1988 Honda Accord Reviews, Pricing & Specs
Overview
The 1988 Honda Accord lineup grew to include a coupe to please those who wanted a hatchback/sedan type car. It was a two door notchback...
The 1988 Honda Accord lineup grew to include a coupe to please those who wanted a hatchback/sedan type car. It was a two door notchback that came in the poor person's version or totally souped up, with nothing in between. The other Accords saw a few small changes in the bumpers. signal lights, and taillights. (Well, something has to set one year apart from another, doesn't it?)
Even old and now likely abused, the '88 Accord gets about 27 mpg when combining city and highway driving, which isn't bad at all considering that when they were new they got between 30 and 34 mpg.
The Honda Accord LXi trims each had a 2 liter engine that produced 120 horsepower at 5500 rpms. This was an increase of 10 over the last year, and seemed to please most. The transmissions remained unchanged; the choices were 4-speed auto or 4- or 5-speed manual.
The biggest problems reported about the 1987 Honda Accord involved the front buckle assembly of the seat belt that some had difficult doing and undoing, and an unclear owner's manual.
More than 360,000 Accords were sold in the U.S. in 1988, yet another testament to the Honda Accord popularity and perceptions that they were terrifically dependable and practical cars.
What owners say
"Overall, owners of the 1988 Honda Accord have expressed strong appreciation for its reliability, fuel economy, and performance. Many enjoy the car's power and quick acceleration, noting it makes for a great first car. However, some have reported issues with the transmission and other mechanical challenges over time. Overall, it seems to be a solid choice for those on a budget who want a dependable, fun-to-drive car."
This car bailed me out when i was down and out! literally saved my a$$. back in 2003 my recently paid off jeep grand cherokee blew a transmision out of the blue and i was stuck with no car.(wife had a brand new saturn mini van for her and the baby...didnt want/could not afford 2 car payments) we had a new baby & recently moved to a new house in the burbs and we were financially strapped! things were bad. a colleague of mine sold me the car for $500 and there was 88k on the clock. car was originally from TX and has not been driven in 2 years! this car was ultra reliable! i never had any problems with it! never left me(or my wife)stranded. was used as a commuter car for roughly 5 years. not for a race can or what ever those 20 something kids try to do with them!!worked out nice when gas was hovering around $4 a gallon. i got around 33MPG im 6'4" 250 and it was just fine for me. things got better finacially and i still kept the car..why not? but i recently sold it with 160,000 on the odometer for $1500 and quickly bought a 1997 accord wagon! im no import fan,im from a UAW ford family that grew up in inner city Detroit,MI. and would never buy any NEW import vehicle period! but if your on a tight budget you cant go wrong with one of these cars! wold make a great first car or a car to rack up the miles on..
July 2, 2009I picked this up after I totaled my Achieva. It was rusted out beyond belief and had no balls, but I'm not going to argue with high 30's to the gallon with my aggressive driving style. Ended up trading it off when I started having issues I didn't want to fix.
January 26, 2010One of the few sedans that ever had pop-up headlights. The double wishbone suspension made this a great handling car, and the Honda 4cyl. engine got better than average performance and gas milage. Very reliable, with excellent fit and finish.
January 13, 2010What owners say
This car bailed me out when i was down and out! literally saved my a$$. back in 2003 my recently paid off jeep grand cherokee blew a transmision out of the blue and i was stuck with no car.(wife had a brand new saturn mini van for her and the baby...didnt want/could not afford 2 car payments) we had a new baby & recently moved to a new house in the burbs and we were financially strapped! things were bad. a colleague of mine sold me the car for $500 and there was 88k on the clock. car was originally from TX and has not been driven in 2 years! this car was ultra reliable! i never had any problems with it! never left me(or my wife)stranded. was used as a commuter car for roughly 5 years. not for a race can or what ever those 20 something kids try to do with them!!worked out nice when gas was hovering around $4 a gallon. i got around 33MPG im 6'4" 250 and it was just fine for me. things got better finacially and i still kept the car..why not? but i recently sold it with 160,000 on the odometer for $1500 and quickly bought a 1997 accord wagon! im no import fan,im from a UAW ford family that grew up in inner city Detroit,MI. and would never buy any NEW import vehicle period! but if your on a tight budget you cant go wrong with one of these cars! wold make a great first car or a car to rack up the miles on..
July 2, 2009I picked this up after I totaled my Achieva. It was rusted out beyond belief and had no balls, but I'm not going to argue with high 30's to the gallon with my aggressive driving style. Ended up trading it off when I started having issues I didn't want to fix.
January 26, 2010One of the few sedans that ever had pop-up headlights. The double wishbone suspension made this a great handling car, and the Honda 4cyl. engine got better than average performance and gas milage. Very reliable, with excellent fit and finish.
January 13, 2010Pretty quick for what it is as a manual trans, won lots of races. Hauled an 80cc dirtbike in the trunk. Engine will last forever, took the valve cover off to take a peek and there was very mimimal wear and no sludge build up, car has over 350,000k on it and all it needs is a carburator rebuild and a rad.
November 16, 200788 accord lxi hatch. 2.0 single cam 12 valve. acceleration is alot better than most might beleive and goes hand in hand with the cars top speed of 130-140mph.not bad for an 88 accord. the car is relatively light at 2450lb. (only 600lb. heavier than the mazda miata). due to this fact the car handles and respondes only slightly under the miata`s standards. with aftermarket upgrades the car has true potential in the tuner scene.
September 28, 2012My favorite Honda so far-My Accord LXi hatch. (the drop down doesn't show LXi hatch only LX). I LOVED this car and only got rid of her because I had to pay rent and hadn't worked in a few months-didn't want to get a job so I sold my second car-I sold my CRX Si a few months earlier to stock up some rent $, but not before putting the CRX Si wheels on my Accord. Oddly enough, I was driving my Accord more often than my 94 Mazda Protege. I bought my Accord LXi hatch for $500 with 225k on the clock in 2000. I sold her with 293k for double what i paid. I loved the pop up headlights, the smooth shifting 5 speed, the cool hatchback cargo cover, the ginormous truck, the power crap and how she handled in corners on exit ramps. Did I mention the cool pop up lights and sleek fastback design? I actually liked this more than my 93 Accord EX sedan which was my baby... If money was no object and I could restore a car, this Accord would be in my garage again...
December 13, 2008Loved it! It was awesome for a first car. It had all the features for that year. It was a quick car for a '88 I mean it had a 2 liter engine which was good and it also got close to 30 MPG.
July 25, 2009Well, my honda has accent glow on the interior. My engine is also more powerful than the stock engine it comes with. Just need a paint job. 250,000 miles and still going strong! Just need a good new paint job!
June 29, 2009i love this car i love that its a manual. i also love the fact that its a small car with 130 hp. there are alot of aftermarket equitment you can buy this car to tune it up i got a cold air intake and many more. this car is great to drive it takes corners like a dream.
August 2, 2009I bought the car when I turned 15 with a little over 145k on it. I sat in the driveway until I turned 16. At the time I thought it was the best thing on the planet! Then it started to leak and the trans started to go (loud crunch going from park to drive). So I changed the trans from auto to stick. Overall it is not the best car on the road but it was a great first car.
September 8, 2008
