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talon95
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Assuming there's anyone reading this thread who isn't sick of my ramblings, I can finally make a few comments about handling. I had a chance to drive it on some pretty twisty roads last night and I was most impressed. Going into a turn, body roll and understeer are well controlled. Steering is nicely weighted and very accurate... no problem following a line through a curve. The handling is responsive enough that I kept pushing it harder with complete confidence. It feels more "flingable" than my gen 8 V6 sedan... I don't think it's so much the slightly smaller size of the gen 9 by comparison, but more the fact that having an I4 in my gen 9 makes it less front heavy and better balanced. Shawn made a similar comment in his first drive video of the Sport 6MT. I don't know how different the suspension tuning is between the Sport and the EX (the specs show only 18" wheels and slightly faster steering), so how much Shawn's comments on the Sport model's handling would apply to the EX is unknown. But it felt mighty good to me!
The other thing that works well is the "S" setting for the CVT. When driving on curvy roads, the Sport setting keeps the revs higher than they are in "D" setting, so throttle response is instantaneous. Helps keep things very lively while slicing through curves.
For me, the bottom line from this exercise is that Honda has reaffirmed its sporty side, since a more luxo oriented I4 CVT model turns out to be a pretty entertaining drive. Mind you, I have no illusions about my driving skills... I'm just an average joe who likes to "let her rip" from time to time. I'm sure there's lots of stuff that would be apparent to someone with Shawn's or Jeff's experience that would escape me completely. But as long as I enjoy driving it, I don't have to know all of the details. ;)
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superchg2
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So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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talon95
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Could be. That was part of the reason for my "average joe" comment... my driving skills aren't sophisticated enough to draw any meaningful conclusions. But it seems as if they've done something right!
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JeffX
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superchg2 wrote:
So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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We have said all along that the suspension design would be a nonissue for the overwhelming majority of Accord buyers. It's still better than most of the competitors who also have mcstruts, and that's what matters most.
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98EX4cyl
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Please keep up with the comments/reviews. I'm still reading. Yours and Shaun's real-world driving reviews are what I've been waiting for since news of the CVT, struts and electric assist steering. I too have a 8th gen V6 EX-L and would consider moving back down to a 4cyl for better mpg on my commute.
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superchg2
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Jeff wrote:
superchg2 wrote:
So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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We have said all along that the suspension design would be a nonissue for the overwhelming majority of Accord buyers. It's still better than most of the competitors who also have mcstruts, and that's what matters most.
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Exactly Jeff, but I do get a little chuckle from the enlightened one's comments here at TOV, who have been have been up in arms over the departure of the front wishbones.
:)
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Gfn8r
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Jeff wrote:
superchg2 wrote:
So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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We have said all along that the suspension design would be a nonissue for the overwhelming majority of Accord buyers. It's still better than most of the competitors who also have mcstruts, and that's what matters most.
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Jeff, that!! Right!! There!! ..tells me (and should tell everyone else) what we need to know! 8-D
BTW, test drove a Sport CVT last evening--my impressions here. IMHO, they'd do well to leave the Sport where it is, but offer an upgrade on the other models to the Sport bits, in low-volume or special-order. (Certainly, stuff like the paddle-shifters should be standard on the V6 models, or at least the Touring.) As I've said, they've got to keep SOMETHING for the MMC! :-)
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Gfn8r
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talon95 wrote:
Assuming there's anyone reading this thread who isn't sick of my ramblings, I can finally make a few comments about handling. I had a chance to drive it on some pretty twisty roads last night and I was most impressed. Going into a turn, body roll and understeer are well controlled. Steering is nicely weighted and very accurate... no problem following a line through a curve. The handling is responsive enough that I kept pushing it harder with complete confidence. It feels more "flingable" than my gen 8 V6 sedan... I don't think it's so much the slightly smaller size of the gen 9 by comparison, but more the fact that having an I4 in my gen 9 makes it less front heavy and better balanced. Shawn made a similar comment in his first drive video of the Sport 6MT. I don't know how different the suspension tuning is between the Sport and the EX (the specs show only 18" wheels and slightly faster steering), so how much Shawn's comments on the Sport model's handling would apply to the EX is unknown. But it felt mighty good to me!
The other thing that works well is the "S" setting for the CVT. When driving on curvy roads, the Sport setting keeps the revs higher than they are in "D" setting, so throttle response is instantaneous. Helps keep things very lively while slicing through curves.
