2009 Honda Accord EX-L V6 Sedan from North America - Comments

"Since the Neon was the replacement for the Omni, I'd expect it to be just as reliable, and 240,000 miles out of an $8,000 car (what the Omni cost new) is pretty darn good."

Well it wasn't. It was far from reliable.

"Since the Neon was the replacement for the Omni, I'd expect it to be just as reliable, and 240,000 miles out of an $8,000 car (what the Omni cost new) is pretty darn good."

Neon and reliable don't really go together well. They are the cheapest quality cars out there, which is why they were so inexpensive. Not saying no one ever got 200,000 miles out of one, but it is rare! Plus $8,000 was no bargain back when an Omni was a new car!! I bought my first brand new Mustang 5.0 in '88 for $12,000. Now a loaded V-8 powered Mustang is around $30K, so in today's dollars your Omni would be about $17,000 or more. Not much of a bargain when you can buy a Hyundai Accent for $9,995, and it has a 10 year 100,000 mile warranty on it.

"Not much of a bargain when you can buy a Hyundai Accent for $9,995, and it has a 10 year 100,000 mile warranty on it."

Yes, unlike Honda and Toyota, Hyundai does have the confidence in their product to offer a decent warranty. Still, I can't see a Hyundai making 300,000 miles the way Fords, GM's and Dodges routinely do.

"Yes, unlike Honda and Toyota, Hyundai does have the confidence in their product to offer a decent warranty. Still, I can't see a Hyundai making 300,000 miles the way Fords, GM's and Dodges routinely do."

I wish people would stop using a long warranty as a measure of confidence in a car line. It is purely a marketing strategy to sell more cars, and it worked beautifully for Hyundai, which is why other companies have copied it. It is a gamble that they will sell enough cars to cover any warranty repairs needed up to 100K on the (hopefully) few that are problematic. It has obviously paid off really well for Hyundai.

The most laughable 100K warranty is GM with their 5 year 100K warranty. 90% of people average 60K or less in 5 years of driving so they are only taking a 10% gamble that they will cover anything after that mileage on their cars. Talk about lack of confidence... and yet everyone says their warranty is so much better than Honda's at 5 year 60K... which in reality is the exact same warranty for at least 90% of the drivers out there!

And why do people have so much faith in Dodge products, especially from the 80's? Please cite any source that gives the majority of Dodge vehicles (outside of the Hemi powered cars and their trucks) a good rating for quality and longevity. They have long been known as the bottom of the domestic brands. Yes, I have seen examples go for many miles too, but overall they are not up to par with most brands.

"Yes, unlike Honda and Toyota, Hyundai does have the confidence in their product to offer a decent warranty. Still, I can't see a Hyundai making 300,000 miles the way Fords, GM's and Dodges routinely do."

Or, that Hyundai HAS to offer this warranty as an incentive to buy its vehicles, just like Ford, GM, and Chrysler do.

I can agree with you that they won't be making 300,000 miles though. However, it will be them along with most of the domestics. All of them are in a mad rush to catch up to the Japanese.

"All of them are in a mad rush to catch up to the Japanese."

Ford caught up with them years ago. Fusion outranks all of the Japanese competition.

00:17

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the Fusion is based on the Mazda 6, which is Japanese.

"Ford caught up with them years ago. Fusion outranks all of the Japanese competition."

Yeah, one vehicle class. What about the compact, sub-compact, (Oh wait, Ford doesn't make a sub-compact yet) SUV, crossover and other classes?

"Ford caught up with them years ago. Fusion outranks all of the Japanese competition."

Yeah, there you go again citing ONE car that has beaten the Japanese. Sorry but OVERALL, Asian brands dominate the TOP 5 car companies in quality still. They top Ford, GM and Chrysler isn't even near the top. Yes there are few examples of high quality in Ford and GM, but they still are below the imports in overall quality across their entire lines.

Plus everyone jumps on the Fusion bandwagon when it has been going for about 4 years. The Accord has a history of over 20 years at the top. Took Ford a really long time to catch up to that mark didn't it? Yes, Honda got a little lazy. Why? because they could! They have such a solid base here in the U.S. they don't have to make the perfect car anymore and people still flock to their showrooms. They have cut corners to save costs just like any other car company has, and I am sure they will reel in the lower quality and adjust their cars to fit with the Fusion as soon as they feel their sales are slipping to the point they need to do something about it.

In reliability Asian cars are NOT "at the top". J. D. Powers ranks Ford and GM TIED at number one, ABOVE Lexus. Check the facts instead of repeating ad hype.

12:21. What's laughable is Honda or Toyota not offering the same in writing. Do not need it? Great, so give it anyway and it will not cost the imports a dime as well with your logic.

I do drive a lot, and had major issues with new Honda and Nissan. In a couple years my warranty was up. Maybe I drive more than most, but I adhere to service intervals, all performed at the dealership.

I do not buy the cheapest entry level models and expect quality, and not having drivetrain issues waterpumps and A/C failures.

I now have GM V8 models; no issues, better ride, handling, better warranty and up to 30 mpg. Even our Vette is flawless and gets 28-30 mpg on the readout. And it's not boring to drive.

Our Acura took 93 octane, same as the Vette, and any tap of the VTEC pedal ate gas, tires were high, Xenons were high, brakes worn out quickly, rears faster than fronts. Fun to drive at least, but issues took that away.

Fusion seems to be a pretty good car. But it's been on top for only 4 years now. The Honda Accord was on top for over 20 years running. That's pretty impressive no matter what anybody says. Until the Fusion beats that record, it's just another runner-up. And I doubt it will because Ford will have renamed it or stupidly discontinued it by then.

"12:21. What's laughable is Honda or Toyota not offering the same in writing. Do not need it? Great, so give it anyway and it will not cost the imports a dime as well with your logic."

Again, extended warranties are a marketing tool and obviously Toyota and Honda do not need to offer these warranties to sell vehicles. The companies that need to expand their sales by adding these gimmicks, like the 5 year warranty GM offers, have done so with great success. If Toyota and Honda feel the need to expand their warranty to keep up with the marketing strategies of their competition I am sure they will do it.

Apparently, they don't need the added warranty to keep their sales in line... or the employee pricing programs and deep discounts that domestic companies have been riding on for years now. These marketing tools are the only reason the domestics are ahead on sales. Money talks... loud and clear, these days!

Upon reading the Consumer Reports magazine at my local library, I discovered that even though the Fusion is at the top of the rankings, it's the only Ford on top right now. Across the board, the Japanese are still far ahead of the Big 3. Boasting that 90% of Fords have nearly caught up to Japanese reliability doesn't say much when "nearly" is part of the equation. Also, for you Big 3 fans, by saying that Ford has caught up to the Japanese, you're still agreeing that the Japanese are the gold standard when it comes to car manufacturing.

"The Honda Accord was on top for over 20 years running"

The Key word here is "WAS". Have you checked out all the Honda/Acura reliability issues LATELY??