elad68

Hello all,

Every spring I get "the itch" to buy something new. Well, this year it is "the new car itch." I've had my '04 Accord EX-L for four years now, I have 83,000 miles on it and it's going strong. I just had my 80,000 mile service at the dealer. The service department says "it's running perfect." There is nothing wrong with the car, but I'm getting bored with it. Someone onces told me, "Honda's are bulletproof, you will get sick of driving the car before it quits on you." That seems to be a correct statement. I still have the itch though.
If I could just somehow get a renewed interest with the car, than I could actually be debt free with it, as I only have one more year left to pay it off.
Can someone give me some advice on how to stop this itch and keep myself interested in this car?

Thank you.

BLKFLSH

Consider this. You could buy a new car, and it become a LEMON shortly after purchase. Then you would be wishing you had kept your old car. Be happy that you don't have a LEMON, and don't gamble that the next car will be as reliable as this one. I had my last Accord for 12 years, and it was so good to me I still miss it.

Perfectionist

Keeping your current payment in mind, find out how much more it will cost you and how much longer you will pay for a new car. Take that extra cost and put the cash in a savings account every month. You will either skip a few deposits, or end up with enough money to pay cash eventually for a new car. That should relieve some of the itch.

elad68

All good advice, thank you. BLKFLSH, I'm wondering how many miles you had on your 12 year old car before you sold it? Also, was it still in good condition and running when you sold it? Also, you sound like a person with LEMON experience? Is this true? Please elaborate.

Thanks.

elad68

Perfectionist, why you do call yourself a "Perfectionist". The reason I ask, is because I consider myself to be one too to a certain extent.

BLKFLSH

The 92 had only 140k miles on it, but there was absolutely nothing wrong with it. I just felt that after 12 years I deserved a step up, so I bought an 03 EX V6. The new one is a great car, but that doesn't mean I don't miss the old baby. If I didn't need a truck (to haul things) I would have two Accords right now (92=03). Hard to haul plywood and stuff in an Accord.

elad68

I see...That's funny, I had an '91 Accord (my first purchased car) and around 80,000 miles the transmission blew. I called Honda and they actually replaced it for free. I took someone's advice to get rid of the car, but I probably should have kept it. I'm just hoping that my '04 doesn't do the same thing. I've heard Honda's weakest item it their transmissions..Have you heard this?

BLKFLSH

I think if you spend some time on forums, researching <U>any car or truck </U>(especially one that sells as many copies as the Accord), you will find some transmission problems reported. The V6 transmissions are the most susceptible to problems though, from my observation. They extended the warranty on some 6th gen (98-02) V6 automatics. There was a recall on my 03 V6 transmission, but so far I've not had any problems with it (53k miles).

Perfectionist

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by elad68 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Perfectionist, why you do call yourself a "Perfectionist". The reason I ask, is because I consider myself to be one too to a certain extent. </TD></TR></TABLE>

I hate hack-jobs. It's either worth doing correctly, or don't bother. I like to keep my things in excellent and original condition. My old '90 Si with 265,000 miles on was all original OEM, and the engine bay was cleaner than most 6 month old cars. I'm not a total basketcase about things, though. It's not like I have OCD or something.

elad68

265,000 miles on the Si - WOW, I'm impressed. Do you still have it? Does it still run?

Perfectionist

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by elad68 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">265,000 miles on the Si - WOW, I'm impressed. Do you still have it? Does it still run?</TD></TR></TABLE>


I sold it a about 3 years ago. All original engine internals, clutch, and trans. Compression was 188, +/- 2 PSI across all 4 cylinders. Replaced the half shafts at 175,000 miles, timing belts and other maintenance items as required. I should have kept it.