Short Take Road Test
When Honda promises dramatic styling, there’s usually a collective groan from the Car and Driver nerve center. We’ve heard that line before, and the result is invariably as exciting as a meal of oatmeal and water.
But this time, the Accord coupe has the handsome design that’s needed in the coupe market. It’s not quite as slinky as the brand-new ’08 Altima coupe, but its svelte lines are arguably better balanced and offer more room—three more cubic feet of interior space (93 versus 90)—but the trunk is far bigger at 12 cubic feet (compared with the Altima’s 7).
Because of its superior sedan underpinnings, the Accord coupe is a better machine than the Altima. It’s certainly fast. The sonorous and smooth 3.5-liter V-6 engine makes a solid 268 horsepower and 248 pound-feet of torque, enough to motivate the car from 0 to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds, 0.2 second quicker than the Altima. The Accord reaches 100 mph from rest in 13.6 seconds, 2.1 seconds earlier than the Nissan. The six-speed manual transmission fitted to our tester was slick and easy to use.
The Accord coupe goes down the road nicely, too, with sharp, accurate steering and faithful front-wheel-drive manners, like a spiritual successor to the late, lamented Prelude coupe. The Accord coupe would, however, benefit from the Prelude SH’s sophisticated limited-slip differential because it wastes the 235/45 Michelin tires under hard acceleration when the traction and stability controls are switched off.
We have few complaints about the Accord coupe. For one, we’d like a little more differentiation in the cabin from the Accord sedan, especially as it’s saddled with the same fussy minor controls. Not to mention that at $31,145, fully loaded with nav, it’s getting scarily close to BMW 128i territory—and that’s a car that will likely satisfy style mavens, driving enthusiasts, and automobile snobs in better measure.
