With the Buick gone, I spent the summer riding my Seca 650, which was a very fine bike with a particularly nice exhaust note. However, riding season on the Wet Coast is not very long, and I started thinking warm, dry, car again. I had never really forgiven myself for the Jetta debacle; I really should have bought an Accord instead. This time I resolved I would, and keep it for a while. I reasoned that a good car would have reasonable depreciation and give me a few years with no wrenching. Hence my purchase of a new 1990 Honda Accord four-door sedan, a Canadian LX model.
Few cars I could ever write about would earn this title of “perfection,” but in the entire time I had my 1990 Honda Accord, there was not a single malfunction. This was quite breath of fresh air after the Jetta experience and perhaps needs some explanation. Why in Buddha’s name would someone who was around good, cheap cars all the time spring for a new Honda? This car was anything but cheap; it retailed in Canada in the neighborhood of $15,000, and that was for a total stripper.
At the time, I was totally immersed in Detroit Sled-dom, but when I drove home, I wanted something different. That explains the Jetta; I wanted a sporty yet practical ride that would last a long time. I know that many readers might laugh when I say, “sporty” and “Accord” in the same sentence, but herein lies the magical blend that Honda brewed up for this generation Accord.
The Canada-spec 1990 Accord LX was the last one made in Japan and was unique to our market. It had no a/c, power anything, and a five speed manual transmission. Weighing some 2700, and with no power-consuming equipment, this Accord was downright spirited. The great part was the Accord returned excellent fuel consumption; no matter how hard it was flogged, it always returned an honest 8.5 L/100 km in the city, and on the highway it was often below 7.0.
The Accord was not a car that engendered instant emotions; it fact, if you drove it a couple of times, you could come away rather unimpressed. It didn’t really do anything exceptionally well, but after a time it grew on you. For example, the quality of the blue velour interior was simply top rate. The fit and finish were impeccable. The clutch and shifter were among the best I have ever used. The trunk as large, useful and well lined. The back seat was large enough for full sized adults. The motor had that sweet Honda sound. This car was one of the few cars I have ever owned that I enjoyed driving more and more as time went on. It was a supremely competent automobile.
What else is there to say about a car that is so intrinsically good as this? Have a look at the photos of the one featured here; this is a twenty-two year old car. The interior is as good as new, and the body is in excellent condition. This one now has 250,000 km on it, and according to the owner (no pun intended) has only had regular maintenance since new. There are loads of this generation of Accord on the streets of Vancouver, and even quite a few of the previous generation. I don’t see many VW products of this era, and essentially no American cars at all. This says volumes, since at at time that a Tempo could be had for $8995 with automatic and a/c, whereas a comparably equipped Accord was selling for double that money. Seems it was a good buy even at that money, given the number I still see around.
I would love to tell some interesting story about my Accord, but I don’t have any. It just always ran and drove flawlessly, sipped the fuel, was very comfortable, and always started. Mine was white just like the photo car, and it always kind of reminded me of a refrigerator, something that you used when you needed it and forgot about when you didn’t. I bought the car in late 1989 and kept it until mid-1994. This was a very busy time in my life and it was nice not to have to drive a GM sled all the time. We took it all over the west coast of North America, and because of the white paint, there were few occasions that the a/c was missed. It hustled and scooted with the best cars I have ever driven. It was a really good car but one that I never got excited about.
In the spring of 1994, I made a big decision: to leave the family business. I had spent six years in university and earned two degrees. Quite frankly, I was sick of wrenching on other people’s cars, while taking crap and abuse from their owners. I had always wanted to work and travel overseas so we made the plunge. I sold everything and prepared to move away. The Accord went to a good home; my sister had just had a disaster with a loaded GM Astro Van and was eager to get a good car. The Accord had 110,000 km on it and ran like new. I sold it to her for an even $10,000, which was $5000 less than I had paid for it four and a half years earlier. She drove it for another six years, when it was passed down to her oldest daughter. Finally, it was passed down to two more kids when it was totaled in an accident in 2008. That Accord had lasted eighteen years, eight of them at the hands of teenagers. It had almost 400,000 km on it, and had only had minor work done in the whole time.
Hondas always generate strong opinions in people. I have had three Honda cars and two Honda motorcycles and all of them have impressed me as well engineered machines. However, no matter what you say about them, or your own record of service with them, you’ll always get people slamming them. I often hear things like, “Well, my aunt’s Honda went through drive shafts like candy!” In my garage experience we did indeed do such jobs on Honda cars, but only at very high mileage, the kind that a GM car of the era would not likely attain. For the most part, they are really fine cars that drive very well; that’s the reason I still drive a Honda today.
My younger sister has owned nothing but Hondas since 1991, when she bought a new Civic hatchback. She sold it in 1995 when they moved to the US from Canada, and immediately bought another Civic, this time a 4 door. In 2000, she traded the Civic for a new Accord, which she still owns and still runs great. They also bought an Odyssey minivan a few years ago, and they’re happy with that as well. Her daughter will be getting her license soon, and she’ll get the old Accord. Will my sister buy another Honda? I let her drive a Ford Fusion that I’d rented last fall and she really liked it…but I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a new Honda in her driveway next time she buys a car.
