2001 Honda Accord Coupe LX 2.3 VTEC from Mexico

Summary:

Excellent MPG for the money, fun to play with the VTEC

Faults:

First off:

This is my first time I've owned a Honda so bear with me. I was looking for a commuter car 4 banger to go to work, and pick up my boy from school. I knew Honda had a good reputation for building strong engines so I took a risk; the original condition of the car when I bought from third owner: (presumably)

* The car had coil-overs, it was a terrible ride and not very family friendly... So I went to the junkyard and got the stock struts (all 4 of them) for 65 bucks; the ride was better, and I was no longer worried about hitting pavement and at the same time prolonging my lower back health.

* I believe the car was previously owned by a teenager, it came with an Injen, performance intake and muffler; to be honest, it does sound pretty loud and it is somewhat intimidating for a 4 banger. I believe the Injen intake is responsible for the increased MPG. I decided to keep the intake, because hey what the heck, better gas mileage does not hurt anyone.

* The only thing that has gone terribly wrong is the fact that the suspension failed, due to a worn out ball joint, causing the shaft and strut and complete right front assembly to come apart while driving when I was about to park; THANK GOD it did not happen on the highway otherwise I believe I wouldn't be writing this. This repair cost me about 300 USD with parts and labor, but it could have been avoided if I inspected the suspension with a mechanic after I purchased it. I presume the coil-overs are to blame, because to be honest this is the first time something like this happened to me. Also the shaft that came out, also seemed to misalign something in the transmission, which caused my tranny to misbehave and not shift properly. To my amazement the tranny was not damaged; the mechanic had to take it apart and found the syncros were out of place.

General Comments:

Other than the above, nothing wrong with the car. I love the MPG I get - 23 MPG city (no jackrabbit starts), performance is great for the car, consider this is a 2 door version long body and it's heavy for the 2.3, however it has enough power to pass. I also had to replace 2 motor mounts. VTEC kicks in at 5000 RPM, which is nice for passing, and with the intake and muffler, sounds real loud and it is fun to do it on occasion so it's definitely not a boring car.

This used Honda got me to consider buying a new one; it's got excellent leg room, I'm 5'9 and I've got room to spare. The sunroof works perfectly and it was standard side airbags; that for 16 year old car is not bad.

I'm planning on driving it perhaps to the 120,000 mile mark and then sell it, because I need something bigger, my family is growing.

Hope this was useful. :-)

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 12th July, 2017

2001 Honda Accord LX 2.2 VTEC from North America

Summary:

Zero defect car?

Faults:

Nothing - not a single problem since ownership

General Comments:

This is my brother's commuter car. This Accord has done everything Honda promised. It works and it works extremely well. The engine and transmission is still flawless. My brother has red-lined his car almost every single day, and it still runs like new at 190,000 miles. It happily revs to 7,000+ RPM.

The interior has very little wear. It isn't noticeable. The cloth seats have very little wear. All of the buttons and controls operate like a knife cutting butter. Nothing shakes, squeaks, or vibrates. The interior color hasn't faded and the dashboard is in perfect condition.

This is not a fancy car by any means. It is a good commuter car and nothing more, but how well it still runs and looks is absolutely amazing at 190,000 miles. Routine maintenance and oil change was the only two up keeps done to this Accord and nothing more.

At 190,000 miles it still has value. I have been very impressed with Honda, and would definitely recommend it to anyone that is looking for a basic, no frills car.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 22nd May, 2013