Honda changed my mind

[SHERIFF]

I have always been an American auto buyer. With where things are manufactured and built now, is there really any such thing as an "American" auto any longer? Anyhow, my daughter wanted a Honda for gas mileage, so I bought her one. It has sold me on the so called "foreign car market". The features and options on the car are amazing for the price. It's a new (not used) 2011 LX-S model, I think the S means "sport model", dunno? Plus, it was the only Civic you could get the black interior in supposedly.

It's not my pitcher of beer, but it's OK for a 17 year old daughter I guess.

Since it's legally registered in my name, and I do also drive it occasionally, my daughter can use my window tint exemption on it.

http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx43/VaSheriff/IMG_1070.jpg

[PonyUP]

I think the key to any car, is to love it. If she loves the car she is driving, than it's a great car. My oldest Niece has the same car and she loves it, so as with everything, to each their own. Congrats on the purchase :beer:

[fastblackmerc]

[COLOR="Blue"][B]I have always been an American auto buyer. With where things are manufactured and built now, is there really any such thing as an "American" auto any longer?

There may not be an "American" auto any more, but where to the profits go?

To each his own, but I'd rather see the profits stay in the U.S.A!

[Haggis]

Why do all the houses in your neighborhood look the same?

[SHERIFF]

Why do all the houses in your neighborhood look the same?

The same builder built them all. :)

It's a well established neighborhood in the city, in a good section of town, and relatively crime free for the most part. I had to live in the city for which I worked for as a deputy sheriff, and I simply haven't moved since.

They're all two story brick homes. I like the low maintenance of brick. And I finished off the lower level. Bedroom, living room, kitchen and bathroom downstairs.

Whenever I did consider purchasing a new home, all there was to choose from around here were homes with wood siding and a small portion of brick veneer if any.

I just put a new $7,800 HVAC system in, and a new roof on both the house and the 4 car garage in the back yard. I will probably stay here forever now. :eek:

[Haggis]

At least when you visit the neighbors you know where the bathroom is.

[SHERIFF]

There may not be an "American" auto any more, but where do the profits go?

To each his own, but I'd rather see the profits stay in the U.S.A!

Well, at least this purchase did pay the salaries of the employees
at the East Liberty, Ohio plant where they are produced.

[jstevens]

Thats why its so hard to define an american car.
The profits go back to the mother land but the employees get jobs which has a trickle down effect.

Which one is better, I don't know.

[TAKEDOWN]

Everytime I attempt to purchase American (fishing rods, clothes, toys, etc.) I look at the label and see "Made in China" everywhere even on American Flag Pins... WTF! No wonder we are where we are. Even my wife's old company sold out to operators overseas and put many families on the unemployment list wondering where the next paycheck is gonna come from. I know what you mean, but with cars especially, I personally won't.

[MrBluGruv]

I would gladly drive a Civic Si as my daily if it meant allowing the MM to retire to weekender status (and even if it didn't).


Just saying...

[SHERIFF]

Yeah, for sure, but the Si only comes in a manual transmission version.

I didn't want my daughter in a manual trans. :eek:

[Matt In Detroit]

Sorry you bought that. Ford Fusion, Fiesta , or Focus will match it in mileage.

I treat foreign car drivers as second class citizens, i dont let them in traffic or help them when they are stranded, or need directions.

[EMAS]

You're are/were in Law enforcement and you bought the most stolen brand of vehicle there is? You like paying high insurance rates and not knowing if your daughter is going to come out and not find here car, or find it sitting there w/o it's seats and wheels? Sure it has Honda's version of PATS but all the professional thieves know the back door to that.

[SC Cheesehead]

Thats why its so hard to define an american car.
The profits go back to the mother land but the employees get jobs which has a trickle down effect.

Which one is better, I don't know.

This is one of the reasons I've softened my stance toward "built in America" by foreign-owned companies. We have several of these in the metro GSP area (BMW and Michelin). Not only do they supply jobs directly for their employees, but also indirectly. There are numerous vendors and contractors in the surrounding area that support the two companies, and they provide a substantial number of jobs for folks as well. Were it not for BMW and Michelin, these suppliers would either not be in business, or they certainly would not be located here.

Look at it this way: Foreign companies that invest in American production facilities are providing jobs, paying taxes, and generally enhancing the quality of life for the communites in which they are located.

No two ways around it, we're part of a global economy, and rather than hunker down and go it alone, we need to make the US a more desirable place to do business; both for American-owned firms as well as foreign-owned ones that wish to conduct business in our country. Unfortunately, that means less, rather than more, government intervention, which is not the direction we're currently heading.

