1994 Honda Accord ex from North America - Comments

Brake replacement (2 times) - very, very expensive.

Muffler replacement (3 times) - expensive.

CV boot replacement (2 times).

Front axel replacement.

Front sway bar replacement.

Timing belt ($700 - outrageous).

Power windows stuck.

Car won't start.

Muffler noisy.

Front end shakes when braking.

Low power.

Transmission shifts at wrong rpms.

Glare on windshield.

Uncomfortable on long drive.

Thin sheet metal.

Crappy sounding radio.

Power antenna broken.

Bad clock.

This car is a piece of junk. Very disappointed in the poor quality of parts. Repairs are overly expensive and can cost 3 times as much as domestic parts. Very boring. Hate this car more than any other vehicle I have ever owned. Will not buy another Honda.

Oh! but they are sooooooo wonderful! LOL Just kidding!

Obviously your vehicle endures a very hard life. On the Contrary my own 1991 Honda Accord Lx is now at 209k Miles. I had my Timing Belt including Water Pump replaced for $400 including parts. I replaced my own Fuel Pump myself. It really is how you drive these Cars and how often you Service them. Personally I would not complain that the Power Windows in my 13 year old car no longer work. Surely this is to be expected? That is the Trade off, you either buy a New Vehicle and lose $40+ a week in Depreciation and watch it get Dinged up and Scratched anyplace you park it or you buy an older vehicle and get handy with the Spanners. Failing that, find yourself a half decent Shade Tree Mechanic, as I have, who is content to work for some Beer Money.

I highly recommend the 90 to 93 honda accord, but only if you buy a base model dx with a 5 speed trans and air conditioning (less parts to break down). Another key is you have a great mechanic who is trying to make a living instead of a hugh profit. I recommend you buy it from a major dealership because they ocassionly keep the clean older vehicles and sell them cheap (since its hard to get financing for these older vehicles, you have to pay cash for it). I also recommend you buy a honda from a honda dealership, because they will do basic maintenance on it, and they have the experience to do it. for this car I would not pay more than $2000.00 to 4000.00. Don't be afraid of a high mileage Honda accord. Check closely overspray and leaking trans or engine oil. The car will cruise at 80 to 90 mph and get 29 to 33 mpg. Also understand the following parts will have to be replaced on this vehicle over the next 100,000 miles:

muffler

timing belt

therostat

radiator

upper and lower radiator hoses

catalytic converter

cv joints and boots

spark plugs

oil changes and filter

tires

water pump (replace it when you chg the timing belt)

front bearing

brakes

These are the basic items that go out on these vehicles and I recommend you complete these items as soon as possible.

I have a friend with a piece of junk '90 Accord with much less miles than my '90 Ford Tempo and his junk is always braking costing him well over a thousand dollars, whereas my Tempo never needs anything. People think the Tempo is junk, but I just laugh at them. It actually tied for first place, with the Accord and Camry, for the top spot on JD Power's initial quality survey. But my tempo kills the Accord when it comes to quality.

Funny how I am approaching 250,000 with my 94 Accord LX and have no trouble like you say. I have power everything; except sunroof, power seat lifter, and no automatic. Sorry pal the Tempo was a disgrace to the FoMOCo and they are still feeling the pains that car brought them today.

Perhaps, you just ended up with a bad Accord. It is always good to do a VIN check and get a good look at the car before purchasing it. Honda and Toyota are the top 2 of JD Power. Its hard to believe that a Honda fails you. Maybe you ended with a bad Honda, maybe someone felt like wrecking the life out of the car and just unfortunately you got stuck with it. Sorry, tough break. I've had a 1992 Honda Accord and it never bothered me at all. Honda and Toyota are the way to go.

I agree to what most of you are saying, however... Every car has it's flaws, even at 13 years old. I have owned my Honda Accord since 1997, and the car itself is a '93. The only major issues I've had with it is the drive axles had to be replaced, and the oil cooler, other than oil changes every 3K miles, new brakes, tune-ups, and updating the fluids. This car is at 154,000 miles and is still running strong. I have owned three Honda's in my life, and I plan to sell this one and get a Brand New '07 Accord.