2013 Altima vs Accord vs Others

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Funny thing is I will withhold my judgement on Honda CVT for few years. Using transmission and Honda in single sentence is always dicey proposition :) (But discard what I am saying and do as I do because I did end up purchasing a Honda automatic :)
 
Originally Posted By: Tboss
Originally Posted By: SLCraig
Tough call. They are my 2 favorite cars in the class.
I think if I wanted an automatic car I would go Nissan, and if I wanted a manual trans I would go Accord.
The Camry is so far out of the running it would never even be considered. It is a weak car.
may I ask in what way it's a weak car ????


Go see them for yourself.
Reviews for it are mixed, while reviews for most of the other cars are generally good, especially the Accord. It's not a secret, I hate modern Toyota cars, they used to build nice cars, now everything is bargain basement interior wise at least.
 
Buy whichever one puts a smile on your face. They are all about the same reliability and cost wise, and life is too short to drive something you aren't happy with because everyone tells you it is the safe choice. That safe choice could just as well turn out to be the lemon.

Resale values are based off of MSRP. If you can get a huge discount off of MSRP, you just made a huge dent in resale and a lot of times can be ahead if you're driving a car with average resale that you got a great deal on, vs. paying close to MSRP for a car with excellent resale.

At the end of the day, none of it matters if you are driving a car you don't really like.
 
Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Originally Posted By: smc733
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: smc733
Overall, I'm not very happy with the choices out there,

Is there some reason why you're avoiding Mazda6 that was suggested several times already?


IDK, Mazda has never done it for me, and a lot of people have told me to stay away from Mazda, including some Mazda drivers
smirk.gif



And I bet lots of people told you to go with Toyota Corolla and look how well that worked out for you
wink.gif


The truth is that most mainstream non-luxury brands out there will have pretty much the same reliability and cost of ownership, which are excellent. Sure there are some unknowns like the ne CVT in the Accord, but generally speaking the odds are in your favor.

You seem to be your own enemy when it comes to making this decision. You complain about lack of choices when in fact there are tons of excellent choices out there but you have to step out of your own prejudice against brands and test drive the cars.

How can you make an informed decision when all you’re looking at is two car brands? What do you have to lose by test driving some others mentioned already or domestics? Or are you afraid you’re gonna like them more than you thought?

By the way, my perception of Mazda was the same as yours and I was also told to not buy Mazda but go with the obvious Corolla and Civic. I never had a Mazda before and I probably would not have bought it if it wasn’t for Honda and Toyota dealers making me feel as if they were doing me a favor by allowing me to buy a car from them.
My Mazda 3 is 7 years old with over 100k on the clock with only minor issues. I spent a whopping $160 so far for non-maintenance related repairs, $100 of which was actually my fault for running over a pot hole and busting the engine mount.
On top of that the car drives like a dream, with very good handling and road feel that is mostly absent in the segment. I could not be happier with my choice.

So don’t be stuck on two brands or options like Nav. or sun roofs because they do not add to the driving experience and overall feel of the car. An appliance like car will still be an appliance like car whether it has those options or not.
You’re not pressed for time as your current car is OK so take your time and test drive everything in the segment and you may be pleasantly surprised at the amount of options available that you were not aware of.


Thanks for taking the time to post that, it was super insightful and helpful. I am going to open my eyes a bit, and check out Hyundai, Mazda, Ford and Chevy tomorrow (and I'm telling the dealers up front I do not intend to make a purchase that day, this is purely to see how I feel about their product).

Nav I REALLY want, but I suspect in my 28-30k price range, I can squeeze this in almost any of the cars in this price range.

You make a good point about reliability, sometimes I think the unreliability of domestics is overblown, as is the reliability (and quality - any more plastic, Toyota?) of Japanese brands.

As for the smile on my face, the only car that has REALLY done that was the 200. POWER, a classy/clean look I can't seem to get in this class of car, and features that excited me. It was also the cheapest.

But you guys are all right, since I don't NEED a new car by tomorrow, or next week, or next month, I should have fun with it, test drive each car, get numbers, rate them, then decide.
 
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
I think the Fusion is probably the best looking car in the segment.


Not a bad looking car at all! I think it is the Taurus I must have confused for appearance I didn't like.

That car in a dark metallic gray with Black interior would sure be nice, and the center stack looks pretty clean, too. (My biggest complaint against Hyundai).
 
Originally Posted By: smc733
As for the smile on my face, the only car that has REALLY done that was the 200. POWER, a classy/clean look I can't seem to get in this class of car, and features that excited me. It was also the cheapest.


It looks like the decision has been made for you already. The Pentastar is a fantastic and powerful engine, and the new 6-speed tranny is pretty good if you take over some of the shifting duties from the ECU. The trans programming is focused on getting to 6th gear as fast as possible for fuel economy reasons, and it dampens the driving experience quite a bit even in the T&C that I drove for a week. When I shifted myself, it was a fun vehicle to drive even for a minivan.
 
The best way to buy a new Chrysler would be to find a program car or a demo car with 5-10k miles on it. The depreciation on a new Chrysler will likely be quite steep (especially on a 200, which is popular with rental fleets). Use this to your advantage and buy a lightly used one.
 
Originally Posted By: threeputtpar
Originally Posted By: smc733
As for the smile on my face, the only car that has REALLY done that was the 200. POWER, a classy/clean look I can't seem to get in this class of car, and features that excited me. It was also the cheapest.


