Honda takes the thought of a “mid-cycle refresh” of its automobiles somewhat actually, and positive sufficient, three years into what’s prone to be a six-year lifespan, the present era Accord sees a complete spherical of updates. But, true to the corporate’s norm, do not anticipate large adjustments for the 2021 Honda Accord. The styling is up to date, however even we’re having a tough time telling the distinction. The inside sees extra infotainment options on extra trims, whereas the assorted driver help programs have been up to date and elevated in quantity. There have additionally supposedly been some enhancements made to throttle and brake response, although we truthfully did not discover them. They had been tremendous earlier than and proceed to be.
All of this needs to be welcome information, however these updates are only a bunch of icing on what was an already scrumptious, well-iced cake. Regardless of some spectacular new rivals in recent times, the ’21 Accord continues to shine as our prime household sedan alternative. It does just about every part properly. It has an enormous inside, but is conscious of drive. It is gas environment friendly, but all its powertrains, together with that of the Accord Hybrid, present punchy acceleration for the section. It is also well-equipped, and will present the long-term worth that is change into synonymous with the title Honda Accord. In different phrases, the perfect simply received higher.
What’s new for 2021?
Exterior, the 2021 Accord will get a wider, restyled grille and a brand new LED headlight design. Inside, the bottom LX now comes commonplace with the identical 8-inch touchscreen as the remainder of the Accord lineup. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto at the moment are commonplace as properly, although they get upgraded to wi-fi functionality on the EX-L and Touring trims (plus all Hybrids however the base mannequin). The usual adaptive cruise management system has apparently been improved with smoother, extra pure braking, whereas its lane-centering steering functionality has additionally been upgraded to ping-pong much less between lanes. The ACC system additionally will get steering wheel controls extra consistent with different makes. That is all excellent news.
Mechanically, the Hybrid’s engine is outwardly extra prone to rev in live performance with the motive force’s throttle enter (this may occasionally sound bizarre, however we’ll clarify intimately under). Throttle and brake pedal response have additionally been tweaked on gas-only fashions. Sadly, the guide transmission choice has been discontinued. Lastly, a brand new Sport SE trim replaces the outdated EX 1.5T.
What is the Accord inside and in-car expertise like?
The Accord’s cabin provides wonderful match and end, plus supplies which are among the many greatest within the section. The local weather management knobs even click on like an Audi’s. The design will not wow you, however it’s tidy and, in higher trim ranges, sufficiently elevated in look. Extra essential, the inside is arguably probably the most practical of any midsize household sedan. The under-armrest storage bin is gigantic, and the big square-ish cupholders can match vessels of all styles and sizes (excellent news for boxed water fanatics), whereas the bin ahead of the shifter options two USB ports, the wi-fi charger (higher trims) and is giant sufficient to suit any variety of cellphone sizes. We’re not a fan of Honda’s foolish button transmission shifter included with 2.0-liter and hybrid powertrains because it takes up simply as a lot house because the 1.5-liter’s conventional shifter. It is totally different for various’s sake.
Normal on each Accord is an 8-inch touchscreen with crisp graphics, a wise menu construction and bodily menu buttons alongside it (together with quantity and tuning knobs). The latter make it a lot simpler to make use of than the in any other case comparable programs present in Honda’s Pilot, Passport and CR-V. We additionally like that it is mounted fairly excessive on the sprint, making it simple to see at a look. Each trim stage comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, however the EX-L and Touring (plus all Hybrids however the base trim) replace them to wi-fi performance together with a wi-fi charging pad. All however the LX and base Hybrid additionally embrace two rear USB ports.
This solely touches the floor of the cabin, although. For a deeper dive, try our Accord inside overview, which takes a complete have a look at automobile seat fitment, storage and expertise.
How huge is the Accord?
