Older Honda Accords

adamr2 · October 2002

A general question on the climate control system on a 2002 Ex V6. Is there any way to get the heat to come on without having the air conditioning compressor kick on. Even if I have the dial set all the way on the highest heat setting, then hit "auto" for the climate control system, the compressor kicks on. It works fine, plenty of heat, I just find it odd that the compressor would go on. I have not figured out if it stays on or not. This would hurt gas mileage and performance as the compressor takes away some power.

bodydouble · October 2002

You can turn the A/C off. This way the heat will still come on when temperature drops below the specified temperature but the compressor will not come on.

isellhondas · October 2002

Without the A/C being on in conjunction with the heater, you inside windows won't defog very well.

What little effect a modern A/C unit has on mileage and performance, you probably wouldn't even notice.

jfigueroa1 · October 2002

I had the same problem with me wife cr-v the dealer did a four wheel aliment and it cure the problem. I hear people talking about shifting the front tires, Are they unidirectional?any one?
Greetings from sunny Miami.

dudleyr · October 2002

Actually modern A/C still takes about 1 or 2 mpg, but it is true that most people would not notice this.

ahossa · October 2002

Darmarm: Those are the 2 reasons i did not purchase the 03 Accord.I did not like the rough ride and when stopped at a traffic light and the car was in drive, the steering wheel vibrated. I hate those 2 things in a car. I bought the Atima and it's much better and doesn't vibrate. You hear some wind noise in the car though. I thought it was just me being fussy but I 'm glad you mentioned it because folks are raving about this car on this board.

bodydouble · October 2002

On a 4-cylinder there is a noticeable drop in performance when the compressor kicks in. Also, I don't like the extra bit of noise that the compressor makes when it's on.

aming · October 2002

I've driven both the accords V4 and V6 (EX) and found the ride quiet and smooooooth. The V6 being slightly better. No vibration noticed at stops.

darmarm: test drive another v4 and see if it happens on that also. Get the tire presures checked out.

ahossa: Maybe IYO "the Atima is much better". You didn't clarify in what way but the interior of the Accord is much better then the Altima's IMO and from the sounds of it...almost everyone on this board. Did you ask the dealership why the steering vibrated as such? Did you take another V4 for a test drive just in case? I would hope when making such an important decision a little more time and testing would be worth it.

frankbailie · October 2002

O'k Canuck brethren here's the thing. I am dickering on a 2003 accord ex 4 automatic. I have a 1998 crv ex with 90'000 kilometers and the dealer is offering 16,000 in trade.This leaves about 14,000 out the door plus taxes He is not budging from list on the accord which is 30,3.00 but claims he is giving me more on the trade than usual. (I don't know about that). I also requested a remote starter installed at cost and winter floor mats also at cost. What do you think of this deal? Am I on the righttrack. I like my crv but on long trips prefer the comfort of a sedan like the accord.

dudleyr · October 2002

When did Honda start making a V4. Are they going after former SAAB Sonnet owners? ; ^ )

dfong87 · October 2002

we bought an EX I4 this past weekend and i find the the cabin to be extremely quiet. i notice no vibrations in the steering wheel at idle, and very little on the highway [no more than i've experienced with any other car]. as for roughness, i would comment that i find the ride smooth; nevertheless, i do feel some bumps on a rough road, but again, this muted compared to most cars i've driven/ridden in. i would say its about as quiet as my friend's Passat, but not quite as quiet as the latest generation Camry's or Lexus ES300.

my guess is that the two people who experience roughness/vibration had defective tires or the alignment may be off.

my only complaint of our car, a sporadic rattle on my driver's side. only audible with the radio off, but annoying to this picky owner. i think the car being quiet accentuates things like rattles. the problem seems to come and go. my guess now is that it is somehow related to the window sitting in the door channel since i seemed to get rid of it this morning bringing the driver's window up and down...

overall, the ride of this Accord is a significant step up from previous generations. i still think the Toyota Camry wins in terms of quietness and isolation (wind noise, road noise, etc), but the Accord has better driver feel IMHO.

to each his own, i guess.

mdx_kid · October 2002

Go to Cars4u.com and get the pricing for 2003 accord and they are giving it $1200 off the MSRP. If you live in Ontario then you can get the delivery from them. Show the Quote to local dealer and get him to come down but if you want to trade the vehicle in then they won't come down from MSRP. Actual value of your trade will be (16000-the discount amount+gst saving). We have a 93 lumina and are in the same boat. I am trying to sell it myself then buy the EX V6.

maltbie · October 2002

My 2003 EX-V6, with 800 miles, vibrates when stopped at a light. The steering wheel sometimes vibrates when stopped. The vibration has not decreased since I acquired the car one month ago. There is no problem with pulling to the left or right, however. If I let go of the steering wheel, the car goes perfectly straight. My 2000 EX-V6 never vibrated - you could not tell the car was running when stopped. The ride on my 2003 V6 is rougher than the 2000 V6. I can feel every crack in the road. I am curious as to why some 2003s vibrate and others do not. Could the idle be set too low? My car idles at 600 RPM.