[RacerX]

:shake:You should be Tasered! J/k! Congrats and may she be safe!

[gdsqdcr]

Cool little car. My wife has an Accord ... and she loves it. Since she does, I am happy. If my commute was longer, i would consider one. Why? My wife's last accord had 250K on it, original clutch and the only unexpected maintenance was the oil pan gasket was seeping and the master cylinder leaked.

It was a quieter ride inside then her current 06 Accord ... that is one complaint.

[SHERIFF]

You're are/were in Law enforcement and you bought the most stolen brand of vehicle there is?

I had to take a serious look at your post. I researched it quite extensively and can't
come up with anything to support that newer model Civics are being stolen at an alarming rate.

Every link I researched on Google say that an older model Civic tops the list.

http://autos.aol.com/article/most-stolen-cars-2009/

For 2009, the most stolen vehicles* in the nation were:

1. 1994 Honda Accord
2. 1995 Honda Civic
3. 1991 Toyota Camry
4. 1997 Ford F-150 Pickup
5. 2004 Dodge Ram Pickup
6. 2000 Dodge Caravan
7. 1994 Chevrolet Pickup (Full Size)
8. 1994 Acura Integra
9. 2002 Ford Explorer
10. 2009 Toyota Corolla

[CBT]

He meant those are the ones HE steals the most :D



I had to take a serious look at your post. I researched it quite extensively and can't
come up with anything to support that newer model Civics are being stolen at an alarming rate.

Every link I researched on Google say that an older model Civic tops the list.

http://autos.aol.com/article/most-stolen-cars-2009/

For 2009, the most stolen vehicles* in the nation were:

1. 1994 Honda Accord
2. 1995 Honda Civic
3. 1991 Toyota Camry
4. 1997 Ford F-150 Pickup
5. 2004 Dodge Ram Pickup
6. 2000 Dodge Caravan
7. 1994 Chevrolet Pickup (Full Size)
8. 1994 Acura Integra
9. 2002 Ford Explorer
10. 2009 Toyota Corolla

[FordNut]

With where things are manufactured and built now, is there really any such thing as an "American" auto any longer?


There may not be an "American" auto any more, but where to the profits go?

To each his own, but I'd rather see the profits stay in the U.S.A!


Thats why its so hard to define an american car.
The profits go back to the mother land but the employees get jobs which has a trickle down effect.

Which one is better, I don't know.


This is one of the reasons I've softened my stance toward "built in America" by foreign-owned companies. We have several of these in the metro GSP area (BMW and Michelin). Not only do they supply jobs directly for their employees, but also indirectly. There are numerous vendors and contractors in the surrounding area that support the two companies, and they provide a substantial number of jobs for folks as well. Were it not for BMW and Michelin, these suppliers would either not be in business, or they certainly would not be located here.

Look at it this way: Foreign companies that invest in American production facilities are providing jobs, paying taxes, and generally enhancing the quality of life for the communites in which they are located.

No two ways around it, we're part of a global economy, and rather than hunker down and go it alone, we need to make the US a more desirable place to do business; both for American-owned firms as well as foreign-owned ones that wish to conduct business in our country. Unfortunately, that means less, rather than more, government intervention, which is not the direction we're currently heading.

Supporting the factories and their suppliers kind of clouds the issue up. The profits go to the parent company. If the American companies don't have adequate profits to fund their pension plans, they will go belly-up. Which companies support more American jobs and second-tier suppliers, the American ones or the foreign ones?

My step-son has a Honda, I helped him work on it a couple of weeks ago. I decided they are Japan's revenge for Hiroshima. What a PITA to make a minor repair like changing a broken lug bolt stud...

[SHERIFF]

He meant those are the ones HE steals the most :D


My bad! I should have connected the dots! :beer:

[SHERIFF]

My step-son has a Honda, I helped him work on it a couple of weeks ago. I decided they are Japan's revenge for Hiroshima. What a PITA to make a minor repair like changing a broken lug bolt stud...

My daughter won't keep this long enough to have major problems anyway. She wants a premium Mustang GT, perhaps a GT-CS.

With a $35,000 price tag, that will happen after she has a full time job and paying her own insurance in a couple of years. :)

[SpartaPerformance]

The issue of Foreign cars is ok you may be employing a few hundred assembly line workers but only about 40% of the parts come from American manufacturers. In a Domestic car around 85% of the parts come from American manufacturers so there are other Americans that have jobs because of them. That's the difference in buying an American car. As for price the 2011 Civic is being given away because there was supposed to be an all new model for '11 but because they decided to redesign the rear bumper it pushed production back, turns out that during the rear bumper redesign the entire rear end of the car needed re-engineering. Oooooops according to a Motor Trend article a few months ago the muckety mucks at Honda were a bit pissed.

