2021 Honda Accord

For the year 2021, Honda has altogether dropped the manual transmission because of low demand, reconfigured the trims, and got the car a mild facelift. The 2021 Honda Accord competes against the likes of the 2021 Toyota Camry, 2021 Hyundai Sonata, and the 2021 Nissan Altima. Continue with the article to know how it performs in front of its rivals in the segment.

The 2021 Honda Accord is offered in 6 trim options and starts at an MSRP of $24,770. The base trim also comes with plenty of features like Honda Sensing Safety and Driver Assistive Technology, 17-inch painted alloy wheels, and a 7-inch infotainment screen. You can upgrade to the higher trims that pack more features and safety tech depending on your requirements.

The upgrade to the higher Sport trim gives you the features like bigger 19” machined alloy wheels, a bigger 8” touchscreen infotainment display, and a 12-way power-adjustable driver’s seat. If you want a more powerful 2.0L turbocharged inline-4 engine, then you will need to upgrade to the Sport 2.0T trim.

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Given the fact that you get all the safety features in the base trim only, it makes up for a very compelling buy. If you're strictly on a budget, then the base trim makes the most sense as it has all the basic creature comfort you'll ever need. It has an engine that is very frugal and efficient, has more than enough space, and is a very practical and safe car. But if you can afford to shell out a bit more, then you can get the Sport 2.0 trim as it offers a more powerful 2.0L engine.

The Honda Accord comes with a number of drivetrains options. The base trim comes with a 1.5L turbocharged in-line four churning out 192 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque. The engine is mated to a CVT transmission, through which the power is fed to the front wheels. Now, this is not a very eager motor but does pretty much all the day-to-day life jobs with rather ease. It is a comfortable motor that loves to be driven with ease. The CVT though is very efficient and in cities work really well as the infinite gear ratios mean you’ll never notice the turbo lag. But being a CVT, one thing it can’t go away with is the rubber effect. Go on the highways and try to go really fast, and you’ll notice both the gearbox and engine start to struggle.

The second option is a 2.0L turbo-4 which produces a healthy 252 horsepower and 273 lb-ft, and this motor here is paired to a 10-speed automatic unit. This is the most ideal powertrain option as the engine is creamy smooth, has oodles of power in reserve, doesn't feel strained ever, and despite being turbocharged, is very linear in delivering the power. The 10-speed gearbox itself is a gem. The downshifts are fast, and it also has the ability to go down multiple gears at once. Because of 10 cogs available, the gearbox is very efficient in managing the power and also making sure that you never hit the turbo lag. Even though the power is sent just to the front wheels, still for enthusiastic driving, this makes up for a very good drivetrain. 

The last option is a hybrid where there is a non-turbo inline-four engine that is paired with two electric motors to produce a combined output of 212 horsepower and 232 lb. ft. torque. Despite being heavy, it feels more sure-footed than the base trims, and the additional help from the electric motors makes it feel a bit lively as well. When compared with the rivals, the Toyota Camry offers the most horsepower in the competition at 201 hp.

How well does the 2021 Honda Accord handle?

Though it’s not a sports car, still the Honda Accord can be really fun to drive depending on which drivetrain option you go for. The suspension is stiffer which means it is tuned for a bit spirited riding, but still, this isn’t a trade-off for comfort. The car is still very comfortable and rides well. 

The base variants come with 17-inch rims which are good, but the higher-spec variants come with 19-inch rims which makes the ride a bit bouncy and also adds to the road noise. Steering feedback is good and also the steering weighs up nicely when the car starts to build speed. To sum it all, the Accord is a car that handles very nicely and is also comfortable enough.

Braking Performance

The Accord comes with ventilated disc brakes both at the front and rear. At the front, the entry-level trims get 11.5-inch rotors, while the upper trims get 12.3-inch rotors. And at the rear, all the cars get 11.1-inch rotors. These are complemented by ABS and EBD to make sure the car stops in the shortest time and distance under challenging circumstances. 

On dry surfaces, the car can slow down from 60-0 mph in just 116 ft, which is the least among the competition. Thanks to the less weight of the car and also exceptional braking hardware. And not just that, the 2021 Honda Accord also comes with autonomous emergency braking for those unseen circumstances. The Toyota Camry takes the most length of 122 feet to reach a halt from 60 mph.

Fuel economy is more or less a mixed bag for the Honda Accord. When we talk about the base LX trim with the smallest engine of the lot, it is good enough for 30 mpg in the city, 38 mpg on the highway, and 33 mpg combined. The sports model with the same engine is a bit more thirsty and comes in at 29/35/32 mpg for city/highway/combined conditions, respectively. Expectedly, the 2.0L turbo-4 is the most eager to drink fuel and shells out 22 mpg in the city, 32 mpg on the highway, and 26 mpg combined, which is quite a considerable drop but can be forgiven for the extra power it packs in. 

The 2021 Honda Accord offers the best fuel economy in the city and combined driving conditions. All the cars in the comparison offer very similar fuel efficiency figures. The 2021 Nissan Altima has the largest fuel tank capacity in the comparison. The 2021 Hyundai Sonata offers the least range compared to the other sedans. Toyota, with its 15.8 gallons of fuel tank capacity, manages to offer the best range in the competition of 505 miles combined.