I love this generation of Accord, it has a lovely low bonnet/hood, and slim pillars. The best Accord Honda ever made. Maybe it looks better in darker colours though.
I picked up a 90 EX a few months ago from the original owner (only 82K original miles!). It had some issues, (trans control module, ignition switch, rotted exhaust) and the clearcoat desolved away long ago, so I bought it for a song. After repairs, I have about $2K into it, including a new stereo system, and am now using it as a commuter and something else to tinker with. In fact a fuel filter and new oxygen sensor are on the list today.
I agree with Len, these things keep on running. Aside from the huge turning circle, and the so-so fuel economy (mine’s an automatic), they drive well. Visibility is superb. The interiors are very durable, comfortable, and well laid-out.
Since buying mine, I’ve noticed that there are still a lot of these 22-19 year old cars still on the road. In the DC area, I will easily see 4 or 5 of them every day. I guess this is a testament to their durability. In contrast, I don’t see many 3rd generation Accords anymore, although they were a bit more fun to drive).
This generation of Accords is truely worthy of curbside classic status.
Agree wholeheartedly. That fourth generation Accord completes my ’90s trinity of wagon perfection.
3.) Volvo 240
2.) Honda Accord
1.) Ford Taurus
Unfortunately, one does not acquire cars in middle school.
Make mine this one:
Indeed, my family had #3 and #2 on that list. The 240 was a diesel, which while producing massive plumes of smoke and some hilarious stories as a result, was not especially reliable.
Yes! I’m so happy to see this being written about. My family had one of the wagons (!!), a 1993 EX that went for 14 years and 425,000kms (could’ve gone farther, but we didn’t want to bother with a pricier repair). Fantastic car, my entire childhood/teenage years in one vehicle. I give my father credit for buying a Japanese wagon for his young family when everybody else was buying big SUVs and minivans.
There is a picture of the old dearie here: http://studentwheels.wordpress.com/2011/09/09/moment-of-sanity-a-peaceful-accord/
These are _the_ Hondas. They’ve been going downhill ever since. All the good name that brings people back to the Honda dealerships is probably from this model. If I were the CEO of Honda, I’d make all the company’s designers and engineers drive this every day. I bet we won’t get the current bloated Accords, or asinine product like the Crosstour. I wonder what they currently drive? I’ll bet it’s a 1970s American brougham sedans.
I remember being so impressed by the styling of these and the Maxima 4DSCs (and the Camrys to follow), so clean and pleasant looking, really Just Right.
After this generation of cars from those makers, they went back to the busier, Japanese inspired (aka “Confused” – yes, pun intended) styling from which they have yet to return.
Indeed, they represented the pinnacle, in both style and quality, of the genre. I personally am no fine of hard, disjointed, mismatched angles or improper use of the now tired “flame surfacing”. Next…
Why they don’t repeat this elegant simplicity again is beyond me, but I’m not in charge there.
PS: “no fine” = iPads spell checker version of “no fan”, which i apparently cant edit this morning. Thanks Apple.
Mine was a ’90 Accord EX, dark aqua/tan interior. Never before or since have I owned a car that did everything so well. I bought it new and drove it for 215,000 trouble-free miles. I still miss that car, although I could have done without its annoying motorized shoulder belts.
Oh yes, this is definitely one of the greats. I think the previous generation was even better, though. This generation doesn’t even seem dated, 23 years later. The design is so good that you really do tend to forget about it or not notice it, which could be good or bad depending on your point of view, but I think it’s good. If only Honda could get back to this elegant simplicity somehow.
I love the 4-door and wagons mentioned above, but at the time, I would have gone for the now-relatively-rare coupe.
After suffering through the ’60s and 70s with a long succession of American-made cars that, while often attractive, blew engines, ate water pumps, fell to bits or simply rusted away to nothing, after much arguing I managed to convince my parents to have a look at a Honda Accord. It took a bit of doing, because they’d grown up in a steel town and because they just weren’t interested in one of those little foreign cars, you see. In the end, however, they came home with an ’88 coupe in dark red and never looked back. It ran 125,000 miles with next to no repairs and was traded on a ’96 sedan which my mother drove until she passed away in 2008, and which is now my sister’s daily driver.
I agree that Honda’s US reputation was mainly built on the backs of these cars, and that it is unfortunate indeed that they seem to have lost the plot somewhat in recent years.
I had a ’93 Canadian spec LX coupe, also white with a blue interior like the car in the photos. In deference to my wife it was an automatic, but it was still a pleasant driver and did get excellent mileage. I made many long trips over BC’s winding mountain roads and always enjoyed the way it handled. It was also very comfortable even after 10 hours or more at a stretch.
It’s still in the family and still running strong at 250,000 km.
I’ve done the timing belt/balance shaft belt job twice as preventitive maintenance and one set of axle shafts. It runs, drives and looks like a well kept 3 year old car.
Honda was at the top of thier game with this generation of Accord, and even today it’s rare to drive through any town in my part of the world and not see at least one. The only bad part of these cars was the %$#&*!! power antenna.