For me, the bottom line from this exercise is that Honda has reaffirmed its sporty side, since a more luxo oriented I4 CVT model turns out to be a pretty entertaining drive. Mind you, I have no illusions about my driving skills... I'm just an average joe who likes to "let her rip" from time to time. I'm sure there's lots of stuff that would be apparent to someone with Shawn's or Jeff's experience that would escape me completely. But as long as I enjoy driving it, I don't have to know all of the details. ;)
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I took a Sport out for a brief drive (four miles or so) "around the block" in city driving (full report here, sorry for the length), and noticed that the CVT drives just like a normal automatic, just lacking a couple "expected" upshifts. Being careful not to hoon a car with eight miles on it, I was still able to give a couple 3/4-throttle kicks, and after a "kickdown," the car speed still increased in parallel with the RPMs. @talon95, is this your experience so far? (From what I've read, it seems that a full-throttle application might elicit a little "rubber band" where the revs jump up and hold, and the speed catches up after a bit.)
Also, is there contrast stitching on your leather? The dealer where I tested that Sport sold their first 2013 Accord, a Hematite EX-L V6 NAVI, on Monday evening when I originally stopped in to test-drive a car, and I had a chance to sit in it for a couple seconds. As I've stated elsewhere, the black interior really looks good in this new Accord, and that contrast-stitching really caps it off!
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talon95
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Gfn8r wrote:
Also, is there contrast stitching on your leather? The dealer where I tested that Sport sold their first 2013 Accord, a Hematite EX-L V6 NAVI, on Monday evening when I originally stopped in to test-drive a car, and I had a chance to sit in it for a couple seconds. As I've stated elsewhere, the black interior really looks good in this new Accord, and that contrast-stitching really caps it off!
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No contrast stitching on my leather. My understanding is that it's limited to the Sport model.
Thanks for the great detailed report on your "around the block" test drive! Lots of useful information... :)
Last edited by notyper on 09-22-2012 17:48
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talon95
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Oops, I missed the mention of the EX-L V6 Navi. So you're saying that it has the contrast stitching? I thought it was only the Sport...
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Gfn8r
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talon95 wrote:
Oops, I missed the mention of the EX-L V6 Navi. So you're saying that it has the contrast stitching? I thought it was only the Sport...
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There was white stitching in there, IIRC. Not on every seam, just on the edge of the bolsters, etc.
I wouldn't sweat it though--your car looks badass! (I'd have a black car, but I'm so anal about keeping it up, I'd never be satisfied with it--I'd see EVERY speck of dust, and go through a gallon of detailing spray every week! And since I live in salt-encrusted Northwest Ohio--you do the math! :-p)
Mods, this thread has the "format" issue!
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benbess
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talon95 wrote:
Assuming there's anyone reading this thread who isn't sick of my ramblings, I can finally make a few comments about handling. I had a chance to drive it on some pretty twisty roads last night and I was most impressed. Going into a turn, body roll and understeer are well controlled. Steering is nicely weighted and very accurate... no problem following a line through a curve. The handling is responsive enough that I kept pushing it harder with complete confidence. It feels more "flingable" than my gen 8 V6 sedan... I don't think it's so much the slightly smaller size of the gen 9 by comparison, but more the fact that having an I4 in my gen 9 makes it less front heavy and better balanced. Shawn made a similar comment in his first drive video of the Sport 6MT. I don't know how different the suspension tuning is between the Sport and the EX (the specs show only 18" wheels and slightly faster steering), so how much Shawn's comments on the Sport model's handling would apply to the EX is unknown. But it felt mighty good to me!
The other thing that works well is the "S" setting for the CVT. When driving on curvy roads, the Sport setting keeps the revs higher than they are in "D" setting, so throttle response is instantaneous. Helps keep things very lively while slicing through curves.
For me, the bottom line from this exercise is that Honda has reaffirmed its sporty side, since a more luxo oriented I4 CVT model turns out to be a pretty entertaining drive. Mind you, I have no illusions about my driving skills... I'm just an average joe who likes to "let her rip" from time to time. I'm sure there's lots of stuff that would be apparent to someone with Shawn's or Jeff's experience that would escape me completely. But as long as I enjoy driving it, I don't have to know all of the details. ;)
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Thanks for the reports! Keep em coming....
