Are you certain the car would have failed the mot?
I know a lot of rule changes have taken place, but i had my xtrail tested this month, and the tester never even looked at the towbar, or tested the 13 pin socket.
I asked him why, the answer i got was to say that many changes had been brought in, that the system hadn't had time to implement them all, even though he had the required equipment.
At the milage your car has clocked up, its only to be expected that parts will wear out, problem is each item can be very expensive.
Time to get rid.
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So, on an economic-viability basis, that's the end of life for that paragon of reliability, a Honda -
7 years and 95,000 miles?
Good grief!!
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Better off with an "unreliable" Mondeo or Vectra. Same faults but half the price to fix.
Clutch and DMF on a Mondeo is an engine out job, and it's only £700 at most for parts and labour. Only cost me £360 for mine, didn't need a DMF, only clutch...
No idea what a VAS modulator is, sounds like something you would plug in to an old Commodore computer in the 80s to make it work with your telly!
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So, on an economic-viability basis, that's the end of life for that paragon of reliability, a Honda -
7 years and 95,000 miles?
Good grief!!
Try searching for threads on here about Hondas going wrong -compared with the usual suspects?
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Xtrailman - I know the MOT changes come into effect on May 1st but Honda only keep their goodwill gesture open for 30 days. As my MOT was due and the fact I would not be able to sell the car with AVS light perm on (buyers would simply take £2,000 off the asking price) I thought it best to get the work done with a view to selling knowing the problems comming up with this particular model. I am not saying all Hondas are bad just the 04-05 Accord diesel. What car do you reccommend?
Handcart - Thats what I was thinking, cut my losses. Chances are none of the other problems may never come up but from what I have read on the many car forums once it starts on the 05 diesels the known issues don't stop. What car do you reccommend?
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Hi Fryup, you may see from another thread I started that I am asking the same question; the only thing for me is that I am likely looking at 05-08 plate cars to begin with!
I reckon we're kind of in a bad decade: Presumably when manufacturers had to ensure all new models had to comply with Euro5, they had to start squeezing every last bit out of the available technologies, and it takes time for them to get really good at it and ensure they can still make things reliable whilst still being mass-produced. Nissan aren't even going to bother with a diesel engine on the latest Micra because the NEXT phase of legislated emission compliancy will require so much gubbins that the engine would cost too big a proportion of the car's customer-expected retail price.
If you're buying new or newish and want another diesel, my own research (HJ, Which?, other mags' surveys, online forums, etc) is probably tending to give me a leaning towards Hyundai and Kia. Their diesel engines don't seem to have TOO many horror stories, and, coincidentally in comparison with the 'life' of your Honda, Kia offer a 7-year 100k mile warranty.
:-)
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Hi Handcart - Thanks mate Yep I think your right about being in the wrong decade. I never even thought about Hyundai and Kia I will defo look into them a bit more. I am looking at 08 plates and not really fussed about diesel or petrol (odds are on petrol at the moment) as I am doing less miles these days. It took me ages to find the right car ,the research, testdrive, haggling and finaly trying not to cry when I handed my money over to Honda. I bought it 3 years ago thinking it would last me about 5-6 years. Oh well you live and learn. The search goes on.
ChannelZ - I have owned both Fords and Vauxhalls and yeh parts and price has always been OK. I actually drive a Ford Transit minibus for a living (not mine alas) and my boss swears by them. VSA by the way is Hondas traction control system. The modulator is way, way over priced for the piece of rubbish that it is. I had a 18 valve Lada once.......mind you 17 of those were in the radio.
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ChannelZ - I have owned both Fords and Vauxhalls and yeh parts and price has always been OK. I actually drive a Ford Transit minibus for a living (not mine alas) and my boss swears by them. VSA by the way is Hondas traction control system. The modulator is way, way over priced for the piece of rubbish that it is. I had a 18 valve Lada once.......mind you 17 of those were in the radio.
lol, yeah, I know what you mean. I like my Mondeo, but it has been a bit of a mare with electrical gremlins, but none are safety issues, or inconvenient (indicators don't blink-blonk any more, the fuel computer's button doesn't work, heated washer jets burnt out with a lot of acrid smoke, stuff like that).
