared the window almost from new. I was stupid enough to go to the dealer thinking it was covered by the warranty. They put new wipers inserts on for $24 and said it was a wear item. Next time, will do my own, with high quality wipers for 1/2 the price.

Enough rattles to make a baby happy. Dealer fixed a bad rattle in center console and another in the glove box. Once it's off warranty, I'll use the Italian approach to creaks and rattles....just turn up the music.

Drivers seat sometimes slips off the seatback lockdown unexpectedly, dropping back 2 or 3 notches. It's scary when you're driving along in traffic and this happens.

AC compressor also vibrates at idle.

Will have the dealer look at both the seatback and AC before the car goes off warranty.

General Comments:

Car is like white bread. Does its job, but nothing more. The car does not raise my pulse.

The seats are comfortable, the car rides smoothly, and the fuel mileage is OK. I get between 23 and 25 mpg on country roads, and have gotten 27 mpg on trips.

The styling is interesting. I like the car from most angles, except looking at the car from the rear where the curves fail miserably. Once Honda makes changes in future years, I'm afraid this will look dated very quickly.

I love the color. Called polished metal, but really a dark gray.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 8th August, 2009

8th Aug 2009, 21:59

Take care of it properly and there will never be any problems. It's called a Honda for a reason.

9th Aug 2009, 10:50

This sound exactly like the excitement one gets shopping for a toaster or steam iron. It's amazing to find an absolute absence or passion to drive. Get to work... point it home, cash a paycheck. I work very hard and look forward to having my second largest investment be more fulfilling to own, enjoy.

Quality of life with a quality automobile you really enjoy being in, vs a disposable appliance seems a lot happier buy.

2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6 2.5L from North America

Summary:

Love the car... hate the company

Faults:

The plastic parts on the center door posts melted.

The front bumper is melting in the same fashion as the plastic on the door post.

General Comments:

Was told door plastic is not a warrantable item. Replaced at my cost.

Was told the front bumper was also not warrantable, and that it was due to the sun shining in Arizona. Too close to another vehicles exhaust. Issue escalated to Honda America who denied my claim of defective material.

Honda America has serious issues with lack of support for the client. I cannot recommend Honda to anyone looking to purchase a new vehicle.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 2nd June, 2009

16th Sep 2009, 11:48

I think you'd find the same issues with most car companies. I had the same type of issue with Nissan, which is why I won't buy another. Read through the threads on here and you'll find similar stories from virtually every manufacturer.

Car companies will never admit a defective product unless it is found on a great number of cars and then advertised as a recall. You would have done better maybe if you'd have researched your problem to see if other people have had similar experiences, and then maybe form a group for a class action suit. It's hard to win these cases, though, as you have to prove you did nothing wrong to cause the problem.

16th Sep 2009, 22:53

We had nothing but trouble with our Honda and will never own another one. Ford, on the other hand, has stood behind their products 100%.

When our Mustang had 100,000 miles on it, we received a letter from Ford stating that a plastic interior part might warp due to the Sun, and that if it had warped, it would be replaced FREE (and this was 6 years after buying the car, and at 100,000 miles!!). The part had NOT warped. So there was no point in taking it in. I can just imagine HONDA recalling a car at 100,000 miles for such a minor issue. We now drive only Ford and GM and have had ZERO problems with either.