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Nugstep
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Talon, would you mind giving us your opinion on the smartphone integration? I'm curious as to how well HondaLink works and how useful it is.
I test drove an EX-L today and was impressed, although there was too much traffic on the test drive route so I didn't get much of a chance to get a feel for driving the car. A few things that jumped out at me:
-The interior is nice. Not luxury car nice, but better than the Camry and Altima I drove recently. I personally don't think hard touch plastics are a big deal, but Honda definitely listened to the critics and put in a good amount of materials that look and feel nice. Fit and finish was really good.
-The infotainment system seems oddly sluggish for some things (like changing the audio source) but fine on other things (like changing radio stations). It seems pretty easy to use though. I don't think the sparkly plastic people complain about around the touch screen is that bad. In the non-Navi versions there is a knob and a couple of buttons on the right side of the screen, whereas that spot is empty on Navi versions. So maybe its worse in that case because you'd always have to look at a big blank patch of it.
-The rear passenger space is huge. I'm 6 feet tall and fit very comfortably in the back, with plenty of headroom and legroom after setting up the driver's seat for myself.
-For the parents, the rear seats have 3 LATCH upper anchor points and 4 lower LATCH connector points. This means you can fit 2 car seats by the windows, or one in the middle.
-That dual driver's side mirror is weird. Not sure I'd ever get used to it.
-Lanewatch is awesome. It sounds like it would be pretty cool on paper, and in use it's better than I thought it'd be. It's intuitive and not nearly as annoying as the radar based systems that beep at you.
Overall, I liked it and will probably get one. I just need to do a real test drive to make sure the CVT doesn't annoy me too much.
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talon95
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Gfn8r wrote:
talon95 wrote:
Oops, I missed the mention of the EX-L V6 Navi. So you're saying that it has the contrast stitching? I thought it was only the Sport...
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There was white stitching in there, IIRC. Not on every seam, just on the edge of the bolsters, etc.
I wouldn't sweat it though--your car looks badass! (I'd have a black car, but I'm so anal about keeping it up, I'd never be satisfied with it--I'd see EVERY speck of dust, and go through a gallon of detailing spray every week! And since I live in salt-encrusted Northwest Ohio--you do the math! :-p)
Mods, this thread has the "format" issue!
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Ya know, after you mentioned it, I looked at mine again and the gray stitching does provide a mild contrast against the black leather.
I kind of got caught up in the new car excitement and had to choose between white and black. Had a larger selection been available, I probably would have gone with something else, but with that choice, I took black, because white cars aren't my cup of tea. And I live in salt-encrusted southeast Wisconsin, so I'll be doing more frequent car washes in the winter. My 2003 Accord was the dark green that was so popular then and I survived... ;)
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talon95
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Nugstep wrote:
Talon, would you mind giving us your opinion on the smartphone integration? I'm curious as to how well HondaLink works and how useful it is.
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I got it set up yesterday. It seems to work well enough, but the usefulness is so-so. Aha and Pandora are fine, but I prefer my XM subscription, even though the others are free. There's content that I enjoy on XM that the free sources don't match.
As for social networks, it reads the most recent entries in your Facebook news feed. It's a very robotic voice and would probably get annoying after a while. It goes through tweets from Twitter in, I assume, a similar fashion. Bottom line, I'm not a big social network fan or user, so I'm probably not the best judge of that part of things.
I couldn't get the email/text message reading to work. The option for setting it up was "grayed out". I'm not sure if I did something wrong or if my iPhone isn't supported. I know that they don't have support for everything for all platforms.
So I don't find Hondalink to be terribly useful at this point. If you're a fan of Pandora and/or Aha and a heavier Facebook and Twitter user, you might find it more useful.
Hope that helps...
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DCR
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Jeff wrote:
superchg2 wrote:
So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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We have said all along that the suspension design would be a nonissue for the overwhelming majority of Accord buyers. It's still better than most of the competitors who also have mcstruts, and that's what matters most.
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The overwhelming majority wouldn't know the difference no matter what. The thing that used to matter was that the people who actually knew the difference were impressed by the inclusion.
Think of it as going the extra mile versus just trying hard enough. Eventually, that mentality will turn someone great into someone who was great.
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superchg2
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DCR wrote:
Jeff wrote:
superchg2 wrote:
So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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We have said all along that the suspension design would be a nonissue for the overwhelming majority of Accord buyers. It's still better than most of the competitors who also have mcstruts, and that's what matters most.
