Honda ACCORD RANGE
Honda Have Lofty Aspirations For their Latest Accord Model, But Can The Actuality Match The Ambition? By Andy Enright
Its no secret that margins are getting ever tighter in the cutthroat business of selling medium range saloons. Like fish flapping in a drying water hole, the competition grows ever tougher as the market gets smaller. Increasingly, customers are either looking to downsize to defray costs or pay more for a prestige badge in the hope that this will stave off depreciation. Honda have recognised this and have pitched the new generation Accord above the usual Mondeo, Vectra and 406 fare.
Or have they? Thats what theyd have us believe, claiming the latest Accord to be fit competition for
Volvo,
Saab and
Audi, but there may be more to this claim than meets the eye. The old Accord suffered in a number of key ways. Firstly, Honda totally misread the rise in popularity of diesel engines, believing that their VTEC engines would be more than adequate compensation. They were wrong.
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With no diesel Accord available, they missed out on a huge slug of sales. Which is why a diesel engine will be along soon in the latest model. The make up of the range was wrong too. As
Saab realised when it replaced the 9-3 range, hatchbacks dont really hit the spot if youre aiming for a prestigious image.
Honda have therefore ditched the hatch option and instead rely on a classy-looking Tourer estate. If we read between the lines a little, its easy to see what Honda have done. The fact that just three engines are available at present - a 154bhp 2.0-litre, a 188bhp 2.
4-litre and a 138bhp CTDi diesel - means that a gap opens up at the bottom of the range once occupied by the 1.8-litre models. Therefore by raising the entry-level price from just over £14,000 to over £16,500, Honda have created the impression that the Accord has bounded upmarket. The truth is a little more prosaic: the well specified 2.4-litre Type-S model is priced at £19,730, still around £1,000 less than a
Vauxhall Vectra 2.2 Elite, a car which can muster just 150bhp. Good value in other words, but still pricing that competes with volume rivals rather than prestigious badges.
"The Accord is a very fine car, offering sharky styling, a well-designed interior and a pair of petrol engines that could only have come from Honda"
If you ditch the marketing baloney, the Accord is a very fine car, offering sharky styling, a well-designed interior and a group of engines that could only have come from Honda praise indeed. Various models are available, starting with the £16,730 2.0 SE, with Sport and Executive trims also offered with the smaller engine. The CTDi diesel starts in Sport trim from £19,025 before reaching Executive at £20,525.
Plump for the 2.4-litre car and theres the choice of the Type-S or the range-topping £21,730 Executive. Sadly no replacement for the manic Type-R sports model is in the pipeline, nor do Honda see the need to import a six-cylinder Accord. Alternatively theres the sleek Tourer versions at prices around £1,000 on top of the saloon.
The styling has divided opinion. The nose is remarkably similar to that of the Mazda6, with a similar shaped grille and lights but the Accord looks that little bit more upmarket with its Mercedes-style indicators in the door mirrors. Rather than stretch the wheelbase for a wheel at each corner effect to improve packaging, Honda have bucked a current styling trend by introducing more frontal overhang, the additional 65mm said to improve safety for both occupants and pedestrians. The rear end is a little more controversial, with a sawn off rump and large rear wings that contrive to make the respectably sized wheels look a little puny.
The Tourer rectifies this with a elegantly tapered rear end. All Accord models are very well equipped. Even the SE is fitted with alloy wheels, dual zone climate control, a 6-speaker CD-based stereo and front, side and curtain airbags. Nice touches like the outside temperature indicator and the 3D dashboard illumination are also welcome, as are sensible ergonomics.
The grouping of the stereo and air conditioning controls is exemplary and the multiple storage bins are similarly easy to access. The wheelbase of the Tourer estate version has been increased by only 50mm over that of its saloon stablemate and the increase in overall body length is only an extra 85mm. No use expecting a van-like loading bay then. Still, a load volume of 576 litres with all the seats in place is no mean achievement for this class of car: thats over 100 litres more than the more ordinary
Renault Laguna Sport Tourer can manage for example. This has been achieved through changing the design of the 5-link rear suspension so that both dampers and springs are positioned separately: as a result, the width between the wheel housings is dramatically increased. In the final reckoning, the Honda Accord emerges on the one hand as a far superior car to its predecessor, but a frustratingly incomplete proposition. With a decent emissions showing and good economy, it seems remiss of its makers not to offer a 1.8-litre version to appeal to company car drivers, yet with the perceived drive upmarket, its a little odd that theres no convincing flagship sports or V6 variants.
The cars we do get are well worth consideration and will require their rivals sharpen up their act. Perhaps Honda will flesh the picture out a little further in due course. Heres hoping.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Honda Accord range
PRICES: £16,730-£22,730 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 11-14
CO2 EMISSIONS: 176-216g/km
PERFORMANCE: [2.4 Type S] Max Speed 141mph / 0-60mph 7.9s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [2.0SE] (urban)28.0mpg / (extra urban) 47.9mpg / (combined) 38.2mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, side and curtain airbags / ABS with EBD
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: (saloon) Length/Width/Heightmm 4665/1910/1450
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