Hello Again!

[golftango]

Well it appears I may have found my Kizashi replacement.



2017 Accord Sport in San Marino Red. Getting 3K off MSRP. Still have a few days to mull over this decision/vehicle choices, I keep going back to the Accord.

I like the new Accord a lot too. It looks very nice. It has conservative styling, but it's attractive. Honda and Mazda are also the only two companies left that offer family midsize sedans with manuals, I think. I know you've had numerous issues with your Kizashi and a lack of quality work in the repairs. With that in light, getting a newer Honda would seem like a relief from that. How much are they going to offer for the Kizashi for a trade-in?

Thanks! I sold it PP, $6500 with 39K. I think I did well.

And update, I actually found a San Marino Red Sport Special Edition with a 6MT! So deposit is made and deal done.

The 19"'s are too big; sell the whole set on Craigslist and buy some lightweight 18" with decent tires mounted right from the TireRack.com

The car itself is awesome, and includes the bigger front rotors, strut tower brace, and retuned suspension.
$3,000 off is a smokin' deal.

Remember, there's no TPMS sensors in the wheels of the modern Accord! Calibrate with a button!

Nah, I like the 19" wheels, they make the car IMHO. Actually it will be more than 3K off. The MSRP is $26,390, I got it for $22,900.

[KuroNekko]

Congrats on the Accord! I hear those 19"s are popular among thieves so definitely get some wheel locks.
Let us know your impressions of the car shortly after you get it.

[Knightstruth]

Accords are very nice, congrats on the car. I agree with many of you that the kizashi is hard to replace, as still has great style and i don't feel the auto indusry has advanced far enough to make it obsolete. I did find some used Lexus is 250 for a good price with low miles, but not impressed with fuel economy. I do have a family member who does want to buy my kiz though.

[KuroNekko]

Accords are very nice, congrats on the car. I agree with many of you that the kizashi is hard to replace, as still has great style and i don't feel the auto indusry has advanced far enough to make it obsolete. I did find some used Lexus is 250 for a good price with low miles, but not impressed with fuel economy. I do have a family member who does want to buy my kiz though.

I do like the Lexus IS, but the 250 was often criticized and ranked as the worse in the class. Camrys and Accords with larger V6s outperformed it. It's the IS 350 that gets the praise and Lexus has since put a 2.0 liter turbo in the IS and got rid of the 2.5 liter V6 but kept the 3.5 liter V6. Personally, I don't think it's worth stepping out of the Kizashi for an IS unless you get the bigger motor for a significance upgrade in performance.

[golftango]

Congrats on the Accord! I hear those 19"s are popular among thieves so definitely get some wheel locks.
Let us know your impressions of the car shortly after you get it.

Thanks KuroNekko. Been in the Accord a week now and I have to say the shifter and clutch are amazing. S2000 like, no kidding. Additional the NVH is quite better than the Kizashi. Much more refined and quiet, even with 19" wheels. Only negatives, the Kizashi, even in S form, had a better sounding stereo. Only 4 speakers on the Sport. Easy to add OE tweeters and help the front staging. LED fogs/DRL and tails are nice too.

[KuroNekko]

Congrats on the Accord! I hear those 19"s are popular among thieves so definitely get some wheel locks.
Let us know your impressions of the car shortly after you get it.

Thanks KuroNekko. Been in the Accord a week now and I have to say the shifter and clutch are amazing. S2000 like, no kidding. Additional the NVH is quite better than the Kizashi. Much more refined and quiet, even with 19" wheels. Only negatives, the Kizashi, even in S form, had a better sounding stereo. Only 4 speakers on the Sport. Easy to add OE tweeters and help the front staging. LED fogs/DRL and tails are nice too.

Glad to hear the Accord is nice to drive. Honda and Mazda are Japanese brands famous for their excellent manual transmissions. I'm not surprised to hear that the Accord's shifter is excellent. The one in my former Mazda3 was significantly better than my Kizashi's. However, the Kizashi has a softer clutch which makes it better for everyday driving and traffic jams especially.

Sucks to hear the Accord Sport only came with 4 speakers. I'm actually shocked to hear they still offer that few these days. I think one of the most unique aspects of the Kizashi was that they offered the manual in the higher trims. For example, my GTS has a moonroof, power driver's seat, Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, and a 10 speaker stereo, etc. all with the manual trans. The packaging of the Kizashi was one of the main reasons I wanted to get one.

I hope you have better luck with your Accord than you've had with the Kizashi. At least you'll likely have more competent technicians.

[Knightstruth]

Accords are very nice, congrats on the car. I agree with many of you that the kizashi is hard to replace, as still has great style and i don't feel the auto indusry has advanced far enough to make it obsolete. I did find some used Lexus is 250 for a good price with low miles, but not impressed with fuel economy. I do have a family member who does want to buy my kiz though.

I do like the Lexus IS, but the 250 was often criticized and ranked as the worse in the class. Camrys and Accords with larger V6s outperformed it. It's the IS 350 that gets the praise and Lexus has since put a 2.0 liter turbo in the IS and got rid of the 2.5 liter V6 but kept the 3.5 liter V6. Personally, I don't think it's worth stepping out of the Kizashi for an IS unless you get the bigger motor for a significance upgrade in performance.

I would be going for the 200t. I think it is a sharp car and with Lexus's excellent reliability I expect the car to no have many issues. You also have to remember I have the AWD kiz which is not as quick as the non-awd, from launch. I do consider a 2 year lexus with low miles a worthy upgrade over the kiz with the more modern amenities. I have found some good prices around 25,000 under 20,000 miles, in my area. I understand the european models are more engaging when driving but I am not going to deal with the sketchy reliability of them.

[KuroNekko]

I would be going for the 200t. I think it is a sharp car and with Lexus's excellent reliability I expect the car to no have many issues. You also have to remember I have the AWD kiz which is not as quick as the non-awd, from launch. I do consider a 2 year lexus with low miles a worthy upgrade over the kiz with the more modern amenities. I have found some good prices around 25,000 under 20,000 miles, in my area. I understand the european models are more engaging when driving but I am not going to deal with the sketchy reliability of them.

The IS Turbo with the 2.0 liter turbo is certainly a different story than the recently discontinued IS 250 which used a small V6. I've read good things about the 4 cylinder turbo in terms of performance. That being said, I'd give it a little while on the reliability front. Toyota/Lexus is certainly the world's top manufacturer for reliability but the 2.0 turbo is a new engine. As with many things, it's good to wait a bit a see how they turn out from leasers of brand new models. Their 2.0 turbo is just too new to make statements about reliability from what I can tell. I personally like the NX that also uses that engine.

[Knightstruth]

The is 200t might be my next car, I still want to check out optima hybrid, even though i don't think performance will be there.

[Knightstruth]

https://play.videogen.xyz/v/FLnTB5mrx04

Man I think the Q50 is also a contender. I really like the small engines in the ILX, IS 200t and Q50. Cool video with Q50 vs the is 200t. The q50 scored below average in relability, but the issues where related to the infotainment console and noises developing. Infiniti did update the infotainment system on 2017 model so time will tell.