Originally posted by 94UhkordGuy
Who cares who builds what, and who their target audience is. I certainly do not think HONDA!!! when i hear performance engines. Yes, Honda/Nissan may have more HP, but they have always been regarded as LESS refined than a Toyota. People have always complained about poor interior plastics etc... in Hondas. Regardless if Toyotas engines arent the fastest around, they are still great engines. They have just the right amount of power for who will be buying and driving. The camry V6 is in no way underpowered, nor is the new 157HP 4cyl VVT-i. I doubt a family looking for a midsize sedan is going to be comparing 1/4 mile times, or 0-60. Toyota doesn't have the fastest cars, nor do they want to. They are reliable, smooth, quiet, and just about perfect. Honda has always had loud, high-revving 4cyl engines. How long did they wait to bring a V6 into the Accord? 1995? And when they did, they were way behind the competition. Toyota had offered a V6 camry for quite a while before that. And when Honda did finally bring the V6 to the accord, it was a weak engine. In 1992 when Toyota released Gen 2 Camry, it had the 188HP V6 avail with 5spd. It had everything over the Accord. Car copmpanies play a game of cat & mouse, and the lead goes back and fourth and always will. Face the facts, theirs always gonna be pros/cons of each car company, and no need to put one another down just because they may have an advantage here or there. Post this same thread in a Toyota Enthusiast forum, and you will have a good argument on both sides. Toyota isnt really regarded as "rice" like hondas are, and always will be, becuase little kids go out and buy them, when they cant afford a Toyota.
sean
Cheap plastics, eh? GM is just NOW getting to where the Accord was in 1989! Seems like people forget the Acura Legend..... 200-220 hp V-6 and available six speed stick, and that engine didn't even have VTEC. The "rice" which you refer to are kids who buy old Civics, Preludes, CELLICAS, and MR2's to soup up. And now that the Accord V-6 will have 240hp and a six speed available, you need to buy a Lexus to have a Toyota product keep up with it. In the last 5 years, Honda has become the elite combination of perfomance, quality, and value. Sure, you can get a BMW for better performance and quality, but you need bokoo bucks to get even a cheap one...... ever notice how a $17,000 Civic is MUCH more refined and far better performing than pretty much anything else in the price range?