Friday 22nd April 2011

SOTW: Honda Accord Type R

Shed discovers rev-tastic fun in saloon form

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'SOTW contender', says the rather cocky headline in the advert for this week's Shed. Ordinarily, this would mean we would dismiss the car on a point of principle - Shed's affection cannot be bought, it must be earned organically, as it were - but our vendor's right, but because this Honda accord Type R looks to be quite a find.

As a lover of Japanese cars in general, and of Hondas in particular, I am personally particularly susceptible to a Type R of any sort, but an Accord Type R will surely draw the eye of any Shed fan, regardless of their disposition towards Oriental metal.

Okay, so it's not the most beautiful of vehicles inside or out, but the 90s repmobiles never were the most stylish of things and besides, it's what's underneath that counts. In this case that's 2.2-litres and 209bhp of screaming VTEC loveliness, and a chassis that was, if not heaped with praise by the motoring press, then certainly admired.

So how come this particular Accord R has ended up in Shed territory, when its brethren are largely lodged in the nation's classified ads at twice or three times the magic £1k? The answer seems to lie with the fact that it's done a chunky 40,000 miles in the past year...

Still, that, and a long list of well-used parts, isn't enough to put us off. As Mr Beemer so eloquently puts it: "At the end of the day, it's a Honda....a Type-R....with nearly 100bhp/litre....and a 9000rpm redline. Seriously, what's not to like? So come on Garlick...Riggers..., make me SOTW!!!"

Okay, we just have... but don't expect us to make a habit of it...

Advert is reproduced below

SOTW contender? Bit baggy, but honest Type-R Accord (2000)
130,000 miles £1,000

Accord Type-R, Silver, 2000 (W), genuine UK car, completely standard. Why so much cheaper than others on here, you might ask?

Well, the old girl's been used for hacking up and down the motorway for the last year (40,000 miles) and it's starting to take it's toll! I paid £3K for her a year ago and think I've had my money's worth, but with fuel at £1.40+ a litre it's time for something a bit more economical (I get just under 30mpg).

These Type-R Accords were really special back in the late 90's when they came out (I had a new one as a company motor in 1999) - much lighter than standard Accords thanks to manual rear windows, no sunroof, basic trim in boot, no trim on doors, etc etc.I remember the handling on my new one as sublime, with the best turn in since my old 205 GTI! This car is not quite as keen as it would have been when new (probably needs a new set of bushes to sharpen it up), but still better than most if not all FWD saloons.

So what do you get for a grand then? Well, here's a list of the bad bits and the reason it's not worth two or three times the asking:

- The engine management light has come on recently (3 weeks or so ago). Looking in the handbook, this refers to an issue with the emissions control equipment, so I'm guessing this might be an issue with the cats? Unfortunately I don't have the time or inclination to sort this out.
- Air con not functioning.
- Front bumper is VERY stonechipped, and has one small crack to bottom edge. Few stonechips to bonnet also.
- One front foglight lens cracked.
- Piece of the plastic undertray below front bumper fell off on our lane last week (it's in the boot!)

- Light behind digital clock kaput.
- Bolsters on drivers seat (Alcantara section) a bit worn/bobbly, although serviceable (and the seats are still the most comfortable I've ever known)
- Wheels scuffed with poor lacquer on most of them.
- Uses a fair bit of oil (which they all do, about a litre every 1000 miles).
- Electric aerial doesn't quite retract all the way in.
- Service history a bit patchy.
- Looks like it might have had a ding on offside rear quarter at some point (evidence: paint match not perfect, bumper alignment, boot shutlines) - although it is HPI clear.
- No VED (runs out end of April).

OK, so is there anything good about it that might appeal to the dedicated shed-hunter on PH? Of course there is!

- Engine and VTEC strong.
- Handling still great (EVO magazine still reckon it's the best front driver ever, and it hates understeer as much as I do!).
- Good tyres all round (Dunlop SP Sport Maxx).
- I've replaced the spark plugs (£48 a set - gulp!), starter motor, battery in the time I've had the car).
- Interior very good aside from slight wear to drivers seat.
- Recaro seats, Momo wheel, titanium gearknob - all top quality!
- MOT to October 2011 (no advisories last time round).

So, yes there are a few things that need looking at, but I reckon this has got to be worth a "bag o'sand". 

At the end of the day, it's a Honda....a Type-R....with nearly 100bhp/litre....and a 9000rpm redline. Seriously, what's not to like? So come on Garlick...Riggers..., make me SOTW!!!

