AUTOBLITZ

The Honda Accord is a much more formal looking car. Its looks are a logical update of the previous one though this doesn’t mean that it’s stale. On the contrary, with a prominent body crease, voluminous nose and complex head and taillights of its own. The Honda Accord tries hard to give off the impression of a European interior by merging the stereo and climate control buttons into a cohesive central unit. To a certain extent, it works but there are far too many buttons concentrated in too small an area and most only perform simple functions. The large LCD display also seems a little superfluous if all it displays are stereo and climate functions. As a sat-nav screen, it probably makes more sense.

Despite its looks, Honda has endowed their car with a chassis of rare ability. It is comfortable on long motorway trips yet equally able when negotiating a series of bends. The steering is light but accurate and while ultimate grip is less.

The engine and gearbox combo are better too. Honda’s i-VTEC has lost the last vestiges of its peaky nature and now pulls hard from almost anywhere in the rev range. There is still some of the trademark rush when approaching peak revs but it’s not so big that you need to drive ‘on the cam’ all the time. As for changing gears; it is performed quickly and smoothly in Honda Accord.