[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by Panneer Selven

But why did you replace the steering wheel? If it was the fading chrome logo, you could have bought just the logo online and replaced it. Or if it was worn out grips, you could have leather-wrapped it. I did the same on my Xuv500's steering wheel.

Sorry maybe I did not clarify. I have the same steering wheel but I replaced the steering rack that was leaking fluid and I did not want to do any aftermarket repairs. The car is used for lot of long drives and hence just fitted a new assembly

[nissar]

Originally Posted by Reachjai

The only issue has been its low ground clearance which made it ground on the nasty speed breakers on highways and in Delhi NCR, but I have since fixed it too, and now it remains my favourite highway car as well, its certainly more fun than my SUV's.

How did you solve the ground clearance issue?

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

Have replaced the yellow colored headlamps to LEDs and all the internal and and number plate lights are LEDs too to inject some bit of freshness.

Can you please share details on the LED setup particularly for the headlights?

[nissar]

I recently discovered the Honda connect app. On registering I am able to pull all the service history as pdf files per visit from even before I owned the car.

[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by nissar

Can you please share details on the LED setup particularly for the headlights?

Low beam is 9006 (LED).
High beam is 9005 (LED).

You can buy from Amazon. Internal lights and car door logo lamp lights (I bought as a pack from Aliexpress much before it was banned in india so you will have to do some research there. Click on the lights to see sample.

[Reachjai]

Originally Posted by nissar

How did you solve the ground clearance issue?

1 Inch spacer custom made by Performance Auto - Raj Kapoor ji at Noida. I trust his work and experience. Minor difference in performance in terms of Aerodynamics and high speed handling, but minor compromise well worth it for the added practicality of being able to cruise at higher speeds over all. The original car was perhaps made keeping the US market and roads in mind, not our nasty car breakers every one or two KMs ! Makes the car safer and more practical for India, specially for patients of the "Lead foot disease" like me !

Can you please share details on the LED setup particularly for the headlights?[/QUOTE

Both headlights upgraded to LED. Experimented with some Chinese imports from their sites initially, but finally settled for Bosch iRIS LED Headlamps after the Chinese ones died very prematurely.

Realised that they lie through their teeth on the box and on websites while advertising - in terms of the promised lumens, life, wattage drawn from the battery etc etc etc.

You are Lucky if they last a month or beyond, and if your battery and wiring survives them !!

Now after experiments over two years for various vehicles, and after being duped multiple times, I realised that they were not worth my trust and money, so I finally moved over to the Germans and Americans !! Now - I would not install a Chinese one even if they paid me for it !!!

Added a Custom mounted light bar within the front Bumper, for additional light if needed (have actually not needed it most of the time, and it can be blinding for anyone coming from the other side; unless you are on a sealed one way with little or no traffic ) and want to rip; this set up completes the lighting upgrade for me, and gives me the confidence and clear visibility over a dark night on a highway to cruise at speeds I would only gather courage to hit during daytime !!

Net, net, if you need to tweak it to make it better for your own experience, now we have the resources - garages, equipment etc to make it happen. It makes sense to customise to make our cars safer, better and more fun than the manufacturers give you stock !! This is particularly true for Tyres, head lights, sound systems, oils and lubricants, filters, pipes, et el !! Have fun with your beast !!

[Sarinkrc]

Originally Posted by Panneer Selven

Left hand Drive you say? Which country, may I know?

Still using in Dubai.

[nissar]

Quick update:
Repair work done @ 97k
Timing belt and one engine mount replaced. Claimed insurance for the minor bonet, headlight, bumper, fender damage due to buffalo hit. Bumper and headlight were replaced. Bonnet and fender were repaired and painted. Was originally not planning to get it repaired but it turned out to be money well spent to see the car in good shape. (Not posting a photo as it is hard to see the difference after repairs on photos anyway)

Observations

Didn't take long for Honda dealer to procure parts for all the above (took about a week). Took 3 days for the repair work (specifically mentioned to take his time). The old engine mount was completely bust was leaking fluid all over. The timing belt visually looked to be almost new. Good to know that these tend to last 100k easily. I am glad that this critical maintenance item is now behind me! Quite impressed with the customer service. (I would be happy to buy a new Honda if they had products in the premium segment).

The car feels very smooth now. There are almost no vibrations at idle and none even while revving it out to the redline! I feel the car is also quieter now even on the high end, also somehow the transition to VTEC feels more distinct now. I wasn't expecting so much of a difference and i didn't know the V6 was this smooth. Seems like i need to be a lot more careful especially in less than half throttle driving, speed tends to creep up as the engine is so quiet,smooth,linear in the 2k-4k rpm range.

Next maintenance items
The car the best shape now since i bought it and there are no serious items pending. The only items that need attention are the complete suspension setup. Issues are not so good damping and little noise. This is mainly felt on bad roads. On highways and back roads the car still flattens everything pretty well. The service advisor suggested to get everything fixed in one go for best experience (~1.3L) or fix one by one if budget is an issue. I kinda agree with him on getting things fixed in one go. Little nervous on getting this done aftermarket as I am not sure if everything will be OEM quality and atleast give me no issues for 50k km. Seems like OEM should atleast last this long and the cost seems fair so mostly planning to get this done with the Honda dealer itself. Seem to to be a few steps closer to setting the car up for 200k km!

