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The car question: Honda Accord? Nissan Altima? Or something else?

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by accguy, May 3, 2013.

  1. FileNotFound

    FileNotFound Well-Known Member

    2014 Mazda6. Beautifully styled and reasonably priced. Great gas mileage and fun to drive.
     
  2. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    I chose the Accord coupe over the Altima coupe this past summer. They were both 2012. I had a Sentra a Maxima and the original Altima and I love Nissan. But I thought the Accord looked better than the Altima and I got a better deal on the Accord.

    I was looking for a very specific car, a manual transmission V6 mid sized coupe and BMW was out of the price range.

    Whatever you do check out edmunds.com and get the invoice price of the car and options. You should never pay more than 500 over invoice and if you are willing to walk out the door and have a prolonged negotiation you can get 2013 Honda or Nissan for 250 or less over invoice.
     
  3. Bamadog

    Bamadog Well-Known Member

    It's not in vain. The Camry sucks and has gotten lukewarm reviews at best from the car mags. My wife has a 2010 Corolla and has had all sorts of trouble with it, believe or not. We're done with Toyotas.

    Car and Driver. Present-gen Camry finishes fifth out of six cars.
    http://www.caranddriver.com/comparisons/2013-chevrolet-malibu-eco-vs-2012-honda-accord-ex-l-2012-hyundai-sonata-se-2012-kia-optima-ex-2012-toyota-camry-se-2012-volkswagen-passat-25-se-comparison-tests
    It's a boring car and it sells to people who hate to drive. It's reliable, but the one I drove when I bought my Sonata was a bore and the interior was several steps down in quality to the Hyundai.

    The Accord is much-improved, but it's easily the most expensive of these cars. The cheapest I could find was a four-door that didn't have a lot of the features my Sonata has and was about $500 more expensive, even with the best deal I could get from several places. I've had a ton of Hondas and found them bullet-proof, but I'm all about getting the most for my money. You really don't get that with an Accord.

    The Nissan is a turd with the CVT. Lazy-ass transmission that saps the power out of everything. I drove one and wasn't impressed, either with the four or the six. My wife had an Altima coupe with the V-6 with the CVT and it was a dog, believe it or not. My Sonata will run rings around it.

    I had a Maxima and loved it. The newer Maximas, meh. Again, the awful CVT saps the fun from what should be a fun car.

    I forgot to mention the new Mazda 6, which won't have a V-6 option, but looks to be a strong contender, especially if you enjoy driving (I do). The Volkswagen Passat is a fine choice too. I liked it when I drove one, but the price was a sticking point. Big trunk and best back seat of all of them.

    The only American car I'd consider is the Fusion. Even if its shape seemingly owes a serious homage to the Sonata's shape.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    My point is that it isn't the U.S. Big Three that's facing better competition. The Japanese are as well. Hyundai and Kia have gone from being cars I wouldn't own at gunpoint to every bit their equal. Sleep on them at your peril.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
  4. HejiraHenry

    HejiraHenry Well-Known Member

    I'm not Dave Ramsey but this obviously is not true for most folks.

    You're much better off in the long run to identify a quality used Accord (my personal choice) or Altima, one that someone else has already paid the privilege of driving off the lot - and, in doing so, took the biggest hit in that vehicle's value.

    Consumer Reports' annual car issue can point you to the best used car you might buy at any price point.

    Cars are so well-built now that you can get many years of good life from one that's been pre-owned. I'm driving a 2004 Accord I bought in 2008 or so. It has 225k miles on it - most of those by me - and feels like it has at least 100k or more left under the hood.

    Having re-read your additional details, you'd be much much better off just to fix the 2007 and then begin the process of looking for its successor.
     
  5. JC

    JC Well-Known Member

    Depends if you are paying cash or financing. If you are getting a loan and you can get 0% through the dealership on a new vehicle it's a no brainer.
     
  6. outofplace

    outofplace Well-Known Member

    My wife drives an Accord now and loves it.

    We both drove Altimas for years. Hers was totaled in an accident (other driver's fault, the bastard).

