Review of the new Honda Accord i-DTEC Range

It's getting there, but the Honda Accord i-DTEC diesel isn't quite on touching terms with the German premium compact executive models. It wins a few battles in key areas but as an overall proposition, it'll still appeal to those who dislike the German marques and want a high-tech alternative at a keener price.

Put yourself in Honda's position for a moment. The company has seen sales of medium range cars dwindle as more and more buyers realise that the low depreciation of premium models like the BMW 3 Series and Audi A4 often makes them cheaper to own. In this predicament, a company has three options. It can do what Nissan did and give up on that market sector, it can do what Ford has done with the current Mondeo and attempt to build a product too good to ignore or it can try to crash the premium party. Honda has chosen a combination of the latter two strategies.

It's a risky move. If a company's badge equity isn't up to snuff, buyers will laugh at its naked ambition and sales will go through the floor. Many have tried going head to head with the Germans and almost all of them have failed. Armed with a punchy 149bhp diesel engine in its latest Accord, Honda thinks it's in with a shout.

Honda has waved goodbye to its i-CTDi diesel engine design and instead thrown its lot in with another bunch of acronyms - i-DTEC. Generating 149bhp at 4,000rpm, this unit is more refined than the old 138bhp i-CTDi engine and also beats it in terms of emissions and fuel economy. With a peak torque figure of 350Nm, it's also extremely punchy. This powerplant is mated to six-speed manual gearbox. Perhaps the most significant difference is in terms of engine flexibility. Where the old diesel engine felt strong but a bit peaky, forcing you to stay right on top of gear changing duties, the i-DTEC spreads its torque rather more generously and will pull from low revs with less turbo lag; handy for when you need to zip out onto a busy roundabout.

"There's little doubt that the latest Accord looks a more substantial car than its predecessor."

Honda benchmarked the BMW 3 Series in the development of the Accord, but then most manufacturers do. It's how close they came that matters. The centre of gravity of the latest Accord is lower, the track across the axles is wider, body rigidity is improved and variable rate damping and revised multilink rear suspension also assist agility. A quicker ratio steering rack also features. These are all solid improvements but none are ground breaking. The Accord differentiates itself from the opposition in other ways.

There's little doubt that the latest Accord looks a more substantial car than its predecessor. Despite being a completely fresh design from the ground up, the latest Accord shares many styling cues with its progenitor. Park the two cars side by side and you'll see that the latest generation is lower and far wider, has a more aggressive, hunkered down stance, and more pugnacious wheel arches. The V-shaped front grille and sculpted headlamps give the Accord some serious rear-view mirror presence while the Tourer's rising window line gives it an edgier, more dynamic look. It's a neat piece of design work.

The cabin has been improved, ridding the Accord of the rather reedy, lightweight feel of older versions. The dashboard extends from the centre console to sweep around the front seats, giving the Accord's interior some character. The dash features floating backlit instruments with an LCD information screen housed in the middle of the speedometer dial. The cabin badly needs a central controller system like Audi's MMI, Mercedes' COMAND and not like BMW's infernal iDrive. Instead the Accord perseveres with lots of buttons which give a bitty look to the fascia.

Prices for the diesel Accord are, model for model, around £2,000 less than for an equivalent Audi A4, so while the Japanese may be pushing the premium quality angle with some enthusiasm, they're smart enough to realise that parity on price is, for the time being at least, a non starter. The Accord i-DTEC saloon trange kicks off with the entry-level ES model but the version that most customers will buy, the ES GT, comes after that - which includes 17-inch alloy wheels, half-leather seats, cruise control, aero kit, sports suspension and climate control. Meanwhile, EX grades come as standard with DVD sat nav, Bluetooth hands free telephone, full leather seats, electric/heated front seats, rear parking camera and a premium 6CD stereo. Continuing Honda's quest to bring E-sector advanced technology to lower segments, Honda's hi-tech ADAS Pack is available as an option, adding Collision Mitigation Braking (a first for this D-sector), as well as Lane Keep Assist, Advanced Cruise Control and HID lights.

Honda's ace in the hole with the last Accord was its high-tech equipment and myriad of options that sounded as if they'd just rolled straight off the floor at the Consumer Electronics Show. This version is no different. The Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) and Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) are just a couple of acronyms to get you started. Then there's that optional ADAS system, at its best when combined with the Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS).

While British car buyers have become accustomed to hearing manufacturer assertions that their latest generation engines are more powerful but at the same time more economical and cleaner, Honda's can't claim a clean sweep on that score. A combined economy figure of 50.4mpg for the i-DTEC Accord means it's a couple of miles per gallon thirstier than its predecessor, but it is more powerful and the car it's propelling is a good deal larger. Besides, 50mpg is a very decent return, the benchmark car in this sector, the BMW 320d, not quite managing this despite its EfficientDynamics measures.

The i-DTEC diesel engine is claimed to be so clean it meets the US's stringent 'EPA Tier II Bin 5' emissions standards with out requiring special (and expensive) modifications such as the NoX-reducing urea injection system that Mercedes needed to fit to its US-bound Bluetec diesel engines. This, however, translates to carbon dioxide figures of 148g/km which are relatively mediocre. By contrast, an Audi A4 2.0 TDI SE, a car Honda likes to benchmark, emits a markedly superior 128g/km and the BMW 320d the same 128g/km. Honda is clearly off the pace in this one key area.

Some cars are very easy to pass judgement on whereas others are far more complex propositions. The Honda Accord diesel falls firmly into the latter category and so much depends on how you choose to define the judging criteria. This is a very good car, but not a great diesel engine. It's decently economical and acceptably refined but it falls over in terms of emissions. It's far from on a par with the German elite in that respect and Honda hasn't had the belief in its own conviction to match these cars on price, instead pitching this diesel Accord a couple of thousand pounds less than an equivalent Audi A4.

This changes the equation considerably. Against similarly-priced peers, the Accord does a convincing job in making them look old and rather dumb. Perhaps if Honda could ditch the aspirational grandstanding and content itself with a more proletarian standing, the Accord would be increasingly judged for what it is: a very competitive proposition car that's possibly the best in its particular class.

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Honda Accord 2.2 i-DTEC ES 4dr Diesel Saloon
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