The exhaust system was replaced three times during the car's life, and it was still loud.
The radiator blew leaving us stranded.
The oil pan rusted away, leaking all the oil out of the engine, also leaving us stranded.
The A/C compressor went, and would cost over $800 to fix it. We opted to not fix it.
The fuel gauge does not work.
The paint (white) is oxidizing and has very little shine left, however the car has never been garaged.
One of the taillights continues to burn out over time.
The transmission (automatic) doesn't always shift at the appropriate times and is slow to change from reverse to drive on cold mornings.
Overall, my wife and I were less than impressed with this car. Although Hondas share a reputation of being reliable, ours wasn't very dependable and was expensive to maintain. We experienced a lot of problems within the first 100,000 miles that I would not have expected, and did not encounter on my Chevy. Additionally, the Chevy is relatively cheap to fix and this Honda is not.
The car is comfortable and uses its interior space well. It handles well in the snow. The radio sounds decent and has excellent reception. The driving position is good and all the gauges are legible, although the fuel gauge has been dead since purchase.
The fuel mileage has been good for a reasonably sized vehicle.
However, the transmission doesn't seem well-suited to the engine and makes the engine work hard to move this car around. The car has ALWAYS been loud, even with a fully functional exhaust system. I've noticed this with other Hondas as well.
It seems that others have been more lucky with their Hondas, but we won't be purchasing one again. They carry a price premium that did not pay off in the end with this car. After the fifth year, my wife and I decided that we would trade it in and get something that we would enjoy driving. We purchased a Saturn L300 which has been perfectly reliable and a joy to drive--and it didn't carry the premium of the Accord.
Overall, we would rate this as an OK car, but a lousy Honda.
I drive a 1995 Honda Accord with 284,000km (177,500miles) and have not experienced the loud exhaust that you mentioned, nor have I noticed it on other Accords from that generation (1994-1996), so I'm not quite sure what you are talking about. The other thing I'd like to mention is the rusted oil pan that lost all of its oil. There is no way that all oil will simply pour out at once, even if it's rusted, unless you damage it, and the rust hole becomes bigger. If that didn't happen, all I can see is that you have not checked your oil level periodically. Therefore, you should not blame the car for that.
Now let me get this one straight. You have been unsuccessful in running a Honda and now your wisdom has enabled you to come to the decision that a Saturn will be more reliable for you.
I have owned both makes of vehicle. In my humble opinion the Honda (I own a 1991 Accord LX) is over engineered and even now approaching the magical 200,000 miles marker, I have not a single problem.
Granted, I have maintained the hell out of this vehicle, but then again I am a mechanic. I am merely pointing out that many folks do not so much as lift the hood between oil changes even on higher mileage vehicles. They will then come on this website and post about how bad their 10 year old cars are.
I looked at your review and most of the problems you encountered on your Honda were due to a lack of knowledge about how to maintain your vehicle. So you probably have made the right decision, although you will not like the way the Saturn rides compared to the smoother Honda you are used to.
I work on vehicles for my living and Saturns are not worth the money. I hope you have a good warranty.
How rusty is the rest of the car? Cars very rarely rust out the oilpan. Either the car is corroded to hell underneath, or maybe for whatever reason a used oilpan was put on at some point earlier in the car's life. The transmission problem is very common on old Accords. If you can afford it, take it and have the tranny flushed and filter changed. That might help smooth it out a bit.
The General is not really known for their transmissions or keeping fluids from leaking out or quality for that matter. Their car designs are very old. Well at least your 94 Accord will be just as modern as your new Saturn.
I wrote this review and I appreciate the comments. Let me add a few details to the story. The car belonged to my wife when we got married, and most of the problems occurred before this time, so I am speaking from what she experienced. Did all the oil leak from the rusted pan? I don't know for sure, but it was enough to illuminate the oil light. Yes, I check fluids regularly. The exhaust really was loud, sorry if I can't describe it well enough for some of you. It was mostly a NY car, though, and that explains the corrosion (they salt roads very heavily). I do suspect that the previous owner (before my wife bought it) did not maintain the car very well.
"You have been unsuccessful in running a Honda and now your wisdom has enabled you to come to the decision that a Saturn will be more reliable for you." In response, the Honda ran, just not up to our expectations. And our Saturn has been completely reliable. I'd say that's a good decision, would you not? Your comments on the Saturn I think are unfounded--even if it proves to be somewhat less reliable over time, it drives better than a comparably priced Accord, is cheaper to insure, and in my opinion looks better.
I am certainly not saying that all Hondas are bad--I actually like them very much--but this particular example, for whatever reason, wasn't for us. Perhaps we will consider one in the future.
The comment suggesting that the car's problems were due to "lack of knowledge on how to maintain a vehicle" is silly. How is "lack of maintenance" responsible for a broken A/C compressor? How about the blown radiator? How about the dead fuel gauge, or the rusted out oil pan? Think before you write--it makes the comments much more valid.
Hello all, I don't mean to intrude or anything, but I just recently bought a 94 Honda Accord LX, and didn't really seem to notice how loud the engine was until after I had bought it.
The man I bought it from said that the engine had always been loud, but I recently searched the Internet and found reviews of the model that noted how quiet the engine compartment was.
The engine doesn't get loud until I accelerate or reach at least 40 mph, but it is very noticeable and am wondering if it is normal or if I should go spend the money to get it checked out. Any ideas? I'm really new with the whole car thing, this is my first car, and it is in great condition other than the noise. Any help would be very welcome.
Honda engines are not loud by any means, so there is something wrong with yours.
It depends on the car if its loud or not, its mostlikley in the airbox if it a noise from under the hood. Honda owners sometimes mess with them to make more power hense making it louder. Or maybe the hose is loose and its sucking air from an opening. If it's a tapping or ticking noise its most likley an oil issue.
These cars are indestructible in many ways. My 94 just hit 226,000 miles and will have 250,000 by December. I have not had any problems other than stuff that gets wear and tear all the time; the hydraulic clutch system -- 400 dollars and the factory muffler that fell off at 210,000 miles.
The AC compressor makes noise, but runs better than my Chevy that only has 125,000 miles.
I do not complain about parts here and there, and I do not want to think I am "Buff" because I really only have 226,000 miles.
If you think these cars are stupid and unreliable, just look at the older Honda's that have over 300,000 miles on them. For having a I-4 engine, it puts any Dodge Ram to shame that needs a V-8 to get to 242,000 miles.
I own a Honda Accord 2.2 Vtec 4 cylinder and I know it for a fact that it is the best car in its line. I have owned this car for 7 years and have never had a single problem, and as far as power is concerned, it touches 220km/hr very often.