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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  Honda Odyssey EX-L - 2016 Honda Odyssey
  By Jack Mosby - August 23 - 6:02 am

  Weve only had the van for less than a month, but put on about 2600 miles visiting relatives. Its been a great van to travel with, its smooth riding and comfortable for long distance traveling. Plenty of head and leg room although the passenger seat could use a bit more leg room. This model has a lane departure (left & right) and forward collision warning systems already installed - hopefully these will be standard in all vehicles in a few years. We have not ridden in the back seats yet although they do have child seat restraint connections. The console controls are taking a bit of time to learn, but the CD, reference and owners manuals are helpful. It does not have parking assist nor have we driven it in snow yet (our prior 2000 Odyssey worked fine in snow, but we used studded tires especially for stopping on ice - hoping to see an all wheel drive model soon). We both have noticed the rear seat headrests do block some of your rear view, but are learning to not put anything high in the center of the vehicle. We do like the right turn signal and accompanying video of the right blind spot when making right turns - would be a great feature for left turns too. We did not get the nav or entertainment packages. As to reliability, we expect it will do well as our prior Odyssey was excellent - time will tell. We were getting 25+mpg towing a small 5 x 8 enclosed utility trailer and a canoe on the roof rack, but have not taken it out yet for another highway journey without the extra drag. We need to figure out how to disable the automatic rear gate lift as it hits the canoe with the upper rear window cowling when rising and immediately lowers again - kind of hard to load things when that happens - Im sure there is a way. All in all a great vehicle so far!

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  Honda EX - 1994 Honda Civic
  By sufurair - August 22 - 9:14 pm

  A great car. At 128k miles, things are supposed to break even though it is a Honda. Other than that, great gas mileage for the year and fun to drive. Could use some more cockpit storage space.

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  great car - 2007 Honda Civic
  By Keith - August 22 - 8:10 pm

  This is an excellent car. No doubt about it, Honda knows what theyre doing with this car, well thought out and put together well. Very comfortable car to drive, easy handling, and supportive seats. A little road noise, but for a small car it is refined in so many other ways, who cares. Open the sunroof, and turn on the tunes. Also, the back seat is tight getting in and out of this coupe, but hey Im driving so to bad for those back seat drivers. Economical on gas, and oil changes every 3000 miles, never a problem with this car. Owned almost a year now. Its a cool car, no regrets here.

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  Great Commuter Car! - 2001 Honda Insight
  By Sam - August 22 - 6:42 pm

  The Insight has proven to be a very economical car for me. I drive about 160 miles round trip to and from work 5 days a week and my gas bill is about a fourth of what it costs to drive my Ford Ranger. It has reasonably good performance for a hybrid vehicle although it takes some getting used to. Its kind of fun to challenge yourself and see how much mileage you can squeeze out of a tank of gas. My personal best is 57.6 mpg in mixed city and highway driving. The car is well put together except for the dashboard LCD display, which has some leakage (common in early Insights). Overall a very enjoyable car to own and operate but that factory stereo has got to go!

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  05 LX Odyssey - 2005 Honda Odyssey
  By BdinnaB - August 22 - 8:10 am

  Nice riding passenger van. Easy handling. Lots of power. Poor gas mileage it the city but good on highway. Bought the van right before gas prices soared thru the roof. Peaked at $52.00 to fill up now down to 33.00/week.

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  Ultimate family mover that makes SUVs a dumb idea - 2016 Honda Odyssey
  By Corey Corsi - August 22 - 8:06 am

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  Best value for dollar - 2005 Honda Odyssey
  By Last 450 - August 22 - 12:00 am

  Purchased a new 05 Odyssey after comparing and driving both the Odyssey and Pilot. A difficult choice but as my wife is principle driver she chose the van for a more roomy interior. I wanted leather interior but its only available with the VCM (variable cylinder management) system which I believe is a problem waiting to happen. A six cyl running on the same bank of three cyls intermittently for its whole life; electronic controlled solenoid actuated liquid filled engine mounts to offset resulting vibration; sound waves piped in thru stereo to offset engine noise; all so that you dont know its running on 3 cyl., and a benefit of only 2-3 mpg.

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  Transmission noise - 1999 Honda Civic
  By Greg - August 21 - 5:21 pm

  Only problems have been a cracked manifold (Honda has an extended warrenty for this and will replace for free) and whining gear noise from tranmission. It developed this after 70K miles and it seems to be getting worse. No maintenance other than scheduled maintence required except manifold.

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  Cross-country Gas Miser - 2004 Honda Civic
  By P. Arthur Smith - August 21 - 2:00 pm

  I recently took an 8,850 mile business trip. I carried about 200 pounds of luggage, and up to 300 pounds of boxed materials. I weigh about 210. I averaged 46.5 MPG, and had two tanks through at over 60 MPG. About 2/3 of the trip was on the freeway, and 1/3 in crowded two-lane traffic. There was absolutely no drama in the drive. I dodged aggressive drivers and dead animals. I drove in desert heat, Rocky Mountain cold and driving Okla-Texas rain. No problem. It is a lightweight and I had to constantly pay attention to keep it from jittering around. The acceleration is good and it maintains freeway speed. The Honda dealership is providing r

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  Happy New Civic Owner - 2008 Honda Civic
  By NewHondaOwner - August 21 - 10:26 am

  I test drove a number of cars, including the Prius, the Accord, a Mazda 3, a Camry, a MazdaSpeed 3, and a Ford Focus. For the price, it cant be beat. Just an amazing car for an amazing deal. It handled better than any of those cars. Not quite as comfortable as the Camry, but its a lot cheaper.