By Derek Price
Automotive Writer
It’s hard to find anything to criticize about Honda, the maker of bulletproof cars that seem to last through the eternities, but it’s had one weak point in the past decade: hybrids.
Even as Honda has been an industry leader in developing hybrid technologies, which use electric motors to help gas-powered vehicles get better mileage, its hybrid cars have endured a few missteps along the way.
The CR-Z sports hybrid, for example, turned out to be neither particularly sporty nor efficient, and the V6-powered Accord Hybrid introduced in 2004 didn’t get good enough gas mileage to woo many buyers. It disappeared after just three years.
Well, at last Honda has come out with a hybrid car that is absolutely, spot-on perfect.
With a city fuel economy rating of 50 mpg, the 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid is one of the most efficient cars you can buy today. It’s the first hybrid version of the new-generation Accord.
The new-for-2014 Accord Hybrid is not only a spectacularly good car to drive, with a taut suspension and a cabin assembled tightly enough to survive a nuclear blast, but it’s also great at saving gas.
Thanks to some innovative engineering that leapfrogs the competition — including designing what I call a “virtual transmission” that works electronically — the new Accord Hybrid has dialed in some impressive fuel economy ratings of 45 mpg on the highway and 50 in the city, making it a class leader.
In fact, leadership was a recurring thought during my week-long test of this new hybrid. It strikes me as being slightly ahead of its time, a return to the days when Honda would perfect and popularize a technology such as variable valve timing before the rest of the world would follow along.
If Honda has lost its innovation mojo in recent years, cars like this will bring it back.
The lack of a traditional transmission in the Accord Hybrid is the best example, as it dumps the system of pulleys and belts used in the majority of today’s hybrid cars in favor of computers and electric motors that can do the job more efficiently. It makes every other hybrid system seem instantly outdated, and I bet more cars will follow its lead in the future.
Another ahead-of-its-time technology is the use of video cameras to eliminate blind spots. The Accord is available with a camera mounted on the right side-view mirror, and any time you use the right turn signal it will display that video feed in the cabin.
I was skeptical when I first used this video system, called LaneWatch, last year, but it’s won me over. It’s not a gimmick. Every time I drive one of these new Accords that has it, I walk away thinking, “Jeez! Why doesn’t every car have this?”
There is one noticeable tradeoff when you buy the hybrid Accord, and that’s cargo space. The trunk in the hybrid version holds about 20 percent less than the regular Accord because of all the batteries and associated electronics back there.
For that little sacrifice, though, you get big dividends. The Accord Hybrid’s city mpg rating is roughly twice that of the regular ol’ Accord, yet it has the same spunky, firm-riding, communicative driving feel that makes Hondas some of my favorite cars on winding roads.
Under the hood, a four-cylinder gasoline engine and powerful electric motor combine for the impressive mileage rating. Surprisingly, it doesn’t have a traditional transmission like most cars, replacing it with a Honda-engineered electronic system instead.
Overall, there’s not much to complain about in this car. It’s built well, drives beautifully, has impressive by-the-numbers performance and even looks good, with tasteful touches to make it stand out without being as eco-gaudy as a Toyota Prius.
It’s the best hybrid Honda has built to date, by far.
At a Glance
What was tested?
2015 Honda Accord Hybrid ($34,905). Options: None. Price as tested (including $790 destination charge): $35,695
Wheelbase: 109.3 in.
Length: 192.2 in.
Width: 72.8 in.
Height: 57.5 in.
Engine: Inline 4-cylinder engine and 124-kw electric motor (196 total system horsepower)
Transmission: Electronic continuously variable transmission
EPA Mileage: 50 city, 45 highway
RATINGS
Style: 7
Performance: 8
Price: 8
Handling: 8
Ride: 7
Comfort: 9
Quality: 10
Overall: 9
Video Review:
2014 Honda Accord Hybrid
http://bit.ly/accordhybrid
Why buy it?
If you want great gas mileage and enjoy the firm, sporty ride of an Accord, this new hybrid version is perfect. Its 50-mpg fuel efficiency rating and quality feel make it stand out.