We just published the results of our 2009 Inside Line Readers Most Wanted Awards and the 2009 Nissan 370Z and 2009 Nissan GT-R cleaned up, winning two categories each. That means these two cars took four of the 15 awards.
The BMW 128i also grabbed a spot on the list, which essentially means three cars in our long-term fleet are favorites of our readers. Plus, several recent long-term blog alums took honors. Readers also voted big time for the Honda Accord, BMW X5, Toyota Tundra, Ford Mustang and BMW 3-Series.
You know, sometimes we take flack for this blog not having cars our readers are interested in. Um, hello.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief
Categories: 2006 BMW 330i,2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab,2008 BMW X5 4.8i,2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6,2009 Nissan 370Z Touring,2009 Nissan GT-R
Of course, the answer is yes. By a lot. As soon as I got into our long-term 2008 Pontiac G8 GT, I was immediately reacquainted with all the reasons someone might want to own something more fun than a front-drive, midsize sedan. The G8 feels much quicker (because it is) and throttle response is much more aggressive. And you can tell the chassis is something special, even just driving around town.
But then I had two more thoughts.
1. The G8's steering wheel is way too big, and the shape of the rim makes for a slightly awkward grip at nine-and-three. The Accord's smaller steering wheel is actually much more natural to hold at this position.
2. The brake pedal travel is too long, and response is way too soft at the top of the travel. Even around town, I was annoyed. And remember, I'm coming out of the Accord, which doesn't exactly set the standard for brake pedal feel or braking performance.
Both of these complaints could and should be addressed in a mid-cycle update of the Pontiac G8.
Erin Riches, Inside Line Senior Editor @ 10,560 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6,2008 Pontiac G8 GT
I drove up our long-term 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6 up to Napa, CA on Sunday -- and unfortunately not for the usual, winery-touring reasons. When it was time to come home yesterday afternoon, I knew I couldn't squander another lovely fall day on the I-780, I-680 and I-580. So I picked my way though mid-afternoon San Francisco traffic to California Highway 35, aka Skyline Boulevard.
Although there are a lot of cool, gnarly little roads branching off Skyline (which does have a view of the Silicon Valley skyline), the boulevard itself is only moderately curvy, which was ideal for our '08 Accord, which has taken some criticism for its size (extra large).
I really enjoyed the drive. Within the limits imposed by the all-season tires, the chassis feels good -- stiff, balanced, predictable. The steering provides some feedback (and you get some through the driver seat as well) and it feels quite accurate: Getting the Accord set up for corners is quite easy.
Continue reading 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6: Taking the Old Road Back from San Francisco.
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
There's something that just doesn't make sense about our Long Term Accord. It has tons of tech - satellite radio, Bluetooth, navigation, CD changer and voice commands for lots of features. It even has a calculator and a unit converter (pictured) for distance, temperature and automotive measurements. However, it does not have real time traffic on the nav screen - NOT GOOD.
It just doesn't make sense; everything is already in place - XM radio and a nav screen. I need Nav Traffic A LOT more than I need a unit converter. Acuras have the feature, this loaded Accord should too.
Brian Moody, Road Test Editor @ 18,000 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
I was thinking the other day (always a dangerous proposition, I know) and wondering how all the current (or really, really recently departed) Edmunds/Inside Line long-term vehicles stack up against each other in fuel economy, at least the fuel economy we've been recording during their time with us. So I made a list. For you and for me. In case we were both wondering.
The only current vehicles missing from my list are the Audi R8 and the Dodge Grand Caravan, and that's because no one has entered any fuel data into the tracking spreadsheet for those vehicles yet. The very top and the very bottom of the list aren't going to surprise anybody (I don't think), but the middle is kinda interesting. Seeing the Rondo and the WRX so close to each other made me raise my eyebrows. Ditto the Ford GT's spot above the Veracruz. Ready to check it all out? Follow the jump with me.
Continue reading The Big List of Fuel Economy.