[PonyUP]

Aren't a couple of the major american manufacturers only in business because of a bailout established with the use of China's money (Condering we owe them trillions) It's all going to the same place regardless of the company you buy. I say enjoy the ride and buy what you want. If a Honda is what she enjoys than ultimately her happiness means a hell of a lot more that a small amount of money going to Honda corporate.

[frdwrnch]

Ho Hum. Life's too short to drive mundane vehicles. I drive 50 miles per day and give up a little coin to enjoy the ride. I'm a broke puppy but quality of life means a lot.

[Blackened300a]

Ho Hum. Life's too short to drive mundane vehicles. I drive 50 miles per day and give up a little coin to enjoy the ride. I'm a broke puppy but quality of life means a lot.

Agree 100%.
I also feel uncomfortable driving a Jap car. They are made for shorter people.

[CBT]

Agree 100%.
I also feel uncomfortable driving a Jap car. They are made for shorter people.

You said it, brother. I call Amy's Civic the black go-kart. (In it's defense tho, great little car.)

[Mike]

I have always been an American auto buyer. With where things are manufactured and built now, is there really any such thing as an "American" auto any longer? Anyhow, my daughter wanted a Honda for gas mileage, so I bought her one. It has sold me on the so called "foreign car market". The features and options on the car are amazing for the price. It's a new (not used) 2011 LX-S model, I think the S means "sport model", dunno? Plus, it was the only Civic you could get the black interior in supposedly.

It's not my pitcher of beer, but it's OK for a 17 year old daughter I guess.

Since it's legally registered in my name, and I do also drive it occasionally, my daughter can use my window tint exemption on it.

http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx43/VaSheriff/IMG_1070.jpg

Can't agree with you more :D I bought a new 07 Accord and I've already put over 94,000 miles on it w/o ANY problems!! Good luck!

[EMAS]

I never said the 11 Civic in of itself was high on the most stolen cars list, I said that Hondas in general are the most stolen vehicles.

I used to have link to the IIHS/HLDI insurance claims per capita broken down by brand and model. There were 5 ratings, avg, worse than, much worse than, better than, and much better than. Unfortunately I can't find it now.

In the theft category Hondas as a brand were rated much worse than avg, and that was for the current model year. That ranking is what the insurance companies use to set their rates.

Certainly any '11 model won't show up on the most stolen list this early in the model year, there just aren't enough of them out there yet. But that doesn't stop the insurance companies from charging higher rates right off the bat based on past claim rates.

[Joe Walsh]

Ho Hum. Life's too short to drive mundane vehicles. I drive 50 miles per day and give up a little coin to enjoy the ride. I'm a broke puppy but quality of life means a lot.

+1....another Honda clogging the roadways....:sleepy:

It's because they advertise so unrelentlessly and the fact that everywhere you look.....you see thousands of them,
that I will never own a Honda or a Toyota....PERIOD.

[fastblackmerc]

Honda recall - 10,800 accords

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/12/honda-recall-accord-pilot-2010-2011/1

Let us know when you get your letter.

Buy American, save jobs!

[SHERIFF]

Honda recall - 10,800 accords

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/12/honda-recall-accord-pilot-2010-2011/1

Let us know when you get your letter.

Buy American, save jobs!

I bought my daughter a Civic LX-S, not an Accord. :confused:

[fastblackmerc]

I bought my daughter a Civic LX-S, not an Accord. :confused:

My bad...

But I'm sure a recall on those won't be too far in the future......

[PonyUP]

Geeez!, the Guy bought his daighter a car that she enjoys and likes, do we really have to rail him for not buying American? Can we not just say congrats on the purchase, and hope she enjoys it? :shake:

[massacre]

I treat foreign car drivers as second class citizens, i dont let them in traffic or help them when they are stranded, or need directions.

^^^ Same here. Can't stand foreign-named cars and won't own one. I actually own all FoMoCo products, always have except for a '79 Nova and a '80 Volvo I had once.

Glad to see that I'm not the only one who feels this way.
I had a buddy say to me once,
"Foreign cars are better than American cars".
I said, "Why"?
He said, "They just are".

Obviously I flipped out because he had absolutely no information or proof to back up that ridiculous claim.
But I'm afraid that for some reason a lot of the population holds this exact opinion, and I for the life of me can't understand why.

Hey it's your car, and if your daughter is happy with it, then cool.
Personally I would have gone with a Ford vehicle.

Car looks better with the tint BTW

[SHERIFF]

Hey it's your car, and if your daughter is happy with it, then cool.
Personally I would have gone with a Ford vehicle.

