Hello!

I got my first Honda Accord last tuedsay!! It is my first Honda, after having all american cars (Fords).

A little bit of background: I had mixed experience with my previous vehicles. A $1000 '95 Ford Aerostar lasted 2yrs with lots of maintenance (replaced starter, muffler, and others). Transmission blew up at 120K, vehicle went to goodwill. Then I got an '94 Explorer for $2.5k. Engine would stall, problems all over the place, sold it for $1k after 6 months. Next one is a '99 Explorer (haven't learned my lesson yet), bought for $8k, and took it to the shop after a year. It is in good shape, but tensioner went bad, brakes need complete overhaul (including caliper replacement), A/C refill, oil, etc ... estimated $2.6k.

Cars are a nice toy to have, but they are expensive. I particularly look at the cost of ownership per year and decide what to get. With exception of the first Aerostar, both explorers exceeded $2.5k cost per year, being 10 years old !! Maintenace, depreciation, etc. Came to the conclusion that buying an old used Ford, in my case, was not a good choice.

So I got smart (I think) and got my first Honda Accord. It is a 2003 2DR EX-Leather V6 Saphire blue with 40k miles. Paid around $19k out the door with bumper-to-bumper warranty up to 100k and 2010. It looks great, runs extremely smooth and has tons of power. I figured that this car would last over 150k miles with no problems (with proper maintenance) over 7 years. If it sold for $6k in 7 years, the vehicle would have costed me $1.7k per year, better than my previous Fords.

Math aside, this car is extremely fun to drive !! runs smooth, has lots of power, extremely comfortable... Never owned a vehicle like this one. I can see now why so many people love Honda !!

 

Pictures:



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You bought Ford Exploders, that could be why you had a bad experience. Also, Im pretty sure the Aerostars ran the same engine/trans as the Exploder, and those are notorious for trans going out between 120-140k. My stepmom had one, the trans crapped out at 120k.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Honda!!

 

Welcome MPF! Very sharp car and very wise to have the warranty, just in case. I too have had some bad experiences with fords, 95 Taurus and 94 Lincoln markVIII. I think you will be very pleased with your new purchase!

 

WOW great choice...i am also a pruod owner of a 03 coupe!!!!

 

Beautiful!
One reason I don't buy used Honda is they are holding their values too much.
Seems this one is pretty good deal. OK, I admit I haven't done my homework..

 

Welcome to the forums and your blue car looks very sharpe..

WheelBrokerAng [sm=americanasmiley.gif]

 

I found this to be true only on 1-2yr old Hondas. This one depreciated around $7k over 3 years. And still has warranty until 2010 and 100k miles (honda certified).

For $20k I was going to get a new Civic EX with a small engine, cloth seats, smaller cabin, noisier ride, etc. When I drove both vehicles, it became clear which vehicle should I go with.

I will probably tell in a couple of years what is the true cost of ownership of an used Accord. I hope I made the right decision.

 

I drove an accord and a CL type S.........needless to say Type S for the win......and it was only $15K and 40K miles

I had a few sables and none of them had trans problems 89, and 2 1992 cars first trans lasted the life of the car (engine croaked at 196XXX miles) second one lasted 143K (car totalled in an accident) and the final one was sold at 120K and still ran like a champ. cars are moderate maint with problem areas being subframe bolts, strut bearing plates, and brakes.