Older Honda Accords

akal50 · March 2003

Does anyone know if you can get wood accents on the grey interior? I really like the way the Accord looks in red, but I don't care for the grey interior, especially with the aluminum accents. I was wondering if you're stuck with them. I know Honda offers a burlwood trim kit, but I think that's too much wood. Also, how does the grey leather compare to the grey on the previous model? I've heard people say it's actually darker. Is that true? Why can't Honda lighten up the grey and make it more like Toyota's or BMW's? If I could get the red EXV6 sedan with a slighter grey interior and dark wood accents in place of the aluminum, that would be great.

jonesok1 · March 2003

There are two problems with popping/creaking sounds. One simple to fix (a windshield clip) and the other impossible at the present time to fix. The dealer tore the car down to the chassis, and the tech showed me where the sound is coming from; I can even provide a picture; and it can't be repaired because of the welds; Honda through its district manager admitted it was the same problem as the car in Cleveland (gotribe's) and that they were using that vehicle to try to find a fix. Until then any repair is on hold. Honda Customer Service has completely ignored me, and the district manager as well. Honda seems to think it reasonable to ignore the customer, wait until they have a fix, whatever that may be, and how ever long that may take.
Tell you dealer you know exactly where you can find the problem; that it is not normal, and that if he can't figure it out he should talk to the Cleveland dealer (Jay Honda) or Honda tech, as they are well aware of it by this point. Document every detail. Stay tuned to this board as this develops.

mikek37 · March 2003

Thanks for taking time out of your day to update the board, I appreciatte it. As for the weld, what is the esact location. THanks

jonesok1 · March 2003

The area is just below the windshield on the left side. The A pillar you can see actually descends into the car chassis, to a point that merges to the unibody. You cannot see this area without removing the fender and inside panels, wipers, bumper, and pretty much everything else on the front of the car. It is approximately 4"-6" in front of the left front door hinge, under the left fender. If your popping sound is coming from this area (put you head down and to the left) then your may have the problem as well.

according2me · March 2003

Is there only 1 O2 sensor in your Accord? Where is it located?

Unfortunately, other model years emission systems don't have the 150K warranty gift. Having lurked on many boards, it appears that O2 sensors are almost a tuneup item after 100K.

I'm rapidly approaching that mark and will start to investigate replacement/price options. Although, because of the cost, I won't be doing this proactively. I'll wait for the driveabilty issues to arise first.

atlantabenny · March 2003

Based on the Accord brochures, you can't get the grey interior with wood accents.

On Ebay however there are trim kits (about $150) with pieces that match the original shapes. You lay them over the factory metal pieces. If you're detail-conscious, you'll notice that if installation is just a bit off, some of the underlying metal will show. I saw this in a showroom vehicle where the dealer applied the kit.

What you might consider is combining the original accents with the wood kit pieces in different places. The basic Honda burlwood or birdseye kit, for example, has pieces that go in places where there are no factory metal parts.

I'm getting the burlwood kit for our 03 EX-L (grey with metal) after seeing some pretty successful wood-and-metal interiors of the Acura TSX and M-Benz.

jonesok1 · March 2003

Guess what? Go to http://search.bbb.org/search.html search under Honda and Torrance, CA and you will see Honda's rating of unsatisfactory by the BBS. The BBS report states: "Based on our standards, we rate this company as having an unsatisfactory business record. An unsatisfactory rating is given when a pattern in the company's customer complaints causes us concern, when the company does not respond to complaints, or when it will not substantiate its advertising claims.

In this case, our complaint history for this company shows that the business has not responded to customer complaints brought to its attention by the Bureau. "

So much for customer service. I guess let the buyer beware.

gee35coupe · March 2003

fall under that rating. It's not just Honda. How many are satisfactory?

And as far as Honda waiting for a fix...What do you expect them to do? If it's an inherent problem giing you another car won't solve the problem and giving you a refund for a $25,000 car is a joke if they find out it can be repaired. I mean on the grand scale the car has only been out for 6 or so months. They've a lot of time left on this chassis.

akal50 · March 2003

http://www.canadianautoreview.com/honda_accord.htm

I hate the fact that Honda locks you into a specific interior depending on what exterior color you get. I think the Accord looks best in red and I love the beige interior. Problem is you're stuck with the grey interior if you get the red car. Then I see this review of the Canadian version, and what do I find? They have a red Accord with a beige interior. This is the perfect color combination for that car and they don't even offer it here in the U.S. I hate this. Last week I discovered a much better looking version of the Accord that has a grill and better shaped rear lights, only it's being sold in Asia. Now I see the color combo I want, only it's offered in Canada and not the U.S. Why does Honda do this? I would love to know the reasoning behind this one. Do they think Canadians like beige but Americans don't?

