Since The Weekly Driver website began in 2004, Honda has been represented more than any other manufacturer. I’ve driven every model the manufacturer offers, the Fit to the Odyssey and the S2000 to the Ridgeline. The Honda Accord is the beacon for the carmaker, remaining among the top-selling cars in the United States for 25 years.
In the observance of our first 10 years, The Weekly Driver has selected the Honda Accord as the Car of the Decade. The versatile sedan is unmatched in its combination of comfort, styling, efficiency, safety and resale value.
The first generation Honda Accord was launched on May 7, 1976 as a three-door hatchback with 68 horsepower, a 93.7-inch wheelbase and weighing about 2,000 pounds.
For 2013, after several manufacturers began to match the Accord’s quality and offer better warranties, Honda acquiesced and debuted a complete redesign. Among a vast array of other attributes, the Accord now has a 109.4-inch wheelbase and weighs 3,559 pounds.
Available in more than a dozen configurations and as a coupe and sedan, the Accord has come a long way, including the V6 Touring edition, my weekly driver in 2013. It featured a 24-value, 3.5-liter, V6 with 278 horsepower and six-speed automatic transmission.
Yes, it’s still a Honda Accord. But what once was an upgraded Civic known for its gas mileage and low maintenance, is now in its ninth generation and a far different car.
I’ve reviewed the Honda Accord in eight different year models, including most recently, the 2014 edition. In November, it was named the Green Car of the Year at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
The 2014 Honda Accord received top honors over the Audi A6 TDI, BMW 328d, Mazda 3 and Toyota Corolla.
The award was given to the Accord for all of its iterations, including the Accord Gas, Accord Hybrid and Accord Plug-In.
According to the editors of the Green Car Journal, which has presented the award since 2005, the Honda Accord has evolved to meet the needs of an increasingly changing market that seeks ever-higher fuel efficiency, lower CO2 emissions and improved environmental impact.
In it new design in 2013, the Accord morphed. It now has a simple but hard-to-decipher persona. Its more sleek, chiseled exterior styling makes it appear smaller. Yet the interior is more spacious with room for five adults.
Honda has also realized that beyond its hybrid, electric and natural gas models, improved gas mileage is a good thing in its mainstream, gas-only cars. The V6 is estimated at 34 mpg in freeway driving. And while that’s not overtly impressive, it’s the same estimated mpg as the Accord’s previous generation’s four-cylinder model achieved.
Article Last Updated: April 22, 2014.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.