bodydouble · October 2002

You have to keep in mind on a trade-in you're also saving GST + PST on the value of the trade. What part of the country are you from because I think east coast used cars have lower resale values? My guess is that a '98 CR-V with 90K on the clock probably would fetch about $18,500 -$19,000 on the west coast if sold privately. If you can get another grand on the trade from the dealer, then I think you've got a fairly decent deal. Also keep in mind that you will never do as well on a trade as if you had walked in with cash. But you avoid the hassle and expense of selling privately. How much is that worth? Personally, for an Accord, I'd be willing to take a hit of about $500 for the convenience of a trade.

bodydouble · October 2002

I think your idle is a little low -- hence the vibration. Is 600rpm in Park or the stall speed (idling in gear)? If in Park then I think it's way low.

aming · October 2002

Totally agree with you. I've talked to many a dealer and they have always said "sell your own car and you will get more for it."

I have 2 cars that I will sell next year (lexus es 300 and a 2000 corolla) privately. I will then take the cash and buy the new EX-V6 accord.

I've recently looked at 97-99 Crv at the dealerships and they want $17.5K to $21K (canadian). I live in Calgary.

Hope that helps.

anonymousposts · October 2002

Go to Real World Trade in Values over in the Smart Shopper forum. Those guys are pretty accurate and will give you an idea of where your CR-V should be. As for the dealer not budging off MSRP you can get one off carsdirect for invoice + a couple hundred bucks. So maybe you can sell your car privately then buy the Accord that way.

gotribe · October 2002

Just got my 2003 Accord EX V-6 sedan and agree with prior posts that it rides rougher than my 2000 Accord EX V-6. One reason could be 60 series tires vs. 65 series on prior years--shorter sidewalls are stiffer and tend to be rougher riding. Probably other suspension mods in '03 as well. Interestingly, we have a 2002 Odyssey minivan, that replaced a 1999 Odyssey and we have the same issue--the '02 rides harder I think. There again, they switched 65 series tires to 60. It seems like Honda miscalibrated both cars' suspenisons a bit--rougher ride with little to no improvement in steering feel or overall handling. In fact, to me, the 99 Ody and 2000 Accord feel better all around in handling. Acceleration is sure better with the newer ones though!!

yugoboy · October 2002

Dont waste your time and money trading it in, it might take a little time but you will get way more for your crv if you sell it yourself, and tell that damn honda salesman that he can come down, it's not like there is only one dealership in town and i dont think the 03 accord will be low in supply either!!!!

toneman2 · October 2002

black book on a 98CRV ex auto. is between 13352 and 15677. 16000 sounds ok for a trade value, but msrp is out of line. There are lots of them on the lots in the London Ont area and have been since they hit the market. Curiously I have not seen a single one on the road.

adamr2 · October 2002

I agree that the A/C can be shut off when I put the heat on, and that it defogs the window better when both the heat and A/C are on. But for most days, when I just want a little heat, I need to put the climate control system on, and the compressor always kicks on. Yes I can shut it off as soon as it pops on, but it is annoying, and the car gives a decent "whoosh" sound when I put it on. I just wish there was a way to get some heat with the fan, without having the compressor kick on every time. It does take away a little bit from the performance. And how good is it for the car to shut off the compressor as soon as it kicks on?

ahossa · October 2002

Aming:I rode in 3 different I4s. Two were made in Japan and One in Ohio. They all Vibrated when stopped at a traffic light when in Drive.I went to 3 different dealers . One in Long Island where the roads are much better than here in Queens.The interior of the accord is 1000 times better than the Altima but the one I bought last week does not rattle, does not idle loudly and is very quiet when the RPM are between 1000 and 2000 in City driving and that's what I wanted. I do 95% city driving.Don't get me wrong The Accord is much better in many other ways but I am a salesman and I'm always on the road.I do not want a car that vibrates, rattles and rides rough.

dfong87 · October 2002

ahossa: glad you found a car you like. that's what's important. i'm impressed that you got a rattle free car. that's great. i'm totally picky about such things and drive those around me nuts looking for and trying to solve such problems. in fact, i've had friends who claim that their new car doesn't rattle only to have me ride in their car and find some for them. [yes, who needs enemies when...]

few more comments related to recent posts:

- i paid careful attention this morning on the way to work. there is very little steering wheel vibration at idle [stop light] for our I4 EX accord [made in Japan]. there is something there, but nothing noteworthy in my car driving experience. perhaps, i'm less sensitive to this than others or ahossa? the auto shift knob is dead motionless [in compared to the manual stick in my 2000 Civic which has a mild vibration at the stoplight]

- i forgot to mention in my previous post to urge owners to check their tire pressure! ours left the dealer lot at approximately 44 psi each! i remedied that quickly. i'm sure 44 psi will certainly add to a rough ride. [it's supposed to be 32/30 in the EX I4]. i can't believe the dealer, however, let the car leave the lot this far off in pressure.

