Honda Accord 2.2 i-CDTi Executive

The Honda Accord CDTi Exec may not set your pulse racing but is still the most fun saloon car I've driven, inc C class, Mondeo, 406 etc.

The most impressive thing about this car though is also the most subtle - everything just works, everything is in the right place and there is nothing annoying about it, unlike any other car I have owned.

Second hand I think it makes a great buy - reliable, fast, comfortable and fun. Much better value than a Golf TDi and a much more accomplished car.

I bought my 2004 Honda Accord 2.2TDCi Tourer in Dec 08. It cost £4500 and had 91K on the clock with a FSH. The car has behaved very well in the 4 months of ownership so far. I have been impressed with the Fuel Consumption and comfort of the car. I fitted an Xcarlink into the stereo so can now play 1000s of MP3s and also have the 6 disc stacker too. So far so good and will report back later with more findings. Good MPG, Very Comfortable, Great gadgets on Exec Model, Huge Boot, Nice Stereo, Electric Seats. Bad points are: Sat Nav can be a bit dodgy, Takes a long time to fully warm up, No memory seats

A serious car for a serious driver who likes their time on the road. Great Car plenty of extras, nicely priced the ultimate drive very quiet for a diesel but so responsive, serious fuel economy and low emmissions.

thought it was a good car. But quite noisy in general, the 17,inch rims seem to be a mistake.would like to try set of 16, inch wheels to check out difference in ride comfort & road noise.

I had optional 17" Wheels and low profile tyres fitted but I am not happy with the ride and steering on rough surfaces - it's very harsh and fidgety?

When I first got this car I absolutely loved it. It looked the business, was nippy and was also very economical. I went for the Sport i-CDTi model because at the time you couldnt get 18" alloys for the other models, but I understand that this has now changed? Also, the sat nav was rumoured to be bad news and I have a tom tom so I didnt for for the ES or EX models.

Incidentally, another reviewer said that they werent happy because the Civic doesnt have electric folding mirrors, but my colleague has the EX and that model does, so it's all about the model / extras that you chose.

As for other good points about the car, its spacious, reasonably quiet and there are lots of neat little displays to toggle with for MPG, who's seatbelts in the back, etc ...

However ...

There are some problems that do slightly tarnish the good points mentioned above. Firstly, there are a lot of annoying little noises that start appearing over time and this can really get on your nerves after a while. Myself and 2 other colleagues have the i-CDTi model (2 x SPORT and 2 x EX's) and all of us have experienced rattling doors and a squeky windscreen wiper noise.

Secondly, the gear box is no way as smooth as it should be and often you find yourself very carefully changing gears when family and friends are in the car because you dont want to jolt them around. However, when your driving on your own you dont really find it that bad.

Onto the windows. The front wipers leave a huge gap in the middle of the screen which isnt particuarly bad but enought o be annoying when it rains. Additionally, the back doesnt have a windscreen wiper which is really annoying. I'm sure that this was to accomodate the looks, but its a complete pain ... if it has rained or iced up over night you have no chance! When you lift the boot up you ALWAYS get wet after it rains too! This is also true if you open your front windows a smigin, as water seem to find the sweet spot that gets you and your passenger perfectly!

Also, the extras have really annoyed me. The 18' STORM alloys look great, but I drove over a medium sized hole in the road the first week I had the car and the tyre blew. Not only that, there is no spare (just some rubber fluid) so I had to be rescued by the AA. To make matters worse, it was £182.50 for a new replacement (catalogue price - I checked I wasnt ripped off)! Admittedly, the fact that I decided on getting the 18' alloys meant that I knew that the tyres would be more, but that seems pretty bad considering a friend has an L200 truck with 22" wheels and they're only £200!

Additionally, I went for the £650 stereo upgrade (bass pack I think it was called). My stereo is only VERY slightly better than the guys that didn't choose it, and for that money you could get a really good one from a third-party vendor. I'm not into stereos particularly which is why I wouldnt have gone to a car stereo shop, but if you are tempted by this option I would probably advise against it.

