I swear I'm not a Honda guy...

[DanteGTZ]

Well, after doing a few family road trips in our Civic, it was becoming obvious we needed something bigger. We were originally looking for a small, fuel efficient car (looked at Elantra, Civic, Mazda3, Cruze, Corolla, Focus) when we opted for the 5 speed Civic. I've never really cared for Hondas but it seemed to be the choice for us. When we bought our Civic new back in '13, I had some suspicion that it was going to be too small. Well, it was. We quickly realized we should have bought an Accord.

Again, I'm not a Honda guy but the styling of the new Accords really appeals to me (semi-classy without looking old-fart-ish). Plus, Honda still offers a manual transmission! After our recent trip back from Atlanta on Saturday, we decided enough was enough - Turns out our local dealer had a '14 Accord w/6 speed manual and were willing to wheel-and-deal. Last night, we traded the Civic in on the Accord and couldn't be happier! It's just a base model LX but it's pretty amazing how well it is actually equipped for having no add-on options.

I'm definitely not a Honda enthusiast by any stretch but until GM brings back a mid size car with a manual transmission at a REASONABLE PRICE, I'm forced to look elsewhere. It's a shame, really, but it's the way they're doing things these days...

[whiteretta]

Honestly, Honda's are more American than GM's are now. Hondas are built all over the US, my friend works for one of their engine plants too. Not too surprising why they last so much longer.

[Money pit Beretta]

Lets just say if the money was there my Cavy would be gone. A Honda or the like is where I'd be looking.

[heavywoody]

The new Accords (heck even the last style) look sharp; a lot of "foreign" cars are looking much more appealing now-a-days.

[3X00-Modified]

Honestly, Honda's are more American than GM's are now. Hondas are built all over the US, my friend works for one of their engine plants too. Not too surprising why they last so much longer.

Yes they are put together here but since when does simply assembling a vehicle in the US make it "American". Don't get me wrong, it's great for us to have the jobs to provide us with foreign vehicles but every part is still typically produced overseas and imported in. My Subaru was probably built in this country but the damn block still says made in japan on it.

[whiteretta]

It's also a little sad that our quality has gone down hill over the past decade or so.

I may love my GM cars, but I wouldn't buy a new one. Chrysler has really made a come back, and Ford is slowly making a comeback.

If I was to buy a new car? Toyota, Honda or Hyundai. I don't feel guilty saying this either.

[GTU89]

Honestly, Honda's are more American than GM's are now. Hondas are built all over the US, my friend works for one of their engine plants too. Not too surprising why they last so much longer.

Yes they are put together here but since when does simply assembling a vehicle in the US make it "American". Don't get me wrong, it's great for us to have the jobs to provide us with foreign vehicles but every part is still typically produced overseas and imported in. My Subaru was probably built in this country but the damn block still says made in japan on it.

This.

Even though it may be assembled here does not mean you are supporting an american corporation or that it is even an american car, too many people do not understand that just because it is assembled here does not make it an american car.

That said, nice car, does not really appeal to me at all but it is still a nice car, glad to see you got a manual too, autos suck. Looks tons shaper than the early-mid 2000s and older japanese blandmobiles. Nothing wrong with buying what you like, I really dislike Ford (more as a company) but so far I love my F150 and Mustang I recently bought.

V6 or i4? i already hit reply on my phone and I missed if you mentioned/showed the engine.

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[DanteGTZ]

This one is a 2.4 "Earth Dreams" I4 - 185hp and ~180lb/tq.

As far as the other brands, the older I get the less loyal to GM I become. (FWIW, I still have 3 Berettas and a Camaro Z28, but my truck is an F350). As far as new car, I'm still inclined to only buy cars with manual transmissions. As of now, that EXCLUDES Camry, Sonata, Malibu, Legacy, Fusion, 200C, Altima, etc... It's sad, really. People are more concerned about TV screens and gadgets/gizmos than they are about the driving experience. The manufacturers love it too because they can charge ~$1000 MORE for the cars simply because they are equipped with an auto/CVT.

Modern cars suck, I feel bad for the future... but I really dig this Accord so far. One primary motivation for buying now was this current body style. I have been eying one for a bit now but was scared that if I wait too long Honda could change the body slightly and destroy the good looks... lol - That, and who knows how long they'll still offer the 6 speed manual.