The inside is pretty much the same as last year’s model. This is a premium car, and the cabin certainly reminds you about that all the time. The dash is very well laid out, and the new larger infotainment screen now looks even better with the overall silhouette of the car. We never have been a big fan of the steering wheel design of Hondas, but the Accord has a really nice steering wheel to hold. It is leather-wrapped, and for some, it might have too many buttons which can be confusing. The quality of materials used is really very good.

The base LX, Sport, and Sport SE trim get faux leather-wrapped seats, while the top-of-the-line EX-L and Touring trims get genuine leather seats. No matter what the trim is, the interior is extremely spacious and practical. The seats are well contoured and the cushioning is also just perfect. They are broad and large, and even the rear seats are wide enough to accommodate three adults abreast, though you do sit in a bit of a knee-high position in the back.

We can say that the first row seats are the most spacious in the Hyundai Sonata, followed by the Accord and then Altima, while the Camry remains the least spacious in the first row. The second-row seats are undoubtedly the most comfortable in the Accord, with the most amount of space and also better seat positioning. If you are going to be driven around by a chauffeur, then the Accord is the best option hands down. Standout interior features include:

• Spacious cabin 
• Use of soft-touch materials in the interior
• Easy cabin controls
• 12-Way power driver seat
• One-Touch Power Moonroof with Tilt Feature

What’s there to keep you entertained?

The 2021 Honda Accord features an 8-inch touchscreen display for the infotainment system. The great news is Honda Accord will have standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in the 2021 model year, which was a missing feature for a long time. For the buyers of the EX-L trim, there will be wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard for seamless connectivity. The audio system widely differs depending on the trim that you buy. There is a standard 4-speaker system with the LX and hybrid trim, while with the mid trims you get an 8-speaker audio system.

The top trims get even better sounding 10-speaker premium audio systems. Stand out infotainment features of the 2021 Honda Accord:

• 8-inch infotainment screen
• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay
• 4/8/10-speaker audio system
• Radio Data System
• SiriusXM Radio
• Wireless Phone Charger

The Honda Accord is a very understated but very smart-looking car. Just like the interior, its exterior is also kept very clean, and there isn't much of a mess here like some of the Koreans. Honda played it safe by keeping the design a bit traditional and not adding unnecessary lines and creases to it. Still, the fastback body style is very significant to the Honda Accord and certainly looks good as well.

The front, just like other Hondas, is dominated by a big chrome grille that joins the two headlamps, and we especially loved the way it gets into the headlamps. The big bold Honda logo in the middle of the new grille and the new bumper design looks really good. The low bonnet profile even adds up to the sporty character of the car, and the cuts on the bonnet make it look a bit edgy as well.

To the side, the base LX gets 17-inch alloy wheels which look a bit too small for the car, but as you move up the range, the Sport comes with 19-inch alloys which just look amazing. Also, the ORVM housing in the Sport trim is blackened out which further enhances the look of the car. Once again, the profile is kept clean so much that the only line you can notice is the waistline which starts from the headlights, runs across the length, and merges into the tail light. Standout exterior features include:

• LED Headlamps with DRLs
• 17” alloy wheels
• LED Brakelights
• Variable Intermittent Windshield Wipers
• Fastback roofline

Honda builds some really safe cars, and Accord is no exception. It has been awarded by IIHS with its “Top Safety Pick +” award which makes it one of the safest cars in the segment. It aced all the tests of IIHS including the highly notorious small front overlap tests. Also, the car scored “5-stars” in all the tests by NHTSA. All this because no matter what the trim is, the standard safety equipment list of the Honda Accord is very long and extensive. Standout safety features include:

• Collision Mitigation Braking System
• Road Departure Mitigation System
• Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Braking Control system
• Lane Keeping Assist System
• Traffic Sign Recognition System
• Vehicle Stability Assist

2021 Honda Accord vs 2021 Nissan Altima

The Nissan Altima is one of the best-looking cars in the segment. It rides well, and starting at $24,300, has a lot going for it too. But it loses to the Accord’s 10-speed automatic transmission as the Altima’s CVT is nowhere near to it. Also, the Accord’s class-leading driving dynamics and interior space make it a better option for enthusiasts.

2021 Honda Accord vs 2021 Toyota Camry

Toyota Camry scores high on reliability quotient, and with its hybrid drivetrain, it is also kind to planet earth just like the Honda Accord. But that’s where the similarities end as the smaller 1.5L motor in the Accord is much more efficient than the one in the Camry and also the gearbox in the Camry is not really very good to use. Also given the fact that the Accord is more spacious and cheaper than the Camry makes it a no-brainer for us to decide which one is a better car. Lastly, just like us, some of you might also feel the quirky styling of Camry is just too overdone.

2021 Honda Accord vs 2021 Hyundai Sonata

Hyundai's new design language might not be to everyone's liking. It is more of a mixed bag, and honestly, we feel it will grow on people in some time. Now for the more conventional people, the Accord can be the better option. Also, Honda is a more reliable brand than Hyundai, so that might also be the deciding factor for many. But when we talk about driving pleasure, we do feel the Sonata is better there, and also it has more features as standard than the Accord.

Well, the one-word answer is yes. The 2021 Honda Accord offers exceptional value for money and is among the safest sedans in the class. Even the base trim gets a long list of safety features, some of which are not even available as optional extras in others. Then the Accord’s cabin is also the most spacious and practical one. Though the CVT in the base trim might not be something everyone will like, the 10-speed gearbox paired with the 2.0L motor is enough to put a smile on our faces.