Power antennas were just a bad idea. They didn’t work well on anything!
At least the ones on these cars were reasonably easy to replace with a standard antenna. My wife’s previous car was an ’86 Mazda 626 which used the right hand windshield post to conceal the antenna. Nasty/expensive job. Between the antenna, the heater core (even worse) and the power window motors that all failed early/often I still curse when I see a 626. Even my wife makes a contribution to the curse jar on the rare occasions we see a running 626 of this vintage. The Accord was a welcome change for sure.
I loved the interior on my 2004 Odyssey, especially the dash. No chrome. Serious gauges. I even like the exterior styling. But then something happened in the Honda styling department. Maybe it was bad acid. Both the sedans and the mommy vans looked like they fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down. Serious fugliness.
I only replaced a battery and two tires in the eight years I owned the babemobile. No complaints there. But I was at the magical 50,000 mile mark, a point where many owners have experienced transmission failure. I could feel the vibration in the torque converter and knew it was only a matter of time. Bye-bye.
Even if you had put a new transmission in it, you still would have saved a lot of money. What is a transmission? Like $2000? The first day depreciation on any new car would be more than that.
$2K if you’re lucky. My sister recently spent $5K at a dealership for a rebuilt tranny (it died 300 miles from home, and required a $300 tow to the closest dealer).
Your sister’s experience is pretty common. $4500 plus seems to be the price on these. I have a co-worker who just traded an 04 Ody with a failing transmission and about 100K miles. His mechanic will no longer touch these, having had too many come back after attempts to rebuild. The dealers seem to do most of this business, and even then, the forums are full of stories of dealer-sourced transmissions that have a much shorter life than the originals.
I am usually biased in favor of keeping a good older car, even in the face of a needed major repair. You can get a Chrysler minivan tranny rebuilt in the $2k range, and it will usually give good service afterwords. But those Honda trannys seem to have a baked-in defect that is incurable. I look for these vans to disappear fairly quickly once all of the warranty repairs stop, because the trannys are so expensive and seem to have such a short service life even if replaced. I would buy nice 95-98 Odys all day long, but wouldn’t touch a 2nd gen Ody with a long fork. Even the first couple of years of the 3rd gen seem to have more than their share of expensive tranny issues. They supposedly started using the heavier duty Ridgeline tranny in the Odys starting in about 07, IIRC. No firsthand experience here, just from some time spent in Ody forums.
The tranmission issues didn’t just affect the Odyssey. All V-6 Acuras and Hondas built between 1999-2003 were affected by this issue. Even the “repaired” transmissions don’t last all that long.
The third-generation Odyssey was affected with torque converter problems through the 2007 model year. This can be cured with a software reflash.
The 1999-2003 problems are perhaps why Honda has been VERY conservative with transmission design since that time. The new six-speed automatic transmission, for example, is only available on the top trim level of the new Odyssey.
Everyone says that the problems stopped after the 2003 models, but not true. A friend had an 04 or 05 Acura TL that had the factory tranny replaced under an extended warranty, then the replacement replaced because it was leaking fluid. Another friend just dumped a very nice 04 Odyssey that would have easily had another 100K in it but for the failing transmission that left his family stranded along side the road at the start of a vacation. And true to the syndrome that used to work in GM’s favor for so long, both remain loyal Honda fans. The guy with the Ody just bought another.
I guess you guys to the north didn’t get US flame spread spec interiors because I’ve never seen an Accord from that era with that nice of an interior. The ones I’ve seen looked liked crap at 10 years old it is like the material was a dirt magnet and stained if you even looked at it. Not as bad as the generation previous to it but still very bad.
There are still a few of them on the road around here but the majority of them are pretty trashed. It is pretty common to see them with a crappy aftermarket hood or fender that was never painted, is now rusty and has been dented too. The Civic of the era isn’t too far behind it in that respect. Or you see one that were painted with the crappiest bondo job, mismatched paint or a really bad complete paint job with overspray on trim, lights ect.
As far as reliability these are some of the first Hondas to get the infamous “main relay” that causes intermitent no start conditions, the “ignitor” and coil inside the distributor that also commonly fail IF the distributor didn’t implode first.
I don’t really know if the Canadian spec cars had different mechanicals, I do know the trim levels were different. The LX version that I am most familiar with was a pretty basic car and lacked a few items that were standard on even the base US model. There are certainly lots of thrashed/riced out examples of these cars around, but I still see clean daily drivers nearly every day.
I’m pretty sure most eastern examples rotted out long ago due to the amount of road salt used out there though.
I’ve never had an intermittent no start problem, or heard of anyone who did. What’s the story on that?
The bad solder job on the main relay is a well documented problem. Search “main relay” on any Honda forum and you’ll get tons of hits. Here is the info at Napa’s tech site. http://www.napaechlin.com/Honda-Hot+Restart/Content.aspx But it just isn’t due to heat sometimes they will do it when it gets really cold IE won’t start in the morning but will later in the day after it has warmed up. Personally I’ve replaced at least a dozen of them.
