Usually, one doesn’t put Honda and bad in the same sentence – but this is where this article begs to differ. There have been some Honda cars that did not manage to inspire the same confidence as Honda mostly does. And we’re not saying that these were the worst cars ever, we are just saying these are the cars that Honda messed up with, bigtime. In comparison to bad cars from other automakers, these still may be the crème-de-la-crème of the lot – but we have to hold Honda to higher regard, and expectations, right?
Some of these cars may not have been “bad” per se, but perhaps they were introduced at a time when interest in them was an all-time low. Many of them sold rather poorly for various reasons. And some did okay for their time but are called disappointing keeping the other Honda stalwarts in mind. These are 15 of our picks. Would you choose differently?
15 1989 Honda Concerto: Cacophonous Cymbals
To be fair, this wasn’t all Honda. It was part Honda and part Austin Rover, thus also called Rover 400/200 in other parts of the world. The problem lay in maintenance, ABS issues as well as a predisposition to rust. It lasted just five years and was out by 1994. Now considered a classic, some people consider it worth saving…
14 1990 Honda Prelude Si 4WS: The "Date" Car
One very weird reason for the Prelude failing in Japan is that it was cheap, affordable and sporty enough to appeal to single guys – and so was known as the “date car”. Permanently being labeled shady in Japan, it fared okay for a while in the rest of the world before the late 80s finally saw the sales spiral down.
13 1993 Honda Civic del Sol: Not Sunny In Sales
Sometimes when you make a car solely to take on a competitor, things do go wrong. The Honda Civic del Sol was targeted to attack the popularity of the Mazda MX-5 Miata, but its non-sporty look and a leaky Targa Top made in slink away in four years. And no one missed it either.
12 1994 Honda Passport: Rebadged And Pricier
When you take a car, rebadge it with the Honda brand and then make it more expensive – people may just turn around and ask you why? Case in question, the 1994 Honda Passport, which was nothing more than a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo. And the quality was simply not what you get from Honda.
11 1995 Honda Odyssey: Morbidly Obese?
The 1995 Honda Odyssey came with badly underpowered engines that failed to take away the existing market of the Chrysler minivans. The second generation that debuted in 1998 was much better in power but looks-wise, the Odyssey looked like a ballooned-up Accord. With the second-generation churning out more horses and torque, sales began to look up for this car.
10 2002 Honda Civic Si: Just A Tad Slower
A good and reliable vehicle for most of its life, the 2002 Honda Civic Si (Sports Injected) was European designed. And it still had that Honda reliability and good handling – the only problem was it was made a little too heavy and so quarter-mile and 0-60mph acceleration times were slower than the previous models. Which struck some people as pretty odd.
9 2004 Honda Edix/FR-V: The Multipla's Rival
The Honda Edix or the FR-V did not have long innings and was gone by 2009. While it did have a good fuel economy and offered smooth and powerful engines, the car was too bulky to be a dent-free drive. Ownership costs were higher than that of its rival, the Fiat Multipla and despite this being a Honda, it simply wasn’t attractive enough.
8 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid: No Fuel Economy
The very idea or USP of a hybrid is the fact that it is supposed to give you a fantastic fuel economy. And yet this is where the 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid lagged. So what was the point of the more expensive Accord Hybrid that gave about the same miles per gallon as the non-hybrid version? Well, none, which is why it’s on this list.
7 2005 Honda Element: Fire Was Its Element
What was wrong with the Honda Element? Other than the fact that Honda had to settle a class-action lawsuit filed against it for putting in fire-prone engines in the Element (and the CR-V), nothing much. The dimensions allowed a lot to be carried in it, and you could remove the seats and wash the floor as well. If only it weren’t such a fireball.
6 2007 Honda That’s: The Weirdest Nameplate Ever
Too small, too ugly and too much of a KEI-car (smallest possible car) is how most people would describe the Honda That’s – and That’s was it's actual if strange nameplate. Talking about JDM cars, this was and is one Japanese car no one in the American market wants. Everyone wants powerful Japanese cars, nor ones that won’t fit some long legs in comfort.
5 2010 Honda Insight: Insightful But No Sale
The Insight should have done well in 2010. Ironically, a failing economy skewed the very thought process and didn’t let people see that the Honda Insight was a lot cheaper than the Toyota Prius. While they did look and sound the same, perhaps the USP of the Insight wasn’t marketed all that well by Honda and it never really picked up.
4 2011 Honda CR-Z: Too Meh
This was not an able successor to the CRX. It was slow and too tiny by half. The ride height was all wrong and there were blind spots the likes of which people haven’t seen in a Honda car. Ever. Engine and electrical issues, body and paint problems and a zillion other small things made this very un-Honda like.
3 2014 Honda Accord Plug-In Hybrid: No Charge
Yet again, like the Accord Hybrid before, the 2014 Honda Accord Plug-In Hybrid failed to come through where it most needed to. The charging time was long so this disappointed the EV-drive friendly buyers. Plus the 30-mile range on a full charge was almost useless. The battery also took a lot of the trunk space so this was a no go as well.
2 2015 Honda Fit EV: A Bit Unfit
Unlike the Nissan Leaf which is first an EV, the Honda Fit failed the EV fitness mark. Firstly, it was a lease-only vehicle for $389 a month. Then, they did not design the Fit EV any different from the Fit, and so turning it electric took a lot of the interior comfort away. And finally, the Fit EV was no great shakes in range either.
1 2015 Honda Accord Crosstour
The Accord Crosstour was brought out to take on established giants like the Subaru Outback and the Toyota Venza. Many called it a good car and yet, strangely, it sold terribly. Overpriced, overhyped and generally over-everything, the Crosstour, consequentially was over even before it began.