M-Class Sedans Circa 1998

[OTEP]

*Disclaimer (photos 'borrowed' from our friends at www.motioncars.com )

Which do you think is the best all-arounder/daily driver?
Which is the easiest to service/maintain?
Any idea on mileage figures?
Anything one should look out for in each of the particular models?
Any special variants worth looking out for?
What year did they introduce CFC-free A/C?

In alphabetical order:

Honda Accord


Mitsubishi Galant

[OTEP]

Nissan Cefiro


Toyota Camry

[kimpOy]

my vote goes to the accord...and make mine Black...NightHawk Black Metallic

[orly_andico]

my 1993 mazda is R-134 already. they were selling that particular body until 1999.

they all get about the same fuel mileage (6-7km/L city, parang CR-V) and the parts all cost in the same range (well i only got to compare with a cefiro and corona).

but for the 626 (which isn't on your list) shocks are around 3,200 (front) 2,800 (rear), the stock 555 tie rod ends etc. pare-pareho yata presyo nun regardless of car. water pump 2,800 (GMB), headlight 4,000 (DEPO). brake pads are 800 a pair (bendix). clutch master anywhere from 1000 to 2000 (apparently there are 2 replacement brands) to 4000+ for OEM. OEM timing belt is 3k+, OEM timing belt main bearing is 4k+, OEM engine mount is 5k+. meron naman replacements but not for all (e.g. never found a replacement engine mount.. and didn't know about M7)

hmmmm.. naging laundry list na ito ng parts ah..

[orly_andico]

forgot. both the 323 and 626 are hard to maintain due to very tight engine bay. it's paso city in there.

[coiter]

for me, sa overall rating i'd rank them as follows:

1. cefiro
2. accord
3. galant
4. camry

[basti08]

1.Cefiro

2.Accord

3.Galant

4.Camry

[artpogi]

for 1998 year model lang ha, my choice would be in the following order

1. accord - I've heard some slushbox problems, I don't know how true, probably isolated. gas guzzler daw. according to some, parts are a bit more expensive compared to the other three choices.

2. cefiro - gas guzzler din daw

3. galant - hmm..... the usual underchassis problem?

4. Camry - hmmm...

[alwayz_yummy]

*Disclaimer (photos 'borrowed' from our friends at www.motioncars.com )

1.Which do you think is the best all-arounder/daily driver?
2.Which is the easiest to service/maintain?
3.Any idea on mileage figures?
4.Anything one should look out for in each of the particular models?
5.Any special variants worth looking out for?
6.What year did they introduce CFC-free A/C?

for me ha...

1.galant/accord

2.galant(SS variant, maluwag engine bay)/accord(i-4 lang dito, kaya maluwag, imported ang v6)

3.usually, 5-10 combined average...swerte sa mga manuals maka 11km/l

4.pinakamatipid sa gas, manual models(cefiro(base), accord(vti, vti-l(stock HU alpine catridge-3 2din)), galant(alam ko SS lang may manual) lang meron..626 meron din)

5.galant VR 2.5L v6 32v invecs,
accord vti-l 2.3L manual,
cefiro (pero 2000YM na): elite: w/ sunroof HUD, brougham:6-VCD, armrest remote for stereo,a/c...)
camry:2.4v lang,e...

6.sa early as 95 or 96 pa ata r-134a na lahat sila...ung owners nalang nagcoconvert to r12 for economic reasons...

[OTEP]

Alin kaya ang easiest to maintain and most abundant ang parts in terms of engine? Ginagamit din ba sa ibang products sa line up nila yung mga powertrains ng M-Class sedans?

Yung sa Galant SS alam ko panahon pa ng MPI at Rayban yung 4-cylinder na gamit.

Not sure about the others. Any idea sa mga engine codes?

[niky]

Camry? I don't know... anyone here ever own one?

If you get an Accord, don't get a slushbox... driving an old AT Accord has to rank as one of the worst experiences of my life.

Galant - underchassis nga? wonderful ball joints on that. A friend had to replace his three times.

Cefiro... cooling problems and head gasket problems... It's ugly once they start popping gaskets and overheating (if the previous owner didn't maintain them properly), as there's lots of nice shiny plastic bits for that heat to melt...

Otherwise, I prefer it most amongst those listed, comfortable ride, big interior, nice and intimidating road presence.

Mazda 626 - funky aircon (rotating vents, cool!), nice, low stance, good ride, good handling (for a midsizer), just a pain-in-the-ass to buy parts for.

Why not the Altima? Looks like a bulbous not-compact-not-midsize car, but I love that engine.

[OTEP]

niky,
Sorry, tinanong lang din sa akin ito. Hindi din pwede M/T. AFAIK, hindi marunong mag-drive ng M/T.

The 'smaller' 2.0's (Altima and Corona) are not in the selection criteria.

Ang hanap lang po dito ay luxurious, reliable, cost-effective (for an M-Class) transportation for a non-enthusiast (a person who would not mind if all the tires were Goodyear NCT3's. ).

[niky]

Engine codes?

Only know some:

Cefiro - VQ20DE - not shared

Altima - SR20DE - shared with Sentra/Pulsar (US/Japan) and Serena QRVR. QRV's engine is distributorless, though. SR18DE - obviously, smaller, uses different gearbox (tighter) and slightly different intake equipment.

Mazda 626 - FSDE - shared with Lynx RS, but Lynx version is distributorless, with different intake manifold and tighter gearbox

[niky]

Then the guy just ought to buy the Camry... ... I can't think of whether a non-enthusiast would put up with the quirks and hassles of the other cars or not...

[basti08]

niky, ano nga ba ang body code ng mazda 626 sold dito sa ten? tnx

[OTEP]

Hindi kaya mahirap ang piyesa ng Camry? They didn't exactly sell a boatload full of that model (the one with the rubbermaid nose). The early ones did have a rear foglamp (very Euro!).

Any idea on the ballpark going rates of these sedans assuming between model years '98-'00?

Non-enthusiast pero hindi din dependent sa casa. Does not really care about driving dynamics but may alam din ng konti sa sasakyan kahit papaano.

[basti08]

mas marami pa siguro pyesa yung 2002-2006 Camry dyan kesa sa 97 model ata eh.

[basti08]

how about kung umusog pa ng konti ang edad? prior to 98, ano na ang picks nyo?


94-97 Mitsubishi Galant SS 2.0 I-4/VR 2.0 V6



93-97 Toyota Corona 2.0 EX Saloon/2.0 Exsior



93-97 Nissan Altima 1.8SS/2.0SSS/SSS-G



94-97 Honda Accord 2.0 EXi/2.2VTi/2.2VTi-L



93-99 Mazda 626 GLX (local)

*hatchback model shown...very Holden-ish in appearance IMO.*

[orly_andico]

*basti, the 626's you see running around are GE bodies.

the GG is the mazda6/atenza.

*OTEP,

i would go with the Galant or the Cefiro. the 2.0L Galant uses the 4G63 engine which is used in vehicles as diverse as the Lancer 2.0 and the Adventure

as for the Cefiro, it's a VQ20DE 2.0L V6. probably harder to maintain than a 4-banger. but with the tumataginting na value proposition of rock-bottom resale value (2.0L, gas guzzler, tapos nissan pa!) same thing with the 626 (although the 626 is in the same size class as the Altima, so medyo out na siya)

the Accord uses the H22A 2.2L engine if i'm not mistaken, also a 4-banger. I would expect the Accord and Camry to have the most expensive parts.

[nicolodeon]

Wala pa atang nag-vote sa Galant. Anyways, my vote goes with the Accord very closely followed by the Cefiro.