[Ming]

2005 Honda Accord Hybrid Preview
Trevor Hofmann
Canadian Auto Press

Now That's More Like It

The makers of hybrid cars have got to be smiling these days. With gas prices the way they are, sales of Toyota's Prius and Honda's Civic Hybrid have never been stronger.

After all, what other options do new car buyers who are concerned about budgeting fuel costs and saving the environment have? Diesel? OK, that's fair. Despite the poor quality high-sulfur diesel fuel currently available in North America the longtime alternative has still been proven better for reducing emissions and improving mileage than conventional gasoline.

But Hybrids (HEVs) are better at these tasks yet. That might be true but who wants to drive a tiny economy car with skinny tires? That stereotype is changing, with Toyota's sophisticated full-hybrid system now powering a much larger 2004 Prius. It will also be available soon in the brand's Highlander SUV, but not before Lexus brings out its RX 400h, and that's just the beginning.

Ford has its long anticipated Escape Hybrid arriving soon - using Toyota mechanicals by the way. Nissan's upcoming Altima Hybrid will make use of Toyota's hybrid system too, which makes it look a lot like the "if you can't beat 'em join 'em" motto is alive and well.

On January 5, 2004 at the Detroit auto show Honda Motor Co., Ltd., President and CEO Takeo Fukui announced plans to further advance the company's leadership in the development and application of leading edge environmental technologies with the introduction of a V6 powered gas-electric hybrid Accord.

While more models are expected, Honda recently announced that its popular Accord sedan will be the next in line to get the HEV treatment. And a good thing, with the Altima and Toyota's Camry coming on the scene over the next year or so, the Accord Hybrid will outpace these by quite a margin when it arrives during the summer.

Yeah, it's expected soon, and should be the most exciting hybrid to hit the market yet, at least from a driving dynamics perspective.

Full Article Here

 

[New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66]

yyaawwwwwnnnnnnnnn.......

 

[dairyboy615]

yawn or not...like it or not...hybrid is the way cars are headed. They still have a long way to go though. I bet that eventually all cars and trucks will be hybrids. I hate to say it, but once again U.S. car manufacturers are asleep at the wheel when it comes to market trends. Toyota has two hybrid vehicles with more coming soon, honda has two with the Accord coming, etc. The only domestic manufacturer that is currently selling one is ford...and it uses a toyota powertrain? If soon the hybrid market explodes with growth, the imports will already be a few steps ahead of the U.S. manufacturers.

 

[gmwsag]

Hybrid cars are the way to go, New Mexico. I think within the next few years, I, too will go hybrid (possibly something else stylish like Prius will arrive). Right now, I am enjoying my 400 hp Corvette-derived CTS-V.

 

[GM_Guy81]

how are you going to go from a CTS-V to a Prius!?!!?!?!!

 

[paul8488]

Originally posted by GM_Guy81@Jun 16 2004, 07:09 PM
how are you going to go from a CTS-V to a Prius!?!!?!?!!

cadillac H (hybrid) series?!? CTS-H... STS-H... doesn't really roll off the tongue well. so maybe not. <_<

 

[Smaart Aas Saabr]

Originally posted by New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66@Jun 16 2004, 06:34 PM
yyaawwwwwnnnnnnnnn.......

Holy crap...

I saw the headline, said "yawn", then was about to say so here when I see this post!

 

[Smaart Aas Saabr]

I give an Insight for that CTS-V... I'll even personally deliver it..

 

[MelvinJ]

Originally posted by dairyboy615@Jun 16 2004, 06:56 PM
yawn or not...like it or not...hybrid is the way cars are headed. They still have a long way to go though. I bet that eventually all cars and trucks will be hybrids. I hate to say it, but once again U.S. car manufacturers are asleep at the wheel when it comes to market trends. Toyota has two hybrid vehicles with more coming soon, honda has two with the Accord coming, etc. The only domestic manufacturer that is currently selling one is ford...and it uses a toyota powertrain? If soon the hybrid market explodes with growth, the imports will already be a few steps ahead of the U.S. manufacturers.

Ford doesn't have a hybrid for sale yet. The Escape is still a few months away.