The same is true of the £350 side skirts, which are just 3" thick at the largest point and are barely visible. Again, it does add a bit to the cars overall looks but had I seen them before I made the leap I probably wouldnt have bothered.

Overall, I like this car. The only realy 'car' gripe that I have is that the visibility is so poor and that the gear changing can be a bit snatchy at times. The optional extras are really all my fault / decision to buy, but none of them (apart from the wheels) were really worth the money. The good things about it are that the ride is relatively smooth, it's quiet, comfortable and engine is very responsive and eonomical. Saying that, there are 'flat' points when the turbo isnt doing the business, but overall its very responsive.

I would reccomend this car - that is a definite. However, it might be an idea to check exactly what the optional extras are and how they perform before you go for them. Also, the weird design might not be to everyone's taste I guess?

I bought the sport version of the Honda Accord in Dec 05, from my local Honda dealer (Stockton). This car was trouble from the start!

Honda pride themselves on the 90,000 mile/3 year warranty, and are unable to identify a lethal fault because it was intermittant.

The first week into driving the car it cut out while driving.

Firstly I was unsure as to what had happened, and lucky for me it was early morning, and there was no traffic, otherwise I would have crashed.

I thought it was a 'one off' and dismissed it and put it down to human error, maybe I, in my subconscience, stalled the vehicle.

However this was not the case. The engine cut out a further 4 times that week, so I contacted the nearest Honda dealer (Fleet, Surrey), who recomended I bring the car in to have it checked.

After running various diagnostics, and test driving the vehicle, no fault was reported.

I was not happy and contacted the dealer where I purchased the vehicle, and told them I was rejecting the vehicle. They did not accept my rejection, as they insisted there was nothing wrong with the car, "Because their computer said so".

Anyway to cut a long story short, I accepted an allternative Honda Accord, which I have had for 2 months now, with no faults. Honda have a 30 day exchange plan, which allowed me to change the vehicle, within Stocktons group stock.

I felt They (Dealer) took advantage of me, because I had already paid them for the original HOnda, and knew I had to accept an alternative.

The final straw for me was when the car cut out when I was with my family, and I lost Power Steering and braking efficiency.

I had to use a lot of physical power and leg power to steer and brake the vehicle, and struggled a little.

However, I am happy with my Current vehicle, but would not reccomend a HOnda Accord 2.2 i-CTDI to anyone, after my experience.

I have sent details regarding this fault to Honda about 7 days ago, and haven't recived no reply from them yet.

Please be wary of this vehicle, I, for sure will not be going back to Honda again for another car, especially after the dealing with the dealers.

What I found with doing a little search on 'Google' is a similar fault was reported with the American Honda Accords, and this was down to the fuel pump fuse, dislodging, however Honda insist a different type of fuel holder is used in the UK Honda Accords.

The Sat Nav data disc that I received with my Honda Accord is absolute rubbish. It keeps placing me in the middle of the North Sea, and completely loses the plot. Honda have replaced the unit already on the first service, because they state that the FM radio frequency 101.8 MHz (Century FM) in the NE of England is in conflict with the Sat Nav frequency. However, after being replaced, it still loses the plot and fails to navigate. The data disc provided by Alpine Electronics also fails to come up to scratch as it has a poor street index database. Quite often it will fail to recognise a postcode or street name that has been built for more than 30 years, even Teeside University campus is not recognised, Shotley Bridge Hospital is not listed, nor is Sedgefield Community Hospital, and all have been standing for more than the past couple of years, or since the previous version of data disc was written. Save yourself the £2500 cost of the upgrade, and buy a TomTom Go unit for a tenth of the cost at £250.

The Honda Accord 2.2 i-CDTi Executive is an excellent car - striking looks, comfortable and roomy. Optional 17" low profile alloy wheels makes the steering quite lively with lots of feedback on uneven roads but you get used to it.

Lack of attention to detal (see bad points) lets down this otherwise excellent car from Honda.

Distinctive styling, and powerful but economical new diesel engine, combined with high spec. levels make this Honda Accord 2.2 i-CDTi Executive a great family car. The only downside is that the list price is on the high side compared to the competition.