It looks like the decision has been made for you already. The Pentastar is a fantastic and powerful engine, and the new 6-speed tranny is pretty good if you take over some of the shifting duties from the ECU. The trans programming is focused on getting to 6th gear as fast as possible for fuel economy reasons, and it dampens the driving experience quite a bit even in the T&C that I drove for a week. When I shifted myself, it was a fun vehicle to drive even for a minivan.


I loved the car, but I'm scared to death of what people tell me about Chrysler (poor resale, but the sale is heavily off MSRP to start), and reliability. I suppose if I get the Lifetime Maxcare, I should be ok.
 
Originally Posted By: smc733
I loved the car, but I'm scared to death of what people tell me about Chrysler (poor resale, but the sale is heavily off MSRP to start), and reliability. I suppose if I get the Lifetime Maxcare, I should be ok.


Don't let the internet horror stories steer you away if you like the car. This coming from someone who owned a real lemon of a 2007 Chrysler minivan . The key to happy vehicle ownership is having a good dealer who will support you and your vehicle. Our local Chrysler/Dodge dealers are quite poor and apparently operate on the understanding that this is a military town, and new customers are literally flown in every day. If you have a good Chrysler dealer new you with a good reputation in town, you have a reasonable expectation that they'll take care of you and your 200 if it needs attention.
 
Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Originally Posted By: smc733
I loved the car, but I'm scared to death of what people tell me about Chrysler (poor resale, but the sale is heavily off MSRP to start), and reliability. I suppose if I get the Lifetime Maxcare, I should be ok.


Don't let the internet horror stories steer you away if you like the car. This coming from someone who owned a real lemon of a 2007 Chrysler minivan . The key to happy vehicle ownership is having a good dealer who will support you and your vehicle. Our local Chrysler/Dodge dealers are quite poor and apparently operate on the understanding that this is a military town, and new customers are literally flown in every day. If you have a good Chrysler dealer new you with a good reputation in town, you have a reasonable expectation that they'll take care of you and your 200 if it needs attention.


There is a dealer that is kind of out of the way (20 miles, not a huge deal), with a super good reputation.

Whatever I buy, I intend to do dealer-service by the book, for at least the first 3 years, so I could just build a relationship with them.

So for now, I'm starting with a base line of the:

Chrysler 200 Limited
Honda Accord V6 EX-L/Nav
Fusion
Sonata
Mazda6
Malibu?

I'm going to keep away from the CVTs, especially with the problems I'm reading about the new Altima (though most seem to be with the 3.5).
 
Some Chrysler products hardly depreciate at all (Challenger). I bought mine used with 6K miles and didn't save that much over new. They gave me a better than new warranty for free, though and I did save about 3K over the best price I could get new. It also gets better than EPA mileage (first Chrysler product I ever had that did that). It gets no less than 23, no more than 29. Not too shabby for basically a fullsize car that has lots of room in the front, runs strong and rides really well.
 
Originally Posted By: smc733
I loved the car, but I'm scared to death of what people tell me about Chrysler (poor resale, but the sale is heavily off MSRP to start), and reliability.

If you're planning to keep it for 10 years, does resale value really matter all that much?
 
A friend of mine just bought the 2013 Accord 4dr Sport with the 6 speed manual gear box. The car is sweeet! The re-design for 2013 is so nice, I hated the previous Accord styling!

That thing rides awesome and the gauge cluster looks fantastic with it's 3 dimensional inlay and cool backlighting!

The legroom is amazing, I fit in the back (6'2" 300lb) without the front seat needing to be moved up.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
However, for the amount of money you would spend on an Accord EX-L I4, I would get a base Camry Hybrid XLE.


This.
 
Originally Posted By: babyivan
A friend of mine just bought the 2013 Accord 4dr Sport with the 6 speed manual gear box. The car is sweeet! The re-design for 2013 is so nice, I hated the previous Accord styling!

That thing rides awesome and the gauge cluster looks fantastic with it's 3 dimensional inlay and cool backlighting!

The legroom is amazing, I fit in the back (6'2" 300lb) without the front seat needing to be moved up.


If I didn't have so much city driving to do, I would consider it.

As it stands, the 6-Cyl EX-L w/Nav is likely out of budget for me.
 
I would be interested in what you think of the new Malibu when you test drive one. Just make sure it's not an Eco model, and maybe if it's in your budget the turbo model with 259hp. I think you have to get them really loaded to get navigation, but they all come with Onstar directions and connections available.
 
Originally Posted By: mechanicx
I would be interested in what you think of the new Malibu when you test drive one. Just make sure it's not an Eco model, and maybe if it's in your budget the turbo model with 259hp. I think you have to get them really loaded to get navigation, but they all come with Onstar directions and connections available.


I'll be sure to post here after I test drive one! I'm excited to try a few different cars tomorrow.
 
Originally Posted By: smc733

I loved the car, but I'm scared to death of what people tell me about Chrysler (poor resale, but the sale is heavily off MSRP to start), and reliability. I suppose if I get the Lifetime Maxcare, I should be ok.


I'd stay away.

http://autos.jdpower.com/ratings/dependability-press-release.htm

Note where Chrysler is.

Here's another: Note only 1 Chrysler is recommended:
http://news.consumerreports.org/cars/201...in-the-usa.html

I'd say they are that bad long term. They never have been that good long term either so it's not like they have had 1 or 2 bad years.
 
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