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2008 Honda Accord EX sedan is able but clunky(Dallas Morning News, The (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Feb. 3--Everyone but maybe Toyota likes Honda, the aloof, coolish engineer nerd of the auto industry. From snarling, wheel-standing crotch rockets to cheap, hard-edged Civic sedans, Honda builds unusually balanced, dynamic vehicles -- a result, I think, of the company's vast racing experience. We love them here at the Daily Planet. If you sent out an e-mail saying there was a Honda with its lights on in the garage, our high-tech newsroom -- Truth Central, I call it -- would empty as hordes of reporters and editors loped outside to save their cherished Civics, Accords, Pilots and Odysseys. (Maybe that's a slight exaggeration. But I'm sure I wouldn't have much company inside if that happened.) So why was I so conflicted about the 2008 Accord EX I had recently, a four-door sedan that, at about 3,600 pounds, is now heavier than some Buicks and stranger-looking than many 5-series BMWs? After all, most of my colleagues in the automotive media continue to heap praise on the Accord, as competent and complete a sedan as ever. But I couldn't shake some of the same misgivings I had with the last Toyota Camry I drove. As both of these high-quality, solid-citizen sedans grow bigger and more bloated, they seem to be losing the spare, functional distinction that made them the best-selling midsize sedans in the U.S. Don't get me wrong: There's a lot to like with the Accord. My maroon EX was equipped with Honda's strong new 3.5-liter V-6 -- making a respectable 268 horsepower, up 28 horses from last year's 3-liter motor -- and a decent five-speed automatic. Like all Accords, the $30,260 EX sported Honda's excellent fully independent suspension and fine steering, both unusually good for a mainstream grocery-getter. Although I'm no fan of front-wheel drive, it was largely invisible in the able Accord, rarely imposing any aggravating torque steer despite its fairly potent motor. Turn-in was also crisp for a front-driver -- much better, I thought, than the last Saab I drove, and Saabs are supposed to be real Svedish sports. Moreover, the Accord runs pretty well for a fat boy. In most tests, the V-6 model sailed to 60 in seven seconds or so and blasted through the quarter-mile in the mid-15-second range -- while still managing an acceptable 19 miles per gallon fuel consumption in city tests and 29 on the highway. In addition, the interior of my top-of-the-line EX was as good as anything you can find in the midsize sedan segment -- and better than a few luxury cars. My EX had light tan leather seats, with leather inserts in the doors. The top of the dashboard was a high-grade medium brown plastic, as were the tops of the doors. A slender strip of faux wood separated the two, complementing both nicely. Oddly for a California-centric company like Honda, the navigation screen was too recessed and dark to see in daylight. (How will Goldenrod and Tiffany ever find their way home from the beach at Malibu if they can't see the nav screen?) And a long, thin panel beneath it showing what radio station you were tuned to was just as useless in sunlight. The controls for everything else were great. Every lever, switch or button -- from interior door handles to wiper controls -- seemed perfectly weighted, fluid and rich-feeling. (And that's a quality many domestics still struggle to provide.) Stretch room Likewise, the rear seats and rear legroom were excellent. With my highly impressive 67 inches lounging on one side of the back seat, I still had about 10 inches of space between my knees and the front seat. (I'll leave it to you to develop uses for that space.) The '08 Accord is three inches longer than the '07 model, plus an inch wider and taller. The car's wheelbase also has grown by 2.3 inches, and all that stretching is apparent inside. As you would expect, the bulk hasn't hurt the Accord's ride, which was compliant but controlled -- a combination that's tough to find in any car under $35,000. More goodness awaits you under the hood. Honda may be largely a four-cylinder company, but, hey, life is short. Opt for a little pleasure and get the V-6. The engine was smooth and strong, with a wonderfully refined surge between 4,000 and 6,000 rpm. But if you prefer some occasional intense, red-line driving, you won't be completely happy, even with the V-6. For whatever reason, the computer wouldn't let the transmission run all the way up to the 6,800-rpm red line -- even when it was held in gear. I always felt I was being denied some of the engine's reserves, and that probably added to my considerable insecurities. Still, this motor has an expensive whir to it and makes the car easy to drive moderately fast. It's just not as quick as the equally large Camry or the new V-6 Malibu. My enthusiasm for the Accord always dropped some, however, when I stepped outside the car. I'm no Chip Foose or J Mays or even Chris Bangle. But my main test for good automotive design is pretty simple: Is it better than the old model of the same car? And in my view, the new Accord is considerably less attractive than the '07 Accord, which in V-6 form looked clean, reasonably sized and purposeful. Moreover, it is the ugly brother of the '08 Accord coupe, a sleek, good-looking car. Maybe the sheer size of the sedan stretches the limits of the design. I don't know. But what's with the heavy, glaring headlights and odd-shaped grille up front? And why scoop out a character line down each side that, in conjunction with the car's faux German rear-end, looks like a half-hearted parody of a BMW? Throw in those awful chromed door handles that I'm pretty sure were lifted straight from the Batmobile, and you have a big car with a really good personality and a nice sense of humor. Like a homely date, the Accord sedan is a car best appreciated in places with subdued lighting. Rivals revving Does that really matter in a segment where cars need to be affordable, economical, safe and able to tolerate large amounts of kid abuse and kid residue? Maybe not. But with the entry this year of a handsome new Chevrolet Malibu, this is a tight, tough segment where a half-dozen or so competent vehicles are now worthy of consideration. For now, the Accord is second only to the Camry in volume, with an impressive 392,231 sales last year -- a 10.6 percent increase from '06 in a down market. And from where I sit, the pug-nosed, slightly bizarre Camry is no better looking than the new Accord. The Malibu, Nissan Altima, Mazda6, Ford Fusion, Hyundai Sonata and Saturn Aura all have better styling, I think -- and all are looking for loose plates in the Accord's tough, clunky armor. Is that a little clink I hear? To see more of The Dallas Morning News, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.dallasnews.com. Copyright (c) 2008, The Dallas Morning News Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |