I just got back from Pearl Honda in Gurgaon after a solid 20 minute test drive of the new Honda Accord. I drove the Elegance AT which is the ‘base model’ (If you can call it that). There is a higher model available in the Inspire trim but essentially it is the Elegance plus a body kit comprising of Front Skirts / Rear Skirts / Side Skirts / Boot Lid Spoiler and a different grill. I do not see much value in this package over the Elegance (60K for a bodykit!) so I decided to check out the Elegance.
The car arrived in the dealership an hour prior to my arrival and had only 99kms on the odometer. The first thing that hits you is the size and presence! It is massive and I was afraid that it might be a handful to drive in crazy Gurgaon traffic but as I sat in the car – that all changed.
The driver’s seat is supremely comfortable and is electrically adjustable. Lumbar support is available as well. This is a very nice place to be. The next thing that surprises you is the phenomenal visibility. I can see the length of the hood and the visibility has an eerie resemblance to the OHC, one of the best driver’s cars available during its day. Even though the new Accord is a cab forward design, peripheral vision is not affected. No major blind spots and you also get a good view out the back despite the raised trunk.
I put the car in drive and take off. Compared to the old Accord it seems a lot livelier. There’s traffic but I have already hit 60 and hardly feel the perception of speed. Other than an occasional jaunt in a 5 series or Prado, this is the first time I am driving a relatively big car in India and I must say, I am instantly comfortable with this car. There are tractors and cows and rickshaws crossing hither and thither but I feel totally in control. The steering provides very good feedback. The suspension isolates most bumps and pot holes, and it is indeed a very comfortable ride.
There is a new mini-expressway that links Golf Course Road in Gurgaon to MG Road at the Sikanderpur Border – I am eager to try out the paddle shifter and make my way on to this relatively open and empty 8 lane highway – An added bonus of driving a car on this road is the potential to exploit curves and undulations. I put the car into sport mode and start flapping away! Boy, can she pull – In 3rd, hitting about 110 and she is hovering around the 3500rpm mark. There is very little lag when using the paddles as well. Even at this speed and taking the curves and humps, the new Accord is extremely composed. No Drama, No nothing – You know you can push her and she will eagerly respond but you don’t feel a need – very manageable power bands.
I drive back into the heart of MG road, and pull the car over. I ask the sales executive to drive as I check out the back seat. This is where the accord scores – Tons of leg room and a great feeling of space. The audio remote in the back is a nice touch but a little illogical if 3 people are sitting in the back (It’s built into the center arm rest). AC vents in the back are nice and really help with cooling. Its very quiet here too - Good job with NVH, Honda! The motor is a little intrusive but for folks like us, can this be a negative?
We get to the showroom and I want to play around with the central control unit in the dash - Here is the dissapointing part - there are no toys to appease the inner geek in all of us! All you can control is audio and climate control. There is nothing eciting here - no trip meter, no visual parking meter - very blah is all I have to say. I study the plastics and they are above average but not in Camry / Passat league. The main 2 tier dash with the soft plastics is nice and are of Civic quality but door locks / window switches are very mediocre ala SX4 almost. The wood / aluminum brushings and leather are of good quality - Can't complain here.
Overall, this is a brillaintly engineered car - Honda Global R&D has created a winner for sure. What is a let down is the little things that would make the ownership experience from great to outstanding!
Also you can see where certain components were retrofitted for the Indian market and were not thought through to the end.
Let me share 3 examples:
1) The steering has been designed to accomodate audio and cruise controls. You take this out and it sure looks like something is missing - I mean 9 and 3 look so bare.
2) The back audio remote - Nice Idea - Bad implementation - what happens when you have 3 people in the car!
3) The big color display avaialble in international markets have been swapped out for a thinner 1985 Casio Calculator LCD screen. To cover up the thinner dispaly, it looks like a plastic casing has been retrofitted and this looks shoddy.
Positives:
1) Comfortable Interiors - Very roomy and really cradles you.
2) Great Motor and Gear box - This is a honda afterall.
3) Astoundingly nice driving position and visibility for a car of this size
4) Some neat touches like USB input for Aux (I hope this is ipod compatible - Forgot to ask the sales guy).
5) Very nice steering feed back
6) Very Comfortable Ride - both front and back
7) Good Ingress / Egress - this will be appreciated by the demographic this car caters too. Not as low as OHC and Not as high as the SX4.
8) Smart Access to boot from rear seat - useful during long road trips when you want to get that back of Bingo! chips you threw in there.
9) Great Pricing! Very good value indeed, espescially compared to the competition.
Negatives:
1) No Projectos HLs - It looks like the headlamp cluster was created for xenons but we are back to regular bulbs here.
2) No Trip Computer - Are you serious Honda? We're touching almost 20L here and you leave these out!
3) No Steering wheel audio controls - Like I said before - It looks like something is missing
4) Screen with better UI - The two tone one looks really crappy - almost a similar effect to what the Captiva offers.
5) Better Alloys - The current ones are hideous
6) The rear bumper has been designed to house dual exhausts but the car has only one exhaust outlet so it looks funny
7) Colors! Black / White / Silver / Beige and thats it! Where is your imagination, Honda! Lets have a nice navy and some brighter colors as well.
8) Plastics are so-so for a car in this segment
Dealership:
I really liked Pearl Honda - Nice Showroom, well mannerd sales and support staff - Very attentive. The sales executive that accompanied me on the test drive was never intrusive - I think he figured out that I pretty much knew what I was doing and did not try and hard sell. I really appreciated that. Never pulled in any competitors and we generally stuck to small talk.
On Road Prices in Gurgaon:
Elegance MT: 17.38L
Inspire MT: 17.69L
Elegance AT: 18.32L
Inspire AT: 19.10L
Hope you guys liked the review. I am in think mode on whether to pull the trigger on this one or not.
