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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  Vibration - 2015 Honda CR-V
  By Reed - December 6 - 7:00 pm

  I purchased a new 2015 Honda CRV in August 2015. I had read a review that stated it was the SUV of the year and some other publications seem to echo good quality... However it turns out there is a known issue with the 2015 version of the CRV that causes the car to vibrate. Its a issue with the new CVT and engine combination they used in the 2015 version of the CRV. I only test drove the car for a short time and did not notice the issue but it turns out that if you have the lights on and the AC on full you will not notice as it forces the car to be in a higher RPM range (all the time). I test drove this in the summer and so the AC was on. The day I went in to sign the final paperwork for the car I asked about the vibration issues as I had read some real reviews from real customers complaining about it and was told its nothing to worry about. Well turns out that when it got colder I started to have more and more of the vibrations. I took the car in multiple times to have them try to fix it. None of the fixes completely resolves the issue it just makes them less noticeable. I even had the newest fix done in December 2015 where they had to replace parts of the car... to try and fix all 3 modes of the issue... Still not fixed this car was too expensive to just deal with. A 30k car should be basically perfect, thats premium car price range. If I had been told the about the issue by the dealer I would not have purchased this car. I would have happily purchased the HRV or maybe even an accord. Now I have lost hours and hours of my life researching this issue and taking it in to get it fixed and its still not. I also asked the dealer if they would trade the CRV and they said they would not since they would then have to deal with it. They also just told me to talk to Honda directly. (I am in contact with Honda directly now we will see where that goes...) So to be fair this is in part Hondas issue but it was also the dealer that did not disclose the information to me. Otherwise the dealer did a decent job... price was average and they were nice enough but that does not matter given my car is not what I expected. I cant stand the vibration personally (some people claim to not notice). I am now going to have to take a loss of thousands of dollars trading it in on something else that does not vibrate. Take a look at what people on crvownersclub.com search form for "CRV 2015 vibration" I am not the only one...

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  1990 honda civic - 1990 Honda Civic
  By Ken Winkler - December 6 - 4:38 pm

  Small car, great gas mileage, dependable

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  Midlife speedster - 2012 Honda Civic
  By Bob - December 5 - 6:49 pm

  Test drive it get into the drive and see this handle its fun its great on gas only when your being good... Very hard to do. I bought this car for me and wife nobody sits in back.. Lol no tickets

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  Loved My Little Car - 1998 Honda Civic
  By Patti - December 5 - 2:37 pm

  Bought my car at 90k miles, sold at 115k after owning a couple years. Never had a problem with it, sold it for $200 more than I bought it for. Took it down the Alaska-Canadian Highway, no problem (though it is very small and the seats are not the most comfortable in the world). Calculated out 47mpg on some of these road trip stretches. I had the manual, and really liked the fine, smooth way it shifted. It was a very fun, responsive, maneuverable little car. I dont have kids, so the coupe was perfect for me and my dog. Im also in the shorter/smaller/younger range, so getting in and out was no problem. That said, my husband with his back/hip problems disliked riding in it, and my 50 yo father climbed in and out of it once and said that was it for him, no more, my car was going to give him a hernia. To be fair, if you park it at a curb, youll actually be climbing UP out of it. Also, it should be noted that its not the best/steadiest on snow and ice (probably because of its short/narrow wheel base and light weight), though I drove it two winters in AK and never wound up in a snow bank. If you want to zip from place to place and do so reliably and efficiently, I highly recommend this car. Watch who youre buying it from, though. Mine was all OEM, and I know most of them out there have been modified (unless thats what youre into).

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  Navigation system the worst - 2015 Honda CR-V
  By Tom Goodwin - December 5 - 12:39 pm

  The Navigation system is terrible. It takes us the long way to get to a location. It shows unverified routes when we are on city streets and county roads. It still shows them as unverified even after traveling on the road many times. The manual shows that you can turn the voice commands off or down. It will not turn down. Very poor GPS system.

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  2014 Honda Sport - 2014 Honda Accord
  By sns - December 5 - 12:09 pm

  I use my car all day in my sales job, so I am in the car for many hours per day. This is my third Honda Accord (2009, 2012 & 2014), the reason I trade my cars often is due to my job. Each Accord has improved each time for me, however the front seat comfort has not. Im constantly adjusting the front seat to find comfort or to change my position. If Honda would fix this issue, they would have the greatest car. I have the Sport model and the front seats have a "cupping-like" affect causing a hyperextension of the back and neck, resulting in muscle soreness and pain, so much so I have had to pull out the head rest and face it toward the rear seat. This solved my shoulder pain because the head rest pushes the head so far forward it was unnatural. Also, to manage my back discomfort I have had to place a bed pillow length-wise to get relief. I also deal with hip pain because of the way the seat joins to the back piece. And cushioning needs improvement. The engineers at Honda seems to model the front seats after a Formula One car or a door gunner in the Millennium Falcon, way too aggressive for normal everyday driving. I am now ready to purchase a new car. I like the Accord styling with its "BMW like" exterior, but my body cant take it anymore after six years. I tired of taking Advil to ease the pain. With sadness, I now have to leave Honda. I have researched the competition and have decided to switch solely due to front seats discomfort. Why wont Honda react?, They know there is a problem. If they modeled their seat after a Nissan Altima, the Accord would be perfection and I wouldnt be in this position. FYI, I have tried a Subaru Legacy Limited test drive and the seats blow Honda out of the water. I prefer Honda exterior styling, but like I said before my body cant take it anymore. I believe I going to get the Subaru Legacy, besides the resale value beats Honda. If any Honda Engineers are reading this, please take it to heart. Change the front seats to those of an Altima or Legacy, and you will have the greatest car and I will return.

