2008 Honda Accord EX from North America - Comments

"10th Mar 2009, 01:13

I am skeptical of the warranty conditions. My friend has a 2006 Dodge Stratus, and the dealer where it was purchased got into trouble for fraud and money laundering, and now the warranty is up in the air."

Not true. Even if the dealer is bankrupt, the factory warranty is good at any other Chrysler dealer. If you mean that a used car dealer gave him a warranty, then that is nothing to do with the manufacturer's warranty.

Yes, your warranty will be covered, but like others have stated, what happens when your dealer closes and the next closest is 100 miles away? Could get expensive towing your car that far to a dealer, wouldn't you think?

This mess isn't going to have an easy solution, and yes, the car companies contributed to their own demise. It's all about mismanagement and misreading the marketplace. Gas hit almost $4 per gallon here in 2005, and then went down again. Did no one think that was going to happen again? If they'd started getting serious about hybrids and smaller cars, then they may have had some really good products out before this disaster hit last year. I'm not saying they wouldn't be in trouble now still, but they would have at least had a more viable plan for survival than a network of dealers with SUV's clogging up their lots, and everyone standing around scratching their heads trying to figure out what happened. This is what happens when greed prevails.

Yes, but greed on whose part? Manufacturers made SUVs because they sold like hotcakes due to huge demand from consumers who wanted a status symbol. And now they cry about how they were forced into gas-guzzling vehicles. Meanwhile, gas-thrifty cars like the Focus sat on lots, derided for being "underpowered" and "too small". Somebody needs to wake up to the reality of what actually drives this economy. Consumers brought gas guzzling SUVs and foreclosures of over leveraged McMansions upon themselves. No use crying now, just take your medicine, folks.

I am hearing mid size SUV's have regained popularity vs. a year ago with return of cheap fuel. For a family they cannot be beat and have more room and much more comfortable on trips. If anything expensive hybrids and smart cars are suffering from the lower fuel costs according to recent news in my area (Northeast) Many have actually canceled orders on the fully refundable smart car deposits that were waiting for them in my area.

"Yes, your warranty will be covered, but like others have stated, what happens when your dealer closes and the next closest is 100 miles away? Could get expensive towing your car that far to a dealer, wouldn't you think?"

No, towing would cost you $0. Although Chrysler has a reputation for not honoring their warranty (and in many cases flatly REFUSE to), by law automobile companies HAVE to cover your expenses related to warranty issues. I know for a fact that Ford will cover ANY incurred expense due to vehicle problems that occur under warranty. A tow truck will be sent for your car at no cost, even if it is 500 miles away. If you are stuck overnight, your hotel and meals will be covered. I have received letters from Ford after recalls on my vehicles informing me that ALL related expenses will be reimbursed, including FOOD FOR MY DOG if I had it with me when/if I was stranded (and I never have been. The only car I've ever been stranded in was a Toyota).

Warranty laws give the consumer many rights that most car buyers are clueless about, and many dealers will try to tell you they won't do things they legally HAVE TO (such as tow your car 500 miles if needed). If you are denied warranty repairs, you can sue the manufacturer, and you will virtually ALWAYS win. Just the word "lawyer" will be enough to convince most companies to settle instantly.

It's kind of interesting to me that my co-worker's 2005 Ford Taurus' transmission went out on her two days ago. She hassled with the dealer until they FINALLY agreed to pick up the car and now she's badgering them to cover costs. I've never had that problem with my Nissans!

"29th Mar 2009, 02:18.

It's kind of interesting to me that my co-worker's 2005 Ford Taurus' transmission went out on her two days ago. She hassled with the dealer until they FINALLY agreed to pick up the car and now she's badgering them to cover costs. I've never had that problem with my Nissans!"

Well, there is a lot of weird stuff that goes on in this world. You have no idea why your co-worker's transmission went out. Perhaps she drives like crap. Perhaps a piece of metal fell off a truck and punctured the transmission pan. Perhaps you have been lucky and gotten rid of your Nissans before they had any problems. One anecdotal case of "somebody I know who had problems with x" doesn't mean a lot. If you're happy with Nissans, then stick with them. Nobody is twisting your arm. As for myself, I'll stick with Dodge and Ford for the same reasons of past good experience.