I'm hopefully moving job so I'll be going to a 50 mile round trip commute from my current 2 mile one, which I mostly walk or carpool in the winter. I'm looking at the Kia Rio or Mazda 2 as small cars, or a Mk2.5 Focus or Octavia as cars of a larger size to replace the Mondeo. With house renovation looming in the next few years, I'm thinking staying away from a supermini may be an idea, but fuel economy on a single person commute is also a concern.
It's difficult to kow what to do for the best...
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Yes i can't really advise on what to buy, nowadays i focus on changing cars from new after 4 years.
The complexity of modern cars is a concern, when i ran 12 year old cars you could diy, with out trouble, my Mk1 cortina i could change the clutch very quickly, just drop the gearbox.
I could stand inside the engine bay. all thats gone now.
If i was still in the older car era, today i would be thinking ford or Vauxhall, simply because so many are on the road, spares are usually cheaper, and purchase price.
And fitted with just a non turbo petrol engine, my mate runs a old 2L petrol Modeao estate, and had very few problems, likewise his partner with a 1.8 Vectra.
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Non turbo engines are great in my opinion. I had a Peugeot 1.9 non turbo diesel 405 saloon (no power steering but great engine) and 406 1.9 non turbo estate (part exchange for Honda) both good cars but peugeot in their wisdom put a 2.1 turbo in the diesel 406 and had nothing but problems. I wish I had kept my 406 it would have been 14 years old now but it hardly cost me a penny to run cause it was so easy to fix. I know there are some bad examples out there but they are mainly the 2.1HDi.
It's funny but I can't help thinking that when I see an old Morris Oxford, Ford Zephyr (our family car when I was a kid), Vauxhall Viva, etc which were big family cars at the time I am amazed at how small they now look on todays roads even compared to the smallest modern hatchback, or is that just me.
Edited by fryup on 28/01/2012 at 15:07
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Not just you, Fryup. New models of cars tend to be bigger that the one they replace - partly because, at least with family cars, the makers hope that the family grows and needs something bigger.
The Viva, which was originally the smallest Vauxhall, developed into the Astra, both growing with each new version, and than in comes the Nova / Corsa underneath. I should think that the current Corsa is bigger than the Mark 1 Viva - wider certainly - although not necessarily much more satisfying to drive.
Edited by Avant on 28/01/2012 at 16:30
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I have a 99,000 mile Honda Accord with full Honda service history. VSA light on. Honda garage quoted £1200 and I dont hink that included labour. Found this forum and saw what others had got out of Honda as goodwill gesture.
I phoned Honda UK on Wed am - explained situation, told them that I knoew others had been given a reduced price as goodwill and that I felt it was unfair for me to pay so much for what is a design fault. Istated that I would accept paying the labour if they paid for the part. Thursday pm phone call from local Honda garage - they will subsidise the part and labour - total cost £457 - excellent result.
Lesson of the story - use the internet to find out what others have achieved - ask firmly but politely and dont be affraid to ask. Now why couldnt Honda have just done the offer up front wthout all the annoyance and work ofphone calls etc?
Hope this helps others to get a similar deal
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Hi cmg1969
I note you got the job done for £457 a great result. I have been quoted on a 55 plate Honda Accord 70,000 miles. I was quoted £1743.66 inc VAT for the part from Honda discounted to £720 inc VAT as a gesture of goodwill and £230 for the labour, so £950 for a part they installed to my car incorrectly in the first place. Can you tell which dealership did the work as much better than my £950 quoted and how old is your car 55,56 plate or other ?
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It's funny but I can't help thinking that when I see an old Morris Oxford, Ford Zephyr (our family car when I was a kid), Vauxhall Viva, etc which were big family cars at the time I am amazed at how small they now look on todays roads even compared to the smallest modern hatchback, or is that just me.
Nope.. It's fact.
The first Ford Granada was 4572mm long. It was Ford's executive car in 1972 when launched.
The Mark 3 Ford Focus is 4358mm long.
The 1993 Mondeo was 4556mm long.
The 2011 Mondeo is 4784mm long.
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