The Accord is gigantic. Despite the fact that it competes with a wide range of midsize sedans which are spacious in their very own proper (Toyota Camry, Hyundai Sonata, Subaru Legacy), the Accord nonetheless outdoes all of them for passenger and cargo room. There’s a lot house between seating rows, even with tall drivers up entrance, that few automobiles (or SUVs) present as a lot room to put in a rear-facing baby seat. Headroom is sufficiently common for the section, however the Accord’s distinctive all-around visibility makes it extra nice to experience within the again.
And as we found in each our midsize sedan comparability check and our Accord baggage check, the 16.9-cubic-foot trunk can stuff in additional baggage than its rivals. Properly, baggage in addition to a 38-quart cooler. It is really not a lot smaller than the Honda CR-V, and it is actually extra voluminous than many different compact SUVs.
What are the efficiency and gas financial system?
The Accord is on the market with three powertrain decisions, together with the 2021 Honda Accord Hybrid. In contrast to the Toyota Camry and Subaru legacy, the Accord isn’t accessible with all-wheel drive.
The usual engine on each gas-only Accord is a 1.5-liter turbocharged inline-four that produces 192 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque. This makes it one of the highly effective base engines within the section. A constantly variable automated transmission (CVT) is commonplace. EPA gas financial system estimates weren’t accessible on the time of this writing, however we anticipate them to be the identical for 2021. Final yr, a CVT-equipped 1.5-liter Accord received a superb 30 mpg metropolis, 38 mpg freeway and 33 mpg mixed in most trims (the Sport received 31 mpg mixed doubtless resulting from larger wheels).
Normal on the Touring, and optionally available on the Sport and EX-L, is a 2.0-liter turbo inline-four that produces 252 hp and 273 pound-feet of torque. Its acceleration is mind-blowing for a household sedan, with many publications discovering it’s going to hit 60 mph within the mid-5-second vary. It now solely comes commonplace with a 10-speed automated (the six-speed guide was discontinued, tear). Final yr’s gas financial system estimates had been 23 mpg metropolis, 34 mpg freeway and 27 mpg mixed within the EX-L. The Sport and Touring had been lowered to 26 mixed.
The Hybrid powertrain consists of the identical distinctive setup utilized within the Honda Perception, albeit with a extra highly effective engine. Throughout most driving conditions, energy comes from the electrical motor whereas the two.0-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder principally serves as a generator to feed the battery pack. This is the reason the engine can rev greater than your throttle inputs would point out, which will be bizarre, however Honda has lowered this for 2021. Regular freeway cruising is probably the most frequent occasion when the engine is related on to the wheels. Complete system output is 212 horsepower. Honda says gas financial system would be the identical wonderful 48 mpg within the metropolis, 47 freeway and 48 mixed cycles because it was final yr.
What is the Accord wish to drive?
The ’21 Accord will get revised throttle and brake pedal response, however we did not actually take into account these to be downside areas final yr, and moreover did not discover any distinction. We did, nonetheless, discover that the Hybrid’s fuel engine does certainly work extra intently in live performance with the motive force’s throttle purposes (see powertrain part above). In any other case, the Accord driving expertise stays simply as wonderful because it was earlier than. It could be the most important Accord but, however it has re-acquired a few of the driving verve it misplaced within the earlier two generations. It feels fairly mild on its toes must you resolve to hustle it alongside a winding highway, and though the steering effort is a tad too mild, we’re guessing most individuals will not view that as a nasty factor. When you do, we suggest the Mazda6.
Journey high quality is superb on trim ranges that include 17-inch wheels, however these with the 19-inch wheels (pictured above) could also be prone to influence harshness over huge bumps. That may even be the case when paired with the Touring trim stage’s adaptive suspension, which always adjusts its damping in response to highway situations.
Each Hybrid however the Touring consists of 17-inch wheels, which is nice for the experience, however dealing with is superb as properly. The truth is, it may be higher than the gas-only model for the reason that battery’s placement low within the chassis between the axles (it is underneath the again seat) ends in higher steadiness. We additionally just like the Hybrid’s powertrain, which makes use of the electrical motor to straight energy the wheels in most circumstances and subsequently offers an nearly EV-like energy supply of buttery clean, right-now torque.
