Hello fellow members,

I've done some research on the Accord Hybrid issues and difficulties, but I thought I'd inquire specifically from you guys since y'all actually own them.

I just got financing approved to buy an 05 Accord Hybrid with 169k miles on it. I have driven the car--it is nicer on the inside than my 06 Ridgeline (which is nice. . .) and it drives very well. Everything behind the wheel seems to perform as it should, and I have not noticed any obvious problems with a defective ANC coming through with rumbling bass sound.

Anything else I should be majorly concerned about before I take delivery?

Thanks!

 

Well, I picked up the car Monday and filled up for the first time. I'm currently sitting at about half a tank of gas with about 225 miles on the trip meter. Not too bad considering I'm having to show the car to everyone in my family and give out a few test drives. So I figure I'll get past this first tank of gas with only around 26 mpg's or so--once I get the novelty out of my system I can shoot for higher FE on subsequent tanks.

No problems to report on anything drivetrain related, however, I've replaced the high-mount stop light bulb and there are a few minor non-working issues that I'll work on--12v sockets don't work, drivers seat does not recline, drivers door lock will not go up or down with the power lock button. . . minor problems on an otherwise STELLAR vehicle.

One goofy note--I checked the air in my tires and found them all to have about 55-56 psi each!! HOLY COW!! Also, the front tires are not stock size--they are 205 55r16's instead of what they should be (215 60r16's I think. . .) Hopefully someone got a good deal on them and I'll just shoot for the correct size upon replacement. I dropped the pressure down to 40 psi on the tires and keep up on checking them for the next week or so. . .

 

I have the regular version of the '05 Accord. You may not be aware that the power to the outlets stays on for only 10 minutes without the key on. I got fooled by that one once before. They are only rated for 10 amps (120 watts total) so it's easy to blow a fuse.

As far as your tires are concerned, you are right that they should be 205/60 - 16". I would suggest moving them to the rear. The ones you have are about 3% smaller diameter which increases the revs per mile. Never mix sizes on the same axle. 40 psi is about as high as I would tend to use.

Cheers,

Roger

 

The sad part is anyone with a regular 4 cyl accord manual or auto who only slightly knows what they are doing will get better FE all day long. I owned a regular accord 4 cyl auto 2005 before my girl and I got our 2008 Nissan Altima hybrid. I am curious how much you payed. For the record, while it will take a bit longer to get there, my regular 05 4cyl auto accord did hit 130mph on the flat. I have driven the hybrid accord before and it is capable of 40 plus but you must be very gentle on the throttle or else you are driving a 6 cyl fuel sucking pig. As far as I'm concerned, the accord hybrid is nothing more than a six cyl rocket ship with the word "hybrid on the back. Just has honda can program a car to shut off at lights, I can turn my key... Adding an ima system to a 240hp engine is a waste as far as I'm concerned. But yes, you must be very light on the thorttle to be in 3 cyl mode.

 

I assume that most people choose to drive a hybrid vehicle for a variety of reasons. I looked at several calculations based on the needs of my family at this moment in time to see how I could improve my monthly cash flow. I have been driving a Honda Ridgeline for the last 3 years because I went into Roofing Sales back in 2008, and needed a truck that would get the job done. I loved my truck, but the gas mileage (being that I'm a lead foot and LOVE driving that smooth 3.5L v6. . .) was only around 15mpg. That was driving it as gently as I could drive the thing. After taking the last year out of the field and teaching High School Math, I am now back in the field again doing outside sales. Since I am reimbursed for mileage, the math works up to be about $800/month. Last month with the RL, I spent $580 in gas driving about 2050 miles plus my truck payment of $368 for a grand total of $948--which leaves me nothing left over to pay for the high cost of maintenance my truck will have to endure.

So as I looked at the options of vehicles that would improve my cash flow but be comfortable for me in my job and my family, I originally looked at the older model Accord 4-cylinders. The manual transmission 2005 gets almost 30 mpg and the auto 2005 gets over 26 mpg. Then I noticed that they first made the Accord Hybrid for 2005, and it got just over 30 mpgs. . .and it came with optional Navigation. . .and I found one locally with high mileage for only $8700 that is in unbelievable condition. . .so I got financing on about $6700 (trade difference after applying my RL equity) for 2 years (which is what I had left on my RL) with a payment of $315/month (which, again, is about $50 less than the RL.)

