I come from a different time period. In my day, an econobox had limited outside chrome trim, three speed column shift, no radio, rubber floor mats, no passenger side sun visor (me drive, you squint), no rear armrests, black sidewall tires, hub caps instead of wheel covers, etc. Size had nothing to do with whether or not a car was an econobox. A 1953 Chevrolet 150 was a full sized car, but was an econobox. Yet, a 1953 Nash Rambler was compact in size, but was trimmed nicely and a radio was standard equipment.
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Now those are classic cars, we watch car shows and drool over them.
I come from a later time period (I’m from the FUTURE! 
) and yours is still pretty close to my definition. My dad was a cheapskate and even though he could afford a nice car, he preferred to drive the cheapest thing he could find. This is why as a kid we rolled around in a 1983 Toyota Tercel. No AC. No passenger side mirror. It didn’t even have a radio – the dealership had to special-order it because hardly anyone at that point ever wanted to delete the radio.
I would consider something like the Hyundai Accent or Mazda 2 to be today’s closest equivalent to an econobox, and even those come standard with AC, cruise control, power windows/locks, keyless entry, and bluetooth sound systems with steering wheel controls.
I certainly wouldn’t put an Accord in the econobox category - not even the ones from when I was a kid.
why did honda go to a 10spd vs the cvt for the 2 different accords? is it based on power output from the motor? i dont see the new odysseys with cvt trans. but its fairly common to see odysseys with bum trans for sale and they did not have cvt trans
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@shadowfax. My parents had bottom of the line cars bought second hand. 
The first “luxury” car they bought was a 1947 DeSoto coupe as a second car in 1954. My mother had gone back to work and the family needed two cars. As a smart mouthed 8th grader, I made some typical 8th grade remarks about the DeSoto. My dad didn’t say a word, but the next day he came home with a sack containing rubbing compound, polish, and wax. I was given the job of making the car look “cool”. I spent two days rubbing out the faded maroon paint and finally got it to shine. I buffed out the chrome with steel wool. I then tackled the radio which didn’t work. I replaced the vibrator and a tube. We all got to really like that DeSoto. The reason my dad bought the car in the first place was the DeSoto as a used car was cheaper than a used stripped down Chevrolet or Plymouth. From that point on, we never had a car that didn’t have a radio or was a strippo.
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I picked up a 2018 Mazda 6 Grand Touring Reserve. It matched the 2019 Honda Accord Touring, feature for feature, and was thousands less. The Accord was $37K, with little wiggle room. The Mazda 6 GTR ended up at $29,300. It drives sportier than the Accord and is MUCH better looking. The front of the Accord has a face that only a mother could love. It is just downright ugly.
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I don’t. Honda wanted to increase fleet gas mileage, and using turbochargers on smaller engines accomplishes that goal.
I don’t consider the Chevy 150 a classic, unless it’s a restomod. A Bel Air, yes, not a 150.
@jtsanders. There were probably fewer 1953 Chevrolet 150 models sold for non-commercial use than 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air models. I really don’t see either of them as true classics, as too many 1953 Chevrolets were manufactured.
It’s interesting that the 1953 Chevrolet 150 was not available with the PowerGlide automatic transmission. I read somewhere that J. Edgar Hoover, head of the FBI required that only the bottom trim line cars be purchased. That way the bad guys would know that the FBI agents were after them.
Could you mean the Civic and Fit? The Fit is an econobox, the Civic is more comfortable, and the Accord is a nice car.
If they have cash in hand a decent buy for the amenities offered. If they are financing I’d suggest a lower level trim before jumping into debt which its not a great buy since they cannot afford it(cash)
The best buy is hybrid version which typically offers discounts and incredible MPG.
No dispute there. But I’d still say they are all econoboxes. IMO the Acura is the non-econobox Honda. Likewise, the Avalon or Lexus’s are the non-econobox Toyota’s.
A Honda Accord is not an econobox by anyone’s definition but yours George . Which proves that you should not be giving vehicle purchasing advice.
