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Alot Staff Auto Review: 2017 Honda Accord Sport SE

Unlike magazines where cars are purchased or provided for the staff, our staff saves up money, shops carefully, and makes decisions that we're invested in - just like you do. When someone at Alot buys a new car, we check in with them about how it's going, what drove their decisions, and how happy they are with their purchase. Then we keep checking in, over time, to see how well the car has aged for them.

The Car

2017 Accord Sport SE

The Reviewer

Phil Basinger, QA Manager

Why did you buy the car?

I had a 2013 VW Passat TDI  which was part of the VW diesel scandal. VW gave me an offer I could not refuse. Their offer was almost the exact price I paid for the car three and a half years ago.  I wanted a mid-size family four door sedan to replace the diesel VW.  I considered a gasoline Passat,  but the wife wanted a car that had a dealer in our town. The VW dealer was 40 miles away.  Also we did not want to buy a new car that essentially looked like the old one. The Accord has been one of Car & Driver magazine’s best 10 cars for at least 10 years in a row; it has an almost bulletproof record of reliability.

What did you pay? 

MSRP $27,052  Purchase price $23,923

Any major options or upgrades?

I chose the Sport SE model, which is a Sport model with leather and heated seats standard.  It has no options on it. The Sport model has larger 19 inch alloy wheels, a spoiler, dual exhaust and about 5 more horse power than the regular 4 cylinder Accord.

Current Miles Driven/Time Owned?

950 miles / 45 days

What gas mileage are you getting?

EPA Estimate: City 26 MPG/Hwy 32 MPG
Actual Mileage: City 21 MPG/Hwy 26 MPG

How Do You Use the Car? 

This is a family car for going to church, getting groceries, picking kid up at school, going out to dinner, etc.  This is the wife’s car mostly, unless we go somewhere as a family.

Any problems so far?

The Accord had a persistent rattle in the dash near the radio. Finally, after three weeks of it driving us nuts,  I fixed it by sticking a pointer up under dash and pushing whatever it was away from rubbing the dash.  Absolutely no mechanical issues or any trouble with the accessories.

What do you like about the car?

It is a nice looking car; fit and finish are better than average.  Back seat room is good (although not as good as the Passat).  Despite low profile tires, the ride is decent and road and wind noise are controlled.  Visibility is good and it comes with a rear view monitor. Power is best in its class for a four cylinder without a turbo. Throttle response is excellent since it does not have the turbo lag.  Yep, I am a patriot, it is built here in America and has over 70% U.S. content.

What don’t you like?

The gas mileage has been a little disappointing, but this may be because the engine is not broken in yet. Also, my wife has a lead foot.  It is improving however. The trunk pass-through opening with rear seats folded down is much smaller than the width of the seats. The Sport model does not have a button to open the trunk from outside the car, you have to use your key remote or pull the lever from below the driver’s seat.  This car has the constant variable transmission (CVT) which improves gas mileage, but there tends to be some droning at low speed. The Sport model has paddle shifters which I cannot imagine anybody using with a CVT.

If you could go back and do it over knowing what you know now, how likely would you be to buy the car again?

We are happy with the car after 45 days and close to a thousand miles.  We would buy it again without hesitation, but are probably still in the honeymoon period. Things are great since I got rid of the rattle.

Last Updated: January 12, 2017