Overview & Reviews

Why are Honda vehicles so highly regarded by American drivers? Certainly, their excellent reputation for reliability and quality is a major factor. But it also has to do with the overall driving and owning experience. Read any Honda review and you'll likely notice common themes such as thoughtful design, a friendly nature, better-than-average fuel economy and attention to safety.

Japan-based Honda Motor Company was founded in 1948 by Soichiro Honda. The company got its start making motorbikes. Japan had been rendered cash poor and fuel-starved after World War II, and its citizens were hurting for an inexpensive, fuel-efficient mode of transportation. Honda's first motorcycles mated engines with bicycles to create a motorbike that was cheap to make and operate.

Honda's bikes quickly evolved into vehicles far more sophisticated than small engines stuck into bicycle frames. The manufacturer's 1949 D-Type could reach speeds of up to 50 mph, and offered front and rear suspension. The 1950s saw the launch of the successful Juno scooter, built to steal market share from the Vespa knockoffs that were popular in Japan at that time. In the latter part of that decade, Honda introduced the ultra-successful C100 Super Cub. The motorbike was remarkably easy to operate and featured a crossbar-free frame that made it popular with women. It went on to become the first Honda motorbike sold in the U.S. via then-new American Honda Co. in 1959.

By the early 1960s, Honda had built its first automobiles for the Japanese home market and entered Formula One racing. But it wasn't until 1970 that it exported its first car, the diminutive N600, to the U.S. The automaker initially had a hard time sparking interest among American buyers, but that all changed in 1973 with the introduction of the Civic. The car was larger than Honda's previous models even though it was still very petite compared to compact American cars. The Civic's high fuel efficiency (an important selling point given that decade's energy crisis) and affordability made it Honda's first American success story. By 1976, the Civic had been joined by the Accord, which quickly became a favorite with U.S. consumers as well.

By the 1980s, Honda's success and its reputation as a maker of well-built reliable cars and motorcycles continued to grow. It began building Accords in the U.S. in 1982 and by 1989 had earned the distinction of making America's most popular car. This was also the decade in which Honda created the Acura brand as a way to sell more upscale and luxurious vehicles. Throughout this decade and into the 1990s, the Civic and Accord were huge sellers and considered class benchmarks. Also during this time, Honda continued to innovate through such technologies as variable valve timing, aluminum body construction and improved safety features.

Today, Honda's lineup runs the gamut. Included are fuel-sipping hybrids, a spacious minivan, reliable family sedans, practical SUVs and even a pickup. Although the latest Civic and Accord aren't quite the benchmarks they once were for their respective classes, Honda's brand as a whole continues to be one of the most well respected in the industry, with millions of loyal and satisfied customers.

User Reviews:

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  Give us a "brake" Honda - 2008 Honda Accord
  By Unhappy Pat - December 22 - 3:33 pm

  Ive owned 3 Honda Accords prior to this one, and this one is the most disappointing. Very noisy, fuel mileage not as good, and the rear brakes had to be replaced after one year. I have never had to replace rear brakes on any of my previous Hondas! They without a doubt have a rear brake problem that must be acknowledged and resolved or they will lose owner loyalty - they lost mine. Does Honda want to become the next TOYOTA ?????

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  Qualtiy concerns - 2002 Honda Civic
  By kelseyparker - December 21 - 2:00 am

  Great gas mileage (40 mpg highway) and fairly decent drivability are the only good thing about this car. Had nothing but problems. Was in shop 5 times after only 4 months driving. Had to replace front and rear shocks, remove dash and insert foam to eliminate extensive rattling (still rattles). The whole bloody car rattles. Gear shifter pops out of gear, brakes make horrible metallic pop when first used, clutch and brake pedal squeak like rusty door hinges, etc, etc. Serious quality control issues.

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  Honda has disappointed me - 2012 Honda Accord
  By knapppj - December 16 - 4:15 am

  I will be short and sweet. I bought the car with 44,000 miles off a Honda Lease and by 50,000 miles I noticed a power steering leak. I found the power steering rack was leaking. I tried to get it covered by Honda of America but they would not pay for it. I just replaced it for $900 because I was sick of the oil spot in my garage. I also had the wire recoil break in the steering wheel and lost all controls on the steering wheel and I am assuming I lost my airbag as well until its fixed. Honda of America again denied my claim as I figured this is a defective part. So I will be without airbag until I cough up the $500 to repair it. This is all under 65,000 miles. At this rate, I will have to spend $1400 every 3-5 years to replace these items if Honda is saying they werent defective. I am switching to Toyota. My parents also had issue with their Honda Odyssey and Honda of America would not cover a defective transmission for them.