Don't be too proud of your Nissan there... I dumped mine after they refused to repair it anymore on a warranty related issue that was never resolved right, and they then offered me about 40% of its original value to trade it in when it was less than 2 years old. My point is, all brands have good dealers and bad ones. You really can't judge a brand by dealer service. The worst stories I have ever heard come from BMW and Cadillac dealers...

My family has never owned a Nissan, so I won't pretend to be an authority on Nissan reliability. We have, however had Toyotas, Hondas and Mazdas, as well as many domestics from all three manufacturers. Not one of the Japanese cars was half as reliable as any ONE of our domestics. We had a Dodge that ran flawlessly for 240,000+ miles, a Buick that had nary a problem in 277,000+ miles, and Ford that had cost us less than $500 in repairs in 320,000+ miles. From this (to me very convincing) personal hands-on experience, we WILL NOT be buying any more non-domestic vehicles.

"Perhaps you have been lucky and gotten rid of your Nissans before they had any problems."

Actually, I kept my first Nissan over two decades until it was totalled. In all those years the only issue with it was a recall back in 1987 and it was on the floormats! NEVER any mechanical or build quality issues. Followed the service schedule and it ran smooth as butter.

My 2004 Nissan has more than 110K miles on it and it has not had ANY issues. The only concern I have with it is that it does not have side-impact airbags. That's no big issue to me as I will be buying another Nissan in 2010.

"Don't be too proud of your Nissan there... I dumped mine after they refused to repair it anymore on a warranty related issue that was never resolved right, and they then offered me about 40% of its original value to trade it in when it was less than 2 years old."

I'm sorry for your bad experience. I bought my car knowing I'd keep it for the long haul and it served its purposed everyday I owned it. My recall issue in 1987 was addressed promptly and I never had to have any major servicing done on it after that time.

"My point is, all brands have good dealers and bad ones. You really can't judge a brand by dealer service."

If I have to drive over 80 miles for service from my dealer, that's an issue. I judge a brand based on past experience of my own and of those I know who've owned the brand themselves.

"31st Mar 2009, 00:39

My 2004 Nissan has more than 110K miles on it and it has not had ANY issues. The only concern I have with it is that it does not have side-impact airbags. That's no big issue to me as I will be buying another Nissan in 2010."

That's great. And my 2002 Ford has 105,000 miles and it has not had ANY issues, either. I will not be buying another car in 2010 because my Ford works so well, that I expect to keep it another five years.

For a modern domestic 110,000 miles is barely broken in. GM has a warranty for 100,000 miles anyway. If I don't get 200,000 trouble-free miles out of ANY car I don't buy another one. At the moment we have 2 GM vehicles and 2 Fords. We've never had one of either that had problems before 200,000 miles.

"For a modern domestic 110,000 miles is barely broken in. GM has a warranty for 100,000 miles anyway. If I don't get 200,000 trouble-free miles out of ANY car I don't buy another one. At the moment we have 2 GM vehicles and 2 Fords. We've never had one of either that had problems before 200,000 miles."

I take this as an April Fool's joke. My dad's 2001 GMC has had several major issues, one with the fuel pump, the fuel gauge is now defective, computer has shut down. Each time it has visited the service department it is for a major issue. The truck has 103K on it. Father pampers that truck like it is money, so maintenance is not an issue.

"For a modern domestic 110,000 miles is barely broken in. GM has a warranty for 100,000 miles anyway. If I don't get 200,000 trouble-free miles out of ANY car I don't buy another one. At the moment we have 2 GM vehicles and 2 Fords. We've never had one of either that had problems before 200,000 miles."

No joke, just fact. This is true of EVERY GM vehicle (OR Ford OR Chrysler) we've owned personally. My family's two companies use Ford, Chevy and Dodge trucks and vans in heavy duty use. 200,000-300,000 miles is typical of any of them. You've been listening to too much ad hype. Like I say, if I don't get 200,000 trouble-free miles out of ANY car, I'll never buy another one. So far we've had a Mazda self-destruct in less than 150,000, a Honda blow an engine before 100,000 and a VW disintegrate at 85,000. You won't find any more of those brands in my driveway... EVER.