Car looks better with the tint BTW

My daughter likes the Ford Fusion. Our local dealer had two in stock with a pretty good package and price, one white, one dark green (both had the sun roof as part of the "Rapid Order package"). We saw them after closing time one evening. By the time we got back to the dealership the next morning, they had both been sold. How in the world they sold them both so fast I'll never know. They said they could not locate any others in the immediate area to do a dealer exchange on.

She also picked out a nice 2011 V6 Mustang with a #101 Rapid Order Package. But they would not move off the full MSRP under any circumstances. It was their way or no way.

I honestly tried to keep her in a Ford, but it just didn't work out very well.

And yes, the Honda was less than attractive before the tint. :D

[SHERIFF]

This is my daughter's vehicle also, in so many words.

So you can see I am pretty much a Ford man when I can be. :)

http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx43/VaSheriff/SNOWEXP1.jpg

[Blackened300a]

How in the world they sold them both so fast I'll never know.

There were 5 Fusions on the lot where I bought mine, I had to look ahead to a car that was 2 weeks out from arriving at the dealer to make a deal. When I returned, all 5 were sold and they told me that they received calls on the car I was waiting for. They are hot sellers and the deals they are offering right now are better then the other car companies out there.

[SHERIFF]

Fusions were definitely hot sellers at the time!

I wish I could recall what Rapid Order Package was on the Fusions we looked at. They were pretty well loaded (but with cloth seats) and a sunroof. And they were priced at or around $21,000 with the Rapid Order Package and other savings applied. I also had a $750 Customer Loyalty coupon to apply after I made my best deal. I wish they had had about 10 of them in stock at the time! :D

[Blackened300a]

Fusions were definitely hot sellers at the time!

I wish I could recall what Rapid Order Package was on the Fusions we looked at. They were pretty well loaded (but with cloth seats) and a sunroof. And they were priced at or around $21,000 with the Rapid Order Package and other savings applied. I also had a $750 Customer Loyalty coupon to apply after I made my best deal. I wish they had had about 10 of them in stock at the time! :D

My MSRP was $24,500 and thats with the sunroof, sync, rear backup sensors,and monochrome package. Ford took $1500 off the sticker.

[massacre]

I am pretty much a Ford man when I can be. :)

http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx43/VaSheriff/SNOWEXP1.jpg


:beer::beer::beer:

[SHERIFF]

We had two 24" snows during the Winter of 2009. And this is really unusual for Central Virginia.

What you see in the Explorer picture is days later after half of it had melted.

[MercNasty]

This is pretty relevant to the talk about everything being made in China. I think everybody can agree with his views republicans and democrats. The entire video is definitely worth listening to. Senator has the floor speech to the President.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5OtB298fHY

[DEFYANT]

Color is right. And the fastest too!

[tbone]

What is a "window tint exemption"?

[Big Black Beast]

I actually like some of the older Hondas. Nothing in the current line up appeals to me at all. They are decent cars though. Good luck anyway.

[EMAS]

What is a "window tint exemption"?
I was wondering the same thing.

[boatmangc]

I owned quite a few Hondas.
I left them over a stupid consumer relations snafu.
My wife was driving an Element, it was her second. She loved the dam thing, I of course had multiple coats of Zaino on it after my normal 2 day polishing technique.
After a year and 13000 miles from new the clearcoat began failing on the wheels.
I took it to the dealer and they said they would have to talk to their rep, they took pictures and said they would get back with me, the rep said no way I must have used a harsh cleaner on them.:mad:
I made an appointment to meet with the regional rep and showed him the entire car. It was cleaner than the new ones on the lot and way shinier.
He looked at it and agreed that I was smart enough to not use harsh cleaners on a clearcoated wheel but that maybe the selling dealer could have done it before I bought it.
I said great let's get that dealer to step up. He said the dealer was out of business and suggested I contact Honda Consumer Affairs.

Honda in no uncertain terms said I lied, that I had used the incorrect cleaners and i could pound sand over $1200 worth of mass produced wheels. :mad2:

Sold the POS and bought her a FORD!!

[myrodr]

we should remember the MM was built in canada . but i still love mine

[Joe Walsh]

I owned quite a few Hondas.
I left them over a stupid consumer relations snafu.
My wife was driving an Element, it was her second. She loved the dam thing, I of course had multiple coats of Zaino on it after my normal 2 day polishing technique.
After a year and 13000 miles from new the clearcoat began failing on the wheels.
I took it to the dealer and they said they would have to talk to their rep, they took pictures and said they would get back with me, the rep said no way I must have used a harsh cleaner on them.:mad:
I made an appointment to meet with the regional rep and showed him the entire car. It was cleaner than the new ones on the lot and way shinier.
He looked at it and agreed that I was smart enough to not use harsh cleaners on a clearcoated wheel but that maybe the selling dealer could have done it before I bought it.
I said great let's get that dealer to step up. He said the dealer was out of business and suggested I contact Honda Consumer Affairs.