So, my particular formula I'm now looking at is a car that gets about twice the FE of my Ridgeline (should be about $290/month for gas given the same parameters) with $50 less of a monthly payment (at $315) for a monthly total of only $605 which is about $350 LESS per month compared to my RL. Realistically, I should be looking at around $200/month I can save towards maintenance which I had no chance of doing with the RL.

Are there MANY other cars (particularly hybrids) that could do the same for me (or better?) Of course! However, a couple of things--first, I am a Honda guy. My first Honda was a 2000 Accord Special Edition, then we bought a 2004 Pilot, and then my 2006 Ridgeline. I love the layout, the reliability, the value, the company. I just love their products and am very familiar with them. Does this give me a bias toward their cars? ABSOLUTELY! But here's the second thing--I'm also 6'4", so having a car that I fit into comfortably is very important and virtually eliminates many hybrid choices that would get much better gas mileage than the HAH. It also eliminates lots of non-hybrid choices out there that are perfectly viable options for what I was trying to do.

So, the bottom line for me is that I bought a car that is totally perfect. . .for ME. It fits me comfortably, it was the right price, and it doubles the gas mileage I was getting with my RL. I'll have it paid off in 2 years (or sooner. . .) It has the navigation that I happen to use all the time (I live in Arlington but work outside sales in Dallas.)

And the fact that it is CERTAINLY a six cylinder rocket ship with the word 'hybrid' on the back is right up my alley! It's got it ALL!

 

Hi Jeff,

As an accountant I applaud your analysis that led you to your decision to get the Accord hybrid. Like you, we find the car is very comfortable on the highway.

While my Accord is the 4 cylinder model, there are a few things I've learned to improve my mpg. One thing is to coax the transmission to upshift a soon as possible. If your car is similar to mine it doesn't normally want to shift into 5th until it's going over 40 mph. If you shift from Drive to neutral and back to Drive it will upshift sooner. As long as you stay over about 35 mph on flat roads you can keep the car in 5th. Around were I live there are several roads were this "trick" works very well.

A light foot on the gas will help too. My Civic hybrid has a iFCD that shows how sensitive even the slightest pressure on the gas pedal has on fuel consumption. No matter how efficient a car is your speed always hurts fuel consumption if you go much over 60 mph. I know that traffic speeds often make this difficult to do but some people adjust their routes to avoid the 70-75 mph Interstate traffic flows. Another idea is "drive with load". Keep a steady gas pedal position as you climb a hill, letting your speed drop off a little. Avoid cruise control on hills as it keeps adding throttle to maintain, and sometimes "overshoot", the set speed.

For comparison, we can get 35 mpg on the highway with the Accord at speeds up to 70 mph without using advanced methods. My Civic hybrid will do 60 mpg at steady 55 mph but this drops quickly as speed increases so my highway mpg is often little better than in-town driving (45-50 mpg in summer).

Hope you get the lasting service we have also enjoyed from our several current and previous Honda vehicles.

Cheers,

Roger

 

You will actually get better fuel economy and much longer tire life at 55-60psi. The burst pressure of a tire is actually five times the sidewall pressure so 55-60 psi is totally safe. I routinely get 80-90k miles on a set of tires on my prius using this pressure. 40 psi should be an ABSOLUTE minimum. Currently 275k miles on my 2005 prius so far so good same batteries.

 

Hmmm... I own a 2006 Accord V6 6MT sedan and a 2006 Accord Hybrid. Both are driven with same driving style and almost identical routes. I do not hesitate to push the engine and wouldn't consider myself to be easy on throttle. Over roughly 40,000 miles I have consistently seen hybrid return 4.6 mpg more in mixed driving and 6 more on the highway (doing 78-80mph). So the "hybrid" badge does seem to translate to something in real life.

 

I was comparing the 4cyl to the hybrid. The hybrid will do better than a regular v6 but the average person who slightly knows what they are doing will be better off in a regular 4cyl. For the advance hypermiler, the 4cyl will always win.

 

And an average person who slightly knows what they are doing will do as well with Accord Hybrid as they would with 4 cylinder, and still have some serious power available on demand. I get 25 mpg in the city with lots of red lights, without using any hypermiling techniques and without being light on accelerator. I get 38-39 mpg on the highway running A/C full blast and doing 80mph. How does that compare to 4 cylinder when 4cyl is driven the same way?