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  Do the research before buying - 2007 Honda Civic
  By Christian - December 4 - 4:00 pm

  This is my first car. Bought it all on my own and was fairly proud of it. But right after buying it, things started going down hill. Bought it in December, and whenever it is very cold, the engine makes this rattling sound. It is the most irritating thing on the planet. Makes me feel like I bought a junker. It makes this puttering sound too when every you turn the wheels when its cold too. Asked my dad about this problem and he said maybe the heat shields are faulty. Looked it up and saw other people are have the same problem. Then my motor mounts completely broke. Bought a warranty with the car, so that took care of it, but I was without a car for a week. This car cannot idle properly. This thing will idle at less than about 850rpm, and then slowly drift down to 500rpm. It makes the entire car shake. It will do this ALL the time. I just turn the steering wheel to make it rev up a little bit. Then recently my engine block cracked. I read reviews saying this happened to cars, but of course I had the attitude that it wouldnt happen to me. Sure enough, the engine block cracked and leaked all of my coolant. And an important note, if you car smells like maple syrup PAY ATTENTION TO IT AND CHECK YOU ENGINE COOLANT!!!! My car reeked of it days before this happened and couldnt figure out why. Sure enough it was my engine coolant. Fortunately Honda replaced it for free. It was still under the extended warranty they were forced to give. Hopefully this will help out some people. This could be a decent car for some, but having to do these types of repairs on a car whose brand is recognized for excellent quality is a little ridiculous. My parents have owned other Hondas, and those cars refused to die or get repaired. Maybe this model and year was just a hiccup for Honda. Just hoping this will be the last of major repairs. If not Im either selling it or sending it to a scrap yard. Other than these complaints it drives well, and gets great mileage. Was getting 35mpg+ on the highway. I love the sunroof and the navigation is kind of nice when I need it. And I can fit in it comfortably (Im 63), just no one can sit comfortable behind me. Just be aware of these problems before you buy it.

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  The car to buy if you want a low maintenance car - 2012 Honda Fit
  By Derek M - December 4 - 10:39 am

  This car is overall designed well, but is by no means a feature vehicle. Its front wheel drive, is peppy but not at all fast, has 185 width stock tires (so youre not going to scream around corners), and the paint quality is atrocious. Expect every single dent, scratch, etc. to show up visibly on the paint. I have the silver paint, and almost anything will chip the thin paint or scratch it. The stock shocks and struts are a joke. After driving it for about a year or two, they give way to serious body lean that makes braking hard dangerous. I swapped out the crappy stock shocks and struts with Eibach and Tien, which are stiffer, but corrects the unnecessary body lean and shortens the stopping distance much more. I also upgraded from 185 width tires to 195 width to add more stability because 185 width are just junk. The tire pressure on the 185 kept getting low, even with new tires. So I just changed to 195 width and the tire pressure holds far better now. I believe you can add 205 or possibly 215 width max on the Fit. There are a good amount of light bulbs, with 8 to maintain in the front and the back lights as well. You are able to replace these all yourself, you can find videos online that will show how to do so (pretty similar to older acura/honda). The manual says to only run 87 gas, running 91 I saw no difference in performance whatsoever. This car takes only synthetic oil, and recommends only using top tier gas (no unbranded/generic mom and pop shops). My car began to pronounce the exhaust pretty loudly, and it sounds like I put a modified exhaust on my car even though the entire intake/mid/exhaust setup is stock (I dont know if other people experience this, its an automatic). The electronic controls performance and design is excellent, everything is very intelligently engineered and I have had no problems. The USB connection is in the top glove compartment (the bottom one is the regular glove compartment), and I just put MP3 music on a flash drive and its out of sight out of mind. The car has an audio jack input, but be careful because the rubber piece that protects it very easily comes off. Also, when maintaining the air filter, there is a solid attachment in the front with small clips on the side. The small clips on the side are prone to breaking, so be careful. I am 62" and am able to sit in the front seat fine. The backseat can hold adults, but the recommended total weight to have in the car is only about 850lbs. The major positives of the vehicle are that it is an easy to drive vehicle, there are a good amount of cupholders in the front and in the back, the interior volume space is massive for the vehicle size, the visibility from the inside is great, and that reliability on the engine/transmission and electronics is excellent. I bought my 2012 Fit in 2011 and havent had to perform a single repair for anything, just purely maintenance and optional upgrades. This is a putt putt for getting around with some pep and good gas mileage, but its no Corvette or Prius. A well designed (overall) low maintenance ride.

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  Amazing Engine - 2011 Honda Accord
  By Honda Lover11212 - December 2 - 2:37 pm

  this car is powerful for Honda. Amazing power voommmmm. MPG is average for what its worth..

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  My 3rd Accord...the Best Accord - 2015 Honda Accord
  By Jim - December 2 - 12:26 pm

  Replaced my 2005 EX-L with the 2015. Had zero problems with the 05, but time for something new. This new Accord is much more refined that the 05. Wayyy less interior noise, smoother ride, nicer interior. The CVT is smooth. It takes a while to get used to, but after a few weeks you figure out how much pressure you need on the accelerator to get the CVT to shift points. Love the side view camera. I use it all the time. I do not find the seats uncomfortable at all, but it did require some tweaking to get the adjustments right. The sound system also requires a bit of tweaking to improve the sound. Go to Youtube and there is a video where the tweak are explained. Gas mileage is great and matches the published mileage. I was seriously looking at the Mazda 6, but in my opinion the Accord is a more refined vehicle with much less interior noise and similar acceleration + gas mileage.