The Honda Accord is the perfect car for a college student. I have had this car for almost a year, and besides an oil change, have had no problems. My Accord is a little different than most. It is a 1994, but has over 180,000 miles. It was bought new by one of my cousins, and once he bought a new car, the Accord became mine. Even the high mileage doesn't seems to effect the car. The mechanics at the dealer say they normally see Accords get to 300,000 miles, and when I took it in they were working on one Accord with 400,000 miles. The engine is louder than normal, but in my 10 months with the car, I really haven't had any problems outside of normal maintenance.

This car is great for college students or young families because it is a great size, and is very worry free. The back seat is roomy for its class; four adults can be comfortable on a road-trip. The center arm rest in the back seat really makes the back much more comfortable. This small accessory really makes the back seat easier to sit in while riding for a few hours. Speaking of road trips, this car has very surprising gas mileage. In the city, I get only 20 mpg, but on the highway, even driving at 80-85 mph, I average at least 35 mpg. At this speed, the car isn't quiet, but the wind noise is less than most other mid-size cars I have been in.

The engine is really the main problem I have with this car. The Accord is powered by a 2.2L twin-cam in-line four. I have the LX. The EX, which I recommend, has just over 150 horsepower compared to the 130 in the LX. The LX can get up to speed if you push it, but I try not to push my car unnecessarily because of its high mileage. If you have a chance to choose between the EX or LX, I would strongly recommend the EX. When I am merging onto the highway, I wish I had those extra 20 horses. Starting in 1995, this car was also offered with a V6. Most V6 Accords I see also come with leather and a sunroof, so expect to pay quite a bit more than a regular LX or EX.

The handling and suspension of this car is a step above most cars in this class. The steering is excellent; the turning radius is surprisingly small, and it is nimble around turns. But, this car is no sports car. It is nimble enough to feel like a smaller car and give the driver ease around turns. I get the impression that the Accord is designed to make driving easy on the driver and satisfy everyone while not infatuating anyone. For example, if I had an Accord with a V6, or I worked on the engine to increase the horsepower, it would be fast, but it wouldn't be much fun.

The interior quality is very high. The climate controls are mounted high, and are very easy to understand. The main flaw is that the rear defroster is hidden by the turn-signal stick. The speedometer and tachometer display are also very clear to read, and have a very visible lighting system at nights. I bought an after-market CD player for this car. The CD player in the car was not working, so I replaced it. I chose an Alpine system since this car has all Alpine audio equipment standard. Since most of the systems I was considering were the same price, I went with this to keep all the audio equipment the same. The seats are very comfortable, and visibility out of the car is also great. The car has a very short and high rear deck-lid, so I often have problems parallel parking. I always have more room than I think in the back.

Overall, this car will satisfy everyone. I would like it to have more power, but in this price range, I would probably give up more than I would get it I found a comparable car with more power (minus an EX). The Accord does everything good, and besides reliability doesn't do anything excellent. Everyone will be happy with this car, but fewer will love this car. I am very happy with it, but when it comes time to buy a new car, I will probably look for something different. For college students, who are low on money, this is a low cost car. You can expect to keep it for a very long time, and not have many repair bills. Any young or new driver will be very happy with this car, and your parents will be able to buy it and have no worries about car problems.
Amount Paid (US$): 3,000
Condition: Used
Model Year: 1994
Model and Options: LX, power everything