2008 Honda Accord - Behind the Wheel

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All Grown Up, Like the Boomers Who Embraced It


MODERN MATURITY Americans have bought nearly 10 million Accords since 1976. The ’08 is the biggest one yet.

The Midsize Sedan, 2008



INSIDE EDITION Fancy appointments in top-trim Accords rival luxury cars'.

Bigger and roomier, with more power and finesse, this eighth-generation Accord is surely the best one yet, a serious challenger to every car in the segments where it competes.

The first Accord arrived in June 1976. At the time, Honda was still an upstart-punk company, having been founded by Soichiro Honda after World War II to install gasoline engines on bicycles. By the 1960’s, with Honda minting profits on motorcycles and racing in Formula One, its founder had the audacity to imagine that he could challenge America’s gargantuan automakers.

He started with tiny but often endearing cars, so the first Accord was a giant leap despite dimensions that seem quite modest today. Initially a two-door hatchback, it was only 162.8 inches long — about 14 inches shorter than the current Civic sedan, and 31 inches shorter than the 2008 Accord sedan. Priced at $3,995, that first Accord had a small (1.6 liter) 4-cylinder engine that produced just 68 horsepower. Honda boasted that standard safety items included radial tires and a day-night rearview mirror.

The proto-Accord was lean and economical, like many boomers in those days. It had a kind of antiestablishment appeal, and heaven knows many of us were suckers for that.
That Accord, and each of the subsequent seven versions of it, recalibrated Americans’ expectations of how good a Japanese car could be. In 1982, the Accord became the first Japanese-brand auto built in the United States. In 1989, it become the first foreign car to top the sales charts. It offered new choices: two or four doors, a smooth V-6 engine as well as an economical in-line 4, a hybrid powertrain.

Many Americans have never known a world in which there was not an Accord. By the end of this year Honda figures it will have sold 10 million Accords in the United States.
The latest version is bigger and more powerful than ever, just like many boomers. (Thanks to Tom Brokaw, we are doomed to never match our parents. After all, how could we be greater than “The Greatest Generation?”)

But this redesigned Accord is surely the greatest generation of Honda’s best-selling model. It is incredibly important to the company, since it faces competition not just from the Toyota Camry but from a host of solid new entries like the Saturn Aura, Kia Optima, Hyundai Sonata, Ford Fusion, Nissan Altima and an all-new 2008 Chevrolet Malibu.

The coupe and sedan also have looks that by Honda’s standards are adventurous. The new Accord still uses front-wheel drive and is available as a coupe or sedan. It comes with either a 2.4-liter in-line 4-cylinder or a 3.5-liter V-6 (which replaces a 3-liter V-6). Honda did not replace the slow-selling Accord Hybrid.

The 4-cylinder engine comes in versions with either 177 or 190 horsepower, with either a five-speed manual or five-speed automatic. The V-6 is rated at 268 horsepower and comes with a five-speed automatic, except on the EX-L coupe, which is available in a six-speed manual. With the automatic transmission, the V-6 has the fuel-saving ability to operate on three or four cylinders when full power is not needed.

Regular fuel is recommended for all engines. In states that have adopted California’s air-quality regulations — including New York and most of New England — the V-6 with automatic transmission gets an extra-clean PZEV rating (for partial zero emission vehicle).

Like most Accords sold in the United States since the early 1980s, the new sedan will be built primarily (80 percent) in Marysville, Ohio, with the remainder being imported from Japan.

When Honda opened the first Japanese transplant factory, there was a perception that American auto workers couldn’t do anything right but that their Japanese counterparts were super-assemblers. Yet before long the corn-fed Buckeyes in Marysville proved that they could produce high-quality vehicles; the secrets were good management, a good process and thoughtful engineering.

Prices start at $20,995 for a four-cylinder LX sedan. The least expensive V-6 sedan is $26,595 and the most expensive is $30,895, which includes leather upholstery and a navigation system.