Honda in no uncertain terms said I lied, that I had used the incorrect cleaners and i could pound sand over $1200 worth of mass produced wheels. :mad2:

Sold the POS and bought her a FORD!!

Now that they have been enjoying such great success over the last 30 years, Honda and Toyota dealerships are acting just like the domestic auto dealerships did for too long.

It's interesting and enjoyable to see how the tables have turned!

[SHERIFF]

What is a "window tint exemption"?

In Virginia you can only tint your front windows to 50%. And the rear to 35%. But with a medical waiver you can take the front down to 35% to match the rear windows. The Virginia State Police used to administer the program when I got my medical waiver. But they have since turned it over to Virginia DMV. (a local county cop confiscated my Virginia State Police exemption one evening and called it a forgery -- dayum rookies -- egg on face obviously)

I qualified for a medical exemption after I developed photophobia at work. The city put dark tint on our sheriff's cars so people could not see the prisoners we might be hauling.

One of the best ways to explain tint is like this.... 50% lets 50% of the light through. 35% lets 35% of the light through. 5% is what you usually see on the long wheelbase limos.

All of the above changes with SUVs and special purpose vehicles. You can have anything from the front doors back. I put 5% on all of my trucks, vans and SUVs.

[Marauderman]

Speaking of colors-why do you post your comments in blue?

[SHERIFF]

Speaking of colors-why do you post your comments in blue?

In the scheme displayed here on MM.net on my monitor, it's easier to read in my opinion.

I don't even know, is there a choice of color schemes here? Is it
messing up anybody else as far as ease in reading it? :confused:

[Marauderman]

In the scheme displayed here on MM.net on my monitor, it's easier to read in my opinion.

I don't even know, is there a choice of color schemes here? Is it
messing up anybody else as far as ease in reading it? :confused:

I have to "hightlight" your post in order to read them--thus my question- Blue is difficult to read if a member has selected a different screenchoice from the main menue--in my case its black I believe, making blue letters a bit plurrrred.....oh well... not a big deal--just curious... thanskfor replying...sure others were thinking the same--- OBTW-- My daughter bought an '07 Civic like your new '11 same color and traded for '09 Accord new for large space--She is happy and keepng it--nothing wrong with the '07---they are good little cars.....

[Amigrad]

^^^ Same here. Can't stand foreign-named cars and won't own one. I actually own all FoMoCo products, always have except for a '79 Nova and a '80 Volvo I had once.

Glad to see that I'm not the only one who feels this way.
I had a buddy say to me once,
"Foreign cars are better than American cars".
I said, "Why"?
He said, "They just are".

Obviously I flipped out because he had absolutely no information or proof to back up that ridiculous claim.
But I'm afraid that for some reason a lot of the population holds this exact opinion, and I for the life of me can't understand why.

Hey it's your car, and if your daughter is happy with it, then cool.
Personally I would have gone with a Ford vehicle.

Car looks better with the tint BTW

I can answer this real easy, look at domestic VS foreign built quality starting in the mid 70's, and look at the 80's for an even better example. the 80's brought us gems like Dodge's K car, and plymouth Aries, and a rebadged Cavalier that Cadillac called a Cimarron, Pontiac fiero, and let us not forget the craptacular Merkur Xr4ti. Bland and ugly Citations and chevettes and Pintos. Look at today's cars, if you want an AWD 4 door car thats fun to drive, what domestic car are you buying? Hell if you want ANY kind of 4 cyl fun car what domestic are you buying? Chevy tried a cobalt SS which is a piece of crap, dodge tried caliber and neon SRT 4 both of them are junk, and the last 4 cyl ford that was fun was the SVO Mustang, unless you count the SVT contour which was a V6.

[SHERIFF]

There's just so many cars out there now to choose from. If I was in the market for a new car,
I would have to spend 3 months deciding between a Camaro SS, Challenger R/T or a Mustang GT.

