Honda Vs. Toyota: What Say Y'all???

[Scott Reppert]

Bottom line is I will purchase either one of the two cars in the next five days. The input of you, my fellow board members, is greatly appreciated...especially since a couple of your butts will ride in the passenger side at some point:

First off, price and monthly payments are basically equal and both vehicles are silver:

2007 Toyota Corolla S, 4 door, moonroof, 6 disc CD changer, fog lights, rear spoiler, charcoal gray interior, Sport Trim exterior package...

2007 Honda Civic LE, 4 door, fog lights, 6 disc CD player will have to be paid for, no moonroof, black interior...

From various test drives I have come to the conclusion that the Corolla "looks and feels better" but the Civic "rides and drives better". On that note, keep in mind that I have owned three consecutive Honda vehicles and may be "used" to the way they ride/handle.

One will be in the driveway next week. Which one will it be? Your opinon matters!!!

[Dave Loudin]

Scott,

We have the '06 Corolla LE. It is, by far, the easiest car to drive that I've had. It's hard to tell the difference between cruising at 40 vs 70+ without keeping an eagle eye on the speedometer.

[Big Media]

I just bought an 06 Civic LX in May. I love this car and can't say enough about it. I tested the Toyota Corolla and the Matrix before deciding to buy a Civic. Now, I'm not coming down on Toyota. The Corolla is a DAMN good car for any price. I would still consider one for my next car.

Bottom line, it may come down to personal preference. The are pretty equal performance/quality wise.

[jag]

Scott, you might wish to bear in mind that the Honda is a newer design, thus incorporating more recent technologies. Of course, the Toyota, being of ever-so-slightly older thinking, has had a chance to have more of the kinks worked out, so to speak.

You know, no doubt, that either car is one of the top rated in its class. Which suits your needs better in terms of space (passenger and cargo)? I'm a fairly tall fellow and I know that some of the Honda cars with their low rooflines cut into head room a bit. But, then again, Toyotas aren't necessarily as comfortable for those of us who are a bit broad of beam.

Let us know your decision. Really, you can't go wrong with either.

Have you considered the new Nissan Versa? More passenger space than either!

[AmpedNow]

Toyota Corolla. I have an '03, and it's the best car I've ever had. I don't think I will ever drive anything else but Toyota, by my choice.

But you really can't go wrong with Honda, either. They make good stuff. The only drawback is that many Honda parts are dealer exclusive, and that means very high markup.

[Big Media]

If you can't decide, here is another alternative:

http://bend.craigslist.org/car/222759572.html

[cgarison]

I have not been in a Corolla, but I did have a rental Vibe and I spent about 3 months in a Honda Civic EX. From my experience:

The Vibe was adequate. It was fun with the sunroof, but I thought it lacked on the power side. The S should make up for that. One item of note on the Vibe was that I could never get the seat to a position where I was comfortable, but then again, I never was uncomfortable in the car either.

The Honda Civic EX also had a sun roof which made it fun. At high speeds (80+ on NJ Turnpike) it was very easy to control. In fact, the car felt like an extension of me. If I felt like a lane change, I made sure the lane was clear and the car simply changed positions. All I had to worry about was the traffic around me. The car pretty much handled itself. On the downside, the Honda was noisey and the tires felt like I was driving on basketballs with the pinging noise that echoed through the car when I hit a bump.

If I had to make a choice between these two cars, I would lean toward the Honda.

[Arp2]

It was fun with the sunroof, but I thought it lacked on the power side. The S should make up for that.

I believe the "S" is more of an appearance package, but I could be wrong.

[The People's DJ]

I'm a fairly tall fellow

And fairly wide...


Sorry dude. You left yourself open for it. Will wait for revenge now.

[cgarison]

It was fun with the sunroof, but I thought it lacked on the power side. The S should make up for that.

I believe the "S" is more of an appearance package, but I could be wrong.

If that is true and the S does not add that high strung, high horsepower 2.4 VVTi motor to the Corolla, then that pretty much settles that I would purchase the Civic over the Corolla.



But the more I think, the more I realize that the high strung version of the Toyota 2.4 requires the 6 speed manual to keep the RPMs in the sweet zone between 5-6 grand. Of course the Honda EX has two drive gears (D & D3) with no gate between them on the automatic gearshift in order to allow the driver to easily downshift to get the RPMS into the sweetzone for overtaking and passing vehicles on the road.