Google “GM intake manifold gasket” and see what you get, Eric.
GMs are easily the second most profitable vehicles right behind Honda.
Why do white sheep eat more than black sheep?
Because there are more of them.
Thanks for the link, it’s always useful to have these little nuggets of info stored away. Most of the women in my family drive Hondas and as the family mechanic I usually get a call when something doesn’t start. It looks like this is a common issue, I guess we’ve just been lucky.
Yeah, the Canadian LX sounds like the U.S. DX. The U.S. LX had power windows, power mirrors, etc., and the EX had a power moonroof and dual exhausts for 5 extra horsepower.
It wasn’t the exhaust that gave the EX models a bit more power, just minor changes to the tuning of the 2.2L engine. EX exhausts were only dual tips to the same muffler and plumbing as the DX and LX.
The EX exhaust is a really nice piece, and I bet it has something to do with the power output. Between the different exhaust manifold (cast iron, welded 4 pipe) and the dual exhaust downpipe (EX specific and still a bit pricey), it turns out to be a 4-2-1 long pipe header. It is single pipe from the cat back. I believe the final drive gearing is a bit different in the EX as well.
Whoops, looks like you’re right, DeadEd. My bad.
Yes, the Canadian LX is much like the American LX, the major difference being the cars in Canada were all made in Japan, with the exception of the the few wagons we got. Our cars had a slightly different front facia, driver’s airbag and no motorised belts (thank god).
You are correct sir!
I had a 1990 Accord DX which was equipped the exact same way, 5SP – manual everything – 2/70 air (roll down both front windows and drive 70MPH)
the only difference is the US spec DX had black (unpainted) bumper covers.
Mine was brownish with a beige interior and reliable as the day is long.
Eric, you just really don’t like foreign cars do you?
My Accord was indeed foreign; the ones Eric complains about were made in Ohio. Ergo, he does not like domestic cars.
No we got lots of made in Japan ones too and in some years we got both US and Japan made ones as it makes a difference in a few of the replacement parts.
As I’ve said in previous posts I love Hondas as they have made me a ton of money over the years. A couple of very common pattern failures like the ignitions, distributors, and main relays meant I’ve seen many of them come to me on the hook or generated a service call. Then throw in the fact that the average Honda dealer makes 110% of their profit from the service dept means that it is very easy to poach customers that have been going to the dealer and spending way too much money.
Ergo, all Honda cars are bad. GM stuff never breaks and they don’t charge $700 for pads on rotors in on a Malibu because GM doesn’t make any money on retail repairs on dealership. I never charged customers $1700 for intakes on GM 3.4’s. It was only $4.00.
As for that Consumer Reports rag, it is all a conspiracy and always has been.
Life is easy.
My dad had a ’90 Accord. We lived just north of Toledo, OH. I don’t seem to remember him having any problems with that car at all. Bought it with somewhere around 90,000 miles on it in the mid 90s, drove it till it had 300,000 mi and sold it to buy a Murano. Let’s see, what did that car do… It started and ran every day… It did not have any major squeaks or rattles, all the buttons worked, the interior was clean and neat and a very pleasant place to be, it handled well, it never let us down the way our LeSabre, Delta 88 wagon, ’87 Taurus, and series of Caravans did (and there were some real heartbreakers with those).
I was under the impression that most dealerships despite what kind of car they sold made most of their profits from service or whatever.
EDIT: Wait, no, we had to replace the brakes a few times and the timing belt. Apparently, those parts can wear out on Hondas and need to be replaced. My Subarus have had the same problem. Over 200,000 miles of driving, he probably replaced them like 7 or 8 times at least! And two timing belts! What trouble those old Hondas are, I tell you what.
Yes, it is scandalous when cars with 300,000 km on them need repairs like brakes.
Pretty sure that was sarcasm, Len. 🙂
If I recall correctly, ALL dealers make most of their money on service and used-car sales. Honda dealers are not unique in that regard. Since people have been willing to pay more for Hondas than for most other brands, the Honda dealer was able to make at least some profit on the sale of a brand-new one.
I have yet to see any evidence that Hondas from this era are less reliable than any domestic. There are plenty of these Accords still plying the streets around here (Harrisburg, Pa.) and while they do look ratty by this point…they are at least 20 years old by now.
In all fairness, there are domestics from this era still on the road around here. One still sees the following vehicles as daily drivers – Escorts, Tempos, Tauruses, Panthers, the GM A-bodies, J-bodies, Caprices and a few Cutlass Supremes and Regals. The only ones that don’t look well-worn are the Panther cars and the Regals, and that is because most of them are driven by the proverbial little old lady who takes it to church and the grocery store, and nowhere else.
Hondas in Hawaii are a cult . . . . Some are riced out . . . most are not and twenty – twenty five year old Hondas are a plenty – rust or not.
Aside from the troublesome automatics of the early 2000’s . . . these cars ARE pretty much bulletproof. My Dad went Honda in 1980, and aside from one bad Hyundai experience (1986), hasn’t looked back. He’s had an Accord which was traded for an Odyssey van in 2006 (easier ingress/egress as he’s now in his 80’s). And the 1980 Civic DX bought new (waiting lists in February of 1980 back in NorCal), was passed down and sold off with over 400K . . . just maintenance – brakes, tune ups, timing belts, fluid changes and one heater core.
