New (Used) Car: 1993 Honda Accord EX-R

Last weekend, I finally got a car. I’m not a car guy and know next to nothing about them, so I just mentioned some criteria to the car people in my family and asked them to tell me about it if they figured it was a good deal and fit my criteria. My primary criteria was this:

  1. Get me to the mountain (Cypress) and back with snowboard gear and maybe friend or two +their gear.
  2. Doesn’t consume too much gas doing #1.
  3. Doesn’t beg to be broken into. I want to be able to leave it places without being paranoid.
  4. Isn’t huge. I hate parking huge vehicles. I don’t even like driving them very much. I don’t need a huge vehicle. (More than 2 seats would be nice, however….)
  5. Doesn’t cost a lot to insure.
  6. Doesn’t cost much in any regard, really. ^.^ CHEAP. But works.
  7. I’m not looking for an investment. I may only insure it for the ski season, and sell it afterward, depending on circumstances.

Basically, I wanted a cheap, reliable car so I could go snowboarding whenever I wanted. I bought a discounted (due to the 2010 Olympics) season’s pass to Cypress Mountain this year and plan on using it intensely.

I received a few suggestions from everyone, but they were either a little too expensive or not quite what I was looking for. But then my uncle came across this 1993 Honda Accord EX-R with 193,000 km that was in great condition. Long-ish story short: I bought it, last weekend, Saturday October 24. šŸ™‚ It’s not super sexy, but it drives great and was a good deal ($2500 before tax). Actually, I do find it pretty hot….

The things I love about it: 4 cylinder (good on gas) yet seems to have very decent acceleration, back seats fold down to easily accommodate snowboard/ski gear, it’s manual and front-wheel drive to give better control in snow, and it just feels great to drive. The one problem with it, which is really more of a nuisance: the ignition alarm on the driver’s side that indicates you still have the keys in the ignition when the door is open, goes off even when the keys are not in the ignition (getting in/out of the car). My dad and I poked around in the fuse box to see if we could cut it off, but it was connected to the interior lights, so I’ll live with it for now. In the process, however, we disconnected the stereo from the battery, which activated some kind of anti-theft mechanism. Now the stereo requests a 5-digit code before it will start working again! I managed to find the code hand-written in the manual, and tried entering it many times, but I couldn’t get it to work. So I drive in silence, for now. ^.^ It’s not so bad, as the stereo only has a radio and a tape deck; one thing I wanted to upgrade soon, anyway. We actually have a spare car stereo (doesn’t everyone?), I just need to find someone to install it.

Anyway, except for a couple little things, I’m very happy with my first car. Yay šŸ™‚

7 comments

  1. That’s awesome! But wow, you really really do take your skiing seriously! To even consider insuring for only the ski season… šŸ™‚

    That ignition alarm sounds like a feature…? In case you lock yourself out while the key is plugged in?

    Anyway, sounds like a great deal. Hope you have a great snowboard season. šŸ™‚

  2. Nice! If you still don’t have that stereo replaced by the end of November, I’m sure you can take it over to the Budau Garage and get it hooked up there.

  3. I owned a 1992 Honda accord. That car was amazing, I got over 400k off it. Parts are dirt cheap, for a first car you made a great choice.

  4. Hi Steve

    Do you still have this car? Just curious to hear about any updates you have on it (how it is running now, repairs etc.)

    thanks!

    1. Hi Joe,

      Yes, I still have the car. Still runs well! Aside from regular maintenance stuff, (oil, coolant, tires), I’ve only had to replace the spark plugs. I think that’s all I’ve done. The driver’s side window sticks a bit, the suspension creaks sometimes, but no deal breakers. šŸ™‚

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