Elegant and modern exterior detailing compliments the Accord's new, more dynamic design. The bold and upright front fascia is highlighted by Honda's signature chrome wing front grille positioned above a large main air intake and flanked by available 9-lamp full-LED headlights and LED fog lights. The chiseled hood features a distinctive and aggressive raised center, and the deeply sculpted body sides enhance the visual length and strength of the lower body. A new laser brazing process that joins the roof to the body side panels creates a clean exterior appearance with no need for a garnish over the rain channels. The similarly low and wide rear view is finished off with an upswept decklid, distinctive LED light-pipe taillights and available integrated dual exhaust ports. Overall aerodynamic efficiency is improved by approximately 3 percent (based on EX trim) to make it the most streamlined Honda Accord yet. The 2018 Accord also boasts a larger, more premium and tech savvy interior that compliments its athletic and elegant body design, delivering a level of quality and premium feel that belies Accord's mainstream sedan status.
The new Accord features a panoramic forward view that is enabled by its lower cowl and by front roof pillars that are 20 percent narrower and moved rearward on the lower (and relative to the driver's seating position). The new soft-touch instrument panel features an ultra-thin profile and three-tier design with a strong upper deck that describes a continuous arc from its outboard section through the side doorsills, giving a sense of strength and visual continuity. A more intricately contoured sport inspired steering wheel with deep-set thumb rests and available paddle shifters compliment the Accord's more sophisticated and sporty performance capabilities. Meticulous attention to the tactile and visual quality of surface materials and decorations communicates modernity and soft-spoken elegance throughout the cabin. The tech-savvy and easy-to-use 2018 Honda Accord cabin also features an all-new HMI that includes a7-inch TFT digital driver's meter and an available new 8-inch Display Audio touchscreen interface with physical volume and tuning knobs. More intuitive, smartphone-like features and functionality including customizable app tiles and home-screen shortcuts, along with available Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility and Wi-Fi-enabled over-the-air system updates, further enhance the new Accord.
The Accord also offers the next-generation of HondaLink telematics with new capabilities including emergency roadside assistance, remote locking/unlocking and engine start, stolen vehicle tracking, remote diagnostics, geofencing, speed tracking and more. Touring trims also feature a new 6-inch driver's head-up display, wireless device charging, 4G LTE in-car Wi-Fi, and fast, automatic Bluetooth® phone pairing with Near Field Communication technology. The 2018 Accord takes an entirely new approach to performance by featuring three advanced new powerplants - two turbocharged 4-cylinder engines and the third generation of Honda's two-motor hybrid powertrain technology. A new Honda-developed 10-speed automatic transmission (10AT), the first of its kind for a front-wheel-drive car, is paired with the new 2.0-liter engine, and a short-throw 6-speed manual transmission is available for both turbocharged engines in Sport trim. The new 1.5-liter, 16-valve DOHC direct-injected turbo with dual Variable Timing Control (dual VTC) and VTEC produces a peak of 192 horsepower (SAE net) at 5,500 rpm and 192 lb.-ft. 6,400 rpm and 181 lb.-ft. 3,900 rpm on the existing normally-aspirated 2.4-liter model.
The Accord can also be equipped with a new 2.0-liter 16-valve DOHC direct-injected turbo with VTEC® valvetrain and dual VTC, paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission or, in Sport trim, to the 10AT or an available 6-speed manual. The new 2.0-liter turbo, sharing much of its design with the 2017 Civic Type R, produces 252 HP (SAE net) at 6,500 rpm and 273 lb.-ft. 6,200 rpm and 252 lb.-ft. 4,900 rpm for the 3.5-liter V6 that it replaces. The 2018 Accord's new body structure is lighter and more rigid, utilizing 29 percent ultra-high-strength steel, the most ever for a mass-produced Honda car. Overall, the new Accord employs 54.2 percent high strength steel (above 440 MPa). Mated to the new body is a more sophisticated new chassis design. The 2018 Accord's chassis is 6-percent lighter than before (not including wheels and tires) and features a new Macpherson strut front suspension with L-shaped aluminum lower arms mounted to an aluminum front subframe. The new setup better isolates and manages varying road inputs, improving handling precision, ride quality and cabin quietness along with outstanding high-speed stability and control.
The new, more space-efficient rear suspension is a multi-link design mounted to a more rigid, floating rear subframe. Fluid-filled compliance bushings at all four corners further improve ride comfort and absorption of road irregularities. The new Accord has a 10-mm lower center of gravity. The adoption of lighter-weight turbocharged engines and other body design changes reduce the vehicle's moment of inertia, resulting in crisper turn-in and steering response. All models now have near optimal FWD weight distribution of approximately 60/40 percent front/rear. For 2018, all Accords feature the full suite of Honda Sensing® safety and driver-assistive technologies as standard equipment. Honda Sensing includes Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS), Lane Departure Warning, Road Departure Mitigation, Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow and, for the first time, Traffic Sign Recognition. Additional available driver-assistive technologies include Blind Spot Information, front and rear parking sensors, Rear Cross Traffic Monitor and Driver Awareness Monitor; and all models feature a Multi-Angle Rearview Camera with dynamic guidelines. Standard advanced active and passive safety systems include Vehicle Stability Assist with Traction Control, Anti-lock brakes with Electronic Brake Booster, Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), advanced front airbags, driver and front-passenger side airbags and new driver and front-passenger knee airbags.