[GTU89]

I imagine its decently peppy for what it is, and the 6 speed helps alot.

Pretty cool being a manual, I imagine most are Auto, did you need to search much to find a manual one?

Automatic is the only thing that I dislike about my F150, but imo the 300 i6 makes up for it. Probably better that your Accord is a 4 banger, cannot imagine a sensor riddled DOHC V6 in a FWD will be anything pleasant to work on when it ages lol

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[DanteGTZ]

I think only like 4% are manuals - Don't quote me on it but that figure is floating around. When I was originally searching for our Civic, there was a manual locally, one in Nashville (which we bought) and one in Atlanta. That was it within a 200 mile radius.

As for the Accord, there actually happened to be two identically equipped 6 speeds locally here in the Knoxville area. We opted for this one because the dealer added the 17" EX wheels and some other Honda add-ons.

For my cars, I pretty much insist they be manual transmissions. For trucks/SUVs/vans, I'm okay with an automatic. We have the 5 speed auto in our F350 and I actually really like it. Fully electronic and the auto sure makes hauling things easier. With the tow/haul feature, it downshifts and engine brakes just like a manual.

Oh, and as for the engine size, you're right - This engine bay is pretty roomy with the 4 cylinder. Lotsa work room, although I hope I don't need to do anything major for a number of years.

[Rettax3]

As far as new car, I'm still inclined to only buy cars with manual transmissions. As of now, that EXCLUDES Camry, Sonata, Malibu, Legacy, Fusion, 200C, Altima, etc... It's sad, really. People are more concerned about TV screens and gadgets/gizmos than they are about the driving experience. The manufacturers love it too because they can charge ~$1000 MORE for the cars simply because they are equipped with an auto/CVT.

Modern cars suck, I feel bad for the future... but I really dig this Accord so far. One primary motivation for buying now was this current body style. I have been eying one for a bit now but was scared that if I wait too long Honda could change the body slightly and destroy the good looks... lol - That, and who knows how long they'll still offer the 6 speed manual.

Can I just quote this entire thread? I really have responses to almost every comment here! This one sums up the strongest points to me though -new cars suck.

I have been a Honda fan since before I bought my first '82 V-Four 750 (yes, "V" four, not "Inline"). But their cars are a different story. I like the looks of the Fit, and a few years of Civics have come and gone out of interest to me, S2000s look like they perform but are way too pricy for a two-seat toy. Preludes have also come and gone out of interest to me (moreso than the Civics) and the Integras (Acura division) and RSXs are decent-looking cars with their own identity, which is really hard for a Japanese import to have. But, they are overall boring cars. Sorry. And I really have issues with timing-belt engines (although I have owned a few myself), which Honda seems regrettably to be in love with.

Over the last ten years or so though, I would take a Honda over a Toyota -I think that Toyota's "lean manufacturing" techniques, which they are emphasizing to help them overtake GM as the world's largest auto manufacturer, have caused their quality to diminish, in an industry that should be fighting to make better quality products. This is particularly disappointing to me, as I had always said that Toyota made the best quality car -now they just make the most (aside from GM) cars. Who really cares about that statistic when they are looking for a car for themselves? I have also been a Nissan fan since I bought the first of my two '85 300ZX's -a fully-loaded GLL Turbo model. But from what I have heard and seen lately, they too have gone down hill a little, and no longer make a consistently excellent product. Too bad. So far as I can tell, Honda has been able to remain consistent, which puts them at either the top or second to that for quality in new cars IMO. But the catch is that older cars are still around, and I feel that a ten-or-twenty-year-old Toyota may still be the best car available.

So far as "Made in America", sorry guys, I own more than a dozen U.S.-made cars (and van), and I love them, but they are NOT the best quality I have seen. They blow new VWs out of the water like a U-boat hitting a nuclear depth-charge, but what doesn't? And if everyone wants to turn back a page to the media over-blown recall of Toyotas from yester-year, I would like to point out that the vehicles that caused those incidents were primarily the U.S.-made (or "assembled") ones, not the Japanese-made cars. Hmmm... A lot of the more problematic Honda Civics made over the last several years were again U.S. assembled too. "Buy American!" Well, I like American-made tools, and older cars, but it mostly ends there. I can't think of one new American car I would actually consider buying (well, I do kind of like the retro Challenger, but for what those sell for I still wouldn't buy one). Bottom line on that point is that if they want me to 'buy American', then America needs to step up and build the best quality, and the best value, that it can.