Just like Dodge made the new Challenger look like the older models from the
seventies, I would buy a new Superbird tomorrow if they did the same thing. :)

[EMAS]

I can answer this real easy, look at domestic VS foreign built quality starting in the mid 70's, and look at the 80's for an even better example. the 80's brought us gems like Dodge's K car, and plymouth Aries, and a rebadged Cavalier that Cadillac called a Cimarron, Pontiac fiero, and let us not forget the craptacular Merkur Xr4ti. Bland and ugly Citations and chevettes and Pintos. Look at today's cars, if you want an AWD 4 door car thats fun to drive, what domestic car are you buying? Hell if you want ANY kind of 4 cyl fun car what domestic are you buying? Chevy tried a cobalt SS which is a piece of crap, dodge tried caliber and neon SRT 4 both of them are junk, and the last 4 cyl ford that was fun was the SVO Mustang, unless you count the SVT contour which was a V6.

It's real funny how people seem to have selective memory about Japanese cars from the 70's, 80's, and 90's. I spent much of the late 90's doing only engine replacements. The bulk of those were in Japanese cars or at least Japanese built engines. Before that doing head gaskets on Hondas was quite profitable. Honda distributors in the 90's were also very prone to imploding and their ign systems weren't too reliable in general often frying the ign control module. Then there is the faulty main power relays that left many a motorist stranded, yet they used that same relay for over a decade w/o changing it.

If you want to talk about recent fun to drive Ford 4cyls you left out the Focus SVT and it's dual lay-shaft 6-speed.

[Amigrad]

It's real funny how people seem to have selective memory about Japanese cars from the 70's, 80's, and 90's. I spent much of the late 90's doing only engine replacements. The bulk of those were in Japanese cars or at least Japanese built engines. Before that doing head gaskets on Hondas was quite profitable. Honda distributors in the 90's were also very prone to imploding and their ign systems weren't too reliable in general often frying the ign control module. Then there is the faulty main power relays that left many a motorist stranded, yet they used that same relay for over a decade w/o changing it.

If you want to talk about recent fun to drive Ford 4cyls you left out the Focus SVT and it's dual lay-shaft 6-speed.

I watched my mother put 225K miles on an 81 honda accord, 214K miles on a 87 Nissan Maxima, and then 230K miles on a 97 Maxima. None of these had any issues other than routine stuff. We have a 2003 GMC Envoy and at 44K miles the rear end had to be completely rebuilt, the key switch which controls the instument cluster took a dump, gas tank strap broke, door panel fell off, and the AWD 4 wheel drive switch failed. We also had a 99 Ford F250 super duty with a V10 and it ate through ball joints at an alarming rate, split a Torque converter in half and had to have all 10 coil packs replaced, and we hardly ever used it for towing or hauling heavy loads. BTW the ONLY focus worth driving was a Saleen N20, but unlike a WRX it isn't AWD, or turbo.

[EMAS]

For an 81 Accord to make it over 200K w/o at least 1 head gasket or engine replacement is quite a feat, never seen one personally. With over 200K it would also likely be on it's 3rd set of axles and 3rd or 4th water pump. A 87 Maxima with more than a 100K that didn't burn oil like crazy is also quite unusual. The 97 Maxima I'll believe as by then they were pretty good cars. 99 Envoy with those problems isn't surprising at all. The SD eating ball joints is unusual though if the replacements were cheap aftermarket stuff then yeah they aren't going to last, the first set could have been a case of someone padding their bottom line. The torque converter splitting is quite rare and the only reason it got all 10 coil packs replaced is someone decided to punt or was just another case of padding their bottom line. I'm not saying the COPs haven't had their problems but I don't buy all 10 went bad.

Facts are as a pro mechanic the Japanese stuff from the 70's to early 90's were very profitable. If it weren't for Hondas in that era I'd have starved.

[Red91LX]

My daughter won't keep this long enough to have major problems anyway. She wants a premium Mustang GT, perhaps a GT-CS.

With a $35,000 price tag, that will happen after she has a full time job and paying her own insurance in a couple of years. :)

Good for her! I hope she makes that happen. :2thumbs:

[FormulaMarauder]

Allow me to clarify another users comments about the car being one of the most popular stolen cars. I've been a Auto Theft Detective for the past five years, and have just been promoted to Sergeant. We have roughly 1,500 cars stolen in our city a year, down from 2,500 when I first started. I was also detached with the CT State Police Regional Auto Theft Task Force where I worked daily with the NICB. (National Insurance Crime Bureau.) The older Civics and Intgras had a very popular B16 and B18 series engine. They had crappy soft metal ignition tumblers that could be defeated with a pair of thin scissors or knife. They were aluminum head DOHC quick little cars. The Honda hatch models all came with a POS boat anchor D16. Si Civics and Integra's were stolen at an alarming rate due to the PRECISE swap, even down to the motor mounts. All the ricers would put these B series engines in their Hondas then add turbos and/or nitrous. Sometimes even a K20 from an RSX or a H20 from a Prelude. We started popping hoods on these cars and ran the engine stamp numbers which come back to the VIN that they belonged to, cross referenced them, and checked the theft history which revealed that the cars they belonged in were stolen and recovered, stripped of their engine. Ultimately we seized these legitimately registered and insured cars and crushed them.

http://www.wfsb.com/news/20169967/detail.html

Your new Civic has nothing to worry about in regards to theft. It has hardened steel tumblers, a coded PASSkey system, and can't be "hot wired" due to a mercury switch in the column.
Enjoy the car.

