2016 Honda Accord Review

For nearly four decades, the Accord has set the benchmark for vehicles in the midsize sedan class, historically the most popular class of vehicle with American car buyers. Accord is widely recognized as a segment-defining product, delivering class-leading interior space and superior ergonomics along with outstanding fuel efficiency, refined and responsive driving dynamics and top-class safety performance.

As one important bellwether of its success, the Accord has been named to Car and Driver magazine’s “10Best” list a record 29 times, a feat unmatched by any other automobile of any type.

Accord was the first Honda model and first vehicle from a Japanese automaker to be manufactured in America and has been in continuous production at the company’s Marysville, Ohio auto plant using domestic and globally sourced parts since November 1982. It has also been produced in the company’s plants in East Liberty, Ohio; in Birmingham, Alabama; and in El Salto, Jalisco, Mexico. Honda has produced more than 10 million Accords in North America for both local and global markets.

In 2012 Honda launched a completely reengineered 9th-generation Accord as a 2013 year model. The 9th-generation redesign featured a spacious and airy passenger cabin wrapped in a tauter and tailored design with a smaller exterior footprint than the model it replaced. The Accord also delivered more sporting and refined road manners, a higher quality interior and a host of new technologies.

It featured the first application of new direct-injected 4-cylinder engine technology, a new continuously variable transmission (CVT), and new two-motor hybrid system. The Accord Hybrid, featuring the two-motor system, launched with the highest EPA fuel economy rating of any midsized sedan in America. The 2013 Accord was also one of the first mainstream sedans in America to incorporate advanced driver-assistive features, including Lane Departure Warning and Forward Collision Warning.

The 2016 Accord marks a further advancement of the 9th-generation Accord lineup. Building on the foundations established by the 2013 model, the more sophisticated, sportier, yet highly fuel efficient 2016 Accord features a further refined design, a more rigid body and upgraded chassis, and upsized wheels and tires on select models. All 2016 Accords can also now be equipped with Honda Sensing™ as a standalone option on all trims except Touring, which features Honda Sensing™ as standard equipment. Further changes include the expanded use LED exterior lighting, and new premium features and technologies, including the first combined application of Apple CarPlay®1 and Android Auto1 to a Honda model and among the first high-volume cars to apply the two systems in the marketplace.

Additional new available features for 2016, depending on model and trim, include remote engine start, front and rear parking sensors, rain sensing wipers, rear seat heaters, and a 60/40 split and folding rear seat. The Accord Sedan and Coupe, depending on trim, also feature new exterior color and interior fabrics and decor; and the Accord Coupe adds a new line-topping Touring model to match its Sedan counterpart.

Exterior and Interior Design

The Accord Sedan and Coupe both get a major facelift for 2016. In place of the previous wrap-around front bumper is a more sharply creased and intricately structured front fascia, the lower portion of which tucks into large intake-like meshed areas that house new LED fog lights (Sport trim and above).

For the Accord Sedan, a more sharply creased and contoured aluminum hood replaces the steel version on earlier models and meets up with a brighter, more pronounced front grille. The new more expressive face of Accord is complimented by a sharply sculpted rear bumper fascia and new LED taillight design. The Accord Coupe also boasts more sporting and aggressive front and rear fasciae, a new grille, and restyled headlights and taillights.

While all models feature restyled wheels, the Accord Sedan in Sport and Touring trims get larger 19-inch (+1 inch for Sport, +2 inch for Touring) wheels and tires and a new side-sill garnish. The Touring sedan also gets a new rear deck spoiler. For the Accord Coupe, EX and EX-L grades get larger 18-inch (+1 inch) wheels and tires, while the new line-topping Coupe Touring rolls on the same 19-inch tires as its sedan counterpart. All models, Coupe and Sedan, feature the expanded use of LED lighting – LED taillights for all models, LED headlights for the new Touring Coupe, and LED daytime running lights (DRLs) for Sport and above trims.

The Accord also gets a revised exterior color palette with the addition of a new Deep Blue Opal Metallic for the Accord Coupe, as well as new fabric and color schemes, depending on model and trim, including:

• New glossy piano black interior trim for Accord Sedan LX and Sport and Coupe LX-S
• New carbon fiber-style dashboard trim and new cloth seat fabric with leatherette bolsters for the Sedan in Sport trim
• A new meter design on Accord Sedan Sport and all Coupe models
• New tricot seat fabric for Accord Sedan EX
• New wood grain-style dashboard trim for Accord Sedan EX and above trims
• New metal-style dashboard trim for Accord Coupe EX and above trims

Body and Chassis Upgrades

The 2016 Accord’s sportier design is matched by its improved dynamic performance. Accord body rigidity is increased for all models and is complimented by new high performance dampers, and a retuned electric power steering system that delivers even more linear and precise response. The Accord Sedan also gets a new aluminum hood, replacing the previous steel hood, benefitting both fuel efficiency and dynamic performance.

Within the Sedan lineup, the popular Sport trim receives upgraded performance capabilities courtesy of larger front brakes, 19-inch (+1 inch) wheels and tires, and retuned Active Sound Control; likewise the line-topping Touring trim (Coupe and Sedan) also benefits from the same larger front brakes and 19-inch wheels and tires, and for the first time is fitted with Amplitude Reactive Dampers and hydraulic subframe bushings, which provide for a more supple ride. This combination of these new body and chassis features and engineering changes is designed to give each model a more clearly defined and distinctive dynamic feeling within the Accord lineup.