Well, congrats on the new car, for a new one (and really, we can't all keep old cars forever, can we? Well, CAN WE?) that is pretty nice. It is a Honda, so take care of it and it will take care of you, don't take care of it and it will probably still take care of you.

[Godlike]

Excellent summery. American cars as a large generalization arrant at the same quality level as Honda and several other Japanese manufacturers. Though I still love em.
I think that American car pride of ownership was justified in the early automotive years when Oldsmobile introduced the automatic transmission into production cars in the 40's, when Chevrolet introduced the first production fuel injection system in the 50's, and 60's cars in general.
But now that pride is kind of meaningless. "American" cars are made in Mexico with parts from all over the place. They havent been a benchmark in quality or reliability in my lifetime. Ford and GM are global companies so all of your money doesn't stay here and If you buy a Dodge its going to Fiat.
Personally I have pride in my little Honda because of its reliability and there engineered to be simple, easy to work on and parts interchangeability is like working with Legos. I believe the Japanese take more pride in there work than we do. Its a very different culture over there. But having owned several Hondas I could critique them all day long as well. Whatever Nice Accord BTW!

[ifixalot]

I don't believe that Japanese or any other foreign car is any better than an American car.
They have all had problems. It is hard to build a car with all it's systems and not have some thing go wrong.
Most of the data on reliability comes form owners taking surveys. People started buying Japanese cars
when gas started going up because they were smaller and more fuel efficient. American cars were gas guzzlers.
I believe the reliability rumor started because people felt guilty buying foreign cars so they started saying there
more reliable and don't break down etc. I think it is simply a prejudice against American cars.

Mitsubishi built the 2.7 liter engines in early 2000s, that had oil passage problems which they blamed the
owners for not changing the oil often enough. A friend of mine swears he changed the oil every 4000 miles but
he had to junk the car with 53,000 miles on it after the engine blew.

My brother in law bought a Geo with a Suzuki engine in it that had piston slap. He finally got them to change the engine
under warranty.

Mid 80s Honda V-4 liquid cooled motorcycle engines, some had soft cams that wore out.
My 84 V-65 Sabre had a leaky fork seal on one side that I finally fixed because it was just out of warranty.
The front fork brace is known to crack because it is too thin.
My wife's new Yamaha motorcycle leaked fuel in my garage that ran all the way out the door. Until the dealer got the part to fix it, I had to clamp off the fuel line with a vise grip when I wasn't riding it.

Honda Odyssey has trans mission problems in the late 90s and early 2000 models.

Then there are the Honda airbag recalls.

That Toyota accelerator problem was world wide not just the USA built cars. Toyota recalled cars in Europe and China.
As of 2014 business week has an article about the cause.
"Toyota did not follow best practices for real time life critical software,
and that a single bit flip which can be caused by cosmic rays could
cause unintended acceleration.
As well, the run-time stack of the real-time operating system was not
large enough and that it was possible for the stack to grow large enough
to overwrite data that could cause unintended acceleration.
As a result Toyota has entered into settlement talks with its plaintiffs."

Nissan has been recalling some cars because of fuel leaks.

So if one studies the facts, you find all car companies have had their share embarrassing defects.

[themixer]

all cars = junk

[Asylum]

If you are buying a Honda or Toyota in North America you will have a hard time finding one NOT built here.

All North American (97%) Honda Accords are Assembled in Ohio, as are the drivetrains.

All North American Toyota Camrys (94%) are Assembled in Kentucky, with the V6 built in Kentucky and the 4 cyl built in Maryland.

Most Honda Civics are built in Ontario with Ohio drivetrains.

The Acura MDX is built in Lincoln, Alabama with Ohio drivetrains. As is the Honda Odyssey.

The Toyota Highlander is assembled in Indiana and the drivetrain in West Virginia.

And the list goes on.....

FWIW