Categories: 2002 BMW M3,2004 Toyota Prius,2005 Ford GT,2005 Volkswagen Jetta GLS TDI,2006 Lexus RX 400h,2007 Chevrolet Silverado LT,2007 Ford Edge SEL,2007 Honda Civic GX,2007 Honda Fit Sport,2007 Kia Rondo,2007 Saturn Aura XR,2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab,2008 BMW 135i,2008 BMW X5 4.8i,2008 Buick Enclave CX,2008 Cadillac CTS V6 DI,2008 Ford Focus SES Coupe,2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6,2008 Hyundai Veracruz SE AWD,2008 Mazda CX-9,2008 Mercedes-Benz C300 Sport,2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X MR,2008 Pontiac G8 GT,2008 Scion xB,2008 Smart Fortwo Passion Coupe,2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI,2009 Ford Flex Limited,2009 Nissan GT-R
So I had our long-term Honda Accord EX-L V6 over the weekend, and it got me to thinking: Since when did the Accord become an also-ran?
I grew up on Accords -- my parents had a '94 EX and a '98 LX -- and back then, the Accord was clearly the family sedan to have if you liked to drive (save perhaps for the Nissan Maxima SE). A decade later, the Accord ranks a distant fourth in the fun-to-drive category, by my count, trailing the Altima, Mazda 6 and Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan, in that order. Shoot, if the Hyundai Sonata SE had less novocain in its steering, the Accord would fall to fifth.
One might suspect that the Accord has compensated for its loss of sportiness by morphing into a Camry clone. But it hasn't. It's still got a flinty ride over broken pavement, and there's still more road noise than I'd like. As for our long-termer's V6, it's a fuel-swilling laggard (21.1 mpg lifetime average vs. Camry's 24.9, 0-60 in 7.5 seconds) that pales in comparison to the Camry's sublime six.
Unlike some of my colleagues, I love the seats -- wish I could take 'em with me from car to car. And the steering feel is above-average (though I'd take the Altima's spot-on rack in a heartbeat). But other than that, I think the only advantage the Accord enjoys anymore is its reputation for reliability.
Am I imagining things, or has this car lost its mojo?
Josh Sadlier, Associate Editor, Edmunds.com @ 17,583 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
I've noticed recently that when driving our long-term 2008 Honda Accord over broken or rough pavement, a buzzy rattle would crop up. It would go quiet when the road smoothed out.
A brief investigation this morning revealed that the large plastic panel behind the rear headrests is the culprit.
Any other Accord drivers experiencing this?
Jason Kavanagh, Engineering Editor @ 17,649 miles.
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
Like fast-food portions and the people who live on them, the Honda Accord has grown larger over the years. No longer the trim midsize gal she once was, the Accord has blossomed into a full-size momma with a big trunk and certain inescapable needs at the fuel pump. And there's no shame in that, folks.
Here's a look at the latest mileage figures:
Best Fuel Economy:
28.7 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy:
14.5 mpg
Average Fuel Economy:
21.1 mpg
Thus far, our average falls just short of the EPA's combined estimate of 22 mpg.
The Accord's mileage to date trails that of our
Toyota Camry
, which logged an average fuel economy of 24.9 mpg when its test drew to a close last year. Our Camry real-world numbers were more impressive than its EPA estimate of 23 mpg combined.
Keep in mind, though, that the Camry's experience with us was somewhat different from the Accord's -- the Toyota spent four months in Michigan under the care of a single editor.
Warren Clarke, Automotive Content Editor @17,360 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
"Man this is a big car."
Every time I pull our long-term Honda Accord into my nightly parking space, I seem to utter, or at least think these words. True enough, the Accord I drove home last night is literally a vast departure from the 1991 Accord EX-R my father drove home every night from '90-'94. This is also a point that countless readers have mentioned about this latest Accord, damning it for moving away from its roots.
Continue reading 2008 Honda Accord: How About a Civic V6 Instead?.
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
I, like most other folks, am a complete Olympics freak. I had just been on a week long trip back East and had missed a lot of the competitions. This past weekend was my chance to check them out on a sustained basis.
I got the keys for the Accord and made a b-line for my house. Thankfully I only live and mile and a half from the office so I didn't miss much. I fully admit it, I wanted to see anything. I watched Ping Pong Table Tennis for hours. Don't knock it, it was the only games on at the moment and I didn't care. An American was playing and I was into it.
