On the road
Driven on the narrow, winding roads of the Atlantic Coast, the big new Accord behave superbly. The V6-powered sedan proved to be very docile. Its engine easily managed soft and hard accelerations and showed great flexibility. One could ask for a slightly more responsive transmission, but considering its family sedan status, the Accord meets every expectation.


The available power is rapidly felt; only a gentle dip of the throttle is required to launch the car forward. Interestingly, the V6 uses a new cylinder management technology called VCM, which shuts off half of the cylinders at low or cruising speeds. An intermediate mode was added to allow the car to run with four active cylinders, for example at higher cruising speeds. The intent is to lower fuel consumption ratings, which are already exemplary (9 L/100 km combined hwy/city).

However, despite the revised steering, handling is visibly affected by the added girth. The extra kilos are felt by the driver, who has the impression of sitting behind the wheel of a traditional full-size sedan.

As for the Accord Coupe, it fully deserves its sportier credentials thanks to explosive torque right from take-off. Except for a rather restive sixth gear, the transmission proved to be predictable and easy to modulate. I should point out that the coupe does not benefit from the VCM system, relying instead on a new iteration of Honda's famous i-VTEC technology.

Finally, the 4-cylinder models were noisier yet still efficient during our brief road test. They should never be mated to the manual gearbox because the shifter offers an unpleasant "marshmallow" feeling. The automatic is definitely better suited for this Accord's personality.

Large family car
The Honda Accord survived a complete makeover with utter success. Larger and more assertive, it is decidedly closer to a family vehicle with a bite and should therefore appeal to its legions of fans. Will it manage to sway previously uninterested buyers? Only time will tell. But we can safely say that the all-new 2008 Accord erased the last remaining doubts.


More distinctive styling
Powerful and flexible V6 engine
Plenty of interior room

4-cylinder/manual transmission combo
Complex control panel
Rear styling


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Photo Credit : Marc Bouchard