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REVIEW: Redesigned Honda Accord a polished product

Shopping for a conventional midsize sedan is akin to looking for a new pair of trousers. We seek functionality, practicality, and faithful coverage. Durability is good too. And it would be nice if they didn’t cost too much.
Honda Accord
The Accord is totally redesigned for 2018, and the new model is a proper Honda with comfort and practicality matched to an excellent drive. The exterior design is handsome in a charming, reserved way while the smart and simple cockpit provides an effortless drive in the best way possible. photo Brendan McAleer

Shopping for a conventional midsize sedan is akin to looking for a new pair of trousers.

We seek functionality, practicality, and faithful coverage. Durability is good too. And it would be nice if they didn’t cost too much.

However, today’s trouser/automotive market is somewhat confusing. There are entry-level luxury trousers at low, low finance rates. There are insane-looking business slacks with highly aggressive styling. There’s a move away from ordinary trousers and towards really expensive jeans – perhaps the crossovers of the trouser world.

To button up the metaphor, what were once the mainstays of any middle-aged person’s garage and/or closet are now part of a shrinking market segment. However, the modern trouser is better than ever. Er, modern car I mean.

Enter the new Honda Accord, a well-loved nameplate that’s ferried countless trouser-enthusiasts from home to office to school-pick-up then back to home again. It’s totally redesigned. It’s turbocharged. It promises a bit of everyday fun to go with that practical bent.

Is it as good as a pair of great trousers? Or, as the Brits say, is the new Accord a bit pants?

Design

The first good piece of news is that the design department responsible for the faux-grille fakery of the Honda Civic seems to have been sent to bed early with no dinner. The Accord is a far more mature styling exercise than its little brother, about which we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

The front end gets a keeping-up-with-the-Jones’ big front grille, but Honda hasn’t overdone it here (the new Camry is far more aggressive). Available full LED headlights channel a bit of Acura styling, and there’s a new fastback profile to the car.

A little lower chrome trim would put you in mind of the Hyundai Sonata, but overall the Accord has a bit more personality than past iterations, without feeling like it’s trying too hard. Nineteen-inch wheels show up on Sport and Touring trims are the sole exception – for practical purposes, I wish they’d gone with a more economical 18-inch wheel for less expensive tire replacement.

However, especially in blue, the Accord looks more expensive than its Honda badge. The Civic is a solidly decent car with a youth-oriented cacophony of styling. The Accord is simply handsome.

Environment

If the Accord’s exterior is reservedly charming, Honda’s efforts on the inside are simply a home run. After struggling for years to integrate customer demands for slicker infotainment offerings, the Accord is one of the first Honda products to display a little effortlessness about how you control everything.

Let’s talk about demand. When we’re driving, our attention should be focused on the road ahead. In many modern cars, crammed with gee-whiz gizmos, it’s like the car’s doing everything in its power to distract you.

In the Accord, things start off well with a high-mounted touchscreen that features large icons. You can configure the home screen for the stuff you use most, and there’s now a pair of knobs, one for tuning, one for volume.

The air-conditioning controls are also high up, and easily manipulated, and higher-trim models come with a heads-up display that’s easy to read. Settling into the driver’s seat, everything about the Accord is pleasingly low effort. The cliché is to call a car that’s focused on the road a “driver’s car,” but the Accord’s sensible layout lets any driver keep their own focus on the road.

Add in – wonder of wonders – better front visibility with narrower front A-pillars, and the Accord has a blissful simplicity that would make any Acura designer very jealous. Rear legroom is also up, the front seats have been repositioned for better elbow room, and the cabin feels airy and large.

It’s also just ... nice in here. By decluttering the dashboard, Honda’s bumped the Accord up a class. Why would you want anything fussier?

Performance

With the first Accord generation to feature turbocharged power, Honda’s doubled down. Two four-cylinder turbocharged engines are on offer, one the standard 1.5-litre that will power the bulk of Accords, the other a 2.0-litre model that replaces the now-defunct V-6. That’s a shame, as the V-6 was a lovely engine.

However, let’s begin with the 1.5-litre, which produces a healthy 192 horsepower and 192 foot-pounds of torque. It’s the latter which will make the difference for most drivers, as the grunt arrives early. Usually in Honda products, revs are required to wring out the power, but not here.

Paired with a CVT gearbox, the base Accord powertrain is completely convincing. Speed builds quickly whenever called upon, and then the rest of the time you can barely hear the small-displacement engine ticking away. Honda has added considerable sound deadening measures, up to and including noise dampeners inside the actual rims on some models.

The 2.0-litre has even more thrust, with 252 h.p. at peak and 273 foot-pounds from just 1,500 r.p.m. This is less horsepower but more torque than the V-6, and will please most drivers. Lightening up the front end improves the handling, and the Sport models of the 2.0-litre are very lively to drive. There’s even a manual.

But let’s return to a Touring version of the 1.5-litre model to sample the Accord’s more common attributes. Even with the base engine, it’s lively and quick on the road. Show it a few corners, and the new variable ratio steering shows considerable flexibility. On the highway, it’s slow on-centre, making for a relaxing drive. Get into the twisties and the steering gets quicker as it comes off-centre.

Just as any of the best Hondas are, the Accord is a fizzy delight to drive, quick and engaging. Then, when you hit the straight and boring stuff, it’s quieter than ever. As a sedan that’ll have to do double-duty, it’s entirely convincing.

Features

Honda’s driving aids (adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist) are standard on everything from the $26,490 base LX model. Most Accords will price out somewhere in the $30-32K range, split between the Sport and EX-L models. A fully-loaded Touring 2.0 is knocking on the door of $40,000.

Fuel economy figures are 7.9 (litres per 100 kilometres) in the city and 6.3 on the highway for the 1.5-litre engine. Even though it’s a turbocharged engine, the 1.5-litre hits pretty close to claimed figures.

Green light

Nimble handling; attractive styling; comfortable, well-thought-out interior.

Stop sign

Touring trims get pricey; V-6 will be missed.

The checkered flag

Covers all practical considerations, but is still excellent to drive. A proper Honda.

Competition

Toyota Camry ($26,390): Once, the Camry would be the obvious, boring choice in mid-size sedans. Not boring any more – now there’s even a V-6 version cranking out more than 300 h.p.!

The difference is in exterior style and interior trim. Compared to the Accord, the Camry is far more aggressive on the exterior, and not quite as nicely finished on the inside. The value is certainly there, but Honda might have the more polished product here.

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