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Honda Accord Changes through the Generations

26 messages,  Last post on Jan 07, 2008 at 10:34 AM

You are in the Honda Accord Forum.

What is this discussion about? Honda Accord, Classic Cars, Hatchback, Sedan, Wagon

Messages Page 1 of 3

#1 of 26 H U G E Changes in Accord by fourteen14

Oct 06, 2007 (8:02 pm)

Having read all the hoopla about the bigger, stronger, better, prettier 2008 Accord, I thought that it may be fun to step back 32 years to recall how it all started - with the first Accord, the 1976!
 
I bought my shiny new Silver 5-speed in November 1975. Although the sticker price was $3,995 plus $50 Dealer Prep, I had to pay an extra $500 just to get on the waiting list. As it turned out, that was some of the best money I ever overspent!
 
The '76 only came as a two door hatchback in either Blue, Gold, or Silver. A 2-speed semi-automatic transmission was an option for $160, but certainly not on mine! You could also get a roof rack for $47, a tonneau cover for $28, a clock for $26, and bumper overriders (whatever they are!) for $52.
 
The SOHC 1.6L engine produced 68 HP! (Not 268 like the new Accord, or even 168, but 68 little Japanese ponies!!)
 
It sat on 13x4.5J steel wheels with 155 SR-13 radial tires on a 93.7” wheelbase, was 162.8" long, 63.1" wide, and 52.3" high, and weighed 2024# with it’s 13 gallon gas tank full.
 
Only 13 gallons, but EPA said that you could get 31 MPG in the City and 44 MPG on the Highway! (I used to commuted from Saginaw, MI to Rochester, NY at 80-90 MPH, non-stop, on one tank of gas!)
 
Comfortable cloth seats with 36.5" of headroom, manual choke, AM/FM radio, no standard A/C ($370 dealer installed!), no power steering, no ABS, no traction control system (in those days it was called ‘the accelerator’!), and no air bags (except for the occasional mother-in-law in the back seat!)!
 
Performance (Road & Track):
0-30 = 4.8
0-60 = 15.4
¼ Mile: = 19.5 at 66.5 (R&T: “Performance off the line isn’t exactly stunning, though the Accord will flat outrun a 1.6 Chevette.)
Top Speed = 101 (on a very long, very straight, very flat road!)
60-0 Braking = 156’
80-0 Braking = 257’
Overall Brake Rating = Very Good (!)
Lateral G = 0.737
 
All in all, the 1976 Accord was a great car at the time, and I would rank it as one of the best that I have ever owned! (R&T: “So what more can we say about the (new 1976) Accord? Simply that it is probably the best automotive buy in the U.S. today…) A lot has changed, but a lot has remained the same!!
 

#2 of 26 Re: H U G E Changes in Accord [fourteen14] by thegraduate

Oct 06, 2007 (8:14 pm)

Replying to: fourteen14 (Oct 06, 2007 8:02 pm)
May I ask where you got the performance info from Road and Track? Is it online somewhere? I'd love to search for old articles, say, a comparison test involving the 1994-1997 Accord. I've looked on these magazine's sites, but typically the archives they have dont go back more than a few years.
 
Neat performance info!

#3 of 26 Re: H U G E Changes in Accord [thegraduate] by fourteen14

Oct 06, 2007 (8:49 pm)

Replying to: thegraduate (Oct 06, 2007 8:14 pm)
Out of an old box of paper road tests in my attic!
 
When I see a car that I like, or especially one that I buy, I collect all the info that I can on it. In the old days that meant ripping out road tests and collecting brochures. Today it's mostly online info. BTW, when I find something interesting today, I copy the pictures as JPGs, and copy the online brochures and road tests into MS WORD, since they don't stay available online for very long!
 
EBAY is a great source of real life pictures. I have 243 NSX pictures, for example.
 
I also have the paper Car & Driver '76 Accord road test in which they said: "It is one of the finest all-around combinations of size, comfort, handling, and performance that we have seen."
 
When I sell one of my cars, I always include an original brochure. Most new owners are thrilled to have one!
 

