2004 Honda Accord 2.4

budgel, Jan 15, 5:23pm
I am considering looking at one of these for a cheap runabout.
Is there anything particular to this model I should look out for?
gph1961, Jan 15, 5:37pm
a nice colour
intrade, Jan 15, 5:38pm
what happened to all your other cars like that bmw diesel?
for honda the obvious once toyota owners who dont service there cars ever. usually buy honda next. Thats the danger that you get one that is in a worse state then a toyota.
other then that 2,4 looks to be large engine usually low emission or better say high pollution= more reliable.
Other thing is honda only oils nothing else for transmission is one reason i never owned no honda .
budgel, Jan 15, 5:47pm
I sold the BMW diesel to a guy from Wellington. I sold everything else too.
differentthings, Jan 15, 7:06pm
If the 2005 euro is the same then my son just got one. Watch out for alternators, starter motors and spark plug coil packs I got told to watch out for.
franc123, Jan 15, 7:10pm
Theres no reason to avoid them. Just steer clear of any examples that look like they have been neglected, which isnt particularly common. High km engines can stretch timing chains but this is not likely until 300+km. Auto servicing is dead easy should you have to do it and not especially expensive either only the stupid would avoid such a good car for that reason
intrade, Jan 15, 7:10pm
that's all easy stuff i would look inside the engine oil filler and if it looks like someone baked a cake in there close lid and walk away.
i would hunt for a dented rust free car with non interference engine no matter what the make is Honda are not exactly top on the list for these engines. They where the first to have had variable valves like bmw vanos and Vtec was what honda called there early variable valve system. Best to not have that if its got to be cheap.
franc123, Jan 15, 7:12pm
Coil pack failure is mostly caused by the cheap or ignorant not getting spark plug changes done on time. Can happen to any car.
skull, Jan 15, 8:29pm
I had one, never gave any grief at all but I was warned that alternator failure was the most common. It was 2003 purchased in 2004. Just check and make sure that the air bags have been done, they were recalled over the Takata problem. It's certainly a car I'd own again but now I have BMW diesel blood running thru my veins.
kingfisher21, Jan 15, 9:19pm
Brilliant cars, and the K24 is regarded as one of Hondas best ever engines. Our old Accord was up to 250,000km when we sold it and apart from regular servicing never touched it.
kazbanz, Jan 15, 10:28pm
Fantastic car. Only thing to watch for is if it has built in touchscreen radio/ac controls. Make sure everything is working with it. Its a bearch to take out and a bugger to get fixed.
meow_mix, Jan 15, 11:30pm
Extremely boring cars, although they have nice taillights. The glasshouse is inspired by the BMW 3 and 5 series. Like any Honda nothing wrong with them, however the rare stationwagon version looks quite cool, much better looking than the boring sedan.
bigfatmat1, Jan 16, 10:39am
I had a 07 euro many moons ok was good car horribly boring to drive. starter and alternator died before 100k
budgel, Jan 16, 12:43pm
Thanks for all the input.
The car was much better than I was expecting for the price. It drove well, was quiet and the aircon blew cold.
I bought it as it will suit me fine for general duties.
toenail, Jan 16, 2:06pm
I just sold one, single owner, done 240K still drives well.

starter will go
alternator will go

so if they have not been replaced yet, you should just go ahead and replace them both at the same time and save some labor cost.
budgel, Jan 16, 4:19pm
Thanks, the vendor told me that he had replaced the alternator and battery.
differentthings, Jan 16, 8:07pm
I quite like them. I drive my sons now and again. What did you pay for your. My son picked his up for just under 3k
budgel, Jan 16, 9:42pm
I paid $2500 which isnt bad for 155km, it needs a couple of small things doing which are well within my budget and capabilities, so I am happy!
franc123, Jan 16, 10:09pm
Its chain drive and VTEC is a proven reliable system that has been in use for a long time now. It's never been problematic.
differentthings, Jan 16, 10:11pm
Yep that's a good price. You seem to get a lot of car for bugger all money. I would buy one myself if I just wanted a cheap car to go to work and back etc. I find the ride is a bit firm for me.
differentthings, Jan 16, 10:13pm
Yep someone told me it was one of the better motors honda made.
richardmayes, Sep 27, 8:07am
Nice cars, a descendent of the previous Japan-only "small accord" and a bit firmer more sporty than the US spec "big accord" model that they replaced in NZ.

My boss had one when they were new, I took it down the line to client sites a few times, it was just as quick as a Falcodore on the straights, and better through the twisties.