Hi all. I recently bought a new 2011 Accord 2.4 exec. 6 spd manual with 18 " wheels fitted with low profile Michelins from the only dealer in the country. The car's ride was very unstable and after anxious days shortly after I've bought it, I took it back to the dealer. I collected it unwashed from the dealer after being told by the workshop supervisor that they couldn"t find anything wrong. A friend advised I should take the car to a shock and wheel alignment centre for advice. The wheel alignment was totally out and I had it then fixed at my cost. The unstable ride improved immediately but on a its first trip on the open road, I found the road noise excessive and the ride very hard and bumpy -- worse than my diesel truck! What do you think? Any ideas/comments? I'm now cross with myself for declining an offer on a new BMW 320i, but I went with the Honda as I had a previous Accord which was a pure pleasure to drive...

 

First of all, I don't think the 2.4 engine has the 6 speed?? It's either a V6, with 6 speed, or I4 with 5 speed. All Accords are well known to have road noise. The 6th gen (97-02) was probably the softest riding Accord. Some tires with really good noise rating might quiet the road noise, but I don't know of anything that will make the ride smoother. The low profile tires certainly don't help the ride.

This is a lesson to thoroughly TEST DRIVE the car, before you sign on the dotted line. Sounds like you got stuck with a bad dealership, because they should have easily found the alignment problem. Sorry to hear about your situation.

 

Consumer Reports gives only one performance tire their highest rating for noise: Sumitomo HTR A/S PO1. All of the Michelins are rated lower, either fair or good.

I'm guessing it's an Accord 2.4 Executive bought in a country with only one Honda dealership.

 

I have a 2009 exl coupe i4, auto trans. Yes it is noisy, and even commented on the noise during my "obama money" test drive. Regardless, I purchased it. In January 2011, I spent $750 and 40 to 60 manhours installing the second skin damplifier pro and luxury liner pro insulation system. Seats, carpeting, door panels, trunk lining, headliner, etc have to come off. It does add a couple of hundred pounds to the car and probably costs at least 1/2 mpg, but it is much quieter now - no more echoing noise..., and the sound system also sounds better, high and low volume... I also relocated the display panel to the pocket assembly, ordered the GPS type opening, and installed a Megellan 7" GPS into the spot... it's noise...