PAGE 2 SAYS ACCORD, in that case!

Still, take out the Altima V6 and Mazda 6 V6 for a drive. The ride might be so much more enjoyable than the Accord's that you might be willing to overlook the key fob and dash lights

4/14/2009 7:28:19 PM

I will spend the entire weekend test driving cars, but I will test drive them all!

Hubby wants me to look at a 2010 Ford Fusion Sport. I said....maybe.

4/14/2009 7:31:04 PM

I'd rather you look at the Altima, Camry, or the Mazda 6 before you look at the Fusion, but it's an option. I just want you to look at your options before deciding on the Honda. However, you've been driving a honda and you like your honda, so it would make sense to stick with the brand you're familiar with.

Quote :

"** if you want sportiness (better throttle response and more spirited driving/handling), go for the 3.5 litre V6 Altima (also 270 hp)"

where is there a Nissan dealership around here other than Southern States? Southern States looks like a ghost town and only had a handful of I-4 Altimas.

4/14/2009 9:29:22 PM

Quote :

"I'd rather you look at the Altima, Camry, or the Mazda 6 before you look at the Fusion, but it's an option. I just want you to look at your options before deciding on the Honda. However, you've been driving a honda and you like your honda, so it would make sense to stick with the brand you're familiar with. "

Whatever you say hubby. Next Saturday (the 25th) we're going test driving aaaall daaaay looooong.

4/14/2009 9:34:12 PM

The orange dash is supposed to be better for your night vision. Something to do with the rods and the cones in your eyes. I'm sure Google could tell you why. I'd recommend against turning the brightness up to make it look like sunlight though.

Is it just me, or do you never really see white girls driving Altimas? It must be the way they market them. They all go for Accords or Camrys with the occasional Mazda 6 from what I've seen.

After seeing tons of Accords go well into the 200k range with nothing but routine maintenance I can't really try to talk someone out of buying one when that's what they say they want.

[Edited on April 14, 2009 at 10:51 PM. Reason : l]

4/14/2009 10:50:37 PM

you can buy a used e90 for sig cheaper than a new accord

something to consider

4/14/2009 10:52:13 PM

the cost of ownership in the long term would quickly even out that decision.

4/14/2009 11:43:59 PM

The four cylinder would have plenty of power if you don't plan to go much over 80 mph on the highway. Acceleration would be a little bit more sluggish, but not very bad at all. Also, you have stated that you don't even use the interstates much. That seems like a perfect reason to go with the smaller engine. A smaller engine would get much better fuel economy in the city than a larger one would, because of all the stop and go traffic. Also all of my experiences with four cylinder engines have given me no reason to complain, and the maintenance issues of a four cylinder is typically less than the issues of a larger engine. It seems to me that you are in it for the long haul ~150,000 miles. I would go with the four-banger.

4/15/2009 10:45:29 AM

Unless you like the surge of power when accelerating hard there is no reason in this world for you to get a V6 model Accord. It's heavier, costs more, and gets worse gas mileage. It probably also specifies a larger size tire, which is something to factor in long term ownership costs. Why in the world would you want that all that for something you don't need or use. 190hp is more than enough for the average person.

So my vote is for the I4 Accord over the V6. However I also strongely suggest you look at the Mazda6 as previously mentioned. It is a sweet car and is more fun to drive (feels more light on its feet, whereas the Accord through the years has been progessing towards a "Buick" type feel). I am also pretty sure they did away with the lighting interior of the previous model that you don't like.

Also, why are you not considering a Chevrolet Malibu?

Personally if I was shopping for a mid-sized car in your price range I'd probably get the Pontiac G8 GT, but if you were concerned about the financial state of GM I'd most likely go for the Mazda6.

(and this is coming from someone who loves Hondas and has owned nothing but Hondas his entire life)

4/15/2009 1:30:31 PM

Quote :

"The four cylinder would have plenty of power if you don't plan to go much over 80 mph on the highway. Acceleration would be a little bit more sluggish, but not very bad at all. Also, you have stated that you don't even use the interstates much. That seems like a perfect reason to go with the smaller engine. A smaller engine would get much better fuel economy in the city than a larger one would, because of all the stop and go traffic. Also all of my experiences with four cylinder engines have given me no reason to complain, and the maintenance issues of a four cylinder is typically less than the issues of a larger engine. It seems to me that you are in it for the long haul ~150,000 miles. I would go with the four-banger."

