So as people start buying new '08's and others sit and give their observations, it's apparent that some love the new design of the 8th gen's, while others (myself included) tend to downplay some of the new things as being a step backwards. Why is this? Well, what I can share is that it's not limited to this forum, but in other areas as well.

Back in 2006, when the new Pilots came out, there was a raving debate over in the www.hondapilot.org forum about the new taillights for the Pilot. The new ones were clear with red inserts (sort of like Altezza), while the earlier ones had a red cover. People were insisting the new ones were better, and people were upgrading their earlier Pilots to the newer style - while others thought that while it was different, it wasn't "better".

And this year, in the Ford Freestyle forum, there's an even BIGGER debate about the changes for '08 - the vehicle is called the Ford Taurus X now, and they replaced the 3.0L V6 and CVT tranny with a 3.5LV6 and a 6-speed tranny (among other cosmetic changes). Many support the benefits of the old components, while others preach the benefits of the new components.

And here, there's a mixed bag of opinions about the 7th vs the 8th gen, and what's better and what's not.

The common denominator in all of this? When you bought your current gen car, and if you have any plans to upgrade to the newer gen of the car. I bet if we did a poll, we'd see that those who find fault in the new designs are those that either just bought an older gen and are justifying their investment, or those who have no plans to upgrade. Those who are really psyched about the new gen are those who either have bought one or are planning to buy one. And, overall, very few people are on the fence about these debates. Pretty polarizing, don't you think? :yes:

Anyway, as we discuss the next gen of the Accords, let's all remember that while we have our internal feelings about them, we must also acknowledge that people who invest money at this level support THEIR investment, and most of the opinions here are helping to justify that investment.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming....

andy

i think this happens with every new model release everywhere. it's amusing. :lmao:

for one thing, something one person loved about the past gen may have changed and made it less desirable to that person. meanwhile another hated that exact thing about the last gen and loves the new design.

i guess it's just important to note that you can't please everyone! in order to get a car custom made for your exact likes and dislikes, gosh, you would need to have a buttload of money! :lmao:

some people hate change because they loved what already was. others look forward to the change because they didn't like the old.

that said, stevel leased the 06 accord with plans for the lease to be done in 09, the second year of the new model. the timing was hoping to be able to get into the new model once the kinks are worked out. however, after the info was released (ie no v6 manual transmission in sedans for now) he was less excited about it. once he test drove it, he didn't come away with the "i want it now" feeling that he had expected to walk away with. mind you, even though it's only the 08's right now, not his original planned trade in for an 09, he has that "new car itch". :lmao: so it would've been much more likely for him to walk away with the "i want it now" feeling. but he doesn't have it. it might change when the coupe is released, but practicality will overstep that one no matter what. a 1 year old in a coupe just isn't practical. so for now, he's back to pining for a tl-s, and considering the ody, civic si, etc. :lmao:

now that i see what the 08 ody's have added, that may make things more interesting, except alot is in the expensive touring model... but i can see him loving the idea of getting those mirrors that adjust when you put it in reverse.... he loved that in the tl.

I love the 2008 design, and I "just bought" a 2003 less than 2 years ago, and won't trade it until I get the 2006 Ody paid off (3 years).

So, until then, I wish and wait. My wife and I have decided, only ONE car payment at a time.......:)

Based strictly off looks, there a a few cars out there that are a huge improvement over the former Gen. A good example is the 3rd gen TL. But of course, if you were one of the poor saps that bought an 03 TL, then sure, you're going to try and justify the car you just bought.

But honestly, even though I own an 06, there is nothing about the 8th gen that I really like. I got to see it upclose and in person yesterday. Just not impressed at all with what they did with it.

I think in general you are right andy, but most of what you will hear back are, "but I am different". So here goes:

I think the next gen is nicer. It generally always is on any vehicle. But I bought mine with the plan of keeping it for 10 years, or 200k. So I wont buy it.

I think the key to being a smart consumer, and not being broke all the time, is to say that the latest may not be the greatest, at least you can tell yourself that to make yourself feel better. And you will be better off for it.

Or you can have someone like me. I'm in no way married to the idea of buying another Honda. Some on here equate displeasure of the 2008 with jealousy. That ain't me. I will consider any Honda, Acura, Toyota, Lexus, Infiniti, Nissan (maybe), or BMW (lease only). I plan to buy in about a year and a half when my daughter will be driving, and she can use the Accord. I will replace it with something that has all the virtues of my Accord.

Those virtues are:
1* Sporty, rakish styling in a sedan. Think 4 Door Sports Car.
2* Midsize, not Fullsize. Think TSX/Gen7 sized, not Avalon or Maxima sized.
3* Reliability, Resale, and Quality.
4* Fast. No fours. No turbos. Just smooooth, instant V6 power!
5* Value for the money spent.

I was hoping the new Accords would have all that. IMO, they are missing #'s 1 and 2. That doesn't make them bad cars, just now a little less of what I covet in a car. Same thing happened with Nissan for me. I have owned numerous Maximas since 1989 and loved every one of them. Then when the 2004 came out, I was completely turned off by it's increased size. Guess what I bought instead? A more compact Accord with all the virtues of the Maxima and then some.

Looks like it's happening again, this time with Honda! :boohoo:

accordexlv6, you sound like me. Check out the upcoming Mazda 6. Looks very nice. Just not a fan of the new Accord Coupe or Sedan. I'll give it more time but it's not really growing on me and by now it should have. :paranoid:

Interesting idea & you may be correct to some degree for folks on this forum - I don't know. Many refer to getting the new generation as an upgrade which is a very good clue to their thought process. As was already said, new doesn't equate with better, just new.

