SuperHonda.com has some interesting tidbits of information regarding the next generation Honda Accord sedan and coupe-
- The sedan will be available on September 12th, with the coupe entering showrooms later in the month.
- There will be two 4 cylinder models in the lineup, with the LX getting a 180 HP 4 banger, while the uplevel EX edition will get, presumably, the 200 HP variant also found in the current TSX.
- The big brother V6 will get an appreciable increase over the current edition engine, coming in a 273 horsepower.
- The car is big enough to be classified as a full size sedan.
Well first, that is one impressive lineup of engines- the base I4 in the Accord lineup was always the smoothest out of the mainstream offerings, and the power increase to put it ahead of basically everyone out there is a welcome addition. Adding in the 200 HP variant is a fantastic move- they'll be able to keep the fuel economy numbers looking good for those sorts of buyers, while offering more power- and that should be a winning combination, and something not found in other brands right now. Of course, the biggest news is the new V6, which if those power numbers hold true, will lead the class in power. It's interesting seeing the progression in engine power for the midsize segment at this point though- the Altima blew the doors off of everyone in 2002, and since then, everyone has only equaled or just barely surpassed it. I think it's probably because any more power would encroach on the entry level luxury brands of most of these companies.
The fullsize designation is also a bit eyebrow raising- the traditionally smaller Accord seems to be moving up in the world.
All in all, the new Accord is looking like it will keep going from where the last one left off.
4 comments:
Nice info - I hadn't seen this before your post. I'm really happy with my 2004 Accord - I'd like another 33 horsepower even more, though. I hope it doesn't gain any weight since the car will be larger; I'm very happy with the weight and balance of the Accord as-is (though the four cylinder models are less front-heavy than the V6s, even though the six is all-aluminum).
If the diesel coming out in a few years lives up to the hype of 52 mpg, that will be 52 more reasons to check one out.
I suspect the reason that horsepower in this class is topping out around 270 is that this if far more power than the average buyer of these cars will ever tap into. Also, fuel economy standards and torque steer. They'll probably get to 300, but I doubt much further than that.
The new Altima has next to no torque steer at 270 HP... with the proper engineering, I don't see an issue. Plus, many of these cars are moving towards AWD options as well- 300 HP wouldn't be an issue then. I really think it's poaching from big brother that they're all worried about- after all, if you can get an Altima with 300 HP and all the goodies for the price of a G35, why go with the G35? Especially if you're in the snowbelt. Same with the Camry/ES/IS, Accord/TL, Aura/G6/Malibu/CTS etc.
Do you know what the MSRP will be for the EX V6?
Thanks
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