Used Honda Accord Review (2008-2015) MK8
Independent review by Peter Hayward from Driving Force
4-minute read
Overview
- Refined
- Good to drive
- Still looks smart
- Rivals are more popular
- Not as roomy as others
- Can feel dated against others
What's the Honda Accord like?
Honda still sells the latest version of the large Accord in other markets and under other names.
But fairly slow sales towards the end of the last version available here - in 2015 - meant the company decided not to replace it.
The 4-cylinder engines from Honda were for many years the smoothest you could buy, and some car makers are still trying to catch up with this fantastic refinement.
Engines
The 2.4-litre petrol in the Accord is as smooth and powerful as BMW's 6-cylinder 2.5-litre.
And as well as this petrol with an excellent 198bhp, there's also a smooth and powerful 2.0-litre with 153bhp that’s no slouch. For most though, the pick of the range is probably the much more plentiful 2.2-litre turbo diesel with 147bhp - or 177bhp in the Type S - which is smooth, quiet and powerful.
There's rarely any need to push any of the engines hard because they have marvellous response and pull hard from low revs.
Peter Hayward
The lower powered diesel will dispatch the 0 to 60mph sprint in 9.3 seconds, and the Type S brings this down to 8.5 seconds.
But the quickest of all is the 2.4-litre petrol, which can do the same benchmark in 7.8 seconds. Petrol economy ranges from 33mpg to 40mpg, while the diesels should do about 50mpg with a careful right foot.
Driving Experience
Handling is top-of-the-tree in both saloon and cavernous estate, with little roll, wonderful balance, vast grip and safe, sure roadholding.
These road manners match the engine's verve perfectly and make the Accord a hugely enjoyable car over short or long journeys.
The ride is excellent at speed, soaking up the worst of surfaces with great ease, but it does get a little unsettled over poor surfaces in town.
A superb, smooth changing automatic gearbox was available with petrol and diesel engines.
Equipment and Practicality
Every model in the range comes well equipped with things like climate control, cruise control, four electric windows, stability control, aux in and heated mirrors.
ES GT adds bigger alloys, sports suspension and Bluetooth, while the EX gets leather, USB, electric heated seats and auto lights and wipers.
Many will also have the excellent Honda sat nav system, which was an extra across the range.
You may also be interested in...
Find your Honda Accord your way with CarStore
If you're in the market for a decent and reliable executive saloon, then the Honda Accord is well worth a look. With plenty of refinement and engine choice, the Honda Accord makes a great used buy.
