1998 Honda Accord Review

The revamped Honda Accord sedan is a conservative-looking family hauler, but the new Accord two-door coupe is a sleek number that no longer looks like just a two-door version of the sedan.
The mid-size coupe now only shares headlights and outside door handles with the sedan, although both of these front-wheel-drive models have the same major mechanical components.

The Accord coupe is fairly exclusive, as Honda says only about 50,000 coupes out of a total of 380,000 Accords will be made for the 1998 U.S. market.

Coupe prices range from $18,290 for a four-cylinder model with a five-speed manual transmission to $24,150 for a V-6 model with a four-speed automatic.

All coupe models are fun to drive because they have a sport version of the Accord sedan's superb all-independent suspension. Handling is sharp, and the ride is firm but supple. In fact, the Accord coupe feels more like a German sports coupe than one from Japan.

This new Accord model also has communicative steering that is a bit quicker than the sedan's. The brake pedal has a nice progressive feel that makes it easy to modulate during quick stops.

Honda has been surprised to find that a large number of coupe buyers want the costlier V-6 model. The automaker traditionally has felt that its efficient four-cylinder engines offer the best combination of performance and economy, and most Accord buyers have agreed with it.

The four-cylinder delivers an estimated 25 m.p.g. in the city and 31 on highways with the manual and 23 and 30 with the automatic. The V-6 comes only with an automatic and delivers 20 and 28.

One drawback of the four-cylinder/automatic combination is that the coupe moves forward with a series of mini lurches if driven aggressively in town, because the transmission constantly upshifts and downshifts while ``hunting'' for the correct gear to be in.

Most coupes have less interior space than sedans because racier coupe styling often causes roominess to suffer. But pragmatic Honda has supplied its new Accord coupe with a roomy cabin. While slightly shorter and lower than the Accord sedan, the coupe is the same width as the sedan and has enough room to easily accommodate four 6-footers--thanks partly to pronounced indentations in the back of the front seats.

Three people can fit in back, but the ultra-stiff center section of the rear seat will make the person sitting in the middle want to get out after a few miles.

The backseat area has well-designed cupholders, but one must struggle to get past the front seat belts when entering or leaving that area, where the side windows don't roll down at all.

The Accord coupe shares the sedan's no-nonsense dashboard but its sportier and firmer front bucket seats provide better support during spirited driving.

I recently tested a mid-range $21,600 Accord EX coupe with a four-cylinder and automatic. The same model with a five-speed manual transmission costs $800 less and is more fun to drive because a manual always gets more out of a four-cylinder than does an automatic. The coupe's manual shifter lever even has been made shorter than the sedan's to allow quicker shifting.

However, there's no denying the convenience of an automatic in congested areas, and the new Accord's automatic is very responsive. In fact, it's the best Honda automatic ever.

The coupe is offered with a redesigned 2.3-liter aluminum four-cylinder. It generates a hearty 150 horsepower and lots of spunk at all driving speeds, partly because of its innovative variable valve timing.

However, the four-cylinder coupe is a bit slow off the line with the automatic and is noisier and works harder during acceleration than the larger, smoother 200-horsepower V-6, which is a new Accord motor for 1998.

Once up to cruising speed, the four-cylinder settles into a quiet, relaxed mode--turning over at a lazy 2,600 r.p.m. at 70 m.p.h.

The coupe's interior generally is quiet and comfortable. It offers everything from a place for the driver to easily rest his left foot to controls that have a pleasantly fluid feel.

However, the high cowl and lower roofline may give shorter occupants a slightly submerged feeling, and the front console bin is set too far back to be reached easily and quickly. Even tall drivers won't be able to see the rear end of the car when backing up.

The Accord coupe generally is a high-quality vehicle, with solid construction and excellent paint. Chromed, easily gripped inside metal door handles look especially upscale. But the high-grade interior makes a few cheap items such as the flimsy plastic remote trunk lid and gasoline cap releases stand out.

The trunk is roomy, and its lid pops up way out of the way to prevent head-banging. But the rather high trunk opening doesn't facilitate loading or unloading.

Folding the rear seatbacks forward increases cargo space, but the opening from the trunk to the rear-seat area isn't as large as it should be.

The engine compartment looks surgically neat, but an old-fashioned hood prop rod is used instead of the hydraulic struts one expects for this sort of car.

The ultimate Honda coupe is its race-style Prelude, but the Accord coupe offers a better blend of sportiness, comfort and practicality.