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  Loud and bumpy - 2016 Honda CR-V
  By Kris orton - December 14 - 10:14 pm

  Loud interior noise and you feel every crack in the road

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  Dont Believe the Hype... - 2009 Honda Accord
  By gmen86 - December 12 - 2:40 pm

  Disappointed. Lets start with the good: Attractive design, excellent build quality, almost german-car like. Great handling. Reliability is fine. Now the BAD: Very uncomfortable seats, and driving position. Driver area is very confined and like sitting in a hole. Will never find a satisfying or comfortable position. Car looks good standing alone, but appears small and dinky next to other cars, even compacts. Rear-end design is ugly. 2.4L engine feels slow. Cant pass or merge to save your life. Rough idol, raggedy engine sound. Gas mileage not impressive. Gets 535 miles per tank, where Camry, Malibu, Sonata, get 600 miles/tank. Accord falls short on many fronts.

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  Test drove. Did not buy. - 2016 Honda Pilot
  By Ed Zawarski - December 11 - 7:12 am

  I own a 2012 AWD Touring. Honda makes a great car. I usually trade my cars every 2-3 years because I put a lot of mileage on them and always love to play with the newest tech toys. This time around though I held off buying a new car because I was waiting for Honda to come out with the new Pilot. I saw the very first one in person while getting my oil changed when it was still on the truck at the dealership. It was hard to get a good view of it but from what I could see, I was excited. That excitement ended when I actually saw the car in the showroom. UGH! Its a minivan! They converted my beloved SUV to a minivan :( They ruined it! They ruined it!!! Nevertheless, I had to test drive one. I am on my second Pilot Touring and have really liked them. No, LOVED them. Albeit my 2012s entertainment system has been less than stellar. The sound is great but the BlueTooth connection for my phone constantly disconnects & reconnects calls at random making it impossible to handle business calls hands-free. This does this with my iPhone, my wifes iPhone, my friends Samsung Galaxy and another friends Nokia. Honda replaced the BT module but it didnt solve the problem. The second flaw in the entertainment system is that it loves to lock up my iPod. Not just my iPod, my wifes as well. It can play for hours or even days with no problems. Other times it can play for five minutes at a clip and I have to disconnect it and do a hard reset on the iPod. Thats a pain in the neck (and dangerous) while driving at highway speeds by yourself. Honda agreed that there is an issue but cant seem to find it. $42,000 cars that dont work correctly dont make me happy but its my only complaint with this car. Anyway, back to the 2016 Pilodyssey. Not a fan of the looks inside nor out. Its a minivan. I know I repeated that but really, you cant say it enough. Its an Odyssey II. You really realize that when you get in the front seat and flip down the cheap armrests. The rear captains chairs second that motion. The touch screen nav/control panel was dog slow. I kept turning the radio off trying to turn it on. Ever click or tap something on a computer/phone screen and it doesnt react right away so you click/tap it again, only to realize the first click/tap hadnt reacted yet so the second click/tap canceled the first? UGH!!!! I have no patience for slow tech. Especially because I’m a tech myself. Underpowered processors irk me to no end. Strike two, Honda. The fact that Honda/Acura backed down to every other manufacturers level of nav restriction is quite annoying. My 2006 MDX, 2010 Pilot, current 2012 Pilot, along with my wifes 2006 RL, 2010 Crosstour, and 2012 Odyssey all had Nav systems that allowed you to have full touch/dial/voice access to any and all features of the Nav systems. Now Honda put restrictions of the use of some of the features of the new Pilots nav. Its still better than most though and Hondas voice control is WAY better than Toyotas. My 2006 4Runners voice control was the worst Ive ever seen. Maybe its gotten better by now, IDK. I switched to Honda products and havent looked back at Toyota or Lexus since. Funny thing is this year we traded in my wifes Odyssey EX-L Nav and bought a Murano. I wont say much about that car other than its very nice but well soon be trading it in. Nissan’s Nav sucks. Enough for me to take a loss on the car. So, again, back to the 16 Pilot. It rode nice. It has way more power than my 2012. The lane mitigation feature would take some getting used to. I dont like someone holding onto my steering wheel at the same time as Im trying to drive but, hey, its a feature EVERY car with a driver who loves to text while they drive should have. Maybe that will keep them in their lane instead of swerving into mine. I dont text and drive and I have pretty good control of my vehicle so Im not sure that I wouldnt be turning that feature off. Id have to give it a month or so to see if I could get used to it. One thing Honda needs to do is stop putting in the rear entertainment system. Make it an option. I have used mine maybe 4 times in the 5 ½ years Ive had my two Pilots. My grandkids used it when we drove them to the zoo and the mountains when we took my car. Other than that, its $2,000 feature that I dont use. Besides, DVDs are becoming a thing of the past. I have 400 movies, 600 TV shows, and 15,000 songs. EVERYTHING is digital. I havent used a CD nor DVD in over 3 years. Incorporate video through USB or BT instead and charge the $150 or so that those connections and software would cost. So heres what this boils down to for me. And I hardly believe I am going to say this after pounding my fist on the desk in favor of Honda over American made cars...Im negotiating a price to trade my 2012 Pilot AWD Touring in on a....yes....really....2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland.