The four-cylinder coupe starts at $22,495, while the least expensive V-6 is $28,945. The fanciest coupe is $31,145.

The new sedan and coupe are each about three inches longer than the models they replace. That makes the 2008 sedan five inches longer than the Camry. The sedan has a little more knee and legroom than last year and four six-foot adults can easily be carried.
The new coupe, however, has four inches less rear legroom than the new sedan. The trunk capacity goes from 14 cubic feet in the sedan to about 12 in the coupe.

The interior excels in common-sense functionality including large and easy-to-use controls and enough bins to allow for tidy motoring. But aesthetically the EX is a little disappointing. There’s a lot of hard plastic, and the cloth on the seats seems to have been inspired by the bargain-rack towels at Wal-Mart. On the other hand, do you want fancy fabric or all that standard safety gear?

The fanciest V-6 Accords with leather upholstery are more handsome inside, and the extra performance moves the car up into the near-luxury category. The unpretentious Honda badge lets you luxuriate incognito, appealing to those of us who want pampering but like to keep a low profile while getting it.

The EX sedans and coupes with automatic transmissions are equipped with active noise control, previously found on the Accord Hybrid, which uses two microphones to detect “low-end drivetrain frequency noise” entering the cabin. That sets off a reverse-phase audio signal to reduce the “booming sound of the exhaust.” I think I saw something like that on “Star Trek” that was used to kill tribbles. The all-new 2008 Chevrolet Malibu lacks such gimmicks yet seems quieter.

All this comes in a bigger package, and that is a cause for concern. Typically, adding size and weight do not improve the performance of people or cars. Middle-age bloat has killed plenty of baby boomers, and it is always worrisome when an automaker increases the size of a vehicle that had been entertaining to drive.

Happily the Accord has survived its growth. The sedan’s ride — for either 4-cylinder or V-6 models — is slightly firm. However, while rough surfaces are noticed, they are not hurtful. Only those who put the highest priority on a coddled backside would object to the ride.

Meanwhile, the Accord’s body movements are far more tightly controlled than those in the Camry. That means the Accord always feels sharp and eager while the Camry (except for the SE version with a sport suspension) often feels bouncy.

A tour through the White Mountains of New Hampshire quickly showed that the Accord may be bigger but it is not sloppier, which is more than can be said for many boomers.
Honda is doing a better job with its steering, and the Accord provides a good connection with the driver. The body feels solid (Honda says torsional rigidity has improved by 20 percent), and it responds quickly to even the most challenging series of turns. It is quite at home being driven in a brisk fashion that would fluster a Camry.

The 190-horsepower 4-cylinder does not let down the suspension. If there is a weakness, it is acceleration from a standing start since the empty vehicle weighs 3,408 pounds. Once under way, however, the reoccurring thought is, “Why would I get the V-6?”

A fair amount of the credit for this performance comes from a gifted five-speed automatic that is fabulously quick to downshift and invariably selects just the right gear to accelerate out of a corner. One reason for the automatic’s excellence is that Honda has programmed the transmission not to upshift into fourth or fifth gear if the computer detects that the driver is repeatedly letting off the gas and then braking, which might indicate spirited driving on a twisty road. By comparison, the automatic in the Camry seems drowsy.

While the 4-cylinder is impressive, the V-6 is alluring. It was strong, incredibly smooth and handled any chore with ease. When full power is not needed, it can drop from six cylinders to four, or even three.

The extra power reduces fuel economy, of course. The government estimate of 19 m.p.g. city and 29 m.p.g. highway is 2 m.p.g. less (in both city and highway estimates) than the 190-horse 4-cylinder with the automatic.

With either engine, the new Accord proves to be that rarest of creatures, a family sedan with sporting abilities that go well beyond fancy trim or decals. The car is more practical, and safer, and yet a driving enthusiast can enjoy it. It also shows that bigger and older can mean better, just as it does with me and my fellow boomers.

INSIDE TRACK: Let’s hear it for oldies but goodies.