2023 Honda Accord
Image: Honda
The 2023 Honda Accord hasn’t hit dealers just yet, but readers are already giving their opinions on it. Some may say that it’s strayed too far from Honda’s familiar formula of fun-to-drive and reliable, while others may say that it’s not fun enough for enthusiasts. Whatever your thoughts on it, though, you probably have a favorite prior generation of Accord that you’re using for your comparison.
Personally, I have my favorites, but I wanted to understand why. I looked at the previous 10 generations of the Accord and ranked them from best to worst. While these are my picks, feel free to let us know which ones you love or hate down in the comments.
2005 Honda Accord Hybrid
Image: Honda
To me, the seventh-generation Accord combines all the attributes of what makes a Honda Accord great. It was still relatively simple, especially with its user friendly and well-laid-out interior. More importantly, it was great to drive. While commuters could get along just fine with the base 2.0L I4, you really wanted the V6 models.
Buyers could choose between a 240 horsepower 3.0L V6 or the more powerful Accord Hybrid. With its hybrid setup, you got 255 hp, plus better fuel economy than the base I4, all while hitting 60 mph in just under seven seconds. And yes, there was room enough for five passengers.
Enthusiasts could go for the Accord Coupe, where Honda let buyers pair the V6 with a six-speed manual. They even threw on a sport suspension lifted from the Acura CL coupe. Honda ticked every box with the seventh-gen Accord.
2018 Honda Accord Sport 2.0T
Image: Honda
This is probably the closest the Accord has ever come to being a legit sports sedan for the family. Aside from the great styling, the best part about this generation of the Accord was its sweet 2.0L turbocharged I4. Closely related to the engine in the FK8 Civic Type R, it made 252 hp, and you could pair that with a six speed manual. A perfect combination of performance, fuel economy, and dependability.
Fuel-conscious buyers could choose between the base 1.5L I4 with 192 hp or the Accord Hybrid which got nearly 50 mpg. Sadly, there was no coupe for this generation, which knocks it down in my ranking.
1991 Honda Accord Wagon
Image: Honda
Who doesn’t love a wagon? The main draw for me with the fourth generation is the wagon. One of only two generations that Honda offered an Accord wagon (at least in the U.S.), this is the perfect blend of generational simplicity with family-hauling capability.
Other than the wagon element, the fourth gen is classic Honda. Those wanting a little driving fun and luxury to go with their Accord could go for the SE trim, which made the Accord almost Acura-like. You got a 140 hp I4, four-speed auto, four-wheel disc brakes and a leather-trimmed interior with a Bose sound system. Classy.
2013 Honda Accord EX-L V6
Image: Honda
This generation was a breath of fresh air over the previous Accord. It got smaller, cleaner, more handsome styling, and it was better to drive. The best part was you could get a 278-hp V6-powered Sport trim. This generation also introduced the first — and so far only — Accord plug-in hybrid model that could go 10-15 miles on electricity alone.
Downsides to this gen? The interior looked as if it had been sitting in the sun too long thanks to its warped look. And the Accord Coupe — the last time Honda would offer an Accord Coupe — had some… interesting styling choices towards the end of its life.
1998 Honda Accord LX V6
Image: Honda
This generation was one of a few where Honda played the North American market. Don’t get me wrong, this Accord is just fine. My late grandmother had one. Reliable as hell, comfortable, and efficient. But it was unremarkable. Mid. While most Americans were perfectly fine driving it, the Accord was something else entirely in other parts of the world.
Honda saved the good stuff for its home country. With this generation in Japan, you could get a number of Accord performance trims in both sedan and wagon models. Like the SiR, which had a 178 hp engine paired with a sequentially shifting transmission inspired by the NSX, or the Accord Wagon SiR, which had a 2.3L 200-hp VTECH I4.
Honda’s reliability was hit a bit during this period, too, as transmission failures on the V6 engines caused class action suits and forced Honda to extend vehicle warranties.
1986 Honda Accord DX Hatchback
Image: Honda
This generation would be higher on the list if it wasn’t another where Honda played our market. It’s cool mainly because it’s probably the most diverse body style lineup the Accord has ever had.
In the U.S., we got the standard sedan, a two-door coupe, and a three-door liftback. Other markets got something cooler: a three-door shooting brake called the Accord AeroDeck. Only sold in Japan, Europe, and New Zealand, it looked like a bigger, squattier CRX.
1995 Honda Accord EX V6
Image: Honda
There’s just something about this Accord that never sat right with me for some reason. I think it’s the styling. It doesn’t work. I don’t know what Honda was going for with this triangular design, but it just comes across as visually unsettling. You could get it as a wagon or with a V6 engine that was lifted from the Acura Legend, so there’s that.
This Accord was another generation where it was an entirely different car than what the rest of the world got. While North America had its own Honda-developed version, European Accords were developed in conjunction with Rover Group which may or may not be a good thing.
1982 Honda Accord
Image: Honda
The second-gen Accord was a milestone in that it was the first Accord to be manufactured in the U.S. Honda started building them in Ohio in the early 1980s. And while this generation seemed to be well built, there’s a basicness to it, which is something most cars from the time period had. That can be both good and bad. And slow! The most power you could get out of this Accord was a 101 hp fuel-injected I4. Automobile Magzine tested one, and it took over 12 seconds to get to 60 mph. Good luck merging.
1980 Honda Accord
Image: Honda
A late 1970s compact sedan with just 68 horsepower? While appealing back then, I’d probably pass on it, even if I was around to have driven one of these things new.
2009 Honda Accord EX-L V6
Image: Honda
This is the worst Accord. Hands down. By this time, the eighth-gen Accord had grown in almost every way, gaining full-size classification by the EPA. It was huge, being more of a Toyota Avalon fighter than a Camry fighter.
What’s worse, this gen gave us the hellspawn that was the Accord Crosstour, an SUV/sedan/crossover mashup no one asked for. Acura was the saving grace as you could head there for a proper Accord in the TLX sedan and wagon, which was really a Japanese/Euro Honda Accord.
Keyword: Every Single Honda Accord Generation, Ranked