[Editors Note: You know hybrids have gone mainstream when the author of a review article in the NYTimes doesn't know the difference between global warming and ozone depletion.]

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November 28, 2004


2005 Honda Accord Hybrid: Greening Without the Preening
By JOHN M. BRODER


The Honda Accord Hybrid is a terrific car. Of course, so is the Accord EX V-6 on which it is closely based.


So what do you get for the $3,400 premium that Honda charges for the hybrid version?


The tangible benefits are relatively small: the hybrid delivers modestly better performance, improved mileage and slightly more space (the sunroof was eliminated to save weight) than the conventional V-6 Accord. You lose some trunk space, the folding rear seatback and the spare tire, all in the interest of shaving weight and making room for additional hybrid components.


There is little on the outside to distinguish the hybrid model from a conventional Accord. The gas-electric version has a small spoiler on the deck lid, darker accents in the grille, special five-spoke alloy wheels and a single Hybrid badge on the trunk. There is a small array of gauges in the instrument panel to indicate when the electric motor is providing a boost or being recharged, and when the car is being driven for maximum fuel efficiency.


But Honda is betting that the intangible and invisible benefits of hybrid ownership will drive discriminating upper-middle-income buyers to its showrooms to do their bit for the ozone layer. Honda says its hybrid buyers are a conservative bunch, not the sort to advertise their virtue like owners of the Toyota Prius, who may want everyone to think their cars can run on egg whites and organic chardonnay.


Buyers of the $30,000 Accord Hybrid can bask in the self-satisfaction of owning an efficient state-of-the-art hybrid while the neighbors are still waiting for the leases to expire on their Excursions and Escalades.


The Accord Hybrid is rated at 29 miles per gallon in town and 37 on the highway, compared with 21 and 30 for the V-6 Accord. The Hybrid's fuel economy is comparable to that of a gasoline-powered four-cylinder Civic, which has roughly half the horsepower, but it will still take several years and many miles to recoup the $3,400 difference.


But at least you will not sacrifice performance. The hybrid Accord, which mates an electric motor to the exceedingly smooth 240-horsepower 3-liter V-6 that powers conventional Accords, produces an additional 15 horsepower and 20 pounds-feet of torque.


Honda says the gas-electric combination moves the sedan - which seats 5 and weighs 3,500 pounds - from a stop to 60 m.p.h. in 7.5 seconds, a half-second faster than the regular V-6 model. The test pilots at Car and Driver magazine recorded a 0-60 time of 6.7 seconds. For an "economy car," that is serious punch.


The hybrid also employs a system that shuts down half the cylinders at cruising speeds, delivering improved mileage at no cost in acceleration. The audio system automatically compensates for the vibration inherent in an engine with an uneven number of cylinders by producing "negative noise" in the cabin that eliminates the three-cylinder hum.


On the road, the complicated choreography of adding and subtracting cylinders and electric-motor boost is all but unnoticeable unless you study the gauges. Like other hybrids, the engine shuts down at stoplights. But when the air-conditioner is on, an electric compressor continues to power the unit, so unlike most hybrids the Accord is not eerily still when stopped.


The car has a conventional five-speed automatic, unlike the continuously variable transmissions that Toyota and Ford use in their hybrids. The car thus upshifts and downshifts in a reassuringly familiar manner, a deliberate effort by Honda to make the hybrid simply another powertrain option, not a jolting exercise in futurism like the company's first hybrid car, the Insight. That weird-looking and relatively impractical coupe is still the nation's fuel economy leader.


Even the name of Honda's new hybrid system, Integrated Motor Assist, implies that it is an evolutionary change, not an entirely new species.


Like the Accord EX, the hybrid comes with a full complement of luxury touches, including leather upholstery; heated front seats; power seats, locks and mirrors; dual-zone climate control; an audio system with CD changer and XM satellite radio receiver; and cruise control. Safety equipment includes antilock brakes, front and side air bags for the front row and side curtain bags in front and back. The only option is a $2,000 navigation system.


The 2005 Accord Hybrid goes on sale on Dec. 10, a week later than planned because an earthquake in Japan slowed production at the only plant making the new model. Honda will build only 20,000 Accord Hybrids a year, a small fraction of the 400,000 Accords sold annually. Waiting lists are forming, Honda says.


Robert Bienenfeld, senior manager for product planning at Honda, said the $3,400 price premium over the regular Accord was offset by the better performance and fuel efficiency, as well as by a federal tax break for hybrid vehicles.


"Unfortunately, as was the case with the Civic Hybrid, the incremental cost still exceeds the fuel savings," Mr. Bienenfeld said. "That's the reality of the hybrid."


He said Honda was moving in a deliberate way toward offering hybrid technology and improved fuel efficiency on a range of vehicles without sacrificing comfort or performance.


"We are pushing hard to provide a benefit to society beyond what the individual gets," he said. "It's a tough calculus. In a certain sense, it doesn't add up, but in another sense it does. You can feel good about owning it. How do you put a price on that?"


INSIDE TRACK: Power, comfort, space and a warm and fuzzy feeling.


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/28/automobiles/28AUTO.html