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The overwhelming majority wouldn't know the difference no matter what. The thing that used to matter was that the people who actually knew the difference were impressed by the inclusion.
Think of it as going the extra mile versus just trying hard enough. Eventually, that mentality will turn someone great into someone who was great.
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There seems to be more interest in purchasing a new Honda (the Accord) on this forum than I have seen since the Civic Si came out in 2005.
With that said, DCR do you really think the lack of front wishbones over rides all the many improvements they have made on the 9G?
To me, it seems like this is a greater car than the previous generation.
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superchg2
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DCR wrote:
Jeff wrote:
superchg2 wrote:
So, maybe all the upset and hand wringing over the departure of the front wishbones has been a little over done?
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We have said all along that the suspension design would be a nonissue for the overwhelming majority of Accord buyers. It's still better than most of the competitors who also have mcstruts, and that's what matters most.
|
The overwhelming majority wouldn't know the difference no matter what. The thing that used to matter was that the people who actually knew the difference were impressed by the inclusion.
Think of it as going the extra mile versus just trying hard enough. Eventually, that mentality will turn someone great into someone who was great.
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There seems to be more interest in purchasing a new Honda (the Accord) on this forum than I have seen since the 8G Civic Si came out in 2005.
With that said, DCR do you really think the lack of front wishbones over rides all the many improvements they have made on the 9G?
To me, it seems like this is a greater car than the previous generation.
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notyper
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I can't speak for DCR, but I think the problem many people (including me) have with the move to struts is that it is symptomatic of a process of technological dumbing down and cost cutting that is taking place at Honda. Instead of pushing the envelope and differentiating themselves from the competition, it's become more of a "me too" thing and down to who executes better.
I give the Honda engineers kudos for tremendous execution on the Accord. It is definitely best in class. But just like watching a sports hero nearing the twilight of his career, there are signs that sometime soon, maybe not tomorrow, or next week, but soon, that they're not going to be able to answer the bell. The Civic revamp was a stunning knockdown, but they got back up and responded with the Accord. But are they going to stumble again? If you're reading between the lines, you should still be concerned.
In the meantime, the Accord is worthy of praise and if you like it, I'd buy one and enjoy it.
SC
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Gfn8r
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notyper wrote:
I can't speak for DCR, but I think the problem many people (including me) have with the move to struts is that it is symptomatic of a process of technological dumbing down and cost cutting that is taking place at Honda. Instead of pushing the envelope and differentiating themselves from the competition, it's become more of a "me too" thing and down to who executes better.
I give the Honda engineers kudos for tremendous execution on the Accord. It is definitely best in class. But just like watching a sports hero nearing the twilight of his career, there are signs that sometime soon, maybe not tomorrow, or next week, but soon, that they're not going to be able to answer the bell. The Civic revamp was a stunning knockdown, but they got back up and responded with the Accord. But are they going to stumble again? If you're reading between the lines, you should still be concerned.
In the meantime, the Accord is worthy of praise and if you like it, I'd buy one and enjoy it.
SC
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What did Berkman say to you, Jeff and the other media when asked about this kind of stuff (if you folks had the opportunity) at the R&D? Have seen your vids, but Jeff hasn't put his written report up yet (if he intended to in the first place).
What I'd love to be able to do is to participate in some sort of customer/"end-user" "meet & greet" with some of the big Honda muckety-mucks at NAIAS or in Marysville. (Kind of a "Honda user group," like you might have for a software package.) (NAIAS would be right up the road from me, and I'd love to take a couple hot laps around the proving-ground high-speed oval or Mid-Ohio track; while I can't drive a stick, nor have the desire to drive a "ricer" at age 42, I've "lurked" on this board for years, then started commenting a lot after the Accord pix leaked in May. I've seen frustration, I've watched a great car company hit the skids, but as I've stated elsewhere in a reply today, it seems like they've "hit bottom," and are on the way back, tentatively. So I'd welcome an opportunity to sit-in on a discussion with bigwigs and customers. Honda has always been an enthusiast's choice, until the last few years, where they've just about ceded that market for reasons you indicated, and which they still might be doing, Shawn, if I recall your reaction to the Ito presser from the other day: two middle-digits up!)
