Honda Accord Future Models

jrp6977

THANK GOODNESS!! I appears they finally have their heads out of the sand and realize that there is something wrong with the Accord. Now lets just hope that they don't mess up the "modifications". Its a shame that such a well engineered car as the Accord has been hampered by poor styling. Hopefully, it won't just be the sedan that gets "substantial modifications" to its styling. The coupe needs it as much or more. I hope they address the limited interior/exterior color combinations as well.

robr2

Grey is good with Red, but Ivory is not so good

Now I happen to think that an ivory interior with a red exterior is gorgeous. YMMV.

bklynguy

There are new 2006 Accord pictures on another website (shares the same name with Honda engine technology). Those LED taillamps really add some class to the Accord. With the exception of different fog lights (from the Inspire), the front looks about the same. It's possible that fog lights will be standard on the EX. We may be getting closer to the official introduction.

stypek

What is the webpage with the new pics ????

bklynguy

take a look.

stypek

OK. The LED lights look nice, but........the fron of the car still looks like Civic. I hate the front light on it. I hope thay will changed it on the next generation. No CIVIC LIGHT PLEASE !!!

bklynguy

Well, there was only so much Honda could do with current generation without spending too much money. Most people complained about the rear-end so they focused on that styling "error". I have a feeling that the 8th generation Accord may arrive earlier than Aug./Sept. 2007 (say early 2007) based on the earlier intro of the next-gen Camry.

stypek

XM radio will be standard on 2006 accord. You can see the antena on the pics.

bklynguy

I wonder if MP3 compatibility will be standard as well (like on the new Sonata).

stypek

I wonder if they will put the same LED on the coupe?

bklynguy

I'm sure the coupe will also get the LED taillamps. I wonder if VSA will be added (at least to the EX).

mitchflorida

The back of the new Accord is somewhat better .. The front is no improvement at all that I can see.

Stop playing games with us, Honda!

cls2000

cls2000

Can you post a link to the new photos? I'm surfing the net and I can't find anything other than those old camera phone pics from back in April. Thanks.

heisnstein

Here are the photos. The front, unbelievably, is practically untouched. It makes you wonder whether someone has to go to Japan and S P E L L it out for these guys. If implemented the way these pix show it, the Accord will go nowhere.

http://sohc.vtec.net/news_files/362191/06acc_cd02.jpg

http://sohc.vtec.net/news_files/362191/06acc_cd06.jpg

http://sohc.vtec.net/news_files/362191/06acc_cd08.jpg

chuckf1

This link works better:

http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=362191

stypek

I agree. I will wait for the next generation or maby I will check out the new Camry.

bklynguy

What about new features, maybe VSA, HID headlamps, MP3 compatibility standard ?? Those Accords are test mules, it would be easy for Honda to change the grille.

stypek

It is not the grille that looks like crap. It is the front head light. They look like old civic head lights. I like the one that they have on 98-02 accords.

srobak

It's the same headlight that is in the current model Accord. No different.

heisnstein

The front isn't just an issue of the grille or just an issue of the headlights. It's both. Taken together, especially given how designs on the Accord's competitors have trended, the front unarguably presents a cheap Japanese front. What's particularly galling is that the solutions are there staring at them, whether it's in adopting the Japanese Inspire grille or the new Civic Si headlights.

I and apparently many, many others were turned off by the Accord in 2003 and it's deja vu all over again. Ford completely ruined themselves with the '96 ovoid Taurus. If Honda really just can't bring themselves to do it right, they seriously risk doing the same thing and permanently damaging the Accord brand. They cannot wait for 2008.

carzzz

What a change in the back for 2006 model..., just dont get why did they make a fully-tinted red lights at the back for 2005... Also, it seems the truck has increase the volume by like 0.1 or 0.2 cubic feet

srobak

Not that much of a change, they just took it off the current Acura.

aristotle

The side of the car looks really nice. Even the rear end is not bad. But the front needs a slightly bigger grille. I can never understand why car makers fail to pay enough attention to grille design. A nicely done grille will propel the sales of the Accord right back to where it was a few years ago.

jrp6977

I agree, from the side view the proportions seem more balanced. The rear looks better too. But the front...I don't see any change except maybe the lower part of the front facia. Honda must have some kind of "no grille" policy or something. All they would have had to do was put the front end from the Japanese version the Inspire (?) and that would have been fine. It would have saved them money too. But no...How dissappointing.
I am more interested in the coupe, though. This makes me wonder if there will be ANY significant change to that car. And it REALLY needs it.

