Used Honda Accord (c. 2002) experience/opinions

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NWJocko

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Afternoon All,

Hoping for some help or opinion.....

I need to get a second car fairly quickly now that we've sold our house but don't have a lot of spare cash sloshing around.

I had been looking at older Focus etc but come across, locally, a Honda Accord, 51 reg, 100K miles, 12 month MOT for less than a grand.

Given Honda's reputation for reliability that seems a good option to me but have never owned a Honda before, is their reputation well deserved?

Also, I'm not looking for much from the car, not going to be doing too much driving in it and if it lasts me a couple of years that will be a bonus.

So, anyone ever owned one of these cars?

Or heard of any good/bad experiences?

Thanks in advance.
 
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Is it a diesel? If so, and it has a full service history and looks like it's been looked after alright, I would buy it in a heartbeat.

100k on a Jap engine is barely just broken in and not one of the people I know who have owned Honda's have ever had a problem (one had an Accord and only sold it because he's a tart and wanted an S2000).

Lovely cars (boot is a bit twee for a big car though!)
 
Aztecs27 said:
Is it a diesel? If so, and it has a full service history and looks like it's been looked after alright, I would buy it in a heartbeat.

100k on a Jap engine is barely just broken in and not one of the people I know who have owned Honda's have ever had a problem (one had an Accord and only sold it because he's a tart and wanted an S2000).

Lovely cars (boot is a bit twee for a big car though!)
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Thanks Aztec,

Should have said it's a petrol, 1.8. Are the petrol engines less reliable?

Tax is a bit pricey because of that but £40 difference a year in tax is nowt really, a few less pints after golf.......
 
Wasnt this a Rover 600 with a different body? I think the Rover had a number of issues with their K series engines but not sure whether that is whats in the Honda or whether they had their own petrol engine.
 
jpenno said:
Wasnt this a Rover 600 with a different body? I think the Rover had a number of issues with their K series engines but not sure whether that is whats in the Honda or whether they had their own petrol engine.
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Don't be silly. The K series was a piece of ****. The Accord doesn't use this engine.
 
rosecott said:
Have a look at honestjohn.co.uk.

Less than a grand looks like a good deal.
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http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/honda/accord-1998/

Looks like there has been issues with some gearboxes, but other than that, looks like a good deal.

NWJ - Not at all, but diesel engines tend to (in general) keep on going. My Seat Toledo had 140k on the clock when I sold it to my mate. He's still getting on with it perfectly well, I believe.
 
I've had loads of Hondas, and Toyotas and even some Mitsubishis.

Hondas are exceptionally good, this one set the gold standard, back a decade ago.

The only things to look for are service items (tyres/exhaust) and starter motors. Engines and gearboxes superb.

Even in the 1.8 it was astonishingly smooth and not too sluggish. I had one, and a 2.2 vtec as well.
 
Thanks all for the replies.

I am utterly clueless with cars once it gets beyond changing a tyre and putting fuel in it I'm afraid so really appreciate the help.

It's a 1.8 Vtec petrol engine.

Phoned the owner so going to look at it and, with 12m MOT, in all likelihood buy it :)

Might need to get my del boy donkey jacket on and try and get a deal....
 
RGDave said:
Don't be silly. The K series was a piece of ****. The Accord doesn't use this engine.
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I'd like to defend the k series. The k series was not a rubbish engine. The standard head gasket was rubbish. But the k series is a fantastic unit. 101bhp from a N/A 1.4 is pretty special. The Elise never seemed to suffer from using a k series either. They just had the brains to upgrade the head gasket before selling the cars.

The 1.8 vvc unit is epically quick in comparison to other 1.8s, it's also light and great for handling.
 
NWJocko said:
Thanks all for the replies.

I am utterly clueless with cars once it gets beyond changing a tyre and putting fuel in it I'm afraid so really appreciate the help.

It's a 1.8 Vtec petrol engine.

Phoned the owner so going to look at it and, with 12m MOT, in all likelihood buy it :)

Might need to get my del boy donkey jacket on and try and get a deal....
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I've got. 1.0 micra for sale...£650 and is yours lol
 
DappaDonDave said:
I'd like to defend the k series. The k series was not a rubbish engine. The standard head gasket was rubbish. But the k series is a fantastic unit. 101bhp from a N/A 1.4 is pretty special. The Elise never seemed to suffer from using a k series either. They just had the brains to upgrade the head gasket before selling the cars.

The 1.8 vvc unit is epically quick in comparison to other 1.8s, it's also light and great for handling.
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OK, point taken. There were some excellent Rovers with it in, many of which I tried living only a par 5 away from the Longbridge plant. I loved those cars by the way.

The O.P. was about reputation/reliability of the Honda. I had a 1.8 accord (V reg) for a while and it was superb.

The accords did share some K series engines with rovers up to 1997. The F series Honda engine came in after that.

Just out of interest. Warranty Direct had Honda Accord as the #1 most reliable car a few years back.
 
I've got a 2.0 52 plate that i use for work , had it 18 months now , paid £900 for it . Good car fairly basic but what matters most is it's very reliable , i've not spent a penny on it , starts first time, runs like clockwork , i can't remember when i last looked under the bonnet .
It's nothing fancy and fairly basic but if a comfortable reliable car is what your after then i would recommend it . I don't think it is great on mpg but i tend not to drive in a manner that is considerate on fuel consumption, using it for work i'm always in traffic or running late, want to get home asap , etc.
Good luck .
 
andycap said:
I've got a 2.0 52 plate that i use for work , had it 18 months now , paid £900 for it . Good car fairly basic but what matters most is it's very reliable , i've not spent a penny on it , starts first time, runs like clockwork , i can't remember when i last looked under the bonnet .
It's nothing fancy and fairly basic but if a comfortable reliable car is what your after then i would recommend it . I don't think it is great on mpg but i tend not to drive in a manner that is considerate on fuel consumption, using it for work i'm always in traffic or running late, want to get home asap , etc.
Good luck .
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Thanks andycap, pretty much what I'm looking for and using it for. Not going to be doing loads of miles in it so not too bothered about fuel consumption really. When we're all going anywhere we'll be in the other car anyway.
 
30-33 mpg. If you keep the revs down, and stop the v-tec doing it's thing, plenty more.

I remember talking to a chap who was sad to see his civic go to the scrappy. Only 247,000 miles.

I'm going to look at a Type S model (2004) on Saturday.
 
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