[Buffetfan]

I would say even one by one would work as the technicians can identify the torn bushings or joints that have play in them / shocks that are leaking. But definitely use the service center and not after market as once gremlins start creeping up through the aftermarket route, it is very difficult to clear them up
Service centre guys are trained and work on the same models day in and out that gives them deeper experience compared to an independent mechanic who works on a new model every day, thus widening the experience but what we need is depth.

[nissar]

Thanks for the tip. The service centers guys apparently reserve civic/accord/crv to a few experienced mechanics. That gives me some more comfort. Also I always find that the mechanics and SA get somewhat excited to work on this on finding it is a V6 and are happy that I am keeping her in good shape. Never had such an experience with my VW Jetta.

[Reachjai]

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

Service centre guys are trained and work on the same models day in and out that gives them deeper experience compared to an independent mechanic who works on a new model every day, thus widening the experience but what we need is depth.

If you have a good workshop with mechanics trained on the V6, then you are lucky ! I have not been so far across the few in Delhi NCR, so have now started using Bosch earlier, and Performance Auto in Noida, who have been the best experience so far - now the car heads straight there for any TLC, which is done to far better quality, with far more attention to detail, at much lesser costs. I have now started trusting all my cars to them !

[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by Reachjai

If you have a good workshop with mechanics trained on the V6, then you are lucky ! I have not been so far across the few in Delhi NCR, so have now started using Bosch earlier, and Performance Auto in Noida, who have been the best experience so far - now the car heads straight there for any TLC, which is done to far better quality, with far more attention to detail, at much lesser costs. I have now started trusting all my cars to them !

What is there to work on the V6 unless you are into opening the engine at which point better to get a new car.
Issues normally are around rotors / brake pads electrical parts/suspension / fluid topup / changes that the car will generally share (if not the exact part the fitment style ) with its I4 sibling .

[Momo97]

Hi Nissar,

Very Detailed & Beautifully explained the things about this magnificent beast...I am also looking to buy a pre-owned Accord V6, could you please advise in which price bracket it'll a good deal?

Thanks

[ritedhawan]

I bought a third hand 2.4L AT Honda Accord which had the same mileage as yours when you bought your 3.5 L V6, in the year 2019. I would state definitely that this is by far the best looking Honda Accord whether in the 2.4L or 3.5 V6 garb, especially when compared to the 2007 2.4L Accord which I used to own. Except for the V6 engine, along with the VCM technology and the stability control, rest of it is pretty much similar to the 2.4L variant.

I continue to have a good experience with this car. The first year of ownership had the car visiting the ASS(After-sales service), Okhla for regular service and brake pad replacement. However, when repair jobs like steering column repair in order to stop leaking steering fluid, suspension OH, engine and transmission mounting replacement came in, then I immediately switched to independent workshop of our preferred mechanic in New Delhi. The parts procurement for the above jobs was done via boodmo, most of the parts were OEM expect a few after market parts. The above jobs were completed before the car reached 100,000 KM mileage.

Later I moved to Noida, and performed spark plugs replacement along with ignition coil set with the help of a Stanley kit on my own. I found a dependable independent workshop in Noida and got the regular service along with brake pads replacement done from them. I recently got the brake booster and brake master cylinder replaced from them as inadequate brake pedal response was a long standing issue that I was facing with my car. The inadequate brake pedal response along with an imbedded uninspiring brakes in Honda Accord was a cause of inconvenience to me, finally it has been fixed:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techn...-cylinder.html (Weird issue: Unable to replace brake master cylinder!)

My car has 124,000 Km mileage and is set for V-belt\serpentine belt\drive belt replacement along with pulley and auto-tensioner next month as the belt and the pulley associated with the tensioner are not in good condition.

The majority of the mileage has been accumulated on highways esp. in Himachal Pradesh. I recently drove it till Keylong, HP in the month of Oct.

Below pic: My white Honda Accord on the approach road to Rohtang Pass.

[karthikg87]

Originally Posted by ritedhawan

Below pic: My white Honda Accord on the approach road to Rohtang Pass.

Hats off to your commitment and perseverance . Maintaining cars like these is akin to raising a child. Hopefully it will reward you with many more memories.

[ritedhawan]

Originally Posted by karthikg87

Hats off to your commitment and perseverance . Maintaining cars like these is akin to raising a child. Hopefully it will reward you with many more memories.

Thanks. The care and perseverance I strive to commit on this 3rd hand vehicle has been providing me dividends in terms of reliability. My only grouse is in the year 2024, its 15 years would be up and then I would have to give up this vehicle as I live in tier one city where the 15 year rule applies. However, I intend to convince my brother to transfer ownership of this vehicle to his wife whose home address falls in a city where we can transfer ownership of 15+ year vehicle, in that way he can enjoy the benefits of this car. Add to the fact, that he is a car enthusiast.