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  The little car that cant - 2017 Honda Accord
  By Mike Moody - December 9 - 12:22 pm

  This car will not deliver anywhere near the 34 mpg EPA rating. The engine revs are too high at highway speeds. The engine is turning 2300 rpms at 75 mph. My 2013 Acura TL with a V-6 and EPA rating of 28 mpg consistently got 20 to 29 mpg on the exact same trips I currently drive and the engine only turned 2000 rpms. Honda refuses to admit a problem or help. Additionally the acceleration feature on the cruise control does not function as it did on previous models. Now, when the cruise control is engaged and the + button is held down the car will NOT downshift and quickly accelerate to a higher speed. This feature is so sluggish to respond it has been rendered useless by the Honda engineers. Dont take my word, test drive one for yourself; then believe me, you wont get the fuel mileage that is advertised. I wonder if Honda is trying to do what Volkswagen did by cheating the EPA mileage tests with a different setup in the test cars. In any event, after 10 Honda/Acura cars since 2005 this is my last!

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  A lot of noise - 2006 Honda Civic
  By Joseph - December 7 - 3:26 pm

  It was fun the first few weeks then in 2 months I started to hear rattling noise if I drive at constant speed 35 mph on flat road and louder noise in the right side when I drive on rough road. The dealer changed the right engine mount which took care of the noise for 2 weeks then the annoying rattling noise is back. Last week the windshield wiper started to kind of drag and shake and make a terrible noise regardless if its wet or dry. Someone may think its subtle but I had cars before..Never like this its brand new 2006 with all of the above!!!!!!!!!!!

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  2007 honda civic EX a/c failure - 2007 Honda Civic
  By My 1st Honda - December 5 - 9:06 am

  Bought in Feb of 2007. I am now faced with a failed a/c. Since Ive had the car, the a/c button when engaged emitted a clunking noise. when the car would idle, it sounded like a fan was rattling. I took it in for servicing. I was told that the drive belt needed to be adjusted (?), the car was still making the noise. Now about 8 months later, my a/c will not blow cold air nor will the compressor or clutch engage.I was told that something must have punctured my compressor and the freon has leaked out and neither Honda or my extended warranty will cover the damage because it is considered a road hazard and my fault. Honda will not fix my car. I will never by another.I am prepared to fight this

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  Bait and Switch - 2015 Honda CR-V
  By Suzy K - December 1 - 7:23 am

  The gas mileage is lousy. I bought planning my mpg would be 24 - 25 it is 20 - 21. My 2004 I just sold got 18-19. I feel completely taken by Honda. The only way I can get my mpg up a little is to turn off my car at long red lights; use the highest octane gas, leave windows wound up and very little air conditioning, dont have weight in my car; and dont drive over 60 or 65 . Be very careful if you buy this car, many people are complaining about the mpg