2728zimmern

The rear end is a big improvement. Honda doesn't need to have cutting edge styling to be successful; they have been successful through great quality, a good bang for the buck, reliability, and resale value. The rear did need to be changed because it was terribly ugly. The front isn't exciting nor ugly, it is just boring; however, what accord grille hasn't been boring? It is way more exciting than any previous camry and the new one coming out which looks like a smaller version of the old man's avalon. I do agree that the inspire grille would have looked better and easy for Honda to do, but it is not crucial to their success.

1000hours

I don't see anything to get to worked up about with the restyled Accord. So they changed the tail lights... What's all the excitement about? Seriously, they should have the kept the rear styling the same and added LED lights to the current rear end. Yeah the current rear end may look like about 2 or 3 other cars but the NEW rear end looks like about 10 other cars... i.e. a little like the Altima, Civic, ect, ect. It does not look that bad, but why would they even bother to spend millions and millions of dollars on new tooling just for 2 years of production? Obviously Honda thinks they will sell enough additional cars to offset the tooling costs. The engine is going to be the same engine as todays Accord (it may be rated with higher numbers but that will only be on paper), and the interior will be the same as todays Accord.... Ever see the episode of the Simpson's when Malibu Stacy gets a new hat and the mob stampedes to through the stores to get the new hat? This kind of reminds me of that: a little change to the tail lights and everyone is up in arms. Wait for the 08MY to come out before getting too worked up. I'm glad that I bought my 05MY and will look forward to the 08's to come out in the next 2 years when there will be some real changes to talk about.

bklynguy

Honda didn't spend millions and millions for this MMC. I'm more interested in the features Honda added than the new rear-end (which btw I like). BTW, I noticed some tape on the side-mirrors (could it be concealing more chrome or LED turn-signal lights which Honda added to the current mirrors).

1000hours

I am sure that they easily spent in the millions for these changes. I work in automotive engineering and I see first hand quite often how even slight changes in tooling cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. What do you think the tooling would be for JUST the tail lamp housings? $200K minimum (depending on the number of cavities in the tooling). Then throw in new connectors for the LED's, new wire harness for the LED's... New trunk tooling, along with new bumper tooling, and don't forget about the rear fender assembly (those are not cheap!). When it's all said and done it's well of $1,000,000 (conservatively speaking).

And if they threw in LEDs into the mirrors... then there's another couple of hundred thousand dollards for that. They may have also been required to alter the body control module in order to add in the LED's. Modules are not cheap either.

How much would YOU have thought it costed to make this MMC?

The current Accord was not a bad car. I thought it was quite attractive and liked that it didn't look like every other car on the road today. If they had just changed to LED tail lights and made alloy wheels on the LX as standard (and maybe added LED turn signals to the mirrors) then that would have been a more cost effective "MMC".

Now Honda has spent millions on a facelift for a car and no one is sure how the public will recieve it...

bklynguy

Two more pictures have been posted at vtec.net including a good picture of the 2006 EX V6 with 17" tires and a car bra covering up "something" (maybe a new chrome grille ?).

netprofits

I can't seem to find the new pics....only see the old ones. Where did you see them at vtec.net?

chuckf1

Here's the link you're looking for Netprofits:

http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=362191

anythngbutgm

Well unfortunately, the Taurus was riding the wave of the top three selling sedans before the redesign. Others were merely bit players and even GM, who was peddling the mediocre W? bodies (typical Garbage Motors junk) couldn't match the sales of the T/C/A. Ford got a bit too liberal on the oval theme and the styling was what killed the new model. It was huge for its class when compared to the other 2 big rivals (Camry/Accord) and comfortable. Reliability like most FMC products was a hit or miss. I know some who have older models with 200+ thousand flawless miles on them, and I know some who had complete lemons.

