Took a test drive of an 08 exl auto navi at Sam Swope Honda in Louisville, KY. In terms of the looks of the car, it was mixed for me. I thought the front end was ok, but a bit complicated and "baroque" for my taste. I actually prefer the simplicity of my 02, or the look of the current generation. But I think the side styling is excellent, very BMWish in a good way, and I thought the rear was fine. The green mystic whatever color didn't work for me. It looked kind of grey and military to me, not really mystic. The interior was outstanding. The black leather seats were very comfortable and nice looking. Good lower back support. Good visibility, but maybe not quite as good as I thought it would be. Perhaps I'm just used to my current Accord.

For the voice activated navi clearly I need training and extremely clear enunciation. When I said "nearest restaurant" that navi system replied in a female voice "Rear defroster on!" This made my kids in the back seat crack up. When I said something about "hospital" it said "audio system on!" Then the kids really went wild. My wife said my California accent was perhaps the problem. I was trying to speak slowly and clearly, but I'm sure it was my fault.

The dash controls look complicated on the exl navi, but I imagine I could get used to them. It's not much like my 02 LX, that's for sure.

I drove it carefully and slowly, but from what I could tell the engine and handling were both good. It was noticeably quieter than my 02, and easier to have a conversation with those in the back seat. Smooth and comfortable ride.

I thought the rear seat accomodations were excellent, with plenty of headroom for most people even with the moonroof. The AC seemed much stronger than our 02.

Overall, thumbs up! I think I may well get one...They only had autos out, and I want to drive one with a manual transmission, since that's what I prefer.

It also had added on pinstriping, etc., adding about 1.5k to the list price.

I love the mystic green color, I bought one ;). Everyone who has seen my car LOVES the color or so they say. I don't think it's just the polite new car thing either, but to each their own.

$1,500 for pinstripping? :screwy:

$1,500 for pinstripping? :screwy:

For real...Must have been more than pinstriping for $1,500.

for 1500 i'd tell the dealer to peel that off and give me 1500 off on the car.

When I test-drove one, all the 08's had sealant on them. The salesman told me to feel how smooth the paint felt. I wasn't impressed since I put sealant on my own car. I don't know how much they charge for that stuff, but it was probably similar to your pin-striping deal. :lmao:

When I test-drove one, all the 08's had sealant on them. The salesman told me to feel how smooth the paint felt. I wasn't impressed since I put sealant on my own car. I don't know how much they charge for that stuff, but it was probably similar to your pin-striping deal. :lmao:

The special "sealant" was on my 08' too and it was an expensive sealent...$899! It also had a couple other things added that were ridiculous markups...like mud flaps for $279, and the cargo tray for $199! I called around and finally found a dealer in Tallahassee that didn't have all the add ons and told my dealer to match their price which was below MSRP or I was going to Tally to buy. They obliged and we made a deal, but you'd be suprised how many dealers have these markups. In fact, the one in Tallahasses was the only one I could find within 250 miles that didn't have them. Just something to keep in mind when buying, there's no way I'd pay for all that stuff, the salesman even told me point blank when I initially questioned the charges that they make a high profit off this add-ons and quite frankly people had been paying for them and not even questioning them just because the cars were in such high demand. They are selling very well here per my salesman, so much so that they practically can't give away the 07's for thoudands less...I can see why, to me there's no comparison. BUT don't get burned by $1600 worth of dealer add-ons (that's how much the total dealer stuff would have cost had I paid for it). Even if they say they won't work with you on price, they probably will, just put them against each other like I did. :)

The special "sealant" was on my 08' too and it was an expensive sealent...$899!


Please people don't buy into this bogus mumbo jumbo.. THERE IS NO magic sealant that will last years on your car..

If you (or anyone you know) is even willing to consider paying $899 for a sealant I will fly to you and do a full detail (swirl removal included) for that price.. top shelf products only!

The green on yours does look good in those pictures!

Please people don't buy into this bogus mumbo jumbo.. THERE IS NO magic sealant that will last years on your car..

If you (or anyone you know) is even willing to consider paying $899 for a sealant I will fly to you and do a full detail (swirl removal included) for that price.. top shelf products only!

I guess this just improves their jumping off point when it comes to bargaining so they can rip off customers as efficiently as possible. Even being given a sales pitch including something like this would royally piss me off. A lot of the ways they try to get a few more pennies out of you are downright insulting.

The dealership that I got my car from did an amazing detail of the car on the day that I came to see it for the first time. The products they used seemed to last about two months and there was no doubt a high quality sealant involved. I need to call them to ask how they do their details because I have been unable to replicate it thus far.

Please people don't buy into this bogus mumbo jumbo.. THERE IS NO magic sealant that will last years on your car..

If you (or anyone you know) is even willing to consider paying $899 for a sealant I will fly to you and do a full detail (swirl removal included) for that price.. top shelf products only!

