1999 Honda Accord LX-V6 Coupe 3.0 VTEC V6 from North America

Summary:

Incredibly reliable, great car to own and enjoy

Faults:

Well since the car had 246,000 miles when I got rid of it, it obviously had a lot of things go bad, but most of them were minor/normal things. Here are them major replacements:

1) Transmission died at 150k, second one was dying when I traded it in at 246k.

2) Cat converter went out at about 200k.

3) Front suspension (control arms, tie rods) all had to be changed between 150k-200k miles, but that's not unusual or unexpected.

4) I had to keep the EGR ports in the intake manifold clean or else I would get a rough idle/poor performance, but it only took an hour to do it.

5) EGR valve was replaced twice.

6) Cruise control actuator broke at 200k miles - $40 part. Simple fix.

7) Parking brake cables replaced at 220k.

8) Front wheel bearings lasted 100k miles (so changed twice), rears lasted 150k miles (changed once).

9) Alternators on these cars SUCK, changed mine at 150k and at 200k (bought a cheap one off eBay, my mistake). But very easy to replace, and only a $140 part.

That's all I can think of... at 246k miles the engine was incredibly strong: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kff_Oe8TZbQ

I would highly recommend this car except for its transmission problems... if you buy one, make sure the fluid has been changed with Honda ATF and NEVER flushed. Typically the trannies last for 120k-180k miles. But the engine is absolutely bulletproof. If you buy one that has recently had a new transmission put in or you don't drive many miles a year, it's a perfect car.

General Comments:

Amazingly reliable... fantastic car for anyone. Performance was pretty good - great highway acceleration, not so much on the low end. Extremely comfortable. Stock stereo was brutal.

Handling sucked - but it's a heavy FWD car. What do you expect?

Seats are good for 8-10 hour road trips.

Very easy to work on - did everything myself after 150k miles including timing belt.

I would get 30-31 MPG highway REALLY trying. Once I got 34, but that may have been a fluke. Towards the end of its life it usually got 26-28 in 80% highway driving.

What can I say about a car that goes up to 246k miles without ever having more than the intake manifold removed? The only thing I didn't like was the automatic and I wanted more power...

Traded it in for a 2003 Accord Coupe EX-V6 6MT :-) Now I have 240HP, 6MT, leather and 34 MPG highway.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 3rd September, 2007

1999 Honda Accord V6L V6 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

It's a good car except the transmission and interior

Faults:

At 90,000 km the transmission needed to be rebuilt.

At 100,000 the master cylinder needed replacing.

The steering wheel deteriorated dramatically and needed replacing.

The leather seats and arm rest have deteriorated extremely quickly.

General Comments:

I bought the car with low kilometres, after people advising me about the Honda quality.

Mechanically (other than the transmission) and electrically the car is very reliable.

Smooth and soft ride.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 6th April, 2007

7th Apr 2007, 04:05

Must be a US built Honda as US built stuff is never good quality!

7th Apr 2007, 11:36

They all break, it don't matter what it is or where its made. They all cost money.

10th Apr 2007, 01:40

I would guess that at least 70% of trans problems are related to maintenance issues 10% to misuse and the rest to defects. I'm not counting trans that never goes beyond 100K like Ford/Mazda trans from a decade ago that was never designed to last long. Problems are the "lifetime" oil or the ludicrous 100K change interval they put on many trans. This is not a problem for Honda alone most manufacturers did the same. Running 10 years and 100K on the same trans oil? Who are they kidding. I've drained trans fluid from many cars that are completely broken down. People have jerky shifting and all kinds of problems and they say that they've got a brand new car after trans oil change. For many it's to late especially those running low on trans oil for an extended period. Just expensive repairs will do the trick. So change the trans oil at no longer than 3years/30K. That'll take away many problems.

27th Jun 2007, 06:20

My Car was serviced every 10,000km, I did not ask the dealer to change the fluid, I expect that to be done according to the service schedule by the dealer. I have had anotehr mechanic tell me that the transmission problem is inherant in this model. And yes its built in the USA.

15th Aug 2010, 07:02

I have just sold the car. I didn't have any further problems. I updated to a VW Passat R36, let's see how that goes.