You know why they are always looking shoddy and crappy? The only way a Honda can be ripped away from ist owner is by totaling it. After that, bad repairs are made and it gets back on the road as salvage. And most used Hondas have had a timing belt failure because of some ignorant egghead who drove it into the ground and it will look and sound like it’s about to die because of, once again, bad repairs. I bought a used 2006 Civic in perfect shape, but only because it was a lease turn-in. I will assume you are a GM fan and like to take your car(s) to have major repairs done on them every week or so.
There are crap-tons of this era Honda running around here. They are the true Northwest cockroach.
As far as being a car and just a car, you can’t beat em. One of the finest ever.
Although Vancouver may have lots of this generation Accord, I rarely see any in Buffalo or Toronto for that matter due to rust. Mechanically impeccable, they still had corrosion issues. Always started at the trailing edge of the rear fender above the bumber. Salt and dirt collect on the ridge and it starts. Even contemporary Hondas rot here. You would think they would have solved this by now.
Show me any 22 year old car in Toronto that doesn’t have rust issues.
I found it interesting that my years spent in Cleveland (1997-2002), when we made numerous trips to Ontario, you could tell the difference in salt (and traction – for the better) once you crossed the bridges from Buffalo/Niagara Falls into Ontario . . . . seems Ontario used a tad more road salt than New York State/Pa/Ohio . . . . bad for bodies, but good for traction.
After a winter trip to Ontario, upon returning to Ohio, I’d go to the neighborhood BP station that had a garaged type underebody car wash – with warm water – and blast out the underside. Or, at home, if the weather wasn’t freezing . . .
Righty-o. The rust begins there because that’s where Honda put a METAL bolt through the rear fender to hold the plastic bumper up behind the wheel. That’s also the spot where road grime (with high doses of Sodium!) collects.
You don’t see a Honda ’round these parts over 10 years old without the tell-tale sign.
I mean, its the simple solution, but absolute rust magnet. Stainless steel would have added, oh, $2?
I have slathered this area on my ’02 Civic with roofing tar 🙂
Well, learning about corrosion resistance has been OJT for Japanese engineers. (At least they’ve made strides; it took the Japanese brands to force Detroit to stop with the snide giggles about fast repeat buyers due to rust, to actually addressing the problem).
The first generation Civic was so much a rust magnet that in five or so Midwestern years it would become a death trap. It was SO bad that about 1982, Honda bought back large numbers of them. How many? I don’t know; there was a rice-paper curtain of silence over it. But a local Pontiac/Honda dealer had about twenty old Civics in the back of his lot that fall. Me, being on foot, made inquiries; and was told that those cars were not for sale. Honda had peeled off the VIN numbers and destroyed the titles and they were for the crusher.
No car is perfect. Honda comes as close as any make, in many different parameters. Or so I hear; I’ve never owned a Honda.
But owner loyalty in large numbers doesn’t come from nowhere.
JPT, you are correct about owner loyalty. It is for a reason and that reason, for me anyway, is Honda cars have always given me a nice car that is nice to drive and doesn’t fall apart the second the warranty is up.
Honda cars are not perfect but the ones I have had have been close to it.
Exactly. UAW and Hyundai internet shills can’t undo that our 2004 Acura TSX, 2007 Civic Si sedan, and 2012 CR-V have combined for two unscheduled dealer visits. The TSX had a recall back in the day and the dealer stuck the state inspection sticker directly over the CR-V’s climate control external light sensor. That’s it for more than 13 years of Honda car ownership. In less than 5 months, my company’s 2012 Audi A6 has been to the dealer twice just for TPMS issues. On the way to the dealer the second time I got another warning for ‘Audi Side Assist Malfunction,’ right after canceling the warning for low wiper fluid(it wasn’t low) triggered by driving up an entry ramp.
The best mechanics I’ve met only recommend two cars, no matter what puts bread on their table or they play with in their spare time. The other one is Toyota. Working as a service writer in an all makes shop a few years ago, the only problem I ever saw with Hondas was that some of our junior techs would break off the hood release lever on older Civics when they came in for oil changes. I can’t recall ever ordering anything other than a hood release lever, oil filter, or air filter for one. Detroit, Europe, and Nissan did not measure up. Subarus had AWD drivetrain issues and expensive maintenance right when they weren’t worth spending money on. I can understand people being unhappy with the types of cars Honda chooses to make and chooses to stop making. Pretending that they aren’t still one of the best cars is ridiculous though.
“Working as a service writer in an all makes shop a few years ago, the only problem I ever saw with Hondas was that some of our junior techs would break off the hood release lever on older Civics when they came in for oil changes”
Hondas are good cars, but you must have turned a blind eye to their early efforts with the four- and five-speed automatics coupled to V6 engines. Toyota automatics behind their V6s are essentially bulletproof and have been forever.
Wow, thanks for the trip down Memory Ln. with this!!!!