I know there is no magic sealant, I don't know what they put on nor do I care. The bottom line is, I didn't pay for it. Read the post

I know there is no magic sealant, I don't know what they put on nor do I care. The bottom line is, I didn't pay for it. Read the post

d00d, I read your post I understood you didn't fall for it... Hence my carefully chosen words Please people don't buy into this bogus mumbo jumbo.

As opposed to, I can't believe you fell for this mumbo jumbo had you taken the plunge


if you actually paid that kind of money for a sealant I would be laughing my A*s off at you at the very least!

BTW - nice ride

Took a test drive of an 08 exl auto navi at Sam Swope Honda in Louisville, KY. In terms of the looks of the car, it was mixed for me. I thought the front end was ok, but a bit complicated and "baroque" for my taste. I actually prefer the simplicity of my 02, or the look of the current generation. But I think the side styling is excellent, very BMWish in a good way, and I thought the rear was fine. The green mystic whatever color didn't work for me. It looked kind of grey and military to me, not really mystic. The interior was outstanding. The black leather seats were very comfortable and nice looking. Good lower back support. Good visibility, but maybe not quite as good as I thought it would be. Perhaps I'm just used to my current Accord.

For the voice activated navi clearly I need training and extremely clear enunciation. When I said "nearest restaurant" that navi system replied in a female voice "Rear defroster on!" This made my kids in the back seat crack up. When I said something about "hospital" it said "audio system on!" Then the kids really went wild. My wife said my California accent was perhaps the problem. I was trying to speak slowly and clearly, but I'm sure it was my fault.

The dash controls look complicated on the exl navi, but I imagine I could get used to them. It's not much like my 02 LX, that's for sure.

I drove it carefully and slowly, but from what I could tell the engine and handling were both good. It was noticeably quieter than my 02, and easier to have a conversation with those in the back seat. Smooth and comfortable ride.

I thought the rear seat accomodations were excellent, with plenty of headroom for most people even with the moonroof. The AC seemed much stronger than our 02.

Overall, thumbs up! I think I may well get one...They only had autos out, and I want to drive one with a manual transmission, since that's what I prefer.




dude you live in louisville? Im thinking of visiting Sam Swope once the coupes comes in :) Im ussually all over the place, im not sure if you have seen my car around, but I have a white 06 coupe with New York plates :):lmao:

I went by one of two nearby Honda dealers today. The "add on" sticker for a EX-L V6 added some rims, deck lid spoiler, mud flaps, cargo tray, and all-season floor mats. The total of these items was $3540, then they arbitrarily doubled that number to get $7080. MSRP for EX-L V6 = 28695 + 7080 = $35775. I thought it was funny. It wasn't like the dealer only had a couple '08's. He had at least 16 on the lot.

Dealers make money on those add-on's like Best Buy makes money on stuff like extended warranties, $100 Monster cables because they'll make your speakers sound better (yeah, right), $30 USB printer cables, etc.

It's all about up-selling and getting the higher margin add-on's added onto the sale.... nothing new here.

The dealership that I got my car from did an amazing detail of the car on the day that I came to see it for the first time. The products they used seemed to last about two months and there was no doubt a high quality sealant involved. I need to call them to ask how they do their details because I have been unable to replicate it thus far.

When I detail my car, the sealant easily lasts 2 months for me. Maybe you didn't prep the car enough/correctly. It's all about the prep work.... more important than the product used.

Nice to see someone in Ky that is close to me. I do not like Sam Swope in louisville. I get all my Honda from Hardin County Honda in Elizabethtown Ky.

Ive been to Sam Swope 2x and both times the customer service was great to me.

The special "sealant" was on my 08' too and it was an expensive sealent...$899! It also had a couple other things added that were ridiculous markups...like mud flaps for $279, and the cargo tray for $199! I called around and finally found a dealer in Tallahassee that didn't have all the add ons and told my dealer to match their price which was below MSRP or I was going to Tally to buy. They obliged and we made a deal, but you'd be suprised how many dealers have these markups. In fact, the one in Tallahasses was the only one I could find within 250 miles that didn't have them. Just something to keep in mind when buying, there's no way I'd pay for all that stuff, the salesman even told me point blank when I initially questioned the charges that they make a high profit off this add-ons and quite frankly people had been paying for them and not even questioning them just because the cars were in such high demand. They are selling very well here per my salesman, so much so that they practically can't give away the 07's for thoudands less...I can see why, to me there's no comparison. BUT don't get burned by $1600 worth of dealer add-ons (that's how much the total dealer stuff would have cost had I paid for it). Even if they say they won't work with you on price, they probably will, just put them against each other like I did. :)

Nissan wanted something like $700 for the floor mats when I test-drove the Altima. :lmao: I would tell them to take that **** outta there!

