1997 Honda Accord LXi from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Awesome

Faults:

Thump in steering - due to worn rack.

Faulty thermostat.

General Comments:

Absolutely reliable F22b motor, one of the best ever built.

Comfortable, well-wearing seats; ideal for long journeys.

Factory speakers deliver awesome sound.

Great sleek styling, still reasonably modern looks, even though they are 16 years old now.

Manual gearbox, light but direct steering, and a peppy 130HP engine encourages spritely driving!

Functional, easy to read dashboard.

Great fuel economy; I get 650 km from a 60 litre tank with highway driving.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 16th March, 2013

1997 Honda Accord VTi-S 2.2 SOHC VTEC from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Fantastic, and assembled in my home town too

Faults:

Not major problems, just maintenance issues.

Developed a brake shudder within 500kms of purchasing. New pads and rotors sorted that out.

Remote locking sometimes makes a clicking sound for a few seconds after locking. Still locks and sets the alarm as it should.

Driver's window rubber makes a click sound also if put 3/4 of the way down. Doesn't do it if right down or a little down.

General Comments:

Great looking car, have wanted one for a long time, and finally found a good 1 owner example. Has exceeded my expectations in every way except comfort. I find the front seats (leather) a bit hard and lacking support. My passengers tell me the rear is very comfortable.

Handles very well, great on long trips, very cruisey, but still fun to drive. Has the factory tape/CD stacker, which works brilliantly, and I find the sound is better than the A/M Fusion speakers fitted to my old car. Everything works as it should; the climate control is fantastic, power steering not too light, and it has good feel at higher speeds.

Economy round town is not fantastic, but is good. I tend to get just under 500kms round town, but more like 650 on a trip, which is great.

Overall I am very pleased with it, look forward to driving it all the time, and especially when I get the chance to hear that VTEC sing. Fantastic vehicle, don't pass up the opportunity to buy one.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 3rd March, 2013

30th Apr 2013, 04:31

Original reviewer here: still going fantastic, recently replaced the thermostat, so it now heats up quicker (which is needed with the colder months coming).

Also, have had all the window motors lubed, and this has resolved the clicking noise the driver's one made, and they are now a bit quicker to go up/down as a result.

Also have replaced the top suspension on the right hand side due to a creaking noise.

Look forward to many more happy km. Odo reading is currently at 198,022km.

In reply to 30th Apr 2013, 04:31

19th Feb 2014, 02:35

Another update on the Accord.

I've now had the Accord for 16 months, and the odo is now at 216,908km.

I recently did a tour of the South Island here in NZ with 2 friends, and the Accord only suffered 1 fault, which was the front speakers gave up after 16 years of loyal service. I've upgraded the whole system to a JVC with single disc, Bluetooth USB etc, and with new speakers all round. Am missing the CD stacker, but am in the transition of transferring my CDs to an iPod, which will make things easier I'm sure.

The car itself is trouble free and going great. On my trip I managed to get 649km on 3/4 of a tank, so am really pleased about that.

All in all, still really happy with the Accord, and am looking to purchasing a 2nd car, which will be an Accord Euro in the near future, and I'm sure those two will look great in the garage together, because I just can't justify selling my 97 Accord.

In reply to 19th Feb 2014, 02:35

31st Jul 2015, 09:38

Final update for this Accord, I have upgraded to an Accord Euro, and unfortunately my circumstances made me sell this fantastic car. With 234,569km on the odo and not a single issue since the last update, this has been a great reliable car and will be sorely missed. I'm sure it will continue to give the next owner many km of enjoyment, and hopefully they will look after it as much as I did. If you're on a limited budget and find a good example, they're worth it as they provide a good drive with safety features that not a lot of other cars of this era had, along with good power and economy.

In reply to 31st Jul 2015, 09:38

14th Nov 2015, 08:52

Nice!!!