[SHERIFF]

Allow me to clarify another users comments about the car being one of the most popular stolen cars. I've been a Auto Theft Detective for the past five years, and have just been promoted to Sergeant. We have roughly 1,500 cars stolen in our city a year, down from 2,500 when I first started. I was also detached with the CT State Police Regional Auto Theft Task Force where I worked daily with the NICB. (National Insurance Crime Bureau.) The older Civics and Intgras had a very popular B16 and B18 series engine. They had crappy soft metal ignition tumblers that could be defeated with a pair of thin scissors or knife. They were aluminum head DOHC quick little cars. The Honda hatch models all came with a POS boat anchor D16. Si Civics and Integra's were stolen at an alarming rate due to the PRECISE swap, even down to the motor mounts. All the ricers would put these B series engines in their Hondas then add turbos and/or nitrous. Sometimes even a K20 from an RSX or a H20 from a Prelude. We started popping hoods on these cars and ran the engine stamp numbers which come back to the VIN that they belonged to, cross referenced them, and checked the theft history which revealed that the cars they belonged in were stolen and recovered, stripped of their engine. Ultimately we seized these legitimately registered and insured cars and crushed them.

I am getting a visual of Delroy Lindo in "Gone in 60 Seconds"! :)


Your new Civic has nothing to worry about in regards to theft. It has hardened steel tumblers, a coded PASSkey system, and can't be "hot wired" due to a mercury switch in the column.
Enjoy the car.

Well, that's both good news and bad news. I found out over the weekend she wants to get rid of the Honda and get a Tahoe. I'm not sure this is going to happen unless somebody steals the Honda.

Makes no sense to me, she will give up a brand new Honda Civic and a 4X4 Ford Explorer to get a Tahoe. WTH is wrong with kids??

[fastblackmerc]

Well, that's both good news and bad news. I found out over the weekend she wants to get rid of the Honda and get a Tahoe. I'm not sure this is going to happen unless somebody steals the Honda.
Makes no sense to me, she will give up a brand new Honda Civic and a 4X4 Ford Explorer to get a Tahoe. WTH is wrong with kids??

If she had to foot the bill for the car, registration, insurance etc. she'd be less inclined to spend money. Since she's not spending her own money, why not do whatever she wants??

So I look at it like "What's wrong with the parents", not what wrong with the kids......

[Joe Walsh]

I am getting a visual of Delroy Lindo in "Gone in 60 Seconds"! :)



Well, that's both good news and bad news. I found out over the weekend she wants to get rid of the Honda and get a Tahoe. I'm not sure this is going to happen unless somebody steals the Honda.

Makes no sense to me, she will give up a brand new Honda Civic and a 4X4 Ford Explorer to get a Tahoe.
WTH is wrong with kids??

They are spoiled.

BTW: Who would pay for gas in the Tahoe???

My 21 yr. old stepson drives a $900 '89 CV that we bought for him....and he likes it.
He also knows that if he didn't want the CV, he would have to buy his own vehicle of choice.
He also pays for insurance, gas, oil changes and tires.

[SHERIFF]

My bad!!! I should back up a bit. I bought and paid for her 4X4 Explorer when she turned 16. It was a very clean low mileage vehicle at a good price. It's still clean and still very low mileage. After all, my father did buy me my very first car.

Due to the lack of a credit history at age 18, the Honda was financed in my name at 0.9% interest. She is making the payments on it.

She has done extremely good in school. She's not wild or out of control. And having just become a Certified Nursing Assistant, it's her goal to become a Registered Nurse over the next few years.

Spoiled? Yes. But she doesn't get everything handed to her on a silver platter. The only reason I agreed to the Honda was to teach her financial responsibility. :)

Her explorer.... .

http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx43/VaSheriff/SNOWEXP1.jpg

[fastblackmerc]

My bad!!! I should back up a bit. I bought and paid for her 4X4 Explorer when she turned 16. It was a very clean low mileage vehicle at a good price. It's still clean and still very low mileage. After all, my father did buy me my very first car.

