Despite the relentless shift in the market from traditional saloon and hatchback models to crossover ad SUV-type vehicles, in the US, at least, there is still a place for what the rental car companies call a “full size sedan”. Whilst the most popular models of this type no longer dominate the sales chart in the way that they used to, they do still feature almost every month in the Top 10 Best Sellers list, and of the ten or so different offerings in this sector it remains one dominated by the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord. Both have a long history, with the first Camry being released in 1983, Toyota’s front wheel drive offering in a sector that was more or less transitioned to this format, and the Honda goes back even further with the first model being a 3 door hatch (and later 4 door saloon) that appeared in 1976. The Toyota struggled for popularity in Europe from the outset, but the Honda was once a common sight on British roads, but those days are long gone, with the last model sold in the UK back in 2015. In the US, these are cars that sell in the hundreds of thousands a year, and although the badging is Japanese, they have both been built at US factories for more than three decades. Exciting they are not, but meeting the needs of the US buyer who wants dependable family transport is exactly what they do. The Camry has been a staple of the rental fleets for years, and there are times when it is hard not to end driving one, but the Honda has long proved far more elusive. Indeed, the last Accord I drove was back in 2007, and that is three generations back. Ever since then, on the rare occasions I’ve seen one parked up, it has been allocated to someone else, so whilst I’ve driven all the Honda’s competitors over the years, and seen them progress to become ever more competent if no more exciting a product, I’ve had to take on the authority of the US press that the Honda is in fact the class leader. With the rental companies sourcing cars from where they can in the post-covid chip shortage world of 2021 and 2022, though, I have noticed quite a few Accords parked up at the Hertz LAX facility. I managed to secure one on the second day of my Spring 2022 trip.

The current Accord, the tenth generation to bear the name, was launched in July 2017 with sales starting just a few weeks later as a 2018 model year car. This time there is only one body type, a four door saloon but styled to look as if it could be a hatchback. Deliberately conservative in appearance, in way that the smaller Civic model just is not, the view of the press at launch were that despite ever stronger competition not just from the Camry but also the Korean duo of Kia Optima and Hyundai Sonata, as well as the Chevrolet Malibu, Nissan Altima, the soon to be deleted Ford Fusion and VW Passat, as well as the slightly left field Subaru Legacy, this remains the car to beat. So my expectations were pretty high. Would I be impressed?

There were a number of Accord models parked up around the Hertz LAX site and I looked at them carefully, partly to try to get one in a colour that was not the ubiquitous white or the photographically challenging ark shades (although with a forecast for 100% cloud cover all day, this might not have been an undue problem) but also as I had spotted that the Hertz cars were in various trim versions, and I might as well have the plushest I could find. I settled for the car you see here, which sports the top of the range Touring trim and that also means that you get the 2.0 turbo four that puts out a healthy 252 bhp, quite an increase on the more commonly seen 1.5T model with bang on the class average of 192 bhp. It turned out that the car was actually a 2019 model year car but the miles were low, so I guess this was another recently acquired second hand car. There is keyless starting, as you are starting to see in models in this segment, and the engine fires instantly, but is so quite that you can barely hear it. Indeed, the engine here is not just potent but also super refined and smooth. The extra 60 bhp over class average in a car that weighs around the average was also going to feel quite rapid and so it proved. Acceleration is strong no matter what speed you start from. There is a 10-speed automatic gearbox, and of course that number of ratios means that most of them are quite close together. I actually found the gearchanges so smooth that it really was not possible to detect most of them, and I generally had no idea which ratio I was in. Rather than a conventional gearlever, there are buttons used to select what you want, and there are also column mounted paddles for manual changes if you really insist. The brisk performance on offer does not have any particular penalty at the pumps. I covered 345 miles in the day I had the Accord and it needed 9.3 gallons to fill it, which works out at 37.1 mpg US or 44.32 mpg Imperial, a truly impressive result which proves not just the efficiency of the car but also that more power can sometimes equal better economy as well.

Most of the cars in the Accord’s class make a priority of ease of driving, as opposed to fun of driving, the exceptions being the Ford Fusion and recently deleted Mazda 6. To that list I can now add the Honda Accord. The steering is well weighted and whilst not overly heavy, meaning the car is easy to manoeuvre, there is plenty of feel so I had a good idea of precisely what the steered wheels were going to do. Add in really good handling and grip, with minimal body roll and this is a car that was fun to drive on the swooping canyon roads in the area north of the LA valley, where I took the car. Honda have found a good balance in that whilst the car is crisp to drive there is no penalty with a stiff ride, thanks perhaps due to the fact that Touring models have adaptive rear suspension. The test car came on the larger 235/40 R19 wheels that are part of the standard spec. in the posher Accord models and the car remained comfortable at all times even on some of the more troubled road surfaces of the area. The brakes proved powerful and effective. All-round visibility is generally good, with the third side window helping with oblique junctions and the rear camera being invaluable when reversing and parking up. The Accord features the full complement of the latest safety features. Thankfully, the Lane Keep Assist was not unduly intrusive and the Blind Sport Warning was certainly helpful on the freeway in traffic.

