| BlueStreak |
After 192,320 miles we say good-bye to our trusted friend, a 1994 Honda Accord Sedan EX. After being hit (while parked) by a 16 year old girl driving 17 year old boyfriend's 1998 GMC pick-up, the damage was too much for me to keep. I could have kept and fixed, but the hidden damage in the wheel well was likely going to be more than I wanted to spend. So today it's headed to the auction house and I'm taking the insurance settlement.
Interestingly enough, the Accord required minimal maintenance and was almost all original, beyond the parts that you would normally replace. Transmission was original as well, having received regular fluid changes.
This car was hit a total of six times during our time with her and the resale value always justified getting repairs performed. Most repairs were small anyway (under a couple thousand $$) so it made sense to keep it. Paid $18,700 for the car new in 1994 and insurance paid me $4,000 for it. Total cost of ownership for this vehicle was pretty darn good. And she provided MANY years of reliable service. Got one daughter through high school and into college and the other daughter is about to leave high school.
In with the new is a 2007 Honda Civic Sedan Hybrid. Honda was offering killer deals on left over 2007 models and killer financing deals so we jumped. I'm tired of sending my $$ to the middle east, so we're going on the conservative side and to help the environment. Haven't had the car long enough to tell mileage and to report on the user experience, but thus far it's been pretty positive.
I'm sold on Honda reliability and servicability. With the exception of timing belts and CV joints, I did everything else to my Accord. We'll see how the Hybrid holds up, how long the batteries last and if the mileage really measures up to the sticker. Plus there is the tax savings I'll take come next April.
One final comment - I have the original window sticker from the 1994 Accord and the annual fuel cost is $750. In 2007 the annual fuel cost of the Hybrid for one year - $750. Who da thought.... |
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| hammermdx |
| Good luck with the new ride, I hope it treats you as well as the old one did!:4: |
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| jhue |
quote:
Originally posted by BlueStreak
We'll see how the Hybrid holds up, how long the batteries last and if the mileage really measures up to the sticker.
In CA, and the seven (?) other states with CA emissions standards, the warranty on the battery is 10 years/150,000 miles. I doubt you will have any problems with it.
There's a cab driver in Vancouver, BC who has put 400,000 km on a 2004 Prius. He had no problems with the powertrain including battery. Toyota ended up buying the car back from him to dismantle and study it, and gave him a new one in exchange. |
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| BlueStreak |
Ya know I saw in the warranty book CA and a few other states offer longer battery warranties, and it's interesting why. So if I move to one of those states does my warranty expand to the longer term? I also wonder if I had a problem later with the batteries if Honda would extend anyway because in another state it would still be under warranty?
I went researching on a couple hybrid forums that there isn't a documented case where there was total battery failure in a hybrid. There are postings from Toyota owners as well as Honda owners. You're right - time will tell.
I just put gas in the car the other day and with less than 500 miles on the car, I filled it up and took 6.7 gallons and drove 307.6 miles. So that is 45.9 MPG. Not bad considering the car is very new. Drove to the beach and the rest was all around town. We're keeping a log book of when we fill, mileage, etc. so we're tracking compared to EPA sticker numbers.
From the Honda website
Its IMA battery pack comes with an 8-year/80,000-mile warranty, or a 10-year/150,000-mile warranty in CA,CT, MA, ME, NY or VT.* See your dealer for details.
Regardless if it gets sticker or not, 45MPG is very nice. :29: |
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