[The Interpreter]

The Vibe now comes with only one, relatively anemic engine.

It will soon be replaced with a re-worked model.

[Jay Nunley]

Hyundai.

[304live]

i have a v-8 no worries about power.... only gas

[SamC]

Understand that the Corolla is in its last year of production. This model has been in production since 2003, and an all new Corolla will come out as an "early" 08 in late spring.

However the Civic was all new for 05, and will remain in production for 5-7 years into the future.

Thus the Toyota will be "old" six months after being bought, while the Honda will look just like the new ones for half a decade.

[Zak Tyler]

Understand that the Corolla is in its last year of production. This model has been in production since 2003, and an all new Corolla will come out as an "early" 08 in late spring.

However the Civic was all new for 05, and will remain in production for 5-7 years into the future.

Thus the Toyota will be "old" six months after being bought, while the Honda will look just like the new ones for half a decade.

good point but as jag pointed out above... all the the corolla has had a few years to get the "kinks" worked out... you really got me which one is better, i've spent all day and all of the night thinking about it so where have all the good times gone? i'm hoping for a sunny afternoon to use the moon roof...

ok, i'll stop...

[cgarison]

Understand that the Corolla is in its last year of production. This model has been in production since 2003, and an all new Corolla will come out as an "early" 08 in late spring.

That logic really is not nearly as true as it was many, many years ago. In 2003, Ford released a brand new Crown Vic, Grand Marquis and Town Car, but the sheet metal did not change. The motor and transmission was also the same, but everything else on the car was a re-engineered parts. So even though this looked like just another carry over year, everything about the car was really new.

Same holds true for 2003 GMC and Chevrolet light trucks and the 2005 Ford Super Duty (F250+) Trucks.

Also, be careful on purchasing the last year of production as well as the first year of production. The last 1995 Jeep Wrangler YJs to be produced had the driveline components of the soon to be released 1997 model while the body components, suspension and frame were from the current model. These Jeeps had many issues and unsuspecting customers thought they were beating the design change and getting a very reliable model. I guess Chrysler surprised them.

In the Wrangler world, these Jeeps are affectionately referred to as the missing 1996 model Jeep that was never produced.

Thus the Toyota will be "old" six months after being bought, while the Honda will look just like the new ones for half a decade.

Now this is a good point. To me, a car that hides its age well is worth more than a fashionable model that looks obsolete in 6 months. Amazingly, with the Honda, you get pretty nice style that looks modern for many years.

Score another point for the Honda.

[Scott Reppert]

good point but as jag pointed out above... all the the corolla has had a few years to get the "kinks" worked out... you really got me which one is better, i've spent all day and all of the night thinking about it so where have all the good times gone? i'm hoping for a sunny afternoon to use the moon roof...

ok, i'll stop...

Ok, I'll start...

As for the Corolla not going to look the same after a year, that point is neither here nor there since I am not really a dedicated follower of fashion. I wish I could afford something else out of the entry level, but since I am on such a low budget I can't see myself buying anything other than the two we are discussing. I mean a Cadillac or a Crown Victoria would be out of the question.

I do appreciate all of your input, but even with all the comments I am still up in the air. The fact that I have not made a choice yet is so mystifying. I just know that when a well respected man such as Dave Loudin says go with the Corolla, you cannot ignore his advice. All I know is I've never had to make this difficult a decision before when choosing between two cars.

Sorry. That was Gary Numan...

[genlock]

The state buys Ford Crown Victoria seadans in the Police Interceptor model for less than $20,000. Find a state vendor and make an offer on one of the unsold fleet vehicles.

[Arp2]

You just can't go wrong with either, so I would think it would come down to style and availability of service -- preferably multiple providers just to keep 'em all honest -- where you are.

The Corolla tends to lean more female, the Civic a little more male, if that matters to you. Either have cassette deck (or available...)?

[Scott Reppert]

The Corolla tends to lean more female, the Civic a little more male, if that matters to you. Either have cassette deck (or available...)?

Of the three females that I have posed the question to, "Toots" says go with the Toyota because she "likes the way it looks, "Chicky Poo" says go with the Honda because it looks "classy", and "Chester" says "which one feels safer"?

As for the cassette deck, I didn't look at whether it was available on the Corolla and I know that it is a (fairly expensive) option on the Honda. I know that one of the Civic's that I had a few years ago I had the cassette deck installed as an option. I think that day has passed for me.

Now a good eight track player, that could do the trick!