The Accord also gets new Straight Driving Assist technology that helps reduce the driver’s workload when driving on a crowned or canted road surface (see Chassis section for more details).

Honda Sensing™

All 2016 Accords can also now be equipped with Honda Sensing™, among the most comprehensive suite of advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies in the competitive class. Honda Sensing is offered as a standalone option on all trims except the Touring, which features Honda Sensing as standard equipment. Honda Sensing is comprised of the following technologies:

• Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) with sensor fusion technology
• Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
• Forward Collision Warning (FCW)
• Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS)
• Road Departure Mitigation (RDM)
• Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC)

All 2016 Accord models also feature a standard Multi-Angle Rearview Camera and Expanded View Driver’s Mirror. The Touring trim adds new auto high-beam headlights that enhance nighttime visibility and driving convenience (see Safety and Driver Assistive section for more detail).

Display Audio with Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto1 Overview

The Accord audio and digital experience is also significantly upgraded with the application of a new 7-inch touchscreen Display Audio interface (EX and above trims) featuring Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto, as well as newly available HondaLink Assist (e911) and HD Radio®. Smartphone pairing is now simplified with a single USB cable connection, no longer requiring an HDMI cable connection. The new Display Audio system serves as the interface for new Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto, offering a multitude of new functions and features, including smartphone-linked navigation (Apple Maps or Google Maps), audio streaming, voice-controlled SMS text messaging and more.

The lower 7-inch Display Audio touchscreen is paired with an upper 7.7-inch display screen and steering-wheel controls. The upper screen can display audio settings, turn-by-turn directions (from embedded navigation when so equipped or from Android Auto or Apple CarPlay® navi apps), time and trip information (e.g. range, trip distance), LaneWatch and Rearview Camera displays, incoming calls, SMS text messages, and parking sensor alerts.

2016 Accord Major Engineering Changes and Feature Upgrades

Body and Chassis

• Increased body rigidity courtesy of multiple new stiffeners, a thicker front shock tower bar and sturdier rear bulkhead
• Retuned electric power steering
• Aluminum hood (Sedan models)
• New high performance dampers (all except Touring trims)
• New high performance Amplitude Reactive Dampers (Touring trims)
• Hydraulic rear subframe bushings (Touring trims)
• Retuned Active Sound Control for sportier acceleration sound (Sport Sedan)
• 18-inch (+1 inch) aluminum wheels and tires (EX and EX-L Coupe)
• 19-inch aluminum wheels and tires (Sport sedan +1 inch and Touring trims +2 inch)
• Larger front brake (Sport Sedan and Touring trims)

Exterior

• Newly styled front and rear fasciae (all models)
• Restyled aluminum (previously steel) hood (Sedan models)
• New wheel designs (all models and trims)
• Expanded application of LED lighting
• New exterior color options and interior decoration
• Rain-sensing wipers (Touring trims)
• Front and rear parking sensors (Touring trims)
• Side sill garnish (Sport and Touring Sedan)
• Rear deck spoiler (Sedan Sport and Touring trims)

Interior

• 7-inch touch screen Display Audio system (EX and above trims)
• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay® (EX and above trims)
• HondaLink Assist
• Expanded application of SiriusXM Radio (added to EX)
• New HD Radio® (EX and above trims)
• 8-way power driver’s seat (added to EX Coupe)
• Driver’s memory seat (added to EX-L and Touring Coupe)
• 60/40-split and folding rear seat (added to Sport and above Sedans)
• Remote engine start (CVT/AT EX and above trims)
• Heated rear seats (Touring Sedan)

Safety and Driver Assistive

• Honda Sensing™ technologies including Lane Keep Assist (LKAS), Road Departure Mitigation (RDM) with Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), and Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) with Forward Collision Warning (FCE).
• Auto high-beam headlights (Touring trims)
• Front and rear parking sensors (Touring trims)

Powertrains

The Accord Sedan and Coupe are offered with two advanced engines – a direct-injected 2.4-liter inline 4-cylinder engine, and a 3.5-liter V-6 that is the most powerful engine offered in a Honda sedan to date. Available transmissions include a sporty and fuel-efficient continuously variable transmission (CVT) for the 4-cylinder engines, unique 6-speed manuals for the 4-cylinder and V-6 engines, and a 6-speed automatic for V-6 models.

Advanced Safety Performance

In keeping with Honda’s commitment to safety, the 2016 Accord features the Honda Sensing™ suite of advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies designed to expand the driver’s situational awareness while sensing and responding to potential road hazards, including other vehicles, road obstacles and even pedestrians, even to the point of mitigating the possibility or severity of a collision

The 2016 Accord is expected to receive the highest safety ratings – a 5-Star Overall Vehicle Score from the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and a TOP SAFETY PICK+ rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), including a GOOD rating in all crash modes.

The Accord incorporates Honda’s next-generation Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body structure, designed to more efficiently absorb and disperse the energy from a frontal collision, along with new ultra-high-strength door rings designed to help better protect occupants.

Standard safety and driver-assistive features include four-channel anti-lock brakes (ABS) with Brake Assist and Hill Start Assist; Vehicle Stability Assist™ (VSA®) with Traction Control; an Expanded View Driver’s Mirror; dual-stage, multiple-threshold front airbags, driver and front passenger SmartVent® side airbags and side-curtain airbags for all outboard seating positions; and Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS). See the Safety and Driver Assistance section for more information.

2016 Accord New Features

Price

• 2016 Accord Coupe price starts from $23,875
• 2016 Accord Sedan price starts from $22,205