honda or toyota?

Toyota's are over priced, Toyota's makes up for being underpowered by being lower geared, Honda has better looking interiorl
 
I am a Honda and Subaru fan. When I was looking for a car last year I was looking at Honda, Subaru, and Toyota. I was trading in my 2001 Civic. Honda build quality is just excellent in my opinion. The subaru line up is impressive and I love the boxer engines, AWD, and handling of them. The Toyotas were really nice but just too pricey. We looked at the Scion line but they felt sort of cheap. But, you can not go wrong with a Toyota in my eyes if you want to pay for it. And now Toyota bought GM's shares of Subaru so it's all good. LOL
 
I love Hondas. Build quality is excellent, and the engines just kick butt. As said above, the interiors are better looking. And while Toyota remains completely nonoffensive in the design dept.(read: boring), Honda isn't afraid to be a little more bold(just look at an Accord vs. a Camry). Also, while Toyotas are more concerned with ride comfort, Hondas have always felt sportier to me.:)

A big thing with Honda is the standard features, especially on EX models, is extensive. Toyota contrasts this with high base prices and very steep options. I think they've just started charging for the brand name.



BTW, the Toyota V6 requires premium fuel, while the Honda only requires regular! That's a big point right now too!
 
What drewski said. I like both brands, but Toyotas seem to be geared more towards the real-estate broker crowd. That's not to say Hondas aren't, but generally they seem a little sportier to me, and I've always had good luck with them. I actually "prefer" Nissan to either, but that's not the topic. :)



It's cool that this hasn't turned into a flame war...yet. Keep up the good work guys!
 
Both brands, obviously, are quality through and through, and both will last a 'lifetime' if maintained properly. IMO it comes down to value, appearence and personal experiences.



I recently bought a 2005 Civic EX Special Edition. Traded in my 94 Accord with 300,000 miles, which I picked up after my 80-something Accord, with ~200,000 miles, got totaled. Prior to that I had Civics. My personal experiences with Honda's have been A+++.



When I was shopping for my 05 Civic, I did objectively look at the Toyota line and was impressed. However, what others have said regarding pricing is correct - Toys seem to be priced somewhat higher for comparable size and equipment. For what I was looking for, Compact or Mid, it came down to Accord & Civic -vs- Camry & Corrola. IMO, Honda got the nod for appearence and style. When I tallyed up the (3) categories, value, appearence and personal experiences, my choice was then between only the Accord and Civic.



With all that being said, IMO the pendulum has swung even more toward with Honda side with the 2006 models. Oh, boy...the changes to both the Accord and Civic (style, better mileage, increased power) are very attractive. Again, IMO, the Civic sedan & coupe are the best automobiles in the under 20K category, and the Accord is one of the best in the 20K-30K range. I'm hoping to trade in my daughter's 99 Saturn for a 06 Civic coupe in the near future.



Sorry for rambling... ;)
 
I've had both...along with many other manufacturers and feel that Japanese cars are , in general, excellent. Honda may have it over Toyota, now that it has a truck...which from what I read is really well built.



IMO...japanese cars are made best, many german cars are overrated, and dare I say it, in the past few years, the americans have made ground on the japanese. :shocked
 
rfinkle2 said:
IMO...japanese cars are made best, many german cars are overrated, and dare I say it, in the past few years, the americans have made ground on the japanese. :shocked
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I agree. American cars have made HUGE strides in quality over the past five years. Fit/finish, fuel mileage, and value have gone up greatly in most American cars. Just compare the new Cobalt to the outgoing Cavalier, the new Impala to the outgoing one, the new Cadillacs, etc...