Due to the lack of a credit history at age 18, the Honda was financed in my name at 0.9% interest. She is making the payments on it.

She has done extremely good in school. She's not wild or out of control. And having just become a Certified Nursing Assistant, it's her goal to become a Registered Nurse over the next few years.

Spoiled? Yes. But she doesn't get everything handed to her on a silver platter. The only reason I agreed to the Honda was to teach her financial responsibility. :)

Her explorer.... .

http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx43/VaSheriff/SNOWEXP1.jpg

What financial responsibility? She already is looking to ditch the car for another one......

Why does she not have a credit history?

When my kids started driving I co-signed for a credit card with a $1,000.00 limit. They used it to by gas. Never once did I have to make any payments for them.

My kids bought their own cars, insurance, registration, etc. If they didn't have the money then it looks like they'd be walkin'. They are both successful adults, own their own homes, buy their own stuff, pay their own bills.

When my daughter graduated from high school she was a certified nursing assistant and a certified EMT. After 4 years of college, she's now a banker's assistant.

My son decided to go the "no college" route. He's been successful in the construction / parts business. Just got employee of the year after 6 months on the job.

Yes, I did get a car as part of my parents divorce, but I did have to pay for everything else since I was basically on my own when I turned 17.

[Fosters]

Congrats on the new car, sorry to hear she already wants to get rid of it... but seriously, an 18 yr old with two cars?

Like it was said before, I don't care much for boring cars. And there are plenty of those on both sides of the fence. Driving a civic/accord/corolla/camry/avalon/old round tauruses/FWD malibus/new FWD impalas/cobalts*/neons**/calibers/foci/jettas/sentras is about as exciting as drowning in wallpaper paste. I liked the 47-51mpg of my tdi jetta, and the build quality, but good lord that thing was annoyingly dull, slow, gutless, pointless, roomless, useless. Great car for going from point a to point b; but I'm guessing most on this site don't buy cars for that purpose...

*ion redline excluded
**SRT4 excluded

As for the person asking what AWD 4 door american car you can buy nowadays, I'd suggest trying out one of the 08 tauruses/Sables, with the 3.5 and awd... I tried a FWD one and the thing was a sleeper. Would definitely surprise a stock 79-04 mustang GT, esp in AWD form I'm guessing (FWD had no problem laying rubber while shifting into 2nd). I'm guessing the lighter fusion sport AWD would be even quicker.

Now show me what 4 door japanese car will keep up with a CTS-V ;)

[SHERIFF]

Congrats on the new car, sorry to hear she already wants to get rid of it... but seriously, an 18 yr old with two cars?


I applied some magic this morning, and convinced her to keep what she has. I showed her where the ex-president of Shell Oil said this morning on TV that gas will be $5.00 a gallon within 18 months. I told her it would then cost $200 to fill up a Tahoe. :D

I hope the guy is crying wolf! $5.00 a gallon? Even most middle class working folks will not be able to afford gas then!

[CBT]

I applied some magic this morning, and convinced her to keep what she has. I showed her where the ex-president of Shell Oil said this morning on TV that gas will be $5.00 a gallon within 18 months. I told her it would then cost $200 to fill up a Tahoe. :D

I hope the guy is crying wolf! $5.00 a gallon? Even most middle class working folks will not be able to afford gas then!

I believe it. If you have some time to kill, watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nI-BIVWlc7A

It's sort of boring until the 6:30 mark. Get's scary after that, depressing stuff.

[Haggis]

Get's scary after that, depressing stuff.

Like when you drop your pants?

[kernie]

I believe it. If you have some time to kill, watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nI-BIVWlc7A

It's sort of boring until the 6:30 mark. Get's scary after that, depressing stuff.
I watched about half of it last night. What a buzz killer!

Perhaps a fence on the southern border isn't such a bad idea after all.

:o

[Fosters]

I applied some magic this morning, and convinced her to keep what she has. I showed her where the ex-president of Shell Oil said this morning on TV that gas will be $5.00 a gallon within 18 months. I told her it would then cost $200 to fill up a Tahoe. :D

I hope the guy is crying wolf! $5.00 a gallon? Even most middle class working folks will not be able to afford gas then!

There's always a bright side. Last time it hit $4/gallon I bought my excursion with 90k miles for 7k. 2 years later and with 30k miles more on it, it books for 9k . Of course, if it goes to $5/gal it'll be worth 2000 bucks at best... :shake: But, point is, good time to buy a truck ;)

Plus, if gas hits $5 in 18 months, Obama's chances for re-election will be 0. I'll fill up the 44 gallon tank in the excursion every day if it helps that. :D