I purchased a used 1996 Honda Accord LX a few years ago, and the experience has been one of frustration along with admiration. The car had a series of issues with it, but that was more related to the person I bought it from rather than the vehicle itself. While I'm not terribly impressed with how low it is to the road, I am impressed with the overall durability of the vehicle. It's taken me across the country and back without any major issue. It's not a flashy car, but it's a reliable workhorse.

I named this car Calamity Jane because of all the problems I had with her, from getting the title transferred properly to making her road worthy. She was poorly taken car by the first owners—she was covered with rust, odometer broken, electric windows broken, radio broken, and the back door didn't look except by hand. However, once the initial mechanical repairs were made (I never did get the windows or radio fixed), she lasted far longer than anyone expected. I was told she'd get me from California to Washington state (where I was moving)...and maybe a little further. I drove that car from the bottom of California to the top of Washington twice and from California to Connecticut, via the deep south, twice, and she even survived an entire New England winter. I had her four years total before she finally broke down.