As for the gas-only powertrains, you may’t go unsuitable with both. You definitely do not want the larger turbo, however in addition to offering a much bigger punch, we want its 10-speed automated to the bottom engine’s CVT. So far as CVTs go, it is not horrible and avoids extreme droning, however we want the extra typical shifting efficiency of the 10-speed.
What extra can I learn concerning the Honda Accord?
2021 Honda Accord First Drive Evaluate
This overview highlights the adjustments made for the 2021 Accord, going extra in-depth about what was completed, why it was completed and the way these adjustments work.
2021 Honda Accord Inside Evaluate
Our complete deep dive into the Accord’s inside. We fill its cupholders and bins, overview its infotainment system, attempt to keep away from eye contact with the very-fake wooden trim and see how an toddler baby seat suits.
Honda Accord Baggage Check | How a lot suits within the trunk?
The Accord’s specs says it has extra trunk quantity than its rivals. We put that to the real-world check.
Comparability Check: Honda Accord vs Toyota Camry vs Mazda 6
See how the Accord stacks as much as two shut rivals. All have obtained updates since then, however our conclusions stay broadly the identical.
2019 Honda Accord Touring 2.0T Evaluate
We overview the best trim stage doable: the Touring with the optionally available 2.0-liter turbocharged engine. Once more, that is the pre-refresh model however our observations stay broadly the identical.
2018 Honda Accord Hybrid Touring Evaluate
Our check of the Hybrid Touring, the place we argued it is really probably the most interesting Accord accessible. Once more, that is the pre-refresh model however our observations stay broadly the identical.
What options can be found and what is the value?
Pricing begins at $25,725, together with the $955 vacation spot cost, for the bottom Accord LX. As traditional for Hondas, gear is added completely by trim ranges — there aren’t any choices or packages.
Normal gear is ample and consists of 17-inch alloy wheels, automated LED headlights, proximity entry, dual-zone local weather management, the total Honda Sensing suite of driver help tech (see Security part under), material upholstery, a guide height-adjustable driver seat, an 8-inch touchscreen, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a four-speaker sound system. Whereas we used to suggest upgrading to the Accord EX resulting from its handful of must-have extras, most of these at the moment are included on the bottom automobile. As such, there’s much less of a have to pay extra for the EX’s efficient substitute, the Sport, which can nonetheless add an influence driver seat and twice as many audio system, however comes saddled with the ride-compromising 19-inch wheels.
You will discover a full breakdown of every trim stage’s options, specs and native pricing right here on Autoblog for the gas-only Accords and right here for the Accord Hybrid.
LX: $25,725
Sport: $28,185
Sport SE: $29.675
EX-L: $32,045
Sport 2.0T: $32,865
Touring 2.0T: $37,655
Hybrid Base: $27,325
Hybrid EX: $31,275
Hybrid EX-L: $33,645
Hybrid Touring: $37,195
What are its security gear and crash scores?
Each 2021 Accord comes commonplace with the Honda Sensing suite of accident avoidance tech: ahead collision warning and automated emergency braking, lane-departure warning and lane-keeping help, and adaptive cruise management with lane-centering functionality. Blind-spot and rear cross-traffic warning are added beginning with the EX-L trim. Agreeably, these varied programs usually are not solely extra superior than what you will get within the Civic, Pilot and Passport, however have been upgraded for 2021 with extra pure reactions from the adaptive cruise management and lane-centering programs.
The Accord receives an ideal 5 stars in each authorities crash class. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety named the 2021 Accord a Prime Security Decide+ for its prime scores in all pertinent classes. Its new headlights for 2021 got “Acceptable” and “Good” scores, which is critical to attain the + model of the Prime Security Decide.
Discussion about this post