The Accord remained parked for the weekend. It was only when I had to come back on Monday morning that I had touched it again. Immediately I noticed that center dash. Wow! What a mess of buttons! Nothing like our Fit. Granted the Fit was an econo box, but it's a great example of clean and efficient.
Things don't have to be complicated to be good. I'd rather have function over form any day.
Scott Jacobs, Senior Photographer
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
I noticed recently how we've occasionally racked up a fair number of miles between fill-ups in the Accord. Credit goes to the better-than-average highway fuel economy for a 2008 V6 family sedan (EPA: 29 mpg) and a fuel tank capacity of 18.5 gallons. (Coincidentally, our Toyota Camry, another long-termer I recall having a big fuel range, also had an 18.5-gallon tank.)
According to the Accord's fuel log, Senior Editor Bryn MacKinnon is our marathon driver so far -- she went 402 miles before filling up on 15.99 gallons of gas during her trip to San Francisco last month
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor @ 15,792 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
I guess I got a bit spoiled driving our long-term 2007 Nissan Altima
-- it had a backup camera. This might seem like a gimmicky feature to have, but today's newer sedans, with their thick C-pillars and high rear decks, can have rear visibility just as poor as a crossover SUV's. A backup camera can be a nice addition.
Our 2008 Honda Accord EX-L is fully loaded with features, but a backup camera isn't offered. Presumably, it wouldn't have cost Honda much more to add one when it redesigned the Accord?
Score one for the Altima.
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
As cool as it is to impress the neighbors with the G8's smoky burnouts or attack a mountain road in the WRX STi for an early morning drive, sometimes it's nice to get into a car that doesn't require much mental effort. Our long-term Honda Accord is just such a car.
It's roomy. It's comfortable (the recent seat entry notwithstanding). Everything from the controls to the engine operate with a smooth fluidity. And in terms of entertainment, it has all I'd ever want thanks to a very nice audio system with satellite radio and an auxiliary audio input.
Other than the mild annoyance created by the fiddly center-stack controls, this is a car that you can just put in "Drive" and go. And so far, we've logged more than 15,000 miles without any unexpected reliability issues.
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor @ 15,675 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
The Accord chills in the shade in front of the iconic windmill and "comic foreground" photo-op of two guys splitting peas at Pea Soup Anderson's restaurant in Santa Nella.
Took our long-term Honda Accord to the San Francisco Bay Area recently for a joint family trip/bachelorette party. Though I had a bevy of long-term crossovers at my disposal, I decided our small family (two adults, one toddler) could probably manage with a sedan, so I went with the Accord. For the most part, it worked out fine, but it wasn't the perfect I-5 road trip vehicle we had been hoping for.
Continue reading 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6: Family Road Trippin'.
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
I thought the 2008 Honda Accord sedan would be a good car to take home over the long Fourth of July holiday weekend. Not too big, not too small--it should work out just fine for any trip we might decide to take.
Within 5 minutes of leaving the office, however, I knew we weren't going anywhere. Pitch the tent in the back yard, kids: we're going to have a "staycation" at home.
Those leather seats might look inviting, but they're as hard as a rock--or so said my buttometer. The cushion had no give, the seams clawed at the pockets of my jeans, and no amount of adjustment would make it go away. I couldn't get out fast enough.
Just call me Mega-sore-a**.
Without saying anything to my wife, we went to dinner. She's 8 inches shorter than me; maybe these seats are better-suited to those of shorter stature.
No such luck. Before she even buckled her belt she was fishing for a non-existent lumbar adjustment (only the driver gets one) to relieve what she termed, "the basketball in my back."
Based on this, I'd have to pass on the leather. The cloth seats are liable to lack the drum-tight surface tension of these leather ones, resulting in more cush for the tush. Sucks that the front passenger doesn't get a lumbar adjustment, though. Last time I checked, all of the folks who've ridden shotgun with me had a spine. It's practically a prerequisite.
Dan Edmunds, Director of Vehicle Testing @ 14,228 miles
Categories: 2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6
