Honda brought the Accord into the UK market in 2003, and in time it became one of the leading in-class premium family saloons, outdoing its main competition, the Ford Mondeo, with its premium appeal. The car's superb quality, stylish body style and upscale interior kept it on top of most car shoppers' list. The competitors eventually measured up and left it behind. Nonetheless, it remains a good drive with precise steering, luxurious interior and impressive road performance. It is also pretty quick, accelerating from 0-62 mph in 9.4 seconds with a sluggish diesel engine and 8.1 seconds with the more potent 2.4-litre i-VTEC petrol unit.
What should you expect to find in a Honda Accord?
Although not the highest achiever in its category, the Honda Accord is a well-equipped all-rounder with lots of equipment and safety features. It was available in 4 trim levels, ES, ES GT, EX and Type S, and several optional packages. Some of the standard features in the entry-level Accord are:
- Body-coloured bumpers
- Electric motors
- Folding rear seats
- Heated mirrors
- Six airbags
- Alloy wheels
- Cruise control
Those who need larger wheels will get them as standard in the upper trims together with leather upholstery, which is limited to the top spec level. Other features available as optional upgrade packages or default in other trims are:
- Electric sunroof
- Heated seats
- Electrically-adjusted driver's seat
- Headlight washers
- Front fog lights
While the early versions of the Accord had only petrol engines, a late entrant, the 2.2-litre diesel engine with 6-speed manual transmission, became the more popular in the UK. Its fame was due to its high economy and low emissions. Petrol-powered versions come with either a 2.0-litre unit with a 5-speed manual gearbox as a standard or a 2.4-litre petrol model with 6-speed manual transmission. Until its scrapping, no Accord diesel engine came with an automatic gearbox.
