2003 Honda Accord EX review from North America

I had the brakes replaced shortly after I purchased the car because they began to behave strangely for reasons unknown.

That is the only thing that went wrong so far.

The new accord is very reliable, and very pleasant to drive. About the only thing I don't like about it are the brakes. They are a bit too sensitive in my opinion.

The EX I4 Accord performs extremely well given that it has a relatively small, non-turbo/supercharged engine and an automatic. It won't peel the tires flat (unless you have a stick and you want to total your clutch), but it will burn an altima, camry and any other I4 family sedan. The only thing I don't like performance-wise is the intelligent down-shift response when the car is floored in 3-4th gear. The car seems to hesitate before downshifting (as another reviewer reported).

You also get very smooth acceleration, much smoother than a lot of V6s. Unfortunately the smoothness stops there. The ride is considerably bumpy. Every time you hit a slightly sloped manhole cover it feels like you hit a pothole. Also, remember what I said about the brakes :-\

Handling is very precise, and the car has a good turning radius. I haven't done enough crazy steering to report on such things as body roll, sliding etc. Sorry.

The car also gets excellent mileage. You can floor the accelerator every time the light goes green and you still get at least 25mpg. Drive it normally and you can get over 35mpg.

Overall, the car is great. It's fast, reliable, sturdy, economical, looks good, and has a great sound system ^_^