My mom needed a new car, and was looking at cars in the range of ~$25k. After all the heated debates on this forum regarding the accords, I decided to give em a shot. First and foremost I went to cars-direct.com...practically my bible after this site regarding car info and prices. The parameters were a luxarious car with navigation. Saw a price at follows:



Cars-direct link

In case you can't see it:
2003 Accord 3.0L Ex
- Luxary/leather trim
- Navigation System
$24872 with destination

I was blown away at the price, and went to my local dealership the next day (Norm Reeves Honda). Went there arround 5 pm...should have probably gone a bit later to test the car in lighter traffic...but I got a solid test regardless.

Told the salesmen of the what I wanted. They weren't sure if they had an '03, but took me in an '04 for a test drive anyway. Here are things I observed about the car.

Exterior
Standing outside, the accord looks regal, but somewhat plain. Those based on the TL/CL platform, it doesn't have that aggressive styling a TL-s with 17 inch rims has. The ackward headlights look...interesting...however I am sure one can get used to them. Paint appears thicker that TL/CL's, and I like the selection of colors. I realize that it is not supposed to be total luxary or sports car, but I would have liked to see more aggressive wheels on the car, but that is more of a personal preference. From the outside looking in, the interior appears more plain that it truly is, which may lead some people to giving it less respect than it deserves.


Interior
The interior is a different story. The abundance of leather is quite nice. The wood arround the shifter looks quite real, and enhances the appeal. I especially like the little cargo tray underneath the Climate control dials. The shifter however is overly plan and stands out amidst the environment. The spedometer is very nice and bright. I like the fact that it is backlit even with the headlights off. I sat in both navi and non-navi versions. The temperature/radio readout in the non-navi version is easy to read, and intutive...looks quite similar to the readout in the new TL (of course not exactly the same). The navigation system really adds new flavor to the look of the car. The display is crisp and clear, though I have some issues with this, which I discuss below

Having said all this, let me say that I was not overly excited by the accord. Inside the first thing I though was "its a TL with the new-car smell". I call is the TL that almost was; the seats are comfortable but not quite as much as TL/CL, and not quite as supportive in the twists. Steering wheel controls are intitive, but just aren't quite as comfortable as the TL/CL. The drive speedometer area, though beautiful, doesnt quite scream out for attention as much as the TL/CL. However this isn't a major issues, since this isn't a TL/Cl. Its an accord, and it a good REPRESENTATION of the acura counterpart, but thats where it stops. I remember the discussion of the quality of the accord interior. If I had to choose based on only the interior, I'd still choose the TL over the loaded accord.


Navigation
Many, many people commented on the navigation system, particularly torqueaholic, constantly mentioning the almost 200 voice activated commands. So of course I had to see what the buzz was about.

Overall: I didn't exactly wet my pants.

Starting the system takes a long time (course in the morning you may be heating up your car during this time). Like I said the display is excellent. However the refresh rate is somewhat slow...moving the display to another part of the map, it takes the system a while to populate the area. I understand about loading time, but they should have done something like area loading, where, say, the area within 6 miles arround you is loaded, and after you scrol/drive for 6 miles in a straight line, the next area is loaded. Only a minor annoyance though.

Navigating the navigation is not entirely intutive. Though not quite as complex as iDrive in the 7 series, it will take a while to learn the features such at daily routing.

Onto the voice recognition. Now, I've been doing research at UCI for extremly low bit rate speech compression systems, so I've worked with speech recognition systems for a while. I found the accord navi system to be lacking. I dont think making the system speaker independent was a good idea. First, processing time is absurd...up to 5 seconds to react to what I said, and I dont have the patience to wait 5 seconds for something like changing the cd, or turning off the air conditioner. Second, you have to speak very loud and clear for recognition to occur, so this means people will be giving commands over and over, especially if the windows are down. Now makeing the system speaker-depended would not make the problems go away, but would make it much more user-friendly, and much quicker. But then people would have to sit in the car training the system--I wouldn't mind, but I'm sure it would turn some people off. Overall, this isn't the selling point for the accord.


Driving Impressions
Driving the accord, you feel very safe, secure, and solid. It gives no suprises...just point and shoot, so to speak. The cabin is nice and quiet, with little road or engine noise to disturb you. Suspension is nice, and not overly soft. I have a CL with yoko's, so it can't corner quite as fast without skidding, but because of the reduced weight, it doesnt have as much body roll.

Stomp on the accelerator, and it will go. I drove a car with about 7000 miles on it, so it was well broken-in. The car does have some power, and though the numbers may show it to be as fast as the CL/TL, it doesn't feel like it. In the cl there is plenty of low-end torque, for that extra "oumph" from the traffic light. In the accord I had to wait a bit for the power to kick in. I was barelling down a side street at 80 mph, so it does to fast (evantually). However it doesnt sound or feel like the TL or CL taking off...and that is one of the biggest selling points of the acura counterparts. The brakes though are significantly nicer, with great stopping power...something sorely missing in my CL.