GM has a couple of hybrids for sale currently (Silverado, buses), but so far, just to fleets. That will change soon.

And as I understand it, Ford is not using a Toyota powertrain. Some of the components they built for their hybrid came very close to Toyota's, so rather than risk patent infringement, they got a licensing agreement with Toyota.

 

[New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66]

If there's a market for hybrids fine, but I am againt the government dictating, through public policy, what we should/should not drive, which is another reason I am voting for Bushie. Kerry will use public policy to dictate what we drive, and how we live.

Hybrids aside, the 'yawn' was more indicative of the Accord in general. Everytime I drive by one, or think of one, I get the instinct to yawn. I am not sure how drivers of the Accord stay awake.

<_<

 

[LINCSAT]

Oh great another piece of **** honda accord. The current one has 6 recalls now and what when this hybrid together another 10 recalls. Honda has gone to the dogs! and yes this is coming from a past honda customer untill there recall cars and rattle cars came out!

 

[SUPERBADD75]

just curious.... where is GM's hybrid? everyone else that matters much in the auto industry will be flaunting theirs, why isn't GM getting into the fray? makes little sense to me. with a concept like the HY-WIRE, you'd think they'd be on board with a green vehicle, and they're already years behind. what gives?

 

[banzai79]

GM is prolly waiting to see what exactly people end up liking more, Toyota type Hybrids or Honda type hybrids. They seem to do that a lot. I suppose they are also hard at work on their truck hybrids.

Unfortunately they are wasting money on the white whale of fuels---hydrogen.

 

[laserwizard]

Super yawn....

Boring car styled by the Automotive Center for Blind Studies. Classic Tupperware.

Will it fry an egg or make a bed?

I'm all for hybrids, but not this incessant parade of quasi hybrids which are really gasoline powered cars with a touch of electro stimulation.

The Europeans aren't enchanted with this mockery of driving satisfaction that is being passed off like a silent fart by the Japanese and now Ford. The Euros have decided that low sulfur diesel is the way to go and are designing some super diesels for the marketplace that are more fuel efficient than most of the so-called Japanese hybrids. Even DaimlerChrysler will be joining the diesel brigade (from what I've heard). GM, meanwhile, is a non-player in any of this innovation except if you call them progressive going after buses and a joke of a full-sized pickup adaptation.

I suppose if the consumer is going to be fooled into thinking that hybrids are the automotive second coming, then perhaps they should get all the junk they can stomach.

Too bad GM isn't involved in this. They could do to hybrids what they did to diesels.

We'd be safe for another 20 years.

 

[AJR]

Well, I hate the idea of the editor misrepresenting the facts about the Escape hybrid. Ford has stressed that the Escape hybrid does not have any Toyota parts. Ford had to pay for a few items that came very close to Toyota patents, but that was as close as they got. And from the reviews that I have read, the Escape hybrid sounds like a better engineered vehicle than the Toyota Prius. Other than the misinformation about the Escape hybrid, I found the article interesting.

I might look into an Accord hybrid in a few years - as long as it is a coupe. With some additional items added, the Accord coupe isn't that bad looking. And I bet the 240+ hp would be peppy enough. After a while, muscle cars get old. I have become somewhat loyal to Ford, but Honda and Toyota have my attention with these hybrids. If they can achieve what the rumors suggest, then I think they (hybrids) could be a very good deal.

As for the argument about diesel vs. hybrids, it becomes more of a Japan vs. Europe kind of thing. Face it, the foreign auto companies are kicking our butts once again. Where is Detroit's answer to fuel efficiency? Is it the 10 mpg Dodge Ram SRT-10, or the Hummer, or the Excursion? I mean Detroit just keeps shooting itself in the foot. At least Ford has shot the first shot with the Escape hybrid and has publically stated that 50% of its R&D will go to efficient and environmentally friendly drivetrains. However, I have reason to believe that the Japanese are going to raise the bar on hybrids as well as diesel power. There was an article on the Net about a diesel Accord running in Europe that was getting over 70 mpg. So, the Japanese are taking a shine to the diesel stuff as well. I guess Detroit's only leadership in this is hydrogen - whenever (if) that ever happens.