I remember excitedly reading the “Motor Trend” review of the 1990 Accords in the library of my high school. It was December 1989 and my Dad had announced we would soon be freed from a life of crappy Iron Duke-powered A-bodies and would be getting a new LX sedan. Dark gray automatic.
I learned to drive in that car. I went on my first date in that car. And I bought my own Accord a few years later, a used 1992 rosewood LX 2-door with a 5-speed, because of how much I enjoyed and admired what Honda had done with this generation.
It was funny how both Dad’s 1990 and my 1992 had the same foibles:
-Power antenna failure. Dad lived with his; I bought a new cable and regulator and fixed mine myself. That broke again about 10,000 miles later.
-Broken A/C knobs. Super glue to the rescue!
-Cracked inside driver door handle mounts. These were probably my fault, since I’d learned to defeat the door lock/ignition key interlock by holding the handle open while hitting the power lock button. (No need to then lock the car with the key from the outside.) This was again repaired by removing the handle assembly and rigging a makeshift brace with styrene plastic and Super Glue.
-Warped clock housings. Honda used VERY thin plastic on the surrounding lip, that was no match for the Southwestern sun.
The only mechanical problems we experienced on our Accords were related to the weak alternators. Dad’s failed at 80,000 miles, and was replaced free of charge under a “hidden” recall. Mine started to go at 65,000 miles and was replaced under the same (now public) recall.
It was also possible to “cancel” the cruise control by hitting the Resume and Set buttons at the same time.
Dad wound up putting over 230,000 miles on the gray Accord. I traded mine in at 93,000 for a… ugh… Saturn.
P.S. It’s interesting to see the differences between US-spec and Canadian Accords. The front and rear fascias, side mouldings, and wheel covers on this example were only available on US Accords after 1992. That was also the same year the driver airbag was made standard.
The Canadian cars came from Japan until 1993. The Accord was seen as a premium brand in Canada at the time and commanded relatively high prices. My experience is the Japanese made cars of the era were slightly better, especially in interior quality. A stripper Accord was close to double the money of a Tempo with automatic and air.
That said, the weather here is notoriously dim and grey. There is not a lot UV getting into any car here, even if it is parked on the street. For this reason, things like interiors and clear-coat tend to last longer.
Finally, Vancouver and Vancouver Island have very little cold weather, so very few road salt days every year.
It is indeed very rare, even in the desert around Albuquerque, to see such a well-preserved example of this generation of Accord. While we don’t have road salt to worry about, most Hondas of this vintage have either been run into the ground following years of resale from BHPH lots, or riced out.
Both of ours were Marysville cars, and apart from the issues I mentioned the interiors were impeccably finished. I especially liked the cloth seats used in my ’92, which seemed a bit more luxurious than what the 1990 had. Then again, this could also be a matter of perception, since we were coming from Cieras and Centurys.
Three more bits of Accord minutiae:
-IIRC, 1990 was the only year for this generation that had a selectable “Sport” mode with the automatic. The telltale “S” light is to the right of the shift quadrant display on the instrument panel.
-On both the 1990 and 1992, the front door mouldings faded much more quickly than the rear door/quarter strips of black plastic. I believe these were made with a different (denser?) plastic than the other mouldings.
-Speaking of the mouldings, the US-spec 1990 and 1991 models used somewhat thicker rub strips than the ’92-’93s. The earlier strips also had a subtle groove at the bottom that was absent on later cars.
People in desert states tend to drive a lot more than we do here. A Vancouver car often doesn’t see 10,000 km a year. This is a major reasons there are so many old Hondas around. Of course the mild climate and that helps a lot, too.
All of my Accord experience was in the prior generation – the 88 Accord LX sedan with an automatic that I married along with Mrs. JPC. Frankly, I thought that the 90-93 generation were just a bit off from the one I had. I thought that the styling on the 90-93 was just a bit plain, not quite as stylish as the prior generation. However, mechanically, ours was virtually perfect, and I have always understood that this car’s generation was just as good. Also, these did not rust as badly as the 86-89, and are around my area in much greater numbers than are the older ones.
Actually, my father bought a white 91 LX sedan. He had ridden in our 88 and I’m pretty sure that my younger brothers worked on him. This was the first non-Ford he had bought since shortly after I had been born. He drove it for about 2 years, and had zero issues with it. Unfortunately, he totalled it in an accident. He claimed that he got more money from the insurance company than he had paid for the car new. Then he bought another Taurus. He said that the Honda was a very good car, but he just never felt at home in it.
Completely agree with everything you said. The 4th generation Accord was when Honda really hit the home stretch of moving from their “quirky”, cycle-esque beginnings and into “whitebread” family sedan sales juggernaut mode. The driving experience was also a little more visceral on the previous generations, IMO, but those were smaller cars with tinier motors and quicker gearing that demanded lots of revs to get the most out of them. The F-series 2.2l was like a torque-y big block in comparison!
Of course, I still do think these look outstanding and despite my personal preference, I would make the argument that these were objectively the greatest cars Honda ever built or will build. It’s either this or the ’92-’00 Civic (two different generations, but very similar underneath) as far as I’m concerned.
