[mempheS.D]

Nice write-up akshay. And the photography speaks volumes indeed.

I fail to understand the intent of this thread though. Comparison of a 3 alongside a punto, with an accord and vRS mettling it out in between?

Nevertheless, interesting read.

[amitoj]

Excellent write up, great pictures and a nice comparison, Akshay.

Although it is a "comparison", I think it still brings out the unique qualities of each car pretty well. Not all comparisons need to have an out and out winner after all. We get too tied down with comparing cars within segments, or diesels with diesels or hatches with hatches etc. When it comes to driving, each car is unique and sometimes a cross segment comparison brings out the uniqueness pretty well. This is what i think this thread does.

Thanks!
Amitoj

[SmartCat]

Ah, it's an Apple Vs Orange Vs Mango Vs Grapes comparison!

Honda Accord V6 review was the most interesting one, because nobody in Team-BHP has put up a proper review of an Accord yet. So just a suspension upgrade for a normal (not V6) Accord will turn it into a decent handler? What are the costs for such an upgrade? How is the steering on the Accord? Is it a quick turner like the Civic?

[Akshay1234]

Before I start replying to individual posts, this comparison is one of all the cars in my garage. When I got the 320d, and then the vRS people were asking how to you choose which car to take out, which one is the best. This is basically tho answer all those questions while giving the plus points of each of the cars. I thought it would make an interesting read, and the Punto was added because that too is an enthusiast car.

[Akshay1234]

@ Narry : Why not? And how is the BMW a newer generation? The Accord is a 2007 model and the E90 has been around from 2005. It was meant to be a fun comparison. Yes the gearbox on the Accord does let it down. I found the new 3.5 to be pretty boring to drive, and the model that I have better.

Originally Posted by DevilsCry

Does the 320D's turbo manage to spool just in time to cover a distance of 2 meters quickly from standstill? If yes then at how many RPM does the turbo start spooling? Asking because in bumper-to-bumper traffic, I often need to charge ahead quickly to prevent a car from another lane from cutting into my lane.

As far as I can make out from your comparo, if given a choice, I would love to pick the Accord V6 among your cars to drive around

The turbo lag is hardly there at least in first gear. When starting from a standstill the BMW gets off the line very quickly. The gearbox in D mode does upshift quickly and if you are in 3rd gear upwards cruising and then you want to accelerate you can feel the turbo lag. Though if you do press the accel more causing a down shift you suddenly get pushed back into your seat with the torque.

Good to know you pick the Accord, I can't pick any

Originally Posted by mayankjha1806

Excellent comparison Akshay, was happy to see a Jap being up there with the 3, and in some cases being better then the 3. I would be very interested to see how this comparison evolves over next 20-40K Kms (and maybe higher) will Accord continue to beat the Skoda/BMW when it comes to reliability? Currently others haven't even crossed 10K while the Accord is at 22K.

Well the car usage is not much, the 20k kms more will take a while, besides the RS which will be used at least 1000km a month. Also the only reason the Accord can keep up to the other 2 is because of the suspension and the brake upgrades without which it wouldn't be anywhere close.

Originally Posted by KarthikK

Could you also add some more sections of non-technical stuff like A/C effectiveness, the OEM headlamp effectiveness, after-sales service experience, OEM ICE quality, etc (especially the vRs, accord and 320d). Could be helpful to a few.

Also, very few photos here, do not do justice to the 4 beauties. We need a proper photoshoot , especially of the 3 series. It looks droolworthy man

I have posted about the AC, and the ICE quality right? A.S.S has been good at Honda, but with the others I haven't really experienced much. The Fiat experience was below average last year but this time it was good. Skoda I've not experienced yet.

Well I find the BMWs xenons a tad bit brighter than the Lauras, maybe because the 3 doesn't have front film yet. I'm gonna get it soon and will then be able to comment further. The Accord doesn't have projectors so its not as focused as the above 2. As for the Punto its stock so I don't particularly like the brightness.

Originally Posted by Harbir

in the US, I lived and died for 3 series cars, but here I won't touch one because the AT is an abomination in this car. Where you there is no Fun to Drive winner, let me tell you, if the BMW was a 3 pedal car, you wouldn't dream of saying such a thing.

Well even if the 3 did have a manual, it still wouldn't win the fun to drive thingy, because it would still have the hard ride which can get tiresome with the terrible roads in Bombay.

Though no doubt I would love a manual, and in the US it would make sense too. But over here with the traffic I'm actually very happy with the BMWs A/T, especially in sport mode its always in the right gear.

Also you just don't get manuals above 20l barring a few.

Actually the Accord I think would gain much more with a manual, the Honda A/T is a real let down and slows a car down a fair amount. It would be bloody quick with a manual.

Originally Posted by amitoj

Excellent write up, great pictures and a nice comparison, Akshay.

Although it is a "comparison", I think it still brings out the unique qualities of each car pretty well. Not all comparisons need to have an out and out winner after all. We get too tied down with comparing cars within segments, or diesels with diesels or hatches with hatches etc. When it comes to driving, each car is unique and sometimes a cross segment comparison brings out the uniqueness pretty well. This is what i think this thread does.

Thanks!
Amitoj

Exactly

Originally Posted by smartcat

Ah, it's an Apple Vs Orange Vs Mango Vs Grapes comparison!

Honda Accord V6 review was the most interesting one, because nobody in Team-BHP has put up a proper review of an Accord yet. So just a suspension upgrade for a normal (not V6) Accord will turn it into a decent handler? What are the costs for such an upgrade? How is the steering on the Accord? Is it a quick turner like the Civic?

I have put up my full review of the Accord, have you not seen it?

The suspension will cost around 40k here + 10k for the brake pads. And it may not be as good as coilovers but it improves the car's handling a lot. The steering like the Civic has good feel, and I think the car is not as chuckable as a Civic.