#4 of 26 great report by benjaminh

Oct 07, 2007 (3:11 am)

fourteen....It shows how far the Accord has moved from its roots! The acceleration of the 76 positively sluggish! Of course in those days anything below 12 seconds to 60 was considered almost sports car territory. We had a 69 VW Bus that I swear took something like 25 second to reach 60! And now my 02 Accord, which takes about 9-10 seconds sometimes feels a bit slow.
 
Did you ever own another Accord? If so, any chance of a report on that one?

#5 of 26 Huge changes indeed by pat

Oct 07, 2007 (3:19 am)

Check this out: Honda Accord Generations. It hasn't been updated to include this 8th generation, but for anyone interested in the Accord history, it's fascinating.

#6 of 26 Re: great report [benjaminh] by fourteen14

Oct 07, 2007 (5:31 pm)

Replying to: benjaminh (Oct 07, 2007 3:11 am)
Yes, a brown '82 4-door. It's road tests should be in the same box in the attic, behind the big box of 12" LP records.
 
PS: My '76 didn't seem slow to me at the time, and I passed a lot more cars than passed me! On my commute across Canada from Saginaw to Rochester, a few larger, more powerful, and faster cars would pass me, but later I would spot most of them at a gas pump in a rest area, and usually would never see them again!!
Fortunately, I never had to make an emergency stop and never had a collision with that car, so it would seem that ABS and SRS were not needed!!

#7 of 26 Re: H U G E Changes in Accord [fourteen14] by luv_my_job

Oct 07, 2007 (7:43 pm)

Replying to: fourteen14 (Oct 06, 2007 8:49 pm)
Our first Accord was the NEW 86 LX/AT, don't have the records but remember it well.....wife drove it 140 miles a day round trip to Valpo Law School......bought it for between 10M and 11M She put 68000 miles on it in 2.5 years ....sold it for 9600 outright.It was a "snow trooper" on the Indiana toll road served her well and safely through the daily snow squalls that come across Lake Michigan from November through April.
That's the one which committed us to Honda we've had 7 others since, I think? Once thought about contacting Honda marketing as we have now three in the household and probably a 4th in a couple years when our son begins to drive.

#8 of 26 Re: H U G E Changes in Accord [luv_my_job] by fourteen14

Oct 08, 2007 (7:52 pm)

Replying to: luv_my_job (Oct 07, 2007 7:43 pm)
"committed us to Honda we've had 7 others since"
 
I always get a little uncomfortable when someone contends that: "X is the best because that is the only one I ever use, and I only use X because it is the best!"
 
Honda makes very good products, but you owe it to yourself to shop around to confirm that X is indeed the best. When my wife wanted a new car, we, of course, looked at the new Acura TL since she liked the TL that she had. After checking out several other cars, we were amazed to find that this time our needs were best fulfilled by the Azera - an excellent car and a great value!

#9 of 26 Re: H U G E Changes in Accord [fourteen14] by elroy5

Oct 08, 2007 (8:34 pm)

Replying to: fourteen14 (Oct 08, 2007 7:52 pm)
How long have you had the Azera? Maybe you will still feel the same in a few years, and maybe not. I have come to expect quality and reliability from Honda. Am I going to get that same confidence from a test drive in an Azera? I don't think that's possible. I'm glad you feel good about your car buying decision, and I hope you feel the same in 16 years from now.

#10 of 26 Re: H U G E Changes in Accord [elroy5] by fourteen14

Oct 10, 2007 (11:44 pm)

Replying to: elroy5 (Oct 08, 2007 8:34 pm)
We have had the 2006 Azera for 18 months. It has been flawless. Lots of power. Highway mileage ~32. Very comfortable. High Quality throughout.
 
In 16 years I will most likely have had a half dozen subsequent cars! With the 10 year warranty I could keep the Azera a long time, but that's no fun! With the changes and improvements in cars that appear almost daily, I am currently looking forward to seeing such diverse new cars as the 2009 Hyundai Genesis, the 2008 Infiniti EX35, the 2008 Smart ForTwo, and the 2009 500 hp Magnum SRT!! For me a car is an emotional thing, not an appliance like a refrigerator that you keep as long as it cools your beer!
 
If you drove an Azera, I'm sure that you would be very pleasantly surprised, and it would keep your beer cool for as long as you want!
 
PS: Our other car is a 2005 (Hemi) Magnum.

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