In my neck of the woods, ’90-’93 Accords were unbelievably popular when new and they’re still a very common sight. New York City and it’s surrounding suburbs had fully embraced Japanese cars by the early 90’s and to a large degree have never looked back (e.g.: I didn’t see a Chevrolet Cruze on the streets until almost a year after they debuted!) The ability to resist rust was much stronger with these than any previous Hondas (although they still weren’t totally immune) and as long as the tinworm stays at bay, they just run forever and stay in one piece without any drama – despite some ludicrous claims to the contrary. The biggest enemy 4th gen Accords ever had was probably the movie Fast & Furious and Manny, Moe & Jack. When I see one of these trashed, nine times out of ten it’s done up in rice rocket garb. Guaranteed, more have been taken off the road due to the misadventures of “JDM, yo!!” bros than mechanical problems or rust combined!
Absolutely right about ricers ruining these wonderful cars. I just cant get why you would replace good quality parts with junk cheap Chinease built “Speed” parts
This has always been my favorite Accord – bluish-green, please (weren’t they all?).
Perfection? I don’t know about that, but those cars were not well-designed for back seat passengers. Not much room, and the small high sill cutout was tough getting in and out of. A friend owned one of these and the exterior proportions were almost perfect, but I favor our 1990 Plymouth Acclaim for proportion, ease of entry/exit and general favorable living conditions in the back seat over the Honda any day.
However, I have a feeling the mechanicals were better. though we traded our Acclaim in 2000 after 10.5 years and 138K miles.
These old Hondas last quite well and have a reputation for not having any faults mind you all ours are Japanese built but then intake gasket failures are unknown too on GM 3800s and there are plenty of both still roaming wild here
My oldest son bought one of these last year – a loaded ’93 Accord SE with the VTEC engine. It was one-owner, very well kept and had all of 78,000 miles when he took possession. So far it’s been good.
Based on what I’ve read and heard, these Hondas were about the last generation of the indestructible ones. Seems like all the imports started to compromise, decontent and slide from this point forward.
It not be possible to decontent my 1990 Accord to save production costs. This is because there was no content to remove, not even a radio.
We bought a new Seattle Silver EX 5-speed sedan in November 1992 – the last 5-speed ’92 car on the lot. When we sold it in 2001 it had 245,000 miles on the original engine and clutch. I suspect that’s all I need to say about its general reliability except that we did have to replace one igniter. The blah color was more than made up for in my mind by the deep maroon interior. I loved the flexibility of the eager 4-banger and the 5-speed. While no sports car it definitely beat most sedans in fun-to-drive quality.
The car lived outside its entire life – old convertibles and ex-cop cars got the garage space – and it did develop a small rust-out above the right rear bumper (and exhaust outlets), and a couple on that side on the inside of the deck lid. Bodywise it had the roughest life of any of our cars – my wife hit a deer with it – a glancing blow that only dented the hood and didn’t crack the windshield. And it was sideswiped on the passenger side by a California driver who forgot how wide his house trailer was and couldn’t understand why my wife was obeying the speed limit. Both right doors were replaced, and the rear quarter was straightened, with no apparent effect on the car’s body integrity.
Although rust has gotten to them, especially around the fenders, these Accords remain at least a regular sight in the Northeast. They are not everywhere in the same way the ’92-’96 Camry or even the ’94-’97 Accord is, but still fairly common. In contrast, the ’89-’94 Nissan Maxima is all but gone (weak transmissions, probably).
These Accords were well-loved by their owners for good reason, and all of the owners I know developed an emotional attachment to their cars – they had a hard time letting the cars go!
These were good cars but there’s quite a bit of rose-colored-glasses nostalgia-waxing going on here. While simple, honest, and reliable, these were tinny, low-powered, and not very refined. For a typical 21st century commute, a modern accord (or modern anything) would be immensely preferable to these.
Besides, the ’92 Camry blows this thing out of the water.
Tinny? Low powered? Unrefined? Have you driven one? You have to remember this car competed against the Tempo and Celebrity. Ever driven either of these to compare to an Accord of their era?
Oddly enough I have driven a ’91 accord base model AND an old tempo (no century, is a k-car similar enough?). Comparing apples to apples these are damn good cars from their era, though I stand by my statement, although maybe I should add a qualifier: If you rode in one of these today, you’d find it to be tinny, low-powered, and unrefined. People generally remember their old cars fondly, forgetting about their shortcomings (no duh, right?). That’s all I’m trying to say.
Really though, the ’92 camry came out and shat all over this thing… and almost anything comparable on the road. Same with the ’92 (is that the right year?) corolla. Those cars compare far more favorably against modern cars than this generation of accord, and are at least as reliable.
Well, given that it hasn’t been THAT long since I had my Accord, I don’t remember it being tinny or underpowered. Even at 10 years old, it could hold it’s own quite well…even loaded with 5 guys ranging from 5’7 to over 6 feet tall AND their bookbags. Even then it could still pull up a steep hill without the slightest hint of difficulty.