Overall, the accord is a fantastic car. But why didn't I buy it? Well like I said I went for a sub-$25k car. However they had no '03's with navigation. The lowest the salesman would sell me an '04 with navi was $27.5, before tax. Tax and financing (60 months, 3.9%), with $5k down would bring it to $454 a month, and $32258 out the door. Now this is for a car with a 3 year warranty, no lo-jack (with my mom wanted). Warranty extension and lo jack would add $2k. I wasn't going to buy an accord for almost $35k...seeing as how my CL was $30k out the door, with many people commenting on how much better of a deal they got on their CL's.

So while the accord certain exhibits excellent engineering, I think if you are looking for something highly luxarious with navigation, consider getting a TSX. Aside from the engine and slightly smaller interior, is a superior in almost every respect, at about the same price.

I wanted something different altogether, so we went with mazda (zoom zoom )

How do you guys that bought an accord feel about my review? Fair? Unfair? Include your price out the door, and mention how you feel about the car. Personally I think the 2.4L w/o navi is a much better deal, when compared with other cars in that particular arena.

 

Very very nice write up on the Accord. Like you i also experienced the next generation Navi System and definitely didn't find it to be the end all off Navigation Systems. Aside from the display being larger i still think my current system is just as good.

Glad to hear you're enjoying the Mazda 6, its a great car.

 

Thanks.

One thing I failed to mention...if you look at the invoice prices of te '04 and '03 accord, there is a difference of about $600. What additional features were added? XM satalite radio...while I admit it is quite nice, not work $600 i think...so if people are thinking of getting an accord...try for an '03...you'll get a much better deal

 

My better half is looking at the accord. We found '03s in my area for about 25k w/ navigation. Great deal. I'm considering getting it myself. Need to go test drive today.

 

Accord is a great mom car. I think I'm going to get one for her. Beats the Camry hands down and is more reliable than a Mazda or Nissan.

 

and the 3.0L V6 in the accord feels so much stronger then the Mazda 6 or Camry v6 models. Nissan 3.5L V6 is pretty sweet though.

 

I think your review was ok. I'll let you off the hook. I don't do the whole torqueaholic-style flaming anymore on this site, so I won't say anything harsh! :P As far as power goes, your right, it doesn't have the low end of the CLS/TLS, only the mid, and top end. the car is quite lighter than the CLS/TLS, so you'll see similar 1/4 mile times. I mean yesterday, with johntypes, I ran a 14.7 @ 97mph, with just an intake. My family owns both, so I know the strengths and weeknesses of both cars. The drive by wire throttle system on my accord is better and more responsive than my moms 03tl, and also the breaks are sharper and better, with electronic break force distribution, and break assist. I sure as hell won't pick a mazda over a honda, but enjoy whatever you have, and take good care of your car.

 

heh alrite I appreciate that...i think

Ne ways dont flame a 6 until you drive it...interior is much more unique than an accord...like I said it was too much like the CL/TL. The bose sound system actually sounds good in the 6, with adaptive volume.

Also handling is hands down much better in the 6, even though it has Michalin tires on it (gonna replace them, which incidently are 17s compared with the 16s on the accord) with yoko avs's. After years of awesome straight line performance, i think we were ready for something that handles a fast turn really well

 

 

Did you get navi in the Mazda 6? I didn't even know they had it?

How much if so?

 

I drive an 03 Accord EX 4-cylinder. I think your review is pretty spot on. I test drove both the 6 and the Accord. Here's my quick comparion:

The 6 had better handling, but the Accord is plenty able in this area and it's actually more tossable than the CL as it's lighter but with less ultimate grip. I didn't use this as a deciding factor as they are 4 door sedans and I had my Z to satisfy my need for a sporty handling.

The 4 cylinder in the Accord was superior to the 6's 4-banger IMO. It just felt smoother and felt like it had more torque. It really almost feels like a v6 sometimes. I think Honda makes some of the best engines and it shows here.

Interior - The 6 has a more modern looking interior and probably cooler looking, but I think the workmanship and overall quality of the materials in the Accord is superior IMO. I was really impressed by the overall quality of the Accord interior, especially for it's price. Even though my model is not as lux as the CL, it feels better put together.

Finally, reliability - I don't have any figures as both are relatively new models, but I just felt I'd have better luck with a Honda vs. a Mazda.

Overall, both are great car buys in that segment. I'm just really happy with the Accord. It went over so well, my friend bought one a few weeks ago and 2 of my uncles just bought Accords also. They were really impressed with the car as well as the price tag.

 

you are quite correct about the 4 banger in the m6...most people dont even bother except in a manual form...just doesn't have enough low-end torque

cool that you have niche cars (ultra sport and total family )

 

They dont have a navi for the 6...which sux considering the mazda3 has one

My mom still wants one though, so we're gonna do a custom job. Look at this page:

http://www.cardomain.com/id/caryb

click on teh second page...the guy has the exact same car as us, though its in silver. We're thinking about the same package, minus XM and rear view camera. But the Pioneer system only has 2 million points of interest, whereas the alpine counterpart has over 11 million.

Interesting to note that the european Mazda6's DO have navi as an option...sux

 

Why didn't you check other dealerships for 03 Accords?

How much did the 6 come out too? I know the 17s package is extra right?