That was until I decide to humor a salesman and test drive the car. To me, this has been the best balancing act yet from Honda in an Accord. This car fit like a glove – i get this confident feeling of being in total control of everything the car does.

In 2009 Honda still has the slickest manual gearbox on the planet. The 2009 ex with manual transmission came home with me that day. There were a few pleasant surprises which drove home the point that I made a good choice. Stability assist with traction control and the anti-dive brake effort proportioning system are just icing on the cake.

As a self-proclaimed early adopter who recently defected from Japanese cars to Korean, I’d love to see a TTAC comparison of Accord vs. Sonata.

I just purchased a 2009 Black/Tan LX. This is my third Accord (97,99). I was surprised how big it is. For me it’s fortunate. It doesn’t nail a corner as well as the older ones (you have to turn the wheel a little more, which is fine). It doesn’t accellerate as well as the older ones (I don’t care, it flies onto the freeway plenty fast). It has room for my kids (including big teenage boys). One article I read indicated they fit five 6 and a half footers in the car.

The stereo is fine, the steering wheel telescopes and the audio and cruise controls are fantastic. My wife and I absolutely love driving this car. We can a sports car later, when the kids are gone. Meanwhile, we might drop it an inch and add a set of nice lite wide wheels and see what happens.

I think the car looks awesome / great. A bold move, and a very nice looking Honda – definitely not plain jane.

i’m a little dissapointed with the vcm too, i think that a six speed auto will help it shine a bit more.

as far as the stick and v-6 on the sedan…it wasn’t until honda refreshed the prev gen accord that it became a trim level, so just give em some time.

And just go and check out edmonds long-term update on the mileage they are getting with their test car. Very unimpressive, considering that VCM was supposed to give this car a competitive advantage in its segment.

a car like that simply wouldn’t make it in the auto industry right now.

people want space (i get that with my fit, so i guess people want size) and they want efficiency.

look at older accords and tell me the mpg ratings and then how big they were. the current civic is about as big as the 94-97 accord, but if the current civic got that kind of gas mileage, people would be pulling out the ‘a car that small needs to get 50mpg!’ card.

the truth of the matter is that uber sport and small on the inside and outside midsize sedans dont do as well as their bigger, roomier counterparts. (see the prev gen mazda 6. and look at it now.)

and while not the sportiest in the segment(it was back when the only other car to take seriously was the camry) its no slouch for what it is.

in all honesty, if it was so bad, it would be languishing on dealer lots, but its not and there is simply no denying that.

the 4cyl isn’t really a dog either, especially in the 190hp trim. but its not the v-6 either. but then again, aside from the turbocharged passat, is there really a peppy 4 cyl midsizer? no not really.

edit: can’t remembe if it was addressed, but you can get a six speed with the v-6, its just the top model.

One word: Parking.

I have two 1989 models, a Mercury Sable and Honda Accord LX, each of which cost me less than $500.

The Sable is actually a straight forward vehicle and everything pretty much works as advertised. Although the interior ergonomics are a bit worse than the Accord, the ride and overall driving experience is much better.

The Accord is obviously a bit more sporty. But the carbuerated engine is an enormous pain and the car is far buzzier on the roadways. The Sable has the hated AXOD transmission, but the Vulcan V6 is a far smoother powerplant and with annual fluid changes the tranny shouldn’t be much of an issue.

I really think the Accord did not become the better car until the 1994-1997 generation. Even then it was far more suited toward sport than comfort. The last three generations though have the exact opposite focus. It’s fine since the public has more or less veered towards the ‘quieter and gentler’ machinery.

stevelovescars – it was smaller than the current Civic! I still consider the late-80’s, early 90’s Hondas/Acuras as some of the best cars out there…and it’s amazing how many of them you still see on the road.
I’m recovering from an operation and I can’t drive a stick shift for a while longer. In the meantime, I’ve been renting cars with an automatic. Like you, I’ve had an Accord for a week. I’ve also had a new Chevy Malibu for two weeks. I never thought this thought would ever plop in my head, but I found the Malibu equal in most areas and superior in a handful more. I found it a tad more comfortable and with better steering. There were no rattles…the Accord had one. I did like the instrument panel of the Accord but the Malibu had a better center stack.
One area where I thought the Malibu lost some votes dealt with the 4-cyl/auto config. With two in the car and the a/c on, it barely had enough guts to make a quick pass. Most of the time it was just noise and slow motions. The Accord engine/transmission combo was far superior. It also got 4-6 more MPG on the highway.
I would recommend that if you have the chance, head over to a rental car place (Hertz carries a lot of new Malibus) and rent one for a weekend. You might be surprised that you’re driving a Chevy.
What stinks is that the Malibu was needed about 6-7 years ago. If only the rest of the GM lineup was as good as the Malibu, I don’t think they would be in the severe crisis they are in now…it would probably be considered a moderate crisis instead!

I think that car was actually smaller than the current Civic.

I drove the new Accord for a couple of days as a rental car. It was obviously a base 4-cylinder automatic but I was really impressed. It was huge inside (My son’s huge 5-point harness booster seat was super easy to get in and out, for example). However, I thought that the mass really did disappear while driving. The power and size were also terrific for the fuel efficiency I saw.

I am curious how the 4-cylinder ‘08/’09 Accord and Mazda6 compare to the best “Detroit” has to offer these days. I would imagine that this means the Malibu or Saturn Aura. The Ford Fusion is based on the last generation Mazda6, so that would seem to be an unfair comparison.

I would consider shopping for a Malibu but like a lot of folks on this board (and unlike most Americans, it seems) I prefer a manual transmission and it isn’t an option on any 4-door GM car.

Overall, it seems to me that the driving enthusiast is slowly falling off the Honda radar screen. I’m not saying that the Accord was ever a sports sedan, but there was a “fun to drive” element that used to be found pretty much throughout the line. The Civic was always more of an engaging drive than, say, a Corolla. The Accord had an element of responsiveness that could not be found in, say, a Camry. For some reason, it seems that Honda has decided to become the new Toyata and give us a string of boring automotive appliances – like there weren’t already enough of those to go around.

If you want an element of sportiness in your Japanese family sedan, better check with Nissan and maybe Mazda. Honda has left the building.

As a fan of the brand and multiple former-owner, I think that sucks.

It is a terrible time for the Accord to have bloated. I love my ‘99 Accord, but I probably wouldn’t buy the new one, largely because it’s just too big and heavy. I predict the next gen will be lighter.

Still, big points to Honda for offering a stick with the four. Points off for not offering with the six.

The style is inoffensive at best, but that’s the case with most cars these days. The C pillar is ugly.

Sorry, I don’t agree. This looks neither upmarket nor Germanic.

It is the typical Japanese car that tries to be a German car but fails miserable in terms of copying the design.

The door handles remind me of the ones of the current Mercedes C-Class. From the side it looks like a BMW. The front has no personality whatsoever and reminds me of a Hyundai.

The back looks probably the worst of all. The bumper looks really baroque and looks like they had a problem: “Hey, Boss … the car has come out 5 inches shorter than our specifications.” – “Oh, never mind … make the rear bumper 5 inches longer!” – “Boss, that looks akward!” – “Ehm, just pump up the storage department with air pressure .. perfect!”