That car would beast anything with an inline 4 or a V6 off the line. It went through a field (youthful exploits), went through country roads, and interstate driving.
I thought that generation of Camry was awkward, with power window controls low on the doors. The Corolla of that time period is great, but has nowhere near as much power as the Accord. My best friend has one, and had it at the same time I had my Accord. We switched cars regularly and to this day she’ll talk about how much she misses the pick up my car had.
I remember shortcomings quite well, though there were few. It would randomly shut off sometimes when starting from a stoplight, I had to replace the CV boots and brakes a few times, the thermostat went out, and it shocked me mercilessly every winter.
And, actually, maybe it’s just where I am, but you see many, MANY more 90-93 Accords running around than you do old Camrys and Corollas.
It was the 1993 Corolla. Had a 94,95, and a 97. Wonderful car that they screwed up with the ’98 thru ’02.
There is just something about a vehicle that keeps on quietly doing it’s job. Harder to find in this day of smog checks but I have a long list of Nissans that did the same thing. Currently have 50k on my cube and it seems to thrive on being ignored.
The only Honda I ever owned was a lemon. an 83 accord. However, I think the quality of my mechanics may have contributed.
Par chance, just how old was that 1983 Accord when you got it and who was wrenching on it?
Oh, the memories this entry brings back.
My first car was a 1993 Accord LX (US-spec). It was nothing special, but everything special at the first time. The first time I really noticed this car, I didn’t like it. I remember walking back from McDonald’s with a young neighbor and saying “that’s the kind of car I want, but not that color. I don’t like the interior.” About two weeks later, I saw it with a For Sale sign. I knew it belonged to a family friend, dad called, and $3500 later I was the proud owner of a 10 year old Honda with 96,000 miles.
When I first sat in that car, I knew it was the right car for me. Was it a looker? No. The paint was awesome, though. Phantom Gray Pearl they called it. No one could ever agree on what color my car was because it seemed to change with the amount of sunlight. It drove well, got good gas mileage, and took all of the abuse a 16 year old guy could dish out. Indeed, a fine specimen of an automobile. I should never have sold it to buy a truck, which was shortly sold in favor of another 10 year old Honda with only 48,000 miles.
Like Rob said above, these cars could have some interestingly and somewhat eerie connections. My friend’s mom also had a 93, though a five speed. Almost everything that happened to one would happen to the other within a couple of months. I remember two weeks before senior prom she told me her rear window motor died. I said “watch, mine’s going to die on prom night.” Lo and behold, on my way to my date’s house the motor died. I utlimately ended up forcing the window up by hand in my tux. Come to find out (after selling mine) that both cars were built in April 1993.
I could go on and on about the stories and memories I have with that car, but alas, I’m not writing an article on it. Though I totally would if given the oppurtunity. :-p
We’ll just say that one of my biggest regrets was selling it, even to a friend. And an even bigger regret was not forcing the issue with my parents two years later when I had the option to get it back.
When you say no power anything, I assume this doesn’t mean power steering?
Did the Accord suffer from poor front suspension travel as the Civic did, due to the low hood line? There’s no doubt this model was a high point, but was there any area that the next model was a backward step?
My dad had a 90 for a while, and my friend’s dad in high school had one from the generation after that. The newer generation didn’t look as good to my eyes (the 90-93 were just cleaner looking). But the interiors were improved, the engines were improved, the features were improved, it got its first (albeit small) V6. I have a general impression that they began taking steps back with the 7th generation North American Accords (although the beltline had begun to rise before that, reducing the ideal greehouse of the 90-93 and 94-97 models). The 7th generations just seemed to become bloated, and now the cars are enormous. I suppose most “midsize” sedans these days can be the recipient of such criticism.
This is one of the “perfect” generation Accords, beaten only by the ’98-’02 (with the weak transmissions). I’m a huge fan of the first gen Odyssey as well…
Egad! 72 comments on a 1990 Honda Accord.
Doooohhh! Make that 73.
I’ve not read every comment, but that’s a 1992 or 1993 Accord in the pictures.
I had a 93 EX Coupe. I bought it used with about 34,000 miles. It was my first of many Hondas. It was a good car, but far from perfect. I had to replace the steering rack at 45,000 miles (leaked fluid all over the garage), and the front struts at 80,000 miles. The power antenna broke, but was easily replaced with a manual one. I never found the front seats to be very comfortable. I gave the car to my son. He drove it for a few years and had a few issues with it that came with age. I think he sold it about 130,000 miles. It needed some minor work as he had not maintained it very well once he left home.
I am a current 3rd owner of a 92 LX 5 speed with almost 210,000 Miles on it and it is by far the best car Ive owned in terms of quality. It is also growing on me and I am in love with it, but in my area rust has taken its fair share and the other ones are poorly modified to worthlessness. Why anyone would replace quality Honda parts with Ebay crap is beyond me but they do it a lot. Shifting has proven less smooth for me then others have but I realized the Honda has a fine touch for clutch where as other manuals I drove needed no such care. Engine sound is amazing as is handling for a mid size car, nice options as well were avaliable and interiors seem tough as nails lots of them look like new with only modest care or cleaning.