1988 Honda Accord LX from North America - Comments

Transmission failure.

Power window motor burned out.

Cassette player went out.

A/C had to be worked on.

Power steering hose busted.

Everyone said buy one buy one they last forever and they all lied I hate this underpowered pile of trash. I never had any real problems with my Eagle, but this thing is a nightmare it makes so many noises its not even funny everything rattles and shutters. Its not good on gas nor is it a good car for traveling long distances.

Let me address these issues one at a time:

Transmission failure. 14-15 year old car with 130+K miles. Get real. Most automatics don't last very long, especially old ones. My advice: go with a stick next time.

Power window motor burned out. My '86 Ford went through no less than 3 gears, 3 switches and 2 motors. When I sold it, 2 windows were inoperable again. My '88 Accord has all 4 windows working, with 265K on the odometer. My advice: Stop whining or go with manual windows.

Cassette player went out. 15 year old car! Gimme a break. New cassette players are less than $40.

A/C had to be worked on. How so? Charged? All cars need that periodically. Broken? That can be a pain, but on a car that old, it's not a total surprise.

Power steering hose busted. Original hoses, I will presume. Old hoses harden and crack when exposed to heat and extreme cold. No matter what the car! I just saw the same problem on a friend's '93 Lumina.

Nevertheless, the only problem I've had with my '88 is a stuck choke. My A/C needs to be charged, but I never use it anyway. It blows cool, but not cold air. I think You're really picky about your ride. No problem with that. Just give your ride a break. It's older than dirt in car years.

I agree. Don't be so hard on the car give it a break.

A lot of these problems occur with age. As the other posters have indicated, give the car a break! My '88 had all of the following happen to it except for the power steering pump and the transmission. However, I have the 5spd. manual which makes up for that. At 157k, I'd drive it anywhere in the USA and not think twice about it!

I have had my "88" since fall of 98. It is now 14 years old with over 269,000 miles. The air has never worked, the seats are in good shape, and the engine runs great. I have had to replace the transmission three times, but it is my bad driving that did that. The car runs like a bat out of @#$$ due to the engine mods. The car has surprised me through the years and I don't think I will ever get rid of it. 88 Accord: sweet!

I have an 88 Accord also, but it isn't an LX it is a DX 2 door. It is my first car and even if I had the money for the new one, I would probably just spend the money on getting it fixed up. :) The transmission is an automatic and it slips on occasion, but you can expect that from a car 14 years old. It leaks a little power steering fluid, but I just need a new hose. The owner that sold me this car told me that it runs like a top and indeed it does. Although it goes through brakes, that can be explained because the car is a little on the heavy side. I want to restore this car into better shape and I really never want to get rid of it. If you have one, I would suggest keeping it because like for me, it is extremely reliable.

My Accord is an 86. I have an intermittant choke problem.

The choke won't always open. My solution; I put a small stainless steel wire on the choke and just pull it open and tie it off to a clamp on the hose going to the valve cover.

I suspect the computer, the choke resistor, or the coolant temp sensor is to blame, but can't pin it down yet. One solution I used on my old Jeep with choke problems was to put an inexpensive LED and current limiting resistor in parallel with the +12V supply to the choke heater. That way I can monitor the voltage at the choke heater. I call it a cheap dedicated voltmeter. I plan to put one on the Honda as soon as I can and monitor the voltage to the choke.

I have an 88 Honda Accord XL, and it is a very nice car. Like every one else said it is very reliable. It has almost 300,000 miles on it and it is my first car. I think the trans going out because it won't shift from 1st to second in the morning and after school, and also it idles high until its warmed up. it has a CD player and it gets me from home to school and work. :)

I haven't even bought my 1988 Accord yet, I'll have it in a few days,.. But I'm buying it from a friend that has had it for 4 years out of 12 that I have known him. Yes, he has done MAINTENANCE on it, it's getting old. But he didn't plan on selling it. He replaced most of the normal wear & tear parts that are common with all older cars. Clutch, hoses, battery, plug wires, serviced the AC (He's certified) ect... My point is, I buying it for $1000.00 and I'm not going to regret it.

I currently own a 1979 Pontiac Firebird, with a very healthy 1968 327. I'm looking forward to passing many gas stations. By the way, I have driven it many miles (he had a restricted license) and the only problems the car has now is:

the cruise control just quit working,

a sensor needs to be replaced (lunges at low rpm),

and keeping it under 85 MPH. :)

I just got this car less than a month. My friend gave this car to me. So far I just spend less than $500 to repair it including A/C condenser that cost me $110 (do it my own). I don't have a major problem yet. But I do need window motor and I plan to do it myself. Any suggestion if I should change the timing belt? How would I know if I need a new one?

I own an 88 honda accord Lx as well, but my spark plugs aren't all firing, I replaced all 4 and the ignitions wires, one of them still doesn't work, does anyone have any idea if its the valve? and how much that would cost to repair?

88 Honda accord. Just reached 200,526. Having choke problem. LX carb. Wire it like I did on my Volkswagen van? Bought two more fuel injected 88 and 89. SEi and LXi. Still driving the LX, but like the previous message I do have a valve problem. Pull one spark cable at a time to find any missfiring and which one it is. Engine changes when power lost. Find bad chamber for combustion. Then pull the spark plug and gound it on body to see spark. If you have spark do a compression check. From a compression check dry and oil being put into affected conpression chambers to determine if it is rings or valves. It could also be a valve spring. Driving 88 accords for 11 years.