jonesok1 · March 2003

Toyota has a good rating and is a member of BBB. Honda does not and isn't even a member of BBB. That tells volumes. I did my part. I paid for the vehicle. Honda sold me a defectively designed or manufactured one. If they can't fix it within a reasonable time, then I'm entitled to a refund-pure and simple. Three weeks is a reasonable time in my opinion. Months or opened ended dates are not. I didn't bargain for this when I test drove the car. If they were negligent in design and testing before bringing it to market-Honda-not the customer-should take the hit. My only mistake was buying it in the first place, and trusting Honda was a reputable company, which by BBB standards, they apparently are not.

atlantabenny · March 2003

Having bought and driven cars in Asia, it's safe to say that cars there are pretty much the same from launch to closeout. Theory has it that the markets there are smaller and mid-cyle model changes aren't justified by sales volume.

The US being the biggest and most fickle (because of wide selection) car market in the world, Honda and company enjoy economies of scale and thus have the luxury of doling out improvements on piecemeal basis to maintain consumer interest. Case in point, wasn't the last-gen Accord with the nicer rims, 6CD changer, etc. the biggest seller during its final year ?

Knowing beforehand that the current gen Accord will have on its final year the side-mirror signal lights, fog lamps, and different taillights, for example, Honda will give us the plain-Jane introductory version.

Color combos - this is probably dictated by the dominant market taste to the the exclusion, unfortunately, of the minority.

nosirrahg · March 2003

I know some of you have posted about problems with noise in the A-pillar; not sure if that only applies to the V6 or not, but I'd be curious to know if anyone has any info on VIN numbers of these cars. As someone who'll be shopping for a 4-cylinder EX this summer, it'd be nice to be able to differentiate between an "early" '03 model and a later one (assuming the later models will benefit from the debugging of the earlier models).

gee35coupe · March 2003

If you search under Honda of Marysville, Ohio you get a different answer.
This might help.
Honda of America Mfg., Inc.
24000 Honda Parkway
Marysville, OH 43040
The Bureau has processed no customer complaints on this company in its three-year reporting period. Based on BBB files, this company has a satisfactory record with the Bureau.

To have a Satisfactory Record with the Bureau, a company must be in business for at least 12 months, properly and promptly address matters referred to it by the Bureau, and be free from an unusual volume or pattern of complaints and law enforcement action involving its marketplace conduct. In addition, the Bureau must have a clear understanding of the company's business and no concerns about its industry.

Report as of: 03/21/2003
Copyright 2003 BBB of Central Ohio, Inc.

Did a search for Toyota and found thier customer care Center also got an unsatisfactory. Here's help.

Toyota Customer Care Administration
3701 Long Beach Blvd Suite C316
Long Beach CA 90807

Nissan has no report.

jonesok1 · March 2003

The official address of Honda America is the Torrance, CA office, not Marysville. Accordingly, any complaints should be addressed to the home office, not the manufacturing location. I find it a little strange that Honda Marysville had NO complaints, but then, who would complain to the manufacturing plant-suppliers?. In reality, every manufacturer will have some complaints, but it is how those complaints are dealt with that is important. Toyota obviously does a good job. But not being a member of BBB shows Honda could care less about customer satisfaction. That is the important part. Keep telling yourself you own a car made by a responsible company, and pray nothing goes wrong to break that belief, because it came as a real surprise for me, too.

own4h · March 2003

I had had your problem, I would be vocal about it too. So I understand your frustration, and I hope you get some remediation soon. On the other hand, I have had virtually no problems with my Accord, and would highly recommend it to anyone.
Having said that, your Toyota is superior comment doesn't match my experience. I really didn't see swifter action on an annoying problem I had with my 1991 Toyota Previa. They didn't return phone calls and seemed to doubt my comments since it never happened on their test drive. After a number of other conplaints, they finally found the problem and thereafter, had a quick cheap fix. It turns out it was the only problem I had in the 6 years I owned it.
Moral of the story
No car is perfect.
Its hard to identify the cause of some problems, let alone fix them after the fact.
How you deal with the dealer at purchase time, when you discuss the problem, and how you follow up will often determine the the extent and timing of both your dealers and Honda's response.
Chances are, high volume, low mark-up dealers do not have the time to do after sales service.
Why do you think Acura, Infiniti, and Lexus have superior customer satisfaction. They discount less, but they after service more. The Honda dealers in town follow this. The best dealer for service support does not price cut, the cheap dealer does not service, and everyone else falls somewhere in between.
BTW, I am not in the car business, but any business that does not collect enough for subsequent aftersale service is doomed.