 

[diablo4]

Is GM going to make a malibu or impala hybrid?

 

[AJR]

The thing people don't seem to get is that the current hybrids and the hybrids coming out are great PR moves. While Detroit goes on its second horsepower war (remember what happened last time), the Japanese (and Ford) have quietly tried to lift their image in the public arena where 500 hp is NOT THE NORM. They want to show they are proactive, not reactive.

I received a phone call survey from Honda last year following our local Auto Show. The researcher wanted to know what I thought of Honda's current lineup, the show layout, and any other attributes of Honda. One question stood out at the end of the phone interview. The researcher wanted to know if I thought Honda was a "green" company. After seeing all of those car wash commercials showing Honda's "clean" cars, after viewing the Hybrid Civic, and knowing that Honda is an engineering company that can make outstanding products (not just cars), I told the researcher that I strongly believed that Honda was a "green" company that honestly believed in providing a better world in which to live in. I can't say I gave as high marks about Honda's "exciting" products, but the point is, Honda nailed the perspective that it wants to be known for. Honda may not be the most exciting line out there, but for the people who want a better environment, Honda's name almost always pops up. Unfortunately for Detroit, I think this will be the trend the auto industry will go in the future - not Hemi powered "700 hp" rolling bank vaults!

The ironic thing is that I grew up in a Mopar family and worshipped the Hemi (the real 426 Hemi). After much thought, it has occurred to me that maybe the Hemi (and other big engines) might have been the lead weight that eventually put Chrysler under. For as good as it was, think about the after-effects and combine it with words like Japanese, emissions, fuel efficiency, going smaller, etc.... There may be a trend in there after all.

 

[Ballistic]

I've read up on this Hybrid System on the new Accord.

With the Engine and Electric motor running the car has over 270hp when you get on the throttle. It is nice that you retain the quick and usable power when needed but the car is economic and "environment friendly."

Now why can't GM give us a Malibu with a diesel from Opel/Fiat or a I4/Electric Motor combo. The faster these are developed and the more wide-spread they are used, the cheaper the powertrains will be.

 

[SUPERBADD75]

Honda is an engineering company that can make outstanding products (not just cars)

that says it all about Honda. they are an excellent engineering company, and they build things to near perfection. certainly, their cars could not be considered "exciting", (with some exceptions... NSX is a good one to start) but they are definitely built very well, and built to last. i remember the old days, when most people i knew were buying American, mostly because all of the imports were little cars that were only good for the most basic transportation needs, but also because it was the thing to do. now, the imports that were such small companies with limited offerings here, build to suit our market. they compete in one way or another with all of the domestic vehicles, and do a really good job. one thing they offer above domestics is technology. technology that in itself offers many good things. quality, better fit and finish, efficiency... the list could go on. my point, i guess, is that the import seem to offer more of what American consumers want than the domestic manufacturers do. that's what's happening with hybrids. the Japanese manufacturers have something like 6 hybrids coming out in the next couple of years, and these are available to the masses, not fleets. people obviously want them, not just for fuel savings, but for environmental reasons, too. Ford has a few coming out soon, but GM? not so much. the domestic manufacturers have been doing what they've always done, and that's build whatever they think we'll buy, and we buy it. the Japanese have listened to what we want, and built that. it works. look at the market gain for Toyota this year. not a coincidence, it's doing what all of the car makers should do. if it includes boring hybrids, so be it. build what people want, not what you think we should have.

 

[tgagneguam]

As evidenced by the growing number of nameplates in America, the US market is not going in one direction. The tastes of automobile consumers is heterogenous, and that is reflected in the wide variety of vehicles people purchase. There will always be hedonic consumers for whom a Prius will never do. And there will always be environmentally-conscious consumers for whom a Escalade ESV will never do. Granted, the technology that powers our cars may at some point change, but I would hardly consider Honda as sensing the pulse of the entire American car consuming public. Ditto that sentiment for Ford, DCX, GM, or Toyota. That's why I find it curious that some people proclaim one or two makes to be clearly superior.

Many of the products at a variety of auto companies, both foreign and domestic, appeal to a wide variety of people. One glance at a sales chart reflects that point.