Buying a used diesel Accord

Evening all


Am looking to replace my car this year so just looking for general advise re later model Accord.

I drive a 2004 Petrol 2.0 litre and its been pretty bulletproof bar 2 issues and a few MOT bits.

280,000 miles on the clock, bought at 40,000 miles, its been a great buy.

Looking to replace it soon - probably import to Ireland from UK ( better value etc)

Cars under consideration are :

BMW 5 series Diesel
Mazda 6 diesel
Honda Accord diesel

Any thoughts on the Beemer and Mazda ?

The Accord is currently winning...BMW is a bit "showey" and the Mazda will be pricier I think. And I just think Honda's are less common and so well made.

Can anyone tell me in general terms what the 2010-2015 Accord Diesel model is like?

- Are those metal pedals slippery ?
- Is it very juddery on poor surfaces ( reviews suggest so)
- Fuel efficient?
- Fast / Responsive?
- Good on motorways?
- Is the dash as confusing to use as people suggest ?

Any general buying advice? Budget is likely to be about £9-12k. I would want something with ideally less than 40K miles as I do about 25K per year

What's this about timing chains ? One of the reasons I am beginning to move away from the BMW....

Tks all, sorry for all the questions. Any help appreciated

Hello,
No knowledge of the BMW or Mazda.

Regarding the juddering, im not sure i follow what you mean, what i experience is if i kept in for example on rough gravel and started moving off, its as if the car is juddering/slipping on this, At low engine revs in reverse there is a judder, but this is common to all for some reason?

MPG: 42-47, generally averaging around 45 for the most of my driving.

To me it is fast/responsive, maybe not so much in lower gears but i think ok, well able to go in 5th 6th gear,

Very solid car on motorway

Dash is nothing complicated,

To the best of my knowledge, the timing chain doesn't cause issue. i think once it is serviced regularly you have nothing to worry about.

Common faults would be rear brake calipers seizing, rusty sunroof frame(may be resolved in the later down ones?) on executive model, Both were an issue with mine, the brakes are nothing too serious to resolve.

You will read a lot online about dpf issues, touch wood my car has been perfect in this regard, i have 18000 miles done,

The only drawback i would see, is the limited leg room in the back, ok on passenger side, but nothing behind me driving, im 6' 1".


Overall i think a super car, i would buy another. i would agree regarding going to the uk, lower miles and cleaner cars.i know its personnel choice, however i would be looking for either an executive or an s 180,

For got to add my one is 2008, 78000 on it when i bought, found it difficult to find one with as low of mileage, but i hav eseen ones in teh uk since with half that mileage.

Accord is a good car overall.
However i personaly would reccomed an petrol engine because of well known reliability.
You must stronlgy AVOID any 4 cylinder BMW diesel engines becasuse of many problems( piezo injectors, common rail pumps are most known for them and they are not cheap...in many cases the engine must be changed ) with them so look for 6 cylinder.

The i-CTDi and i-DTEC engines are bulletproof but the "perifery" like solenoid valves, TPS sensors, EGR valves and DPF filter are well known to create porblem after time.
If we are fair out there does not exsist any car withouth problems with certain parts but that parts for the Japanese cars are expencive.

If i would choose between that cars you described i'd buy an Accord...and thats not because i'm Honda guy bit because they are realy good cars for that price

Spider12345 said:

What's this about timing chains ?

Click to expand...

AFAIK all chains will stretch with long-term use (not just cars), most reports on Accords (so far) are on early 7th gen diesel.

Sorry I probably misdescribed. By judder I meant that the car doesn't drive well over rough surfaces, so apparently it's not great in towns or back roads?

Well that's what reviews say but whilst most reviews by car mags, honest John etc score the Accord as 3 out of 5, the owners tend to score it far more highly.

What's a dpf?

Re other issues, the rear space is fine (kids), and I need diesel for work and economy.

Every review criticises the dash... One video on line jokes that it's so bad he won't interact with it whilst driving! I guess it just takes getting used to?

BTW my current car is an Accord but just looking at the latest model.

Irish pals here find it crazy that I could look at spending 12k sterling on a Honda when I could get a 5 series and I know the 5 series would be considered far better by most but I've really rated my Accord and it's that 'isn't it great when something just works' which I kind of like too! So reliable.

Final question, is Honda dealer servicing advisable on the newer Accord.

Tks for the advice.

Oh, and I've never driven a car with metal pedals. The es gt model is the one I am looking at.