If you don't plan to go much over 80 mph? Shit...That baby will cruise at 100 all day long. And run cleanly all the way to fuel shutoff at 130.

I wish Hondata had a cheap reflash or something for the Accord 4banger's ECM (they don't)...to get rid of that 130 mph fuel shutoff AND to raise the stupid low rev limiter. This car has 150mph potential written all over it.

4/15/2009 2:33:51 PM

Re: the comment about the Fusion, I've actually been hearing good things about the refreshed 2010 models (which became available early this year, the 2009 model year was really a half-year for the Fusion)

4/15/2009 2:50:23 PM

at anything over about 80 the roar of a four cylinder becomes louder.....at 90 they become almost unbearable....

4/15/2009 10:25:01 PM

so...here's what happened.

i went to the Honda in Cary to test drive the I4 and V6 cars without my husband. just a test drive! did not intend to buy anything since i had yet to test drive the mazda or the altima.

so i drove the V6 first and loved it. obviously. then i drove the I4. i took a left out of the lot and she told me to punch it - so i did. and it hesitated, coughed once, then started to go. i told her no way, not a chance, and u-turned right then and there.

while test driving both of the cars, she talked to me about money and price and all that jazz. i told her i wanted below invoice, told her i wanted 3.9%, told her i wanted 60 months...she was actually shocked that i knew what their specials were and already knew what i wanted to pay.

we returned to the dealership and walked in, thinking i'd take a book home for my husband and come back and talk to her next week once my lease had been inspected and i was ready to turn it in. she asked me if i'd buy the car tonight if she could get me everything i asked for. she even told me i didn't need a down payment. i said yes. she got me what i wanted...in about 15 minutes.

and i walked out of that dealership 90 minutes after i entered, the proud owner of a 2009 Honda Accord EX-L V6 in Royal Blue Pearl.

4/15/2009 10:25:53 PM

congrats!

4/15/2009 10:28:13 PM

thank you!

i qualified all on my own too, which totally shocked me. woohoo!

4/15/2009 10:29:09 PM

so how much did you end up paying total?

4/15/2009 11:08:03 PM

Quote :

"at anything over about 80 the roar of a four cylinder becomes louder.....at 90 they become almost unbearable...."

Are you acquainted with Jack Shit? I think not.

4/16/2009 1:10:32 AM

my selling price was $25,900

4/16/2009 8:08:24 AM

^^yeah

my 88 accord, A20A3 wut wut, would hum along 100mph@4000rpms NO PROB

drove back and forth from home, school, auto-tech and back home every damn day at 100 my junior year in HS. those were the days

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 8:11 AM. Reason : -]

4/16/2009 8:10:42 AM

Quote :

" I wish Hondata had a cheap reflash or something for the Accord 4banger's ECM (they don't)...to get rid of that 130 mph fuel shutoff AND to raise the stupid low rev limiter. This car has 150mph potential written all over it."

yeah i'm still looking for that. that 4cyl will run all day long at top speed.

Quote :

"at anything over about 80 the roar of a four cylinder becomes louder.....at 90 they become almost unbearable...."

what?

4/16/2009 9:54:40 AM

Some people open their mouths without ANY supportive evidence to their claim, well, except for the anecdotal variety that came from riding in a '73 Pinto with a terminal case of body rot and no muffler.

HINT: Folks, if you put a gay fartcan on ANYTHING, the noise becomes unbearable at high speed.

4/16/2009 11:11:25 AM

so after thinking it over for 15 hours, i decided that i wasn't comfortable paying that much for a car that wasn't exactly what i wanted. my first choice of color was the polished metal metallic with black leather interior. the blue with grey leather interior was my second choice. the polished metal color was actually sold about 3hrs before i got there last night, resulting in me "settling" for the blue. hubby said i should only get what i really truly wanted, and he's right. so i called my agent lady this morning and they're locating the car i want in the color i want. i won't take possession of the car tomorrow though, it'll probably end up being monday. but at least i'm getting the color i originally wanted!!!



