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| The 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid |
A little over a year ago, Michael wrote a review of the Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid. In it, he pointed out that the key to the Toyota Prius' dominance of the hybrid market was as much about it being instantly identifiable as a "green" car as it was its fuel economy. He noted that hybrids that look like their gasoline-powered equivalents do not sell as well.
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| 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid. |
Honda appears to have thrown down the gauntlet with the 2014 Accord Hybrid. This spacious family sedan has significantly more room and features and is much nicer to drive than a Prius, and gets within 1 mile per gallon of the Prius' EPA-estimated city fuel economy...50 miles per gallon to the Prius' 51. The highway number is 45, to the Prius' 48.
This is a remarkable achievement, which Honda does not seem to be making any discernable noise over. Those mileage figures land the Accord Hybrid at number seven on the TireKicker's Top 10 Fuel Savers list on the right side of this page. If you factor out pure electric vehicles and plug-ins such as the Honda Fit EV, Mitsubishi i-MIEV, Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt, it would be number two. It handily beats the fuel economy numbers of the only two roomy sedan hybrids, the Jetta and the Lexus ES 300h, which with the arrival of the Accord Hybrid, drops to number 11.
And it probably will not upset or even threaten the Prius' dominance of hybrid sales. It simply looks like every other Accord. It is not an instant statement that you are conserving resources, saving the planet or some other such eco-ego boost.
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| 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid interior. |
You can get the Accord Hybrid in three trim levels, starting at $29,155. Our test vehicle was the top-of-the-line Touring, which begins at $34,905. That is also where ours ended, having no options. See the equipment list here. So, with the $790 destination and handling charge, the as-tested price was $35,695. That's nine dollars less than the Prius tested here in January.
That is more car, for less money and almost the same fuel economy. The Accord Hybrid qualifies as a groundbreaking automobile. Let's hope more people notice.