[Harbir]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Actually the Accord I think would gain much more with a manual, the Honda A/T is a real let down and slows a car down a fair amount. It would be bloody quick with a manual.

It did. I had the very rare V6 accord sedan with the 6 speed manual ('06 and '07 were the only years it was offered). It was a ROCKET compared to the automatic. Quicker than the 330i I had before it.

but the 330i SP I had was a piece of heaven on a twisty road. The Accord was a turd with a powerful engine.

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by Harbir

It did. I had the very rare V6 accord sedan with the 6 speed manual ('06 and '07 were the only years it was offered). It was a ROCKET compared to the automatic. Quicker than the 330i I had before it.

but the 330i SP I had was a piece of heaven on a twisty road. The Accord was a turd with a powerful engine.

I was talking about India I know the US had the Accord V6 with a manual. It was a mid 6 second dash to 60mph right?

Well the 3 is a different level when it comes to handling, it feels so nimble. Apparently the F30 is even better in this regard, though I'm not sure whether to believe it considering BMWs trend of making their cars softer.

[Harbir]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

I was talking about India I know the US had the Accord V6 with a manual. It was a mid 6 second dash to 60mph right?

5.9 seconds as measured by Car and Driver. It was certainly a very quick car.

[Akshay1234]

Comparative Ratings -

Now say I had to rate each of these cars on 10 in certain parameters, this is how I would rate them. Again these ratings are only within these 4 cars, so even if a car gets a 10 in something it just means its the best out of these 4.

Handling (outright grip only)
Bimmer - 10/10
Accord - 8/10
vRS - 7.5 (less than Accord because of thinner tyres and steering with no feel)
Punto - 6.5

0-100 (In terms of fun while accelerating, not the timing)
Accord - 10/10
vRS - 8/10
Bimmer - 7
Punto - 5

Ride (Soaking up all the bumps, and suspension damping)
Punto - 10/10
Accord - 8/10
vRS - 8/10
Bimmer - 6.5/10 (bad roads don't suit it)

Gearshift
vRS - 10/10 (just because its a nice slick manual)
Bimmer - 9/10
Accord - 7.5/10
Punto - 7/10

Any other things I can compare like this, cant think of any more right now? Just to show how each car is relative to the others.

[GTO]

Straight from the heart, eh? You've built quite an envious garage over the years; each car appears to have gone through a careful decision-making progress, making for an all-rounded line up. I've only seen your Accord V6 in person. It was a damn good pick and certainly didn't look her age at the time.

If I had a garage like yours, the Laura vRS would probably be the car I'd spend most of my time in. Manual + high-revving petrol engine + chuckable nature would do it for me. Next would be the Accord V6 for that sweet engine, space & comfort, followed - ironically - by the most expensive 320d (which I'm not a fan of at all). Me thinks a Superbike would complete the garage in a way no other vehicle could

Great to hear what the Konis have done to the Accord. I might get them installed in the Civic.

Thanks for sharing!

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by GTO

Straight from the heart, eh? You've built quite an envious garage over the years; each car appears to have gone through a careful decision-making progress, making for an all-rounded line up. I've only seen your Accord V6 in person. It was a damn good pick and certainly didn't look her age at the time.

If I had a garage like yours, the Laura vRS would probably be the car I'd spend most of my time in. Manual + high-revving petrol engine + chuckable nature would do it for me. Next would be the Accord V6 for that sweet engine, space & comfort, followed - ironically - by the most expensive 320d (which I'm not a fan of at all). Me thinks a Superbike would complete the garage in a way no other vehicle could

Great to hear what the Konis have done to the Accord. I might get them installed in the Civic.

Thanks for sharing!

Thanks Rush. Well if you see the Accord today it looks just the same as that day, except its debadged

The RS is great, but then I'm just in love with RWD after the 3, FWD or AWD doesn't work for me anymore. Also I really like the lower seating of the Accord and the 3, but I'm just nitpicking.

I love the Accord too, except for the useless auto gearbox. I've realised though that when I do want to drive all out its better keeping it in D3, so I have to do less kickdowns. Considering 3rd goes all the way to 170 its more than enough to act like a sports mode in the city.

You should spend a bit of time with the 3, its a beautiful car and the handling + RWD combo is brilliant. The stiff ride will get solved to an extent once I change over from the runflats.

Superbikes? Never happening lol, I won't be allowed one and luckily for me I don't like bikes at all either

As for the Konis, do check it out. Since you will probably keep the car for a while longer getting something like D2s or TEINs might make sense.

[oxyzen]

Excellent writeup. Not an easy job to compare apples to oranges.
I know what you want.

The RWD BMW, with the V6 engine from Accord, & the 6 speed transmission from Laura, & without runflat tires.

[Harbir]

what he wants a rwd BMW with an inline six engine from a BMW and a manual transmission from a BMW, and the SP spec suspension from a BMW

[PAVAN KADAM]

What a crystal clear review of your Garage Akshay

Very neatly stacked up cars, and a very neat write-up, Unbiased and to the point.

Well the Accord Auto has been my favourite car, Let there be a little Saner Petrol pricing in Bangalore and i will get mine that day.

[VeyronSuperSprt]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

I found the new 3.5 to be pretty boring to drive, and the model that I have better.

Couldn't agree more. The new Accord 3.5 was developed while Honda was in the process (which it still sadly is) of losing it's original DNA.

Originally Posted by akshay1234

It handles like its on rails

Absolutely true!

Originally Posted by akshay1234

and is bloody stable even at 200kmph.

This is the part I am not in agreement with entirely. Have taken corners at 190 in the 3 and found it to be very stable. But the minute one touches 210, the 3 isn't confidence inspiring anymore.