Honda's Accord is a very refined affair

The latest Accord in several respects represents a significant leap forward for a car that has gathered legions of owners and an outstanding reputation over several different (car) generations. There’s a price, though ... literally. Entry level is over £20,000, putting it unabashedly into the upper executive sector. In Ireland, that’s not really too big a problem for those who sell them, as sales volumes are more dictated on getting enough units than on price.

So what have we got that’s new and that justifies the strategy of making the Accord (for many years it was America’s best-selling car) somewhat less accessible to the family buyer? Well, first it is a version designed distinctly for Europe (the US version now is quite a different car), and it actually has smaller exterior dimensions than its predecessor. Stylistically it has smoothened even more, and there’s some subtle sculpting in the metalwork that gives it a better ‘presence’ than it had before. My feeling, anyway.

The front view is significantly more commanding, without being ostentatious. The ‘H’ motif seems to be demanding a little more attention, helped by strong fluting on the bonnet. The lights are of the now-popular ‘crystal’ style, with a design on the indicator glass that’s also reflected on the rear lamp covers and which I’ve also found immediately identifies the Accord in front or behind as the new one (necessary enough because, though side by side the old and new cars are quite different, the evolution has been subtle enough).

The car is exceptionally handsome from the rear three-quarter view, and the integration of a high-level crease with the lines of the boot is one of those subtleties that adds the ‘presence’ I’ve mentioned. There’s no point in trying to explain all this in artistically philosophical terms ... it all just works.

Inside, it’s more of the same ethos - slightly understated, very quality, and a decent element of sportiness. It is spacious, airy, and has a nice two-toning in trim that is well set off by rich wood-effect parts of the dash and console. I was particularly taken with the driver’s area, very well informed by an intelligent placing of instruments, and control comfortable through a steering wheel that is, as Goldilocks might say, just right. Switchgear all works with a satisfyingly good action. The seats in Accords have always been very good, and that tradition has been maintained.

So far, all to the good. But anyone can make a decent-looking and good-feeling car with a little attention to quality and detail. What about the dynamics? Oh boy, here’s where this latest Honda really does justify its new placing in the market.

First, the review car had the latest upgrading of the excellent 1.8-litre VTEC engine whose engineering is firmly rooted in the company’s racing heritage. For ordinary use, the engine is an ordinary engine ... but at a certain point in RPM urgency the variable valve timing cuts in and you get a surge in accelerative power that’s almost turbo-like. All with the most amazing smoothness, however.

And that smoothness carries over to the slick gearshifting, the extraordinary quiet inside the cabin, and the preciseness of the power steering, nowadays nothing like the overlight affair that used to typify Japanese cars.

All that smooth power would be useless without a matching handling and ride, and here is where the car reflects a quantum leap over its predecessor, because the handling characteristics of the Accord in latest guise are quite simply impeccable. Even when put to most extreme pressure, the car remains unflustered and even forgiving if you as driver have stepped seriously out of line.

Bottom line ... the new Honda Accord is on the buying list of some very serious car owners, including those who might otherwise aspire to even elite marques. It will reward them with a very sophisticated driving experience, very good residual values, and a certain cachet that marks them rather above what used to be competing models from Ford, Mazda, Opel and several others. The price, at £21,035 for the review car, does this anyway. But so does the whole package.

Honda in this market doesn’t go in for the luxury branding of some models as it does in the US in order to differentiate from its own name as a mainstream producer. It might well have done so with this particular Honda, but didn’t need to really, because Honda has its own name here already for excellence.

The new Accord sustains and enhances that reputation.