So I swung by the local dealer today in southern NH, and I was surprised to see about 15 '08 Sedans on their lot. They had a couple of the V6 Navi units, a couple of LX, a couple of EX-L's, and the rest were normal EX's. Given their volume, and the way this dealer typically works, I'd imagine you'd pay sticker and no more. No add-on decals or anything.

A couple were unlocked so I got to sit inside. The first thing that hit me is that the rake of the windshield vs. the dashboard is much shorter and straighter up (less sloped). On my '05, I can barely touch where the dash hits the bottom of the windshield, but on the '08 it's right there! So not sure if the cabin has been moved forward or the windshield is more upright - but it's the first thing that hit me.

The dash layout is very WWWWIIIIIDDDDDEEEE :biggrin: - the HVAC controls are about as big and broad as I've ever seen. And on the Navi unit, that middle joystick is right there in your face. Looks like the layout is made for people in the Northeast wearing gloves in the winter. :thmsup: Big buttons for big fingers!

Didn't drive it so can't comment on that. Exterior styling is pretty nice - but the interior wasn't as "nice" as I expected - the plastic trim seems to be a bit rougher to the touch than my '05, and things didn't open/close as smoooothly as I'd expected. It looks nice, but the "feel" is what I was disappointed with.

One other comment - every EX - whether it was a V6 or i4, Navi or not - all had the same 17" wheels. I thought there was a different wheel for the V6's? Maybe I'm just remembering wrong....

andy

So I swung by the local dealer today in southern NH, and I was surprised to see about 15 '08 Sedans on their lot. They had a couple of the V6 Navi units, a couple of LX, a couple of EX-L's, and the rest were normal EX's. Given their volume, and the way this dealer typically works, I'd imagine you'd pay sticker and no more. No add-on decals or anything.

A couple were unlocked so I got to sit inside. The first thing that hit me is that the rake of the windshield vs. the dashboard is much shorter and straighter up (less sloped). On my '05, I can barely touch where the dash hits the bottom of the windshield, but on the '08 it's right there! So not sure if the cabin has been moved forward or the windshield is more upright - but it's the first thing that hit me.

The dash layout is very WWWWIIIIIDDDDDEEEE :biggrin: - the HVAC controls are about as big and broad as I've ever seen. And on the Navi unit, that middle joystick is right there in your face. Looks like the layout is made for people in the Northeast wearing gloves in the winter. :thmsup: Big buttons for big fingers!

Didn't drive it so can't comment on that. Exterior styling is pretty nice - but the interior wasn't as "nice" as I expected - the plastic trim seems to be a bit rougher to the touch than my '05, and things didn't open/close as smoooothly as I'd expected. It looks nice, but the "feel" is what I was disappointed with.

One other comment - every EX - whether it was a V6 or i4, Navi or not - all had the same 17" wheels. I thought there was a different wheel for the V6's? Maybe I'm just remembering wrong....

andy

I think EXs and EXLs generally have the same rims as the v6s do. An lx or lxp wouldn't have those rims though.

I think EXs and EXLs generally have the same rims as the v6s do. An lx or lxp wouldn't have those rims though.

Back in '07, the EX-L V6 sedans had different wheels than the non-V6 units, and I sort of was expecting that to still be true - sort of differentiated them from the rest. Just was surprised....

andy

Back in '07, the EX-L V6 sedans had different wheels than the non-V6 units, and I sort of was expecting that to still be true - sort of differentiated them from the rest. Just was surprised....

andy

The wheels on the ex-l are already pretty nice IMO, I know there are other rims availible for those who want to pay the premium price...18'' alloys are a $2885 option and 18" painted are $2,301. Seems kind of ridiculous to me

Back in '07, the EX-L V6 sedans had different wheels than the non-V6 units, and I sort of was expecting that to still be true - sort of differentiated them from the rest. Just was surprised....

andy
They were also different size wheels, 16" vs. 17". Now for 08 they are the same size, and that is why they use the same wheel.

Waldo

They were also different size wheels, 16" vs. 17". Now for 08 they are the same size, and that is why they use the same wheel.

Waldo

I believe the coupes will have 18'' rims on the v6 models though right?

I stopped by my local Honda dealer after work today. They had a couple new Accords on the lot, ranging from the baseline LX to the EX-L V6. All were non-Navi (the Nav models apparently sell a lot faster).

I only looked at the vehicle from the exterior. I think it looks very nice in person. It doesn't look all that much bigger than the 7th Generation, despite its "large" car classification.

I think EXs and EXLs generally have the same rims as the v6s do. An lx or lxp wouldn't have those rims though.

And the rubber on those rims is different. Both the steelies on the LX and the alloys on the LX-P are wearing lower line tires (Dunlop, I think, but honestly forget now) than the Michelins that are on the EXs.