[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 12:52 PM. Reason : i'm totally sending my agent lady some flowers when this is done ]

4/16/2009 12:52:01 PM

Are the door handles and trim around the windows chromed out? Or does it just look uber shiny?

4/16/2009 1:13:25 PM

yes they're chrome on the V6

4/16/2009 1:24:19 PM

There are so many gray-scale colored cars out there (black, gray, silver, white...). I enjoy the blue. I'm sorry you are going to blend in with everyone else, but I am happy that you are getting what you wanted Good for you for being happy with your final decision Hopefully it won't change again (should have still test drove the other cars...)

That chrome is mighty []D[][]V[][]D yo.



[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 1:28 PM. Reason : .]

4/16/2009 1:26:37 PM

so you didn't even drive the altima and the 6? how do you know you wouldn't have like one of those better? there is no way to know now!

anyway, congrats, and that 2nd color is way hotter than the 1st one. actually, the 2nd is hot, the 1st is bleh, so good choice on the color.

4/16/2009 1:26:44 PM

Yeah not driving the other cars first was not a good move. I'm sure you'll like the Accord just fine..but ignorance is bliss I suppose.

4/16/2009 1:27:46 PM

i can't help it that i've been driving an accord for two years and i really like it. i know i like the accord, and i am going to stick with that. sure, i might have liked the others, but i've already got an "in" with honda having already leased with american honda finance for two years now. i'm "preferred" in their eyes and that's nice.

there are a lot of everything out there. blue, red, black, white, grey - it's not a big deal. i think the chrome trim and handles are going to make me stand out a little. plus i'm considering a wing spoiler

4/16/2009 1:35:02 PM

now, a spoiler would look silly on a buick an accord, but the altima and 6 have sheetmetals that lend themselves to spoilers, side skirts, 18 inch wheels, etc.

4/16/2009 1:38:13 PM

it doesn't look silly

i've seen pictures...

*sigh* i won't spend anymore money. we're spending enough. no spoiler for me.

4/16/2009 1:39:51 PM

Quote :

"i'm totally sending my agent lady some flowers when this is done ] "

don't, she made quite a bit from your purchase. she should be buying you something. i get cookies every xmas from my dealers. plus cards and whatnot.

4/16/2009 4:52:15 PM

Congrats on the new car, but I honestly cannot understand why you wouldn't comparison shop the most common car category on the planet. Do you go to your favorite restaurant and get the same meal every time without trying anything else?

Also, I can't believe the average woman now finds nothing less than 270hp acceptable for daily transportation :carlface: Apparently we all need cars that can top 155mph. Good to know.

The 190hp brand new car "coughed". Yeah I'm sure

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 6:10 PM. Reason : btw, the engine "hesitating" was actually your transmission]

4/16/2009 6:08:54 PM

The accord v6 will suck the doors off the honda 2-stroke-000 and you're angry!

Just say congrats and move on maaaaaaaaaan.

4/16/2009 6:22:35 PM

I considered the 2.4L until I actually drove the 3.5L. It is only 2 mpg difference and a hell of a lot more fun to drive. The 3.5L does 0-60 in ~6.5 and the 2.4L is ~8.2. If I wanted a gutless 4 cyl, I would have gotten a Civic...

my new wheels (royal pearl blue):

4/16/2009 8:00:46 PM

same car my gf got why does everyone think taking pictures of their crappy run on the mill car on the dan allen parking deck make it awesome?

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 8:13 PM. Reason : btw, same car my gf got, and my 7k# truck gets about the same fuel mileage]

4/16/2009 8:12:18 PM

^^My mistake, I was unaware you did a lot of drag racing on a day to day basis. Also EPA estimates are just that. Real world varies a lot and I wouldn't be surprised if the I4 could easy beat its EPA highway estimate.

^good to see someone actually point out the real world differences

I'm all in favor of more power, but don't see the point here.