    As for mine. well.....

    http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/79448/

    For those that don't go to the link, it caught on fire while I was driving with my daughter along the Pennsylvania Turnpike in pretty much the middle of nowhere two years ago. Nobody was hurt, but the damn thing just melted and we never did find out what caused the fire.

    I remember we were not at all happy with the way Nissan treated us. Not that I expected them to do much, but they were dismissive in a way that really ticked me off.

    Little OOP still doesn't even like for me to mention it. Two things about the first few posts on that thread made me smile. One was that we just came across the replacement copy of Frog and Toad yesterday and the second was the responses by spnited and BYH.
     
  7. trifectarich

    trifectarich Well-Known Member

    My first three cars were all GM products and each fell apart sooner than the one before it. When I needed to have a transmission replaced at 3,000 miles, I vowed never to buy another GM product, and I haven't. Maybe today's GM cars are every bit as good as anything else; I'm just not willing to spend $25,000 or $30,000 of my own money to find out.
     
  8. Sam Mills 51

    Sam Mills 51 Well-Known Member

    I won't sleep on them, but I'm not even close to thinking about those two. Toyota, Nissan and Honda have developed their reputations over a generation. Should take a while for Hyundai and Kia to join them if they're half as good as you seem to think.

    Know what you're saying about the Maxima. The last vehicle I had before the one I've now had for 10 years was a Maxima with a 5-speed manual. A lot of fun for a sedan. If you want the driving fun of the old Maxima these days, look at an Infiniti G37 sedan, which has rear-wheel drive (or G37X with AWD) and a 6-speed manual (some will swear by the coupe, but if you're going to do that, just get a Z).

    Back on topic ... if accguy isn't overly brand-loyal, he'll benefit from playing the models off one another if he doesn't feel a distinct advantage for one over the others. At that point, it can come down to who has the best overall deal. And again ... with those two or three vehicles, it's tough not to win.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
  9. murphyc

    murphyc Well-Known Member

    My bro and his wife both had Hondas for years, and my mom and dad both had Hondas for years. Hardly any problems between them. My dad still loves his 1995 Civic, which no one else can stand. And it sounds like the new Accords are a definite step up from the previous one, both in performance and looks.
    Altimas have been nice cars for a long time.
    Personally, I would take a hard look at the new Mazda 6. I like the Hyundai and Kia, but they simply don't have the reputation for quality yet like Honda and Toyota. It doesn't mean they won't be as reliable, just that they don't have the track record Honda and Toyota earned over the decades. Great warranties and style, however.
    I think the new Ford Fusion is a sharp looking car, sounds like it's competitive as well. Especially the hybrid model, though Ford seems to be getting in hot water with overly optimistic mileage ratings (seems like at least Hyundai, if not Kia as well, also has been caught red-handed in that regard). I think Chevy really screwed up with the current Malibu. They took a great looking car, made it look bland (still better looking than our '05 Malibu Maxx, but that's not saying much) and shrunk the interior dimensions. Incredibly stupid move and sales reflect it.
     
  10. exmediahack

    exmediahack Well-Known Member

    Fix your car. :)

    You have a solid car and should get a decent 8-10 more years out of it. Unless you are in a profession that demands a newer car (sales or real estate). Save the $450 payments, higher insurance and possibly higher registration fees until your current car dies.

    Perhaps even build up cash over the next four years and pay for your next car that way in 2018. Cars will likely be more fuel efficient.

    As for the Big 3, I have rented plenty of Fords over the past few years. Very impressed but i wonder how they are at 100k miles.
     
  11. Having test-driven most of the sedans on the market, I can tell you that you're on the right track.

    If I was buying one right now, it'd be the Accord, and a close second to the new '14 Mazda6. Nissan's customer service, as OOP noted, would make the Altima fall back on my list.
     
  12. nmmetsfan

    nmmetsfan Active Member

    This is, without a doubt, the more financially prudent decision. Finances are rarely the reason someone buys a new car.

    FWIW I have an 05 Malibu with 134,000 miles on it that I haven't had to make a payment on in three years. I expect to get at least a couple more years out of it. I've had no major expenses yet, knock on wood.
     
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