There’s a new Honda Accord in the US, with a new look, improved technology, and upgraded hybrid power – but it could be a year or two away from Australia.
The next-generation 2023 Honda Accord sedan has been revealed, ahead of its US launch expected in the coming months – but it is believed to be some time away from Australian showrooms.
The new Accord – now in its 11th generation – shares much with the smaller Civic hatch and CR-V SUV, including its architecture and key technology, but as Honda USA’s flagship sedan it’s a larger car, with some features its siblings don’t offer.
While it is due on sale in the US soon – from a factory in Ohio – it’s believed an Australian launch is further away, and the 10th-generation model, built in Thailand for Australia, is expected to remain in local showrooms for a while yet.
The Honda Accords sold in the US and Asia are staggered by about 12 to 18 months; production of the 10th-generation Accord began in the US in late 2017, but it did not commence in Thailand until early 2019, before arriving in Australia at the end of 2019.
If this holds true for the 11th-generation model, expect the new Honda Accord in South-East Asian and Australian showrooms before sometime in 2024.
The new Accord is a larger car than its predecessor, measuring 4971mm long, 1862mm wide and 1450mm tall, riding on a 2830mm wheelbase – about 70mm longer than the outgoing model, but a similar width and height, and an identical wheelbase.
Its styling is an evolution of the smaller Civic, with sleek LED headlights framing a large grille, sharp crease along the doors, and an Audi A7-like sloping roofline and full-width LED tail-light cluster.
Buyers can choose between 17 or 19-inch alloy wheels, depending on the model, along with eight exterior colours. Sport, Sport-L and Touring models in the US receive additional black styling elements.
Inside, flagship models include the largest touchscreen ever fitted to a Honda (at 12.3 inches), incorporating Google software (Google Assistant, Maps and the Play app store), over-the-air software updates, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
All models in the US are fitted with a 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster as standard, while flagship Touring models offer wireless phone charging, a head-up display, and a 12-speaker Bose premium sound system.
Upholstery ranges from black or grey cloth to black leather, depending on the model. Other available interior features include heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a sunroof, dual-zone climate control, eight-way power driver’s seat, and a four-way power passenger seat.
Honda USA quotes “class-leading” passenger space and rear-seat legroom (1036mm), plus 473 litres of boot space and folding rear seats.
It highlights a gear shifter angled towards the driver by 5 degrees to create space for cupholders beside it, and “Body Stabilising” seats claimed to reduce driver fatigue.
In the US, buyers of the new Accord will be able to choose from two engines: a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder developing 143kW and 260Nm, or a 2.0-litre hybrid system with 152kW and 335Nm.
The 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol engine in the outgoing North American Accord – a version of the Civic Type R hot hatch’s engine, but detuned to 188kW – has been axed for the new model (though it was never offered in Australia to begin with).
On paper, the new Accord hybrid’s 152kW power output is less than its 158kW predecessor – but a Honda USA spokesperson told US website CarBuzz the new power output is measured to a different standard, and when compared equally the new model is instead 2kW more powerful.
Honda estimates the hybrid models – which use dual electric motors, one delivering 20Nm more than before – to account for 50 per cent of Accord sales in the US.
All models drive the front wheels (through a continuously-variable automatic transmission in the petrol). Econ and Normal modes are standard in petrol models, with hybrids adding Sport and Individual modes.
Underpinning the Accord is believed to be a stretched version of the Civic’s “global architecture”, which together with “suspension and steering updates” Honda says improves the Accord’s body rigidity and handling.
A suite of 10 airbags is standard, including redesigned frontal airbags (shared with the Civic) designed to minimise the risk of brain trauma, as well as front knee and rear side-impact – which protect the rear passengers’ bodies, in addition to the curtain airbags for their heads – airbags.
Available advanced safety features include autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian, cyclist and motorcycle detection, and support for intersections, plus long-range blind-spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, and traffic jam assist.
The 2023 Honda Accord will be built for the US market at the company’s factory in Ohio.
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