jonesok1 · March 2003

I agree wholeheartedly with you. I didn't mean to infer that Toyota is necessarily superior. They both may be pretty awful to deal with for a serious problem. Simple ones are no trouble. And my Honda dealer was great, too, and he put in a word for Honda America to get something resolved, as he didn't want to lose me as a good customer, either. And that may have got their attention. But the real issue is that he shouldn't have had to do so. Honda's response was, well, no response at all.

bburton1 · March 2003

I don't know if your accord even has them but mine has two-the primary and secondary. The primary is mounted on the exhaust manifold just in front of the engine-you will see a set of wires connected to something that looks like a big plug. The only problems I noticed was stumbling when cold-too rich a mixture and a 10% decrease in gas mileage-is yours doing that-the good service guy said they don't replace many of these things. Also you will need a special socket to replace it unless you take off the exhaust manifold cover and go at it with a large open end wrench. Guess you don't care if u tear up the old one-can screw in a replacement with even a cresent wrench-use anti sieze on the threads.

First of all make certain this is the problem before spending the bucks on replacing the O2 sensor-post your symptoms again and others can comment on the likely cause of the problem.

according2me · March 2003

But, as I said earlier, I'm approaching 100K rapidly, so.........just gathering info.

ivan_99 · March 2003

I had my 03 LX I4 M5 Accord in for the first oil change this week (9000 mi) and I had them check some strange noises coming from the front of the car. Sometimes...when I would accelerate then decelerate the car would make a noticeable clunk sound. The sound was more pronounced when inching through a drive through.

The dealer said it was the brakes. He said they changed the brakes on the 03 Accord so they don't squeal (at higher temps or something like that).

He said when you go from reverse then forward they will make a clunk noise. He said once the car makes the clunk noise and starts going in that direction you should not hear it any more until you change directions.

I attempted to reproduce the sound, but could not until I tried it in a car wash bay. I guessed that since my car is a manual I may have rolled back a small amount and then when I changed directions and started moving forward and applied the brakes the clunk sound was produced.

Has anyone had this occur?

atlantabenny · March 2003

"Date and place of manufacture" is on a door jamb sticker, driver's side.

ab348 · March 2003

I'm in Canada and posted a few weeks ago about the different color combos up here. Without a doubt the Redondo Red/Beige is the most attractive combo of all. The beige interior also comes with the sandstone paint, but that's it. I think it would also look great with Eternal Blue. But all other Accord paint colors here (silver, graphite, black and the blue) come only with a BLACK interior in Canada. There is no gray offered. Personally, this isn't a bad thing, as I absolutely despise gray interiors and would choose black if given a choice. However the black/black, blue/black or graphite/black combos are a bit too dark and depressing. It's unfortunate Honda doesn't do what many other automakers do and give you a choice of interior color with certain paint colors.

talon95 · March 2003

In the US, the black interior is offered only with the silver exterior. Desert Mist, green, white and black come with the ivory interior. Blue, red and graphite come with the gray.

Personally, I prefer the gray over the black interior because the two-tone is more attractive to me. But I agree that the choice of the gray interior for the red exterior was a poor one... the ivory interior would look much better with that color. In fact, that would be the color combo I'd go with if it was available.

As it stands, I think I'll probably go with either the Noble Green/Ivory or the Graphite Pearl/Gray.

isellhondas · March 2003

Be careful with your advise on replacing O2 sensors!

These are in there TIGHT! I can just see someone with their Made in China Cresent wrench trying to get it out. It takes a special socket and using anything else could cause it to round off.

If it gets rounded off, you will be in BIG trouble!

according2me · March 2003

And some of us do know how to use handtools.

bburton1 · March 2003

WHen anything is tooo tight-heat and beat with a big hammer-always works-since it was under warranty let the dealer tech do it-watched him and he did not have a big problem-but did make sure he put some anti sieze on the new one.

Brake clunk when backing up is entirely normal-did it with my "factory" brake pads on my 97 accord and now does it with my el cheapo auto zone pads-wonder if I will get 113K out of my AZ pads.

according2me · March 2003

with Autozone pads on my sons Altima. I went with Honda pads for my first replacement, but will likely switch to AZ for next one. Gotta love that lifetime replacement policy.

according2me · March 2003

Wowww. I guess your a pioneer for Honda's 10K replacement policy. Good luck.

ab348 · March 2003

Interesting... in Canada you cannot get a green or a white Accord in '03. The only colors offered are blue, black, red, silver and desert mist (metallic beige). And no gray interior whatsoever.

masroz · March 2003

I have an 03 EX 4 cylinder and I really like the car, but the stiff ride is tough to take. I had a 98 Accord and that ride was stiff too. I was hoping the 03 would be a little softer. I live in the NE and driving over the "frost heaves" 80 miles each day is enough to churn butter. I have come to the conclusion that if Honda doesn't soften up the ride on their next generation model I may, dare I say it, switch to another company. I'm not that interested in the so called sporty ride. I want quiet and smooth. Come on Honda give me a break!

dudleyr · March 2003

Sounds like you need a Camry ; ^ )

ivan_99 · March 2003

Yeah, that is a bit (in some books). I was planning on doing it around 7500 but I got real busy and had to put it off. I'm not too worried though; I do let the car war up a bit before driving off, and I'm always easy on the gas and don't go over 2500 rpm until up to operating temperature.

I did tell them to put synthetic in, but when I looked at my invoice sheet, it showed the regular oil. The tech that did the write up even wrote it in big letters and circled it.

masroz · March 2003

My brother has a Camry and the ride is very smooth and quiet. The Camry is just to bland though. If only Honda could combine a bit of both.

outrun · March 2003

Is called a VW Passat.

-Craig

talon95 · March 2003

"If only Honda could combine a bit of both."

In the eyes of many owners, as well as many industry experts and automotive journalists, Honda already has.

akal50 · March 2003

Toyota is way too cushy. You feel like you're floating which is great if you're a passenger, but if you're the driver, you want to feel connected to the road. The European cars like VW and BMW are the exact opposite. They grab every inch of the road and make you feel it. That's great for sporty driving, but it's not fun for the passenger who'll feel every bump and hole in the road. The Honda ride is the perfect balance. As the driver, you feel like you're in control cause the car is gripping the road, but not so much that your passengers will feel uncomfortable. That makes the Honda great for sporty driving but still a good family car.

isellhondas · March 2003

After spending a great deal of my life in the tool business, I can assure you that a great deal of people do NOT know how to use hand tools!

I've seen it all...including a bunch of butchered hack jobs!

frankbailie · March 2003

My vin starts with a 1. Is this an american made car?

mikek37 · March 2003

Yes its made in the good ol USA

grichard · March 2003

I've got a question for those of you that have been discussing the unfixable creaking / popping noise. At what point did you begin to experience this? Was it noticeable when the car was new? If not, at what point (months/miles) did it begin to occur? When were your cars made?

I'm curious as I test drove the EX-V6 this weekend and was favorably impressed, but I'm trying to assess the likelihood of encountering a similar problem.

mike2741 · March 2003

No kidding...i left my EX4 with the dealer for two days and he could not find it...i got home a sprayed wd40 on all the joints under the enging area, and to my suprise, it has not made a sound.

mike2741 · March 2003

any reason why the key is so hot when you take it out?

mbfjack · March 2003

Just wondering if anyone knows if there are ANY differences in respect to quality (and other issues) between '03 Accord Sedan V6s made in America (vin #1 etc) and Japan (vin #J etc)??

isellhondas · March 2003

Some will argue with me but I've never been able to detect even the smallest difference.

gee35coupe · March 2003

They have been building a majority of Accords in the U.S. since the 80's Honda would not have the stellar reputation it has if there was a substantial difference.

robertsmx · March 2003

Since 1982, to be exact, well before Hondas earned the reputation of being well built cars. Honda was the first foreign automaker to produce cars in North America (Marysville, OH).

dudleyr · March 2003

1982 Hondas did have a reputation of being well built. 80 and 81's also. I think some of the 70's models may have only been a little above average, but I would have to check.

jonesok1 · March 2003

Mine started at 1000 miles. Gotribe's I think around 3000 or so. Once it starts, it won't stop and sounds like a bad strut.

jrct9454 · March 2003

Unless something has changed quite recently, ALL V6 Accord production comes from North American plants.

In the past, only the 4 cyl Accords have been sourced from all over - Japan, Mexico, USA. All V6 cars were made in Marysville.

Does anyone out there have a V6 Accord made anywhere else but Ohio?

robertsmx · March 2003

J30A, the 3.0 liter V6 used in American Accord is also used in Avancier , as well as the JDM Odyssey. Also, TL is exported to Japan from the USA (as Saber/Inspire), but the base engine of the duo is the J25A (2.5 liter V6), the smallest of the J-series V6 engines.

Unless Honda is exporting V6 engines from North America, Honda could produce Accord V6 in Japan (transmission, I believe is imported into NA).

jbollt · March 2003

"Honda was the first foreign automaker to produce cars in North America (Marysville, OH)"

I believe that VW built Rabbits in PA in 1981.

Older Honda Accords

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