Yep, I remember your Honda bashing thread back in the day. And yes, you are spoiled.

If you can't afford the insurance, you can't afford the car, and like you said, not to sound harsh.

(all in good fun...I'd probably get a german sedan myself in a couple years. But come on, you can't bash Honda's reliability. 65K miles on my 99, not a single problem, and it gets driven "spirited" everyday. )

 

i'm assuming, then, that you've flushed the transmission fluid out of your transmission without putting any transmission fluid back in? i'm curious to know how that turned out. maybe thats why you have problems with your accord. flushing typically means you drain the entire system and refill it, you know. h:

one bad accord doesn't make all hondas bad. in fact, almost everyone on this board would most likely agree that hondas are some of the mose well built, most reliable cars on the planet. there could be a million reasons why yours didn't turn out the same way.

 

About the trans flush...

Honda advises their dealers not to use a trans flush machine because is usually involves the use of a chemical to aid in the "flush" and because some systems make it difficult or impossible to use the correct fluid (ATF-Z1 is packaged in individual quarts only).

 

Wow! How old are you and what cars have you owned? Cadillac?:lmfao:

Japanese luxury cars? Is Lexus and Acura okay with you or do you only drive top of the line German cars?

Maybe your wife bought a wrecked (again and again) Accord or maybe maitenance was neglected.

 

Well, My 2 cents is that most of the dealer service intervals are a waste of money. You can do most of it yourself (if not all if you are competent mechanically) and even if you don't want to touch your car it should only cost 125-200 bucks at a regular shop for the same thing. 90% of the cars that come in to my shop for service intervals have the original checklists with them of what is supposed to be done, and they are mostly handled by the lube/light mechanical guys. It really is a glorified oil change, with a bunch of checks that most decent shops will do for free (the checks). This is mostly because if any of the checked items need fixing, that shop makes money fixing them after. As far as the tranny flush, we do charge $75 for that, and it is worth doing - but I included that in the 125-200 range figure.

 

Flush means you hook your transmission onto a machine and the machine will filter your transmission fluid while your car pumps the oil through. You can't really do it by yourself unless if you really want to go through some pain. I would suggest for you to study more into transmission flush.

I have accept the truth that my Honda might not be unreliable; it might have been just the design. While everybody claim that their 100k Accord drives like new, I was looking for a new car feel on my wife's car. She has all the paper work to support that she had all of the service done at dealer on time prior to me taking over the car. My car just doesn't please. With my test drives in carmax, I have further confirmed that it is not a car for me due to its harshness.

It is right that I cannot afford the car I have due to spotty driving record (1 pt away from revoke), hopefully in 3 years when my record cleans up, I should be able to do so... Paying >10k/yr for insurance is not my cup of tea...

 

I am 27, I have owned: Chevy Cavilier (first car in high school, don't have too much memory about it though...), Audi A4, BMW 318, Mercedes C320, Volvo 850 Trubo(I know what you are going to say, but it is a dame good car back then when 850 Turbo just came out...) Right new we have a Lexus GS300 and this Accord... The Lexus was interesting though...when I first tried the Lexus, I didn't like it very much, it was too soft then the sales had be tried one with sports suspension, and it was acceptable...

I have to say though, so far my favr. one is A4, too bad it got hail damaged :-( after insurance claim I actually made $ after selling the car... that's why I decided to give Japanese car a try. Good thing I had the Lexus before the Honda, otherwise I might never buy a Japanese car...

As far as the Accord, it was new when she bought it... All of our cars are basically new purchases...

Sigh... if I wasn't so foolish to speed beyond reasonable...

 

Where do you work? K-mart? Even the aftermarket shops in my area charge $100 for a trans flush and about $25 for an oil change. That's already at the low end of your 60K estimate.


Here's a 4 cyl 60K ($350) gets you around here.

Valve adjustment (new valve cover gasket) $80
Brake inspection/tire rotation $35
Air Filter $15
New Spark plugs (non platinum) $50
Brake flush $80
Change trans fluid $55 (A Honda dealer will not flush your trans)
Oil change with Krex fuel/oil additive $35
Inspect exhaust and clamp heat shield if needed.
Inspect and tighten drive belts
Inspect and lube caliper slides
Adjust and clean drum brakes
A general inspection by a tech who knows your car, its service
history and any extended factory warranties it carries.

The lube techs or inexperienced techs DO NOT do this type of service. There would be a f'n mutiny if they did (blood, guts and the service manager's head on a stick). Only OEM parts are used. NO cheap PRESTONE antifreeze (or no name antifreeze) or Fuzz Ball air filters. We don't use $.89 trans fluid ("my trans shifts funny after you did our $125 service"). If we do a brake job, we machine the rotors with an on-the-car lathe (factory recommended) and cheap pads are NOT installed.

 

There's nothing wrong with a Volvo. I used to love those cars (most Volvo owners love their car, too).

Okay. We have a Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Volvo and Lexus owner.
I was associated with BMW for a short time (my favorite car line) and I spent a little time at a Lexus dealership. The one thing that was immediately obvious was a BMW owner and a Lexus owner WILL NOT do their own maintenace and they are prepared to spend top dollar at the dealer. I would think Audi and Mercedes customer's are the same way.

So what's up? That 60K price tag shouldn't be a surprice to you. Or do you jack an Audi in your driveway, climb underneath it and change the trans fluid and engine oil yourself?

 

I said I get coupons, I never said I used them.

Changing my tranny fluid every 30k would be a bit excessis, remember I'm a manual, auto-boy. LOL

Besides Honda changed my fluid for me at 29k under warranty