Anybody had one of these?
any pointers on a 5-7 year old car.
I do hear the are virtually unbreakable.
Looks like a lot of car for £3-5.
Edited by Honestjohn on 04/12/2007 at 11:44
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Apparently one of the best front-drivers of it's time - probably give the current crop a run for their money too.
One of my collegues had one as his daily driver from new and loved it. He was a real petrol head and preferred to spend his weekends racing his modded Caterham round a track - so knew a bit about performance and handling.
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Apparently one of the best front-drivers of it's time
I think that's the Integra, not the accord. Not that I'm saying the accord doesn't handle well.
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I remember hearing that the Accord was one of the best as well, can't remember where though.
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Try EVO magazine. 4.5 stars!
Accord Type-R is still a bit of a bargain. Values are hardening to £5-£6k+ for a good sub 100k miler (getting rarer). They take the miles though. The owners club (www.atr.org.uk) has examples on original engines running strong at >200k.
Pre face lift appearance more aggressive than post facelift. Post facelift ECU can run on 95 octane as well as super unleaded. Pre facelift can only (apparently) run on super unleaded. Pre facelift has issue with fifth gear synchro that only affects small number of post facelifts (design modification).
H22a7 engine develops ~210 bhp. Very reliable evolution (polished and ported head + other gubbins) of Prelude 2.2 engine. A little heavy on juice, but it will be if you red line it at 7,500 rpm - 350miles to tank. Change oil every 6,000 miles, and the engine is very reliable. Look for good history.
Momo steering wheel (from Ferrari 550), Recaro seats shared with Mitsu Evo 5. Excellent driving position. A little loud (due to limited sound proofing). But lots of space from 4 door shell.
Air con a cost option, but many have it. Tyres another good indication of care - look for Bridgestone RE010, or RE050A for best choice.
Available in silver, red and black. Shades vary between pre and post facelift. Championship white only available in Europe.
I have a 2000 in silver. 46k miles. Thirsty and noisy, but I love it.
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I would echo what's been said already by spookedmoose. I ran a unmodified, silver 2000W reg with air-con to 80k when I sold it recently, having racked up 15k in last 10 months - I actually sold it from the forecourt of the Honda dealer I originally had it from and he was quite happy to help me get a "retail" price and take his cut: it didn't take long to sell.
I did a mix of motorway and commuting, hard but not trashed, getting about 23mpg. I used to run mine on a mix 95ron and 98ron but never noticed any marked difference and it didn't appear to do it any harm.
It will accommodate your family but isn't really a "family" car - simply too noisy and ride too hard for most but the other half liked driving it: just hated being a passenger! Front wheel grip astounding (limited slip front diff) and handling excellent. Driving position (wheel to pedals) great but seats a bit tight for those less than slim!
I loved it but, I found it exhausting to drive hard for long - it demands lots of concentration to get the best out of it and it's not a a car to spend in Friday afternoon motorway jams either. And there are few interior toys to keep you amused while you're stuck.
Just wish I would have kept it for the weekends...
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I had the terrible experience of being saddled with one of these for a weekend once (a loaner from Honda UK's fleet department).
It was terrible. I covered ten times my normal weekend mileage, chewed through about £80 worth of fuel and had this idiotic grin on my face for days afterwards. It's a shame about that boot spoiler because otherwise you would truly have one of the world's ultimate Q-cars.
Thought the handling was good, but I certainly wouldn't class it as one of the best front drivers around. Steering needed more feel and it was still ultimately an understeerer.
But I'm nitpicking. I loved it. A lot. Probably not the easiest to live with daily though (ride, noise levels) and the noise and shove at the top of the rev range encourages you to drive like a complete idiot, but a lovely, lovely car with a masterpiece of an engine. Not thraping it to the redline is like not chewing a Fruit Pastille! Takes constant, conscious effort, and you ultimately cave in ;-)
Cheers
DP
--
04 Grand Scenic 1.9 dCi Dynamique
00 Mondeo 1.8TD LX
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It's not just the Accord - was out in a friends Civic Jordan recently, a fantastic drive - no rear spoiler so possibly more of a Q-car (if you leave out the bright yellow paintwork and decals) Honda seem to have sporty drives sorted out.
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You will probably remember a few weeks back Top Gear compared the new type -r Civic against it's predecessor, and the "old" car was the better of the two, both in handling and performance, maybe it's the same with the Accord?
Billy
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