Hello Scotty from St.Louis! I will be buying another used car this year. I am looking for something fun to drive, reliable, reasonably priced. I’m looking at 3 cars specifically:
1. 2018 Honda Accord sport 2.0T AT
2. 2014-15 Chevy Camaro V6 AT (don’t need a v8) (GM made in Oshawa,Ontario)
3. 2014 Acura RDX Fwd
I drive conservatively and take really good care of my cars. I’ve got 220k on my 02 Honda Civic so far and ready for something a little bigger. Which would you recommend in order from most reliable to least?
I'm between the RDX and Accord, definetly not the Camaro
The issue is, the RDX had an engine with Variable Cylinder Management and the Honda Turbo engines in the Accord are prone to oil dilution (more so in the 1.5T). The Accord could be fine if you stay on top of oil etc. the Acura would have a more reliable transmission (6 speed auto) but more expensive to repair in long run. I want to see what others say. @mod_man loves his Accord 2.0T and Acuras are basically Hondas but the engines are the issue on these specific models.
If you care at all, the engine in the RDX is the 3.5 J35Z2 VCM and the one in the Accord is the 2.0T K20C4, which also has VCM.
The 2.0T K20C4 engine in the Accord does NOT have VCM.
https://www.motorreviewer.com/engine.php?engine_id=137#Specs
@daywalker
"Two versions of the Honda i-VTEC system can be found on a K-series engine, and both versions can come with variable timing control (VTC) on the intake cam. "
I may have interpreted this wrong then?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_K_engine
Correct, that is not talking about VCM.
@daywalker
12 AM brain here mixing up variable time control vs variable cylinder management
Thanks for clarifying these things they are very meaningful for me as I'm not an expert and sometimes I mix things up
So far I've had no issues out of my 2020 Accord 2.0T Sport 10-speed with 10k miles.
It rides smooth, gets good gas mileage, and has enough room for even a big guy like me. Plus I do like the styling.
After my recent few years owning Fords I'm really happy with it. I did have the dealer throw in a 100k warranty for free just in case. Basically I explained my problems with Ford and that I would only buy the Honda with some extra protection. Now, how will it hold up long term or high mileage? I can't say. And I do have a little oil dilution going on. However, I am OCD about maintenance and change the oil every 5k for full synthetic and also follow the manufacturers recommended services to the letter. I expect the oil dilution will hit those going 10k intervals between oil changes.
Anyway, of your choices, I would go Accord. Save yourself a headache and don't buy the Camaro. I had a 2011 SS and it was nothing but trouble. I love the Camaro style and the wife wants one a lot, but she refuses to go from her Camry to a Chevy just because of the quality. And I agree.
Get the Camaro.... And then wait two minutes for the engine to blow up and buy the Acura after you learn your lesson.
I think you should go with the Acura because they are sleek, sporty, fast, comfortable, and overall pretty reliable. The Accord I don't trust as much, because I myself don't trust turbo's, but Honda still does make the best engines in the world and if you can't trust Honda's turbos, who's can you trust? The Camaro is so obviously last because you shouldn't trust a book by it's cover and in this case I think it's cover will just fall apart with the rest of the junky chevy. My dad's friend leased a Camaro and said it was an f-in pain in the butt because things kept breaking on it everyday. Get the 5l v8 mustang if you want a quality muscle car.
1 > 3 > 2
The Accord. The Acura would be the runner up, then the Camaro, which is not a good choice. Just make sure to keep up with maintenance on the Accord and it will be a good car.