I've got an ES-GT the pedals are not slippy at all. The pedals have rubber bumps on (they're not holes).

I have a 8 and 5 year old in the back (in child seats) and space isn't an issue for me.

Dash is ENTIRELY normal! Just 2 clocks and a small info screen. Not hard to read / use at all. Personally I would rule out some brand new cars I've seen who's dashboard is basically a tablet glued to the bulkhead and is all menu driven and messing about :-(

The tourer boot is not as useful as the 7th Gen, but if it meets your needs you'll be fine. Can't say about the saloon.

I service my own without difficulty (various excellent guides on here) and it's been rock solid (apart from a new clutch at relatively low mileage :unsure: that was beyond my DIY).

DPF is could be a big deal. If your 25K miles is mostly fast A-road / motorway you might / should be ok. If it's town stop / start probably not. There's LOADS on threads on the issue -do a search. I've not had any problems with mine, but sooner or later I will. It's a consumable item. They are fitted to all makes of modern diesel in one form or another, if you don't want the worry or don't have the right driving style / mileage buy a petrol. Removal is an option for some, though I can't comment on the rules / penalties for doing so in Ireland. Using the right oil from the start is thought to promote longevity so check its history and buy the right stuff if you do your own.

My average for 34000 miles ownership miles is 54mpg. But I drive like a vicar (mostly ).

I agree with accord1108 -in 5th and 6th it's really strong. Away from the lights it can hold it's own, but it's not a racer. Everyone who has had one reports a (Premier Tuning) remap can improve that markedly, if that's what you're into.

I've had no issues on loose / bumpy ground to speak of.

I too was / am considering a new shape Mazda 6 next (probably 2 years away) as there's no 9th Gen option, but I'm starting to think if I can get one of the very last 8th Gens I may stay Accord. They're not exotic, but they are unusual. BMW and Audi are two-a-penny. You can count one one hand the number of 8th Gen Accords you'll see -even on a long journey.

Matt, is that mpg calculated based upon the amount of diesel you put in or based on the cars calculation? 54mpg is very good

As said, the accord isnt as common as other cars,


Regarding servicing, be sure correct oil and genuine filters are used, my opinion is the more frequent the servicing the better, i change oil and filter every 5-6000 miles, i do so myself, not too difficult and well documented here.

I seen this recently . a nice car,
http://www.mglcarsales.com/index.php/component/vehiclemanager/206/view_vehicle/49/private/206/honda-accord-type-s-i-dtec-180?Itemid=206

Agree with that Matt, I drive 200KM each ay about twice a week on motorway and Accords are rare. I know that the 5 series is a brilliant car but deffo not as reliable and I think its a bit " look at my success" !

Thanks for the advise re the pedals - I thought they were holes!

I owned mine about 8 years ( still do) and serviced it well at the start ( it was 4 yrs old when I bought it ) but after that I wasn't smart at all and it ran out of oil twice but I got away with it. I cant service myself but I have never used Honda parts and it has still been solid.

One major fail was some electric issue with the spark plugs which meant that car broke down as I left to see wife in hospital 200Km away. That was the one major blot on the copybook.

I've had ball joints NCT ( MOT ) failure and the Alternator had to be fixed, but that's about it I think. Lots of headlamp bulbs blown although not recently.

If I do get another Accord ( probably 2011-2013) I will look after it better.

Just waiting for exchange rate to be even better , which could be end of year, and find myself a reputable importer to Ireland .

The Accords here are very pricey and tend to have very very high mileage for anything more than 3-4 years old.

So the dash is user friendly behind it all ? It ships a lot of criticism for that!

accord1108 said:

Matt, is that mpg calculated based upon the amount of diesel you put in or based on the cars calculation? 54mpg is very good

Click to expand...

I'm a bit retentive about my spreadsheet of fuel receipts :blush:

Since March '15 I've added 2857 litres (629 gallons) of fuel and covered 34000 miles. The trip computer usually swings about a bit, but I've just checked and currently says 53.8.

I try to drive economically, using cruise where I can, leave long gaps to maintain speed and slow down on overrun. That said, I'm not a dawdler. A 3rd gear boot straight into 6th rarely disappoints

I average 40 miles a day of predominantly 50+ mph cruising, though I still lazily nip out for a loaf in it like everyone else. My fuel-only cost varies between about 9p and 11p per mile, depending how heavy my right foot is and where I fill up.