Too bad all the American companies are going to the graveyard soon. :scared:
 
A couple of months ago, I was given a new Toyota 4 cyl. Camry loaner (low miles, under 5K) while my car was in for service. After reading all of the positive comments about Toyota over the years (drive, build quality, durability, etc.) and never owning one, I was a little interested in getting in it. I came away somewhat disappointed. The interior build quality/fit and finish was alright, but not worthy of the praise I've read about. The car rode/drove fine, though was nothing special. The powertrain was not quiet under acceleration and, in general, did not have a refined feel. Overall, I wasn't very impressed. I didn't examine the exterior panel gaps or paint (car was dirty) so I won't comment on them. The durability is probably there, I can't comment on that, either. IMHO, this Camry is comparable to, though not superior to the Hondas/Nissans I've owned, or some American cars I've owned/been in. My $.02
 
agreed concerning the toyota discussed above by rob d ... something i've noticed recently is that Toyota needs to step up the overall design of their cars, both interior and exterior. For example, I just purchased a Ford F150 after trading in a Toyota Tundra and the F150 has it all over the Tundra, especially interior design.



If you ask me, Dodge absolutely has been the innovator in exterior design for @ least 5 years now.



I do feel, that although some Japanese cars lack in design, they make up for in long term reliability.



an interesting thing i read was that the Volkswagen Beetle has been on the list of the consumer reports worst used cars for a while now... (i was a little surprised)
 
kgb said:
And the one thing you won't get with a Honda or Toyota is TORQUE! Another reason why I like the Subaru.
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Honda especially does tend to make smaller displacement motors, making for great gas mileage, but alas, torque is not free. But Honda makes their engines so efficient that you get so much horsepower--you just gotta keep the revs high. Great cars, great engines.
 
I grew up in an American car household and until I was 30 (2 years ago) I only owned Ford. I find myself looking at cars now and realize that only2 on the list are American (Lincol LS and Mustang GT) and it kind of shocked. I dont find the styling of Toyota or Honda very appealing honestly, they are a little bland. Now Subaru and Nissan have some nice looking vehicles. I know you cant beat the Japenese for reliability.



One thing I have alwasy wondered is why the "Big 3" (hey Im from the Detroit Area) have not tried to steal away designers, engineers, etc form the Japenese companies so that they can learn new proecesses and improve their vehile lines? But I will say the Americans have come a long way, look at the new Ford Fusion and the reviews its getting, Look at the 500 (huge and can still get 21/29mpg with just over 200hp), look at most anything from Daimler-Chrysler, GM well............
 
kgb said:
And the one thing you won't get with a Honda or Toyota is TORQUE! Another reason why I like the Subaru.
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Yes. Same reason I'm a Nissan fan. The VQ engine has gobs of torque and is in almost every one of their cars from the Altima, to the Maxima, to the G35, to the M35. It's an incredible engine, and like Subaru they seem to be geared more towards performance and "fun to drive" than just reliable econo-boxes.



RE: Domestics. It's clear I have a strong Japanese bias, but I have really been impressed with some domestics lately. The Ford Fusion is is perfect example - good styling, nice fit and finish, a great engine with lots of room to grow, and it undercuts it's japanese comptitors on price. I drove one, and while it's not for me, I was pleasantly surprised.



RE: Germans. Tough to bunch them together, imo. BMW's and MB are in a difference class all together than saw, a VW. I owned 6 VW's in a row but had to lemon the last two. VW has the third lowest CS in the industry and the second highest lemon rate (and highest recall rate) per vehicle. I am hoping this new generation turns it around for them.
 
Picus said:
Yes. Same reason I'm a Nissan fan. The VQ engine has gobs of torque and is in almost every one of their cars from the Altima, to the Maxima, to the G35, to the M35. It's an incredible engine, and like Subaru they seem to be geared more towards performance and "fun to drive" than just reliable econo-boxes.
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The VQ in this Nissan Murano I'm driving right now as a rental sure doesn't feel like it has gobs of torque. As a matter of fact, my Honda van seems like a racecar in comparison. It's a nice engine but I have *NEVER* heard pinging from any of my Honda cars no matter what kind of gas was in them. This thing pings regularly. I wont even mention the CVT tranny that's in it. :chuckle:
 
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