Actually there are very few vehicles sold in the US the meet the criteria for econobox. Maybe the base model of Chevrolet Spark - Ford Fiesta S and the base Toyota Yaris . And even those are nicely equipped.
Yeah, the Accord was a premium compact car from day 1, in 1976. Never an econobox, as far as I’m concerned.
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This is what the LA Times says about the 1976 Accord.
"1976 Honda Accord
Honda Accord’s Past Generations by: Joni Gray First generation: 1976-81 The 1976 Honda Accord was available only as a three-door hatchback with a wheelbase smaller than Honda’s current subcompact, the Fit. Manual transmission was the mainstay, but you could also get the two-speed Hondamatic transmission as an option. This econo-box came fully loaded with manual windows, vinyl seats and a standard AM-FM radio. With only 68 horsepower and a 1.6-liter engine, this little baby carried a sticker price of $3,995. (Honda)"
As I recall you had to wait many months, even more than a year, to buy one in those days. They were very popular. As should be the case. Econoboxes are the better car choice for most folks.
@George_San_Jose1. Even those early Accords had luxury features in my book. Crank up windows are a luxury item. An econobox should have side curtains. Those early Accords had passenger side sun visors. The Accords came with a radio.
What has happened is that the Accord and the Civic have become more refined since the mid 1970 models.
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Yeah, no disagreement at all, the Accord was a great car in 1976, and a great car now. You are right, the new ones are just more refined versions of the old ones. As had occurred for all cars pretty much over the years.
@George_San_Jose1. Luxury in cars is relevant to a time period. My Dad considered a battery operated starter a luxury item. He was born in 1904. His parents’ first car, a Model T Ford, was started with a hand crank. When I was a kid, turn signals and back-up lights weren’t standard equipment–they were optional luxury items. The first car my parents owned with turning signals and back-up lights was a 1949 Dodge they purchased in 1951. I thought air conditioning in a car was a luxury. My first air conditioned car was a 1971 Ford Maverick I bought in 1973.
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My dad had econobox cars all his life, starting with a Model T, then an A. Eventually he got tired of econoboxes and bought a two-toned Chrysler Windsor with the cool button-controlled automatic transmission, the buttons of which I got to press sometimes. He got tired of the repair costs and went back to an econobox Ford Galaxy, and stayed w/econoboxes from then on. He did allow AC in his post 1960 cars though. But not his truck. His last car was a Taurus, and the one before that was a Subaru.
All my own cars have been econoboxes.
lol Positively decadent. Dad liked AC, but I went for simple cars… yep, mostly ecoboxes. Didn’t need AC, power windows, all that “fancy” stuff. The exception: For the GF’s car, I bought a 1999 Caravan; so she’d drive a mini-van. Fully loaded, leather interior. FF to 2005, when my car was totaled, and you had no choice. Take all the “options” or walk.
Today my car is panned because it’s using eConnect instead of Bluetooth. 4 wheel disks, handles great, power everything, turbo engine… and the radio doesn’t meet iPhone criteria. lol
Well, this won’t be the first time I’ve disagreed with some newspaper columnist’s automotive opinions. Wiki sums up my opinion quite nicely:
" Econoboxes first came to prominence in the United States due to the 1973 oil crisis. Japanese automakers were leaders at producing smaller, fuel-efficient cars, as well as enjoying generally higher reliability and build quality than their US counterparts, so their offerings such as the Honda Civic generally outperformed their American competitors such as the Chevrolet Vega and Ford Pinto.
The best-known American econoboxes were the 1970s/80s Chevrolet Chevette, Ford Pinto, Ford Escort, and the Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon. Japanese econoboxes include the Honda Civic (in particular the first and second generations) and the Datsun B-210. Other cars such as the Chevrolet Sprint & Chevrolet Aveo as well as the Ford Festiva and Ford Aspire were considered econoboxes."
So econoboxes were generally the entry-level cars in each company’s lineup, unlike the Accord.