2017 Honda Accord Hybrid Touring

2017 Honda Accord Hybrid Touring

Test Drive

Written by Marco Carvajal

Photographs by Marco Carvajal

High class inside space, smart ergonomics, fuel efficiency, sophisticated and responsive driving dynamics and of course top-class safety system have made the Accord America’s most popular and the best-selling midsize car for the past three years

Introduction

Honda always has been know as a very reliable car with a good price range and excellent quality. The accord is one of Honda’s classic cars. Most of us know the accord since a few generations ago, but some the accord is not very well know. I like to see the new 2017 using hybrid technology to help the environment and also to bring gas savings to consumers. It is a very conformable sedan, with nice interior, nice exterior, and with many new features. As I drive this hybrid, I like to feel how soft feels the road, and how easy is to drive it.

The new 2017 Honda Accord Hybrid is the most delicate, technologically improved and the most fuel-efficient model from all Accord family perspective. Last year the Accord celebrated its 40th anniversary and have become the benchmark for automobiles in the midsize sedan class. High class inside space, smart ergonomics, fuel efficiency, sophisticated and responsive driving dynamics and of course top-class safety system have made the Accord America’s most popular car for five of the past six years. It has also become the best-selling midsize car for the past three years, which proves again it worth attention and knowing more details about it!

What is new? The 2016 Accord was almost perfect with its stylish and sporty design, enhanced safety features and other technological advancements. For the 2017 model year were added some improvements and premium features like mixed application of Apple Car Play and Android Auto, the expanded use of LED exterior lighting and the application of the Honda Sensing suite of safety and driver assistive technologies, offered as standard equipment.

Instead of the previous wrap-around front bumper appears a more sharply creased and artfully created front fascia, the lower part of which tucks into large intake-like meshed areas which hold new standard LED fog lights.

The 2017 Honda Accord Hybrid will also present new exterior colors and interior fabrics and décor. Other additional features include remote engine start, front and back parking sensors, heated back seats, auto high-beam headlights and rain sensing wipers.

Engine

Uniting the ultra-efficient 2.0-liter I-VTEC Atkinson Cycle engine with the Honda’s next age of a two-motor hybrid system, the 2017 Accord Hybrid powertrain will achieve high combined output of 212 horsepower, the highest of any midsize hybrid sedan and up 16 horsepower over the 2015 Accord Hybrid. EPA fuel economy of 49/47/48 (city/highway/combined) put the Accord Hybrid at the top of the class for ratings. Thus, The Accord Hybrid can be defined as the most powerful and fuel efficient midsize hybrid sedan in the US.

• I-VTEC, in-Line 4-Cyl., Atkinson Cycle engine
• Fuel Capacity 8 gal
• Fuel Economy 49 / 47 / 48 Estimated MPG
• Transmission type: E-CVT with Sport Model
• Horsepower:143 @ 6,200 rpm
• Torque (SAE net) :129 lb.-ft. @ 4,000 rpm

Prices and Versions

The new 2017 Honda Accord is presented in three models: Hybrid, EX-L and Touring.

Exterior

The 2017 Accord Hybrid also gets a reformed five exterior colors – out of the eight available – as well as new interior tricot seat fabric (base trim) and color schemes comprising a luxury new wood grain-style dashboard trim. All trims have unique 17-inch aluminum alloy wheels and feature the expanded use of LED lighting – LED daytime running lights (DRLs), taillights and fog lights for all trims, and LED headlights for the Touring trim.

Blue-accents on the front grill, together with special “Hybrid” badging, add a subtly individual look and visual difference from its gasoline-only powered stable mates. So, the most distinctive exterior features are:

• Newly styled front and rear fasciae
• Restyled aluminum hood
• Rear deck spoiler
• Expanded application of LED lighting
• New exterior color options and interior decoration
• Rain-sensing wipers (Touring)
• Side sill garnish (Touring)

Interior

• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay (EX-L and Touring)
• HondaLink Assist
• Expanded application of SiriusXM Radio (added to EX-L)
• Remote engine start
• Heated outboard rear seats

• The 2017 Accord Hybrid audio and digital experience is also significantly upgraded with the application of a new 7-inch touchscreen Display Audio interface (EX-L and Touring trims) featuring Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as newly available HondaLink Assist (e911), Satellite and HD Radio. Smartphone pairing is now simplified with a single USB cable connection, no longer requiring an HDMI cable connection.
• The new Display Audio system serves as the interface for new Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, offering a multitude of new functions and features, including smartphone-linked navigation (Apple Maps or Google Maps), audio streaming, voice-controlled SMS text messaging and more.
• The lower 7-inch Display Audio touchscreen paired with an upper 7.7-inch display screen and steering-wheel controls. The upper screen can display audio settings, turn-by-turn directions (from embedded navigation when so equipped or from Android Auto or Apple CarPlay navi apps), time and trip information (e.g. range, trip distance), LaneWatch and Rearview Camera displays, incoming calls, SMS text messages, and parking sensor alerts.

 
Safety

The 2017 Accord Hybrid is the first Honda vehicle that has both standard Honda Sensing suite of advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies. Honda Sensing system is focused on rising driver’s awareness, including vehicles to warn the driver about possible road obstacles and even pedestrians.

The 2017 Accord Hybrid has received the highest safety ratings – a 5-Star Overall Vehicle Score from the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) crash tests.

The Accord Hybrid combines Honda’s next-generation Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure, elaborated to more effectively soak and disperse the energy from a frontal collision, together with new ultra-high-strength door rings which help to protect passengers.

Standard safety and driver-assistive packages comprise:

• Four-channel anti-lock brakes (ABS) with Brake Assist and Hill Start Assist;
• Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) with Traction Control;
• An Expanded View Driver’s Mirror;
• Dual-stage, multiple-threshold front airbags, driver and front passenger side airbags and side-curtain airbags for all outboard seating positions;
• Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

• Honda Sensing technologies including Lane Keep Assist (LKAS), Road Departure Mitigation (RDM) with Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), and Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) with Forward Collision Warning (FCW).
• Auto high-beam headlights (Touring)
• Front and rear parking sensors (Touring)

Conclusion

The Accord Hybrid is both technologically exquisite and uniquely stylish. For the 2017 model year were added some improvements and premium features like mixed application of Apple Car Play and Android Auto, the expanded use of LED exterior lighting and the application of the Honda Sensing suite of safety and driver assistive technologies, offered as standard equipment.

A base price with less than $36,000, nice spacious interiores, hybrid technology, great suspension so you almost feel like flying, and very easy to drive.  The accord is a classic car that is here to stay, I am sure that many consumers will appreciate the features and easy-drive on this elegant and beautiful sedan.