I live down in Devon, but work Tues-Thurs in Bristol so car can be viewed at either location.

Thanks for reading, if you have any more queries please give me a shout. No £600 silly offers please, I can go to Webuyanycash4cars for that kind of nonsense!

Cheers
Sean

 

 

 

[johnpeat]

Drove one these for a couple of days when my Civic VTi was broked (it spent a lot of time broked!!) and I loved it BUT it's not without it's downsides.

Upsides are that it's a lovely split-personality machine. You can drive it as an everyday saloon, pootling around or you can open-it-up and it does the whole 'Jekyll and Hyde' thing. The seats are fantastically comfy Recaros which keep you in the right place whilst you're doing either ( I agree with the seller, they're amongst the best seats ever!! )

Downsides - the gear ratios are just wrong, changing up will often drop you outside the VTEC band which is just daft - I've no idea what they were planning there but once you get used to the car, it really does feel like the wrong gearbox was installed - this tends to dampen the fun factor a bit...

Got to be an interesting punt for the cash tho - I doubt the mileage will have troubled it and I'd not expect any nasty rot but lack of maintenance and care might be a bit more of a problem and that engine light could be anything from a sensor to something dramatic so I might want to get that checked (get a fault code at least) before dropping the cash...

Edited by johnpeat on Friday 22 April 01:02

[johnpeat]

Rollcage said:

Whatever Clarkson said, I think the reality was more along the lines of Honda UK never having to have done a warranty repair on a v-tec unit itself. Slightly different!

It's an oft quoted thing that a VTEC unit has never failed - but it's also meaningless ste as it only refers to the camshift mech.

Back in 1998 I got a Civic VTi (Rover 400) with the 1.8 VTEC and it was a nightmare. Raft of faults in the gearbox, brakes and electrics but by far the worst was the engine which pinked/knocked constantly from new (really badly on unleaded - almost as badly on Super).

4 different Honda dealers and a pair of techs from Honda UK came to the conclusion - and I'm not kidding here - that

"the fault could be in any of upto 40 separate components and we're not about to replace all of them"

They admitted they had other cars with similar problems but that "as the engines were made in Germany they couldn't easily source a replacement" - which is clearly more nonsense.

My response was that I only wanted 1 thing replaced - the entire car - but someone wrote-it-off before I could challenge them over that and I've never darkened Honda's door again...

The VTEC unit may not have 'failed' but the engine was a bag of st.

The Accord Type-R I had as (one of many) loancars was fantastic tho - gear ratios aside - and hitting the VTEC in it was like a turbo-boost in any other car, the thing just took-off like a scalded cat!!

I could just sit in those seats all day tho - they're astonishingly comfy. I've been in some flash cars since and nothing has come close to em (even the current gen Audis with their fancy multi-electric Recaros don't seem as nice).

[johnpeat]

Gwagon111 said:

I'm referring to all iVTEC equiped cars I've driven, type R included. People who bleat on about "ohhh the Vtec" and my personal favourite "when the Vtec kicks in it's like a turbo" crack me right up . It's a gimmick, it doesn't do much, certainly absolutely nothing like a turbo.

That statement actually reads "I have never been out in an ATR or the original Civic 1.6 Vti, both of which are mild-mannered cars upto the VTEC point and then tear-off like mad bds). The CTR isn't exactly shameless in that dept either - but you do realise that VTEC in other models is more a fuel economy tool than a power enhancer...

Even my stty 1.8 picked-up noticeably once you passed a certain point - that was if you could ignore the mechanical crashing from the engine (which, as it was a company car - I could!!)

I drove the ATR in the same week I had a Fiat Coupe Turbo and an Impreza (gen 2) - the other cars were quicker at illegal speeds but the ATR was quicker within the limit - and was a better cruiser when you weren't pushing on and didn't 'egg you on' as the other 2 cars seem to do, constantly.

Not for everyone perhaps - but it's a GREAT shed. As I've said twice now, if nothing else someone just bought 2 of the comfiest seats in the world

[johnpeat]

carsnapper said:

I would love a spare Ricardo bucket seat from an ATR to adapt as a seat for my computer at home.

You'll need a few quid - tatty pairs on eBay are £300+ - tidy/decent ones are more like £450+ a pair...

Recaro actually make office chairs - if you have the monies!!

I don't get the idea of putting a car seat onto an office chair frame tho - in a car you're sitting close to the ground with your legs ahead of you - in the office you sit more upright, surely the posture will be totally wrong??

Unless you have your desk 18" from the ground?

For the office, get a Herman Miller Aeron - you'll never ever regret it...