I would say that the vehicle itself is probably one of the finest vehicles ever built in the US. Having purchased the exceedingly rare V6/manual combination, I was fortunate enough to find a car that met every criteria I was looking for. The vehicle itself is amply powered, well laid out, comfortable, and aesthetically pleasing. Build quality overall is good with only a few very minor fit/finish issues. On the road, the vehicle is rather fun to drive on the aggressive side due to the copious power and torque available throughout the operating range. Passing and highway merges are effortless...in fact the most difficult part of driving the car is maintaining legal speeds! Speaking to the manual transmission variant specifically, the vehicle has a satisfying shift action, but the clutch is very light and far less forgiving than other vehicles I've driven. Sloppy technique is not tolerated by this drivetrain especially with its highly sensitive throttle response. A few months with this car will hone your manual driving skills with certainty. Ride is fairly firm but not jarring and handling is great with good stability in cornering and maneuvering. Steering feel is lacking as with most cars in this day and age. All in all, if you're looking for a V6 and manual transmission at a reasonable price, this vehicle is probably the best option available at this time. My only complaint lies with the sales process itself. Honda dealers are from my experience terrible. Never before have I had to endure as ultra high pressure and scummy a sales process as I went through for this vehicle. It seems to be that the only goal in the process is to inviscerate every buyer with aggressive and ridiculously over priced up sells to maximize profit. I had to literally walk out twice to get them to drop the sales pitch and execute the sale as I wanted. Service is also an issue...Honda dealers seem to have a system of harshly punishing those who do not use the original dealer's service dept for service. In my case, I had to purchase the vehicle 2 hrs from my home due to a lack of inventory in my area in the configuration I wanted. Despite having no other place to buy the vehicle, I am subject to being gouged by my local dealer for routine maintenance/inspections since I didn't buy it from them. Overall, I'd recommend this vehicle so long as you can avoid the sales process as much as possible. Use an Internet based car buying service and outright refuse to speak with any "finance manager" character in the midst of the process...find your own financing before you walk in. If the sales rep or Internet sales desk can't handle the sale themselves, terminate the process and find another dealer. Do not purchase any upsells as you can get everything they offer for 1/4 of the price from 3Rd parties. Any claims they make to the contrary are lies. Also, using a local dealer you intend to use for service will help improve your service experience.
