Appearance
The people at Acura must not be thrilled to see how luxurious the Accord Hybrid is, because it could very well pass for one of their models. Leather covers the seats and door panels. The seats are very comfortable front and rear, and even generous-sized adults will feel at ease.
The navigation system with voice recognition is optional, but the equipment level is otherwise very high. The instrument panel display is pleasing to the eye, with white-on-black numerals. Also, charge and assist bar graphs, as well as your average fuel consumption are clearly visible.
Two downsides to the Accord Hybrid, though: the rear seatback doesn't fold down, and the trunk size is reduced to make room for the battery pack.
On the outside, you can mainly distinguish the hybrid version of the Accord by its roof-mounted antenna and specific taillights.
Competition
If we're only talking about hybrid mid-size sedans, the Toyota Camry Hybrid comes immediately to mind. There is also the Saturn Aura Green Line and the Nissan Altima Hybrid, which have just landed in showrooms. However, these three rivals are all biased towards fuel economy instead of performance, since they're all equipped with 4-cylinder engines. The Accord Hybrid is the only one with a V6.
This Accord has a base price of $38,090 and reaches $40,590 with the navigation system. A Camry Hybrid with the B Package (heated leather, sunroof, etc.) costs $35,680. An Aura Green Line with every option selected costs only $29,460. As for the Altima Hybrid, it has no options and costs $32,998. Curiously, the Aura uses slightly more fuel than the Accord, maybe because of its automatic transmission that only has 4 gears.
The people at Acura must not be thrilled to see how luxurious the Accord Hybrid is, because it could very well pass for one of their models. Leather covers the seats and door panels. The seats are very comfortable front and rear, and even generous-sized adults will feel at ease.
The navigation system with voice recognition is optional, but the equipment level is otherwise very high. The instrument panel display is pleasing to the eye, with white-on-black numerals. Also, charge and assist bar graphs, as well as your average fuel consumption are clearly visible.
 |
| The Accord Hybrid's cockpit is luxurious, well appointed and very inviting. |
Two downsides to the Accord Hybrid, though: the rear seatback doesn't fold down, and the trunk size is reduced to make room for the battery pack.
On the outside, you can mainly distinguish the hybrid version of the Accord by its roof-mounted antenna and specific taillights.
Competition
If we're only talking about hybrid mid-size sedans, the Toyota Camry Hybrid comes immediately to mind. There is also the Saturn Aura Green Line and the Nissan Altima Hybrid, which have just landed in showrooms. However, these three rivals are all biased towards fuel economy instead of performance, since they're all equipped with 4-cylinder engines. The Accord Hybrid is the only one with a V6.
This Accord has a base price of $38,090 and reaches $40,590 with the navigation system. A Camry Hybrid with the B Package (heated leather, sunroof, etc.) costs $35,680. An Aura Green Line with every option selected costs only $29,460. As for the Altima Hybrid, it has no options and costs $32,998. Curiously, the Aura uses slightly more fuel than the Accord, maybe because of its automatic transmission that only has 4 gears.
 |
| After five years on the market, the current Accord will be replaced be an all-new version this fall. |