- high tire pressure aside, i can see how someone might find the new accord's ride on the stiff side. as i think i said previously, the bumps are felt more than heard in this generation accord. [its quiet in an audible sense, but gives enough feedback to the driver rather than providing complete isolation] i like the feel and what they've accomplished, but it certainly is not as "cushy" as the Camry's i've ridden in (i don't care for that level of isolation and lack of "road feel.") the stiffness/transmission of feeling from a rough road through the chassis reminds me a lot my friend's 2002 VW Passat. in fact, this car reminds me a lot of the Passat. i think i give the Passat a slight edge in handling and brake feel. the brakes on this Accord are a little "touchier" than i'm used to in previous Honda/Acuras i've driven [2000 Civic, 1990 Integra, 1991 Legend, 2000 Accord, 1985 Civic...i'm sure there are more]

- and yes, we still have one minor rattle that comes and goes. [ugh!] in my lifetime, i think i've (including experiences growing up since i'm only in my 30s and have only bought a few cars myself) only encountered two cars which were rattle free upon delivery from the dealer [1991 Acura Legend, 1979 Audi 5000]. all other cars had some minor rattle or squeak/murmur. all of them are usually fixable or liveable. i'm going to try to deduce the source of our rattle before going to the dealer. so far, i've eliminated pretty much the entire door panel by pushing here and there when i'm driving. i think i've limited the noise to either the window channel on the driver's door or the driver headrest. [its a muted rattle that isn't audible with the radio on...so its almost liveable. =)]

bravedave · October 2002

I do think they intentionally overinflate the tires during transport, so as to help prevent the vehicle weight from causing flat spots on the tire. The dealer is supposed to deflate the tire fo their normal PSI upon delivery. This is what a friend who works at a dealer told me. It sounds odd to me, but I'll go with it until I hear someone more reputable offer another explanation.

aming · October 2002

ahossa: Sorry to hear that none performed well for ya. HONDA you listenin. Manufacture ALL the cars the same (same models).You just lost a customer. I hope I don't get a car that vibrates like that. I'm used to expect quiet cars from honda.

And I just can't imagine why the dealerships don't reduce the tire pressures when they get them. Don't they get a checklist from Honda telling them what to do when they "Unpack" a car.

Can you imagine to find out that you didn't buy a car due to "problems", and the "problems" were liked to dealerships "Unpacking" a car improperly. I think I would go balistic.

cheddar1 · October 2002

I've been told, whether it's true or not, that
the new 2003 accord has a different suspension
for better handling and less washouts on turns.
The trade off is you feel the road more. I personally don't mind the vibration and fell cause i feeel more connected to what i'm doing.
But others could be understandably annoyed.

I have a 2000 accord ex v6 and have test driven the 2003 accord ex v6 and there's a definite improvemnet in handling, but more road vibration. JMTC

aming · October 2002

From what I've been reading so far in these forums, the "road vibration" could be just overinflated tires that you felt. Make sure the dealer has set the tire pressure correctly.

rogcheng · October 2002

Not sure if everyone knows about this site, but it has detailed technical information about the design of the new Honda Accord.

http://www.hondanews.com/forms/honda/accord/index_text2.html?KW=acctech+currenthonda

The suspesion new Accords have been stiffened to control body roll during hard cornering. Body roll is now nearly non-existant. I personally like it much better this way.

As for engine vibration, the new 4-cyl uses a double balancer shaft compared to the single used on the previous generation so the engine vibration should be much more controlled. I have a 2003 EX-L manual and I notice a slight vibration on the steering wheel, very small and comparable to the 2002's, maybe a little bit more. The new 4-cylinder runs MUCH smoother, however. Maybe the steering column isn't as isolated from the engine as before.

maltbie · October 2002

My 2003 EX-V6 seems more stable at high speeds (>70 MPH) than my old 2000 EX-V6 due to the firmer suspension but I can't feel much difference at lower speeds. I am still undecided as to whether the better handling at high speeds in the 2003 EX-V6 is a good trade-off for the smoother ride in the 2000 EX-V6. I am leaning towards the smoother ride, however, after I received my first speeding ticket in 15 years two weeks ago for driving 80 in a 65. I think I would enjoy my 2003 V6 more if I could drive it to its full potential, i.e. at speeds between 80-120 mph on a regular basis. My old 83 Datsun 200SX was actually more fun to drive because at 70 MPH you really felt like you were humming along. I checked my tire pressure the day I bought it and it was correct - 32 psi front, 30 psi rear.

rogcheng · October 2002

The 2002's DID use double balance shafts.

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Older Honda Accords

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