As Jeff said earlier in this thread, most folks won't care about what the front suspension is made of, and the execution of the struts in the Accord (unlike the Civic) is head-and-shoulders above the competition. As I've also stated in a War And Peace-length thread linked-to in a couple places in this thread, I was impressed enough by a four-right-turn, four-mile trip "around the block" in a CVT Sport with ECO-mode activated (which I had forgotten about) to know that I will be purchasing a new Accord Touring before the weather turns really nasty here in Ohio (and even, after receiving a "free shipping" E-Mail from College Hills, bought a trunk tray for the car, even before I decide for sure when and how to sell my 2006--prep it for private sale or let my broker do a trade).
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notyper
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I've only met Berkman once, and that was years ago. I don't know if Jeff had any one-on-one time at the Accord launch. I would imagine that even if Berkman has some unusual plans, Honda's traditional policy is that you don't speak up about it unless you go through the chain of command.
SC
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Gfn8r
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talon95 wrote:
Gfn8r wrote:
talon95 wrote:
Oops, I missed the mention of the EX-L V6 Navi. So you're saying that it has the contrast stitching? I thought it was only the Sport...
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There was white stitching in there, IIRC. Not on every seam, just on the edge of the bolsters, etc.
I wouldn't sweat it though--your car looks badass! (I'd have a black car, but I'm so anal about keeping it up, I'd never be satisfied with it--I'd see EVERY speck of dust, and go through a gallon of detailing spray every week! And since I live in salt-encrusted Northwest Ohio--you do the math! :-p)
Mods, this thread has the "format" issue!
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Ya know, after you mentioned it, I looked at mine again and the gray stitching does provide a mild contrast against the black leather.
I kind of got caught up in the new car excitement and had to choose between white and black. Had a larger selection been available, I probably would have gone with something else, but with that choice, I took black, because white cars aren't my cup of tea. And I live in salt-encrusted southeast Wisconsin, so I'll be doing more frequent car washes in the winter. My 2003 Accord was the dark green that was so popular then and I survived... ;)
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As I've stated elsewhere, something like that, or Dark Emerald Green Pearl, or even the green that was on the 4th-Gens in '92 and '93 would look great! (Or maybe even the shade on the '91 Accord SEs.) As it is, the Hematite looks good--and it rocks the black interior! ;-)
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talon95
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I started a new thread to highlight the real life MPG results of my first tank of gas. Here's the link:
http://www.vtec.net/forums/one-message?message_id=1098314&page_number=1#1098314
Since there's been a lot of discussion regarding the contenders for best MPG ratings among mid-sized cars, I thought it merited its own thread.
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danielgr
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Why not getting serious about it and participate on TOV's real world FE Data-Base ???
http://www.vtec.net/forums/one-message?message_id=915198
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Trip
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Can you confirm that the 4 cyl EX-L has Homelink?
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talon95
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Trip wrote:
Can you confirm that the 4 cyl EX-L has Homelink?
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Unfortunately, I can confirm that it doesn't. I wish it did.
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Nugstep
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talon95 wrote:
I couldn't get the email/text message reading to work. The option for setting it up was "grayed out". I'm not sure if I did something wrong or if my iPhone isn't supported. I know that they don't have support for everything for all platforms.
So I don't find Hondalink to be terribly useful at this point. If you're a fan of Pandora and/or Aha and a heavier Facebook and Twitter user, you might find it more useful.
Hope that helps...
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Thanks for the update!
According to this link the SMS and email functions don't work for the iPhone:
http://automobiles.honda.com/handsfreelink/find-a-phone.aspx
Searching through other manufacturers, it looks like the feature doesn't work for a lot of phones (including mine). This is a big disappointment, hopefully they improve the compatibility over time.
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Gfn8r
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talon95 wrote:
Trip wrote:
Can you confirm that the 4 cyl EX-L has Homelink?
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Unfortunately, I can confirm that it doesn't. I wish it did.
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College Hills has a "hacked" alternative with a normal garage-door battery provision soldered to the power input here. You'll have to take everything apart when you change the battery--buy a Honda Trim Tool. They may have a video someplace for the 8th-Gens on how to do put the mod in. $210.36 on their site--a little pricey, but if you really want the integrated look, either that or a replacement day/night mirror with integrated HomeLink is the only option. (If you go with mirror replacement, however, you may not get the feature which shuts off the electrochromic function when the car is in Reverse.)
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talon95
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I'm probably a day late and a dollar short, but I finally had the chance to take some better photos of my 2013 EX-L. Hope you like them!
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superchg2
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Very Nice Ride!
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