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 8:19 PM. Reason : k]

4/16/2009 8:14:19 PM

Its Verizon Business parking deck...is your truck 7k dollars or 7k pounds?

^The 3.5L has VCM, which runs on 3 or 4 cylinders when you are at low rpm and during highway cruising. And I don't drag race all the time, but if you could have 80+hp and another liter of displacement with almost no sacrifice in gas mileage, why the hell wouldn't you?

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 8:24 PM. Reason : .]

4/16/2009 8:16:09 PM

^I had thought of that, but 69 seems to disagree and he basically has one so I'll take his word. And I'm sure it'll be fun getting high teens around town.

4/16/2009 9:20:19 PM

Well I didn't buy the car for its gas mileage. Have fun revving up to 8000 rpm to get decent acceleration...

And my car's 19/29 is better than your 4 cyl/6 speed's 18/25 btw.

The point is different people have different wants/needs in a car, and most people don't give a damn what anyone else thinks of their car.

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 9:40 PM. Reason : .]

4/16/2009 9:29:05 PM

^haha, thanks man. Will do. Regardless you bought a fantastic car and I wish you well.

oh you edited. Well then. My car's EPA rating is actually 20/25 and driving in traffic to and from work I average 23. I haven't driven much strictly on the highway yet so my best mpg so far is 28. But plenty of people on the S2000 forum have topped 30 so I'm not very concerned

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 9:44 PM. Reason : of course driving top down on the freeway will hurt mpg ]

4/16/2009 9:40:52 PM

If I didn't have a wife and a 3 month old baby, I'd probably be in an s2000 as well.

4/16/2009 9:51:56 PM

Quote :

"is your truck 7k dollars or 7k pounds?"

try $52k and 7k pounds

the econ mode is bullshit, the only time it ever cam on when i was driving was when i was coasting, susan's 08 accord v-6 gets 22 and this gets 21 with twice the horsepower and nearly 4 times the torque:

4/16/2009 10:27:19 PM

Quote :

"oh you edited. Well then. My car's EPA rating is actually 20/25 and driving in traffic to and from work I average 23. I haven't driven much strictly on the highway yet so my best mpg so far is 28. But plenty of people on the S2000 forum have topped 30 so I'm not very concerned"

I got 27.8mpg last tank and didn't touch a highway (all north raleigh "city" although its not bad stop and go at all). I have the hardtop on and ive noticed that improves mileage.

4/16/2009 11:00:30 PM

I really wish I could talk my wife into a new Challenger. She says no because it only has two doors

I guess we'll be going the altima/camry/accord/fusion/mazda6/everything else in this category route.

4/16/2009 11:19:26 PM

Quote :

"try $52k and 7k pounds"

lol...You already said you got that thing for like $29k and raped them on your trade-in. And how you gonna pick on someone for posting pics of a stock Accord after you posted all those pics of your stock pickup?

4/16/2009 11:33:56 PM

^ sticker price, not what i got it for after weeks of scheming and i took pictures of it in my driveway in the ghetto in the rain with my cell phone because my dad wanted to see what it looked like, so what the hell are you calling me out on again?


i said nothing about posting pics, i was talking about taking pics of a grocery getter on a fucking parking deck like it was an enzo photo shoot or something you homo

4/16/2009 11:39:40 PM

so, i'm picking up my car in 17hrs and 20mins

glad to see you guys finally made this a Garage thread and started insulting each other

4/16/2009 11:40:57 PM

Every car is 8% faster and 14% more furious when pictures are taken in a parking deck. And that's assuming you're doing it in the daytime. When it gets dark the furiousness goes through the roof.

4/16/2009 11:56:03 PM

so....who wants to meet me in a parking deck in downtown raleigh tomorrow night??? bring your camera.

4/16/2009 11:56:42 PM

Quote :

"the econ mode is bullshit, the only time it ever cam on when i was driving was when i was coasting"

Then you aren't driving it right. My eco light will stay on going 75+ mph with the cruise control on. And there is no way your glorified school bus will get 30 mpg...ever. And like I said before, you got your truck for whatever reasons, I got an Accord for my reasons.

With that said-nice truck.

4/17/2009 4:47:10 AM