I have an '02 with no plans to get a new vehicle for a good long while (4+ years) but I like the 8th better than the 7th based on looks alone. I still don't like the rear though. I've said before but the 190 HP 4-cylinder is basically the same HP as my '02 V6 at 200 HP (old SAE rating). It really is don't count out the 4-cylinder. Many features are "wasteful" causing increased price and weight. One example is automatic door locks. I'm fairly capable of locking my own doors thank you very much. My previous 93 LeBaron and my current 94 Grand Am had this annoy...I mean feature.

I've seen online photos of the newly designed Mazda6 and it is a very appealing package. As a former 6 owner Mazda has nailed the handling and sporty feel to it no question, its the powertrain that has been its major drawback. That might change with the 08 since its a 3.5 with HP in the same ballpark as the V6 Accord, Altima and Camry.

There may be some truth to the OP assertion in my case. I own an 07 and used to own a 99 and find that the 99 has a better interior (ergonomically and plastics-qualitywise) than the 07.

Similarly, I owned an 02 Maxima (5G), hated the design of the 04 Maxima (6G) but still felt that the 95-99 Maximas (4G) were the best designed. Go figure.

1* Sporty, rakish styling in a sedan. Think 4 Door Sports Car.
2* Midsize, not Fullsize. Think TSX/Gen7 sized, not Avalon or Maxima sized.

I personally feel the 08 sedan to be much more stylish and sporty than its predecessor, but that's strictly a matter of opinion so I'll give you that one.

However, the only full size accords are the lx models without sunroofs. The headroom lost when a sunroof is added is literally all that is needed to put the car back in it's original midsize category. I've said it before but the difference between the 07' and 08' in size is really miniscule in comparison IMO (3.2 inches in length).

I've seen online photos of the newly designed Mazda6 and it is a very appealing package. As a former 6 owner Mazda has nailed the handling and sporty feel to it no question, its the powertrain that has been its major drawback. That might change with the 08 since its a 3.5 with HP in the same ballpark as the V6 Accord, Altima and Camry.
Mazda uses the Ford Duratec V6 in most of their cars. If you want a preview of that engine, drive the new Taurus (nee 500).

I have an 03 Mazda MPV with the 3.0 Duratec (identical to the engine used in the Ford 500 and present Mazda 6 and optional in the older smaller Taurus (okay, the Mazda 6 tweaked 20 more hp with better breathing). I also have an Accord V6. There is no comparison in smoothness of the older engines. Honda wins. The Duratec is a good engine, but it lacks that legendary Honda refinement.

I have not compared the new 3.5s.

Waldo

I don't think that everyone does this (speaks negatively about new gen to support their choice to purchase a last gen), but I think that a few probably do, especially those who purchased the last MY before the new gen. Though, I do think that the vast majority of the people are just not liking the direction of the accord.

Size and weight are a major issue. Of course 200ish lbs won't make the car extremely boring to drive, but it a significant amount of weight and an indication of where things are heading. Same with wheel-base and length. I don't think that most people who like the 7th gen and don't like the 8th gen as much would be unhappy w/ an 8th gen as their own car, but I can understand not being as thrilled about it and seeing it as a downgrade to the 7th gen for them.

Changes to the accord, and any other car for that matter, happen gradually. It is not realistic to assume that the accord will gain 1000lbs and 3ft length in one generation. As such, there has to be a point where the weight, size, and even power start to move outside of the purchaser's idea of the car that they want to buy.

The 7th to 8th gen move is this point for me. I would be fine owning an 8th gen, though hardly excited about it at all. For me it is a combination of what I see as an excessive amount of power to the front wheels (for the V6's anyway) w/o the propper equipment to put it to the ground, size is becoming too big for what I want in a car (especially a coupe), and my not being terribly excited about the exterior styling.

Now, most people will see more power as a benefit, which I can understand, but I am relatively sensitive to FWD tendencies and would not want to deal with them any more than I already do, even if I get a little more straight-line power in the process. I can deal with a little tugging here and there on acceleration, but I hate trying to accelerate and turn at the same time during spirited driving and having to compensate for the understeer. If they included a LSD my opinion in this area would be a lot different, but we all know they didn't.

If I had a family then the 4cyl sedan would probably be a little more attractive to me. The design of the sedan has grown on me a little bit, the coupe too, but just not enough for me to overlook the other factors and go out on a test drive or even sit in the vehicle. For me, a single, 25 year-old male, there are so many other cars I'd look at before the 8th gen accord, even before the coupe. I'll be in the market for an 8th gen accord when I'm in the market for a Camry (hopefully never).

One car that I AM jealous of is the new WRX. AWD, better gas mileage than last gen, same power as last gen, 60/40 folding rear seats. I'm not a giant fan of the looks, but the features are exactly what I look for. I'd have to look at emissions though. Not jealous enough, however, to trade my 7th gen for one. I just like the exterior and interior styling of the 7th gen too much to take a hit for AWD.

One car that I AM jealous of is the new WRX. AWD, better gas mileage than last gen, same power as last gen, 60/40 folding rear seats. I'm not a giant fan of the looks, but the features are exactly what I look for. I'd have to look at emissions though. Not jealous enough, however, to trade my 7th gen for one. I just like the exterior and interior styling of the 7th gen too much to take a hit for AWD.

I love the new WRX - both sedan & hatchback bodystyles. The drive is so much better IMO than the previous generation and it no longer has a boy-racer look. I'd order one tomorrow if I wasn't waiting for this (http://www.subaru.jp/impreza/wrx_sti/secret_01.html).