The good news continues inside the cabin. The Accord has a neatly designed interior. It’s not flashy but that is very much a Good Thing in my opinion. There is a mix of black and pale grey with some matt metal and wood embellishers and some chrome highlights. The steering wheel is leather-wrapped and proved pleasant to hold. There are two digital instruments the left hand of which is configurable as to what it displays using the buttons on the left hand spoke of the steering wheel. The test car had a Head Up Display, which I always find useful and this included the prevailing speed limit. Twin column stalks operate indicators and wipers, as well as the lights which have an auto function. The centre of the dash contains the colour touch screen, which thankfully has audio buttons on the side. It proved easy to use. There is a navigation system included in this trim level. Below this unit are three rotary dials for the automated dual-zone climate control.

The passenger compartment feels airy thanks in part to the use of some lighter coloured materials, but also because of the extra daylight from the sunroof. There are leather seats, which come with electric adjustment including lumbar support for the driver, and with a heating function. They proved very comfortable. There are height adjustable seat belts and the column telescopes in/out as well as up/down, so getting the optimum driving position was easy. There is a two position memory to store it, and indeed you need to do so, as the driver’s seat powers back when you switch off the ignition, so if you want it to return to your preferred position, you need to have stored it in the memory.

The Accord has got steadily larger over the years and the result is that there is plenty of space for those in the back. Even with the front seats set well back, there should be ample legroom and there is only a modest central tunnel to get in the way. Even with the sloping roofline, headroom in the car did not prove to be an issue, either, but the tallest may need to duck a little in getting in and out. Amenities here include a drop-down central armrest including cupholders in the upper surface, map pockets on the back of the front seats and decently sized door bins.

The boot is a very good size, well able to take lots of luggage. The opening is wide, though the fastback design means that the slot is not that deep from top to bottom but with 16.7 cubic feet on offer it can easily take several large suitcases. There is no space under the floor for anything and nor is there a spare wheel. The rear seat backrests are asymmetrically split and drop down to give a much longer load platform. Inside the cabin, there is a decently-sized glovebox, a large armrest cubby, pockets on the doors and a lidded cubby which includes wireless charging.

The 2019 Honda Accord is sold in five trim levels: LX, Sport, EX, EX-L and Touring. The LX is the most affordable model but is still reasonably well-equipped. The Sport doesn’t cost much more and comes with some visual upgrades, while the EX and the EX-L add more convenience features. The top-trim Touring loads up with every feature available. A turbocharged 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine (192 bhp, 192 lb/ft of torque) is standard on all trim levels except the Touring. It comes connected to a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) that drives the front wheels. If you’re looking for a little more excitement, a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder (252 bhp, 273 lb/ft) is available on Sport, EX-L and Touring models. A 10-speed traditional automatic is paired with this engine. A six-speed manual transmission is a no-cost option on the Sport model regardless of engine. Standard features on the base LX model include 17-inch alloy wheels, LED exterior lighting (headlights, taillights and running lights), automatic high-beam control, push-button ignition, dual-zone automatic climate control, a height-adjustable driver’s seat, Bluetooth, a 7-inch touchscreen, and a four-speaker audio system with a USB port. Standard driver aids include lane keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, and forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking. Upgrading to the Sport adds 19-inch wheels, larger front brakes, LED foglights, a rear spoiler, chrome exhaust tips, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, a power-adjustable driver’s seat, a 60/40-split rear bench, cloth and simulated-leather upholstery, an 8-inch touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and an eight-speaker audio system. CVT automatic-equipped models also come with steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters. The EX builds off the LX model, adding the Sport’s interior upgrades (minus the Sport’s unique upholstery, shift paddles and leather-wrapped steering wheel), 17-inch wheels, heated mirrors, a sunroof, keyless entry and ignition, blind-spot monitoring, heated front seats, rear air vents, an additional USB port, and satellite and HD radio. The EX-L further adds an auto-dimming rearview mirror, a power-adjustable passenger seat, driver-seat memory settings, leather upholstery and a 10-speaker audio system. A navigation system is optional. Models with the turbocharged 2.0-litre engine are essentially the same as their 1.5-litre counterparts, but the Sport 2.0T is equipped with keyless entry, heated front seats and blind-spot monitoring. Models with the automatic transmission also come with shift paddles, and all are equipped with the Sport’s larger front brakes and chrome exhaust tips. At the top of the ladder is the Touring trim, which includes 19-inch wheels, adaptive suspension dampers, chrome exterior trim, illuminated door handles, automatic wipers, front and rear parking sensors, adjustable driving modes, a head-up display, ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a navigation system, a Wi-Fi hotspot and a wireless phone charger.

My expectations for the Accord were high, and I definitely was not disappointed. Although even in the top spec trim of the test car, this car, like all its rivals, is not really aimed at the enthusiast, it did actually prove good to drive and it scored very high marks for practicality, roominess and usability, as well as manifesting an impeccable build quality. It’s not hard to see why it so impressed the US press when they tested it and compared it against its main rivals. I’ve driven all those rivals with the exception of the latest Camry (despite its prevalence in the rental fleets) and I think if were faced with a line containing all of them, it is the Honda I would turn to as my first choice. Of course, this was a posh model with a more powerful engine than those other rivals I have sampled, so I do plan to try to source a 1.5 litre Accord as well to see how that fare. But for sure, if you spot an Accord in the rental car facility, that’s the one you should take.