Initial Impressions of 9G Accord Sport in USA

Background
Early March 2013. I had come across videos on Youtube by a Honda enthusiast by the name of Jason Richmond, who had been presenting weekly news on Honda under the title of "HondaPro Jason". It had struck a cord with me as I had this idea flashing past in my mind several years ago.

Mid March 2013. I landed in Chicago, Illinois, and wanted to meet Jason. We exchanged messages and I was set to meet him, on my birthday. I was excited as I wanted to meet this man who had demonstrated his passion on Honda with his weekly Youtube videos.

The day came and I took a Metra train from downtown Chicago to Schaumburg. Jason came in the latest version of the 2013 Civic EX to fetch me from the train station. He was very friendly and we spoke as if we knew each other for a long time. We subsequently decided that we would meet again in New Jersey for the Honda Day 2013 @ Atco.

April 2013. We met at Hilton Garden Inn and he arrived in a 9th Gen Honda Accord 2.4 Sport. These photographs were taken at the carpark before we set off to Atco. I was surprised to find that although the new Accord looked similar to the previous generation from afar, the car was curvaceous when scrutinized! Check out the photographs and you will notice the bulged lines at the waist level the Honda designers had managed to subtly craft into the new model. This reminded me of the 1994 Accord which had similar bulged lines when viewed from the rear three quarters. Of course, Honda designers did not forget to include details such as the daylight LEDs that lined the headlights and the bumpers and the Jewel Eye headlights that started off the Acuras recently. Distinct design characteristics of the Accord Sport includes honeycombed grilles for the air dams, 18" Honda wheels, lowered body and sporty carbon fibre "look" of the interior.

I had the chance to ride in this Accord from Atco, New Jersey to New York, a trip of about 200 miles to and fro. On most part of the journey, we were travelling on the expressways at speeds between 60-90mph. Impressions as a front seat passenger were memorable.

Engine Performance

Very smooth and refined for a 4 cylinder, the new EarthDreams' direct injected engine coupled to the new CVT didn't disappoint. I felt the strong mid range torque when Jason accelerated from cruising speeds for overtaking. The operations of the CVT also felt seamless. Not once did I feel any abnormal jerks of the CVT catching up with the engine typical of CVTs.

Ride and Handling

The Accord Sport was able to soak up the big bumps from the uneven tarmac on the highways without large intrusions experienced in the typical Japanese sedans. I wasn't able to compare this to a regular Accord, but I certainly felt that it was very well damped even at high speeds resulting in a very stable ride, very similar to the Acura RL a.k.a the Honda Legend in Asia. The car was remarkably stable and yet agile despite its size.

Interior
The Accord's interior looked fresh. Even though Honda did not incorporate the latest interior design trend of the dashboard angled towards the driver, they had focused on the functional aspects of the cockpit. The touchscreen for the new Honda Link system was within easy reach and the there was a separate LCD screen for GPS, etc. The seats were comfortable, but I would not mind the seats from the Acura TSX which was hugging and well contoured for sports driving.

Conclusion
To conclude, the new Accord Sport presents itself as a comfortable and sporty large sized sedan, with a sporty drivetrain. The K24Z, coupled to the new chassis, felt lightweight and agile, unlike its V6 brothers. The impression left me with a great desire for a test drive which I eventually had when I attended the Accord's launch event by Kah Motor in Singapore.

*Special thanks to Hondapro Jason for the first hand experience of the Accord Sport*