It was still a fairly solid car that got cheapened as the years went by because rather than try and save the car, Ford allowed it to languish on for 7 years without major updates. The '03 model was much more palitible but by then it was too late. They've never been able to recover since.

I think Honda is far from THAT outcome. Sure, this design is controversial and sales have reflected that, but the attributes of the car are still top-notch. Honda is at least TRYING to make the car more appealing but at least sales aren't plummeting 20 -30 or 50% and that's without minimal incentives!!! I think the next gen Camry is going to be pretty sharp (for a Camry :P ) and I think Honda is going to come out of the gate roaring with the next gen Accord. Eveidence is in the new Civic which is set to arrive soon. Quite the looker IMO. I have no doubt the next Accord will be too.

BTW, I like the current gen, but I'll hold on to my '02.

bklynguy

link title

heisnstein

Now, the idea of the '06 serving as "evidence" of what the '08 model could look like is a scary thought. VTEC has the pix up and it's clear that the front is just a sligltly "refined" version of the bucktoothed Accord.

I don't think the refresh will stem the decline in Accord's sales. The Accord is a great car regardless of its design, so Honda will always be a player in this segment. But if it wants to get back on top and not just be a player, it has to clean sheet the next gen design.

pat

Insults to Ford and Ford drivers are out of line. Let's just stick to the future Accord.

Thanks.

mastro

I agree with you. Saturn has a model that looks like the current rear end, but I think the new rear end looks like every other car on the road. I'm disappointed if these changes are what Honda refers to as "substantial". No big deal.

bklynguy

It is "substantial" compared to the previous Accord MMC. Were you expecting Honda to spring a FMC on us or something ?

rajd1974

Any one know when the 2006 start appearing in dealership lots? I am actually trying to time my purchase of the 2005 model with some good discounts. Any insight on the timing of those discounts is appreciaited as well.
thanks

biker4

Sept will probably be the best time to get an 05. The only trick will be choice - you will get a great deal on a leftover - but only on an unpopular configuration.

rajd1974

What I care about is EX-L 4 Cylinder NAVI and that it should not be either black or white in color. Do you think I could find one?

rajd1974

what kind of deals are we talking for September? 0% with $1500 customer cashback perhaps? or $2500 cashback without financing? I wonder.. Does anyone recall the discounts on 2002 model year when 2003s were coming in?

atlantabenny

A recent interview of Honda's US Chief Engineer Charlie Baker reveals what we might expect of Honda cars and vehicles down the road, particularly as the article speaks of "the Honda philosophy." Ref: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8272373/site/newsweek/

Essentially, per Charlie Baker, there will be more hybrid-based vehicles and as I read into the article, no compromise of Honda's "green and efficient" value system.

As to the question of whether the Accord will meet the same fate of the Taurus, my take on it is probably not.

A fundamental difference in corporate culture explains this opinion. Where Honda and most other Japanese-based companies live by the principle of "kaizen" or "continuous 'incremental' improvement," the rest of the automobile industry - particularly the US - would squeeze the last drop of existing platform and drivetrain technology ("don't fix it if it ain't broke") and just make do with body style changes.

Economic and national culture factors go on to explain further why, but that's for another day and forum.

The more serious issue is whether Honda can survive the mounting dominance of Toyota and Nissan who, while not compromising Kaizen, recognize the criticality of cars and trucks that appeal to the emotion and tastes of the US buyers, the biggest vehicle market.

If Honda invests a little more in styling and emotion-based marketing, I believe the Accord - and Honda - will survive.

bklynguy

I don't know if this applies to the MY06 Accord or not, but I just discovered that the new Civic will get MP3 CD compatibility standard and an Auxiliary Jack for portable MP3 players optional.

link title

Maybe these will be some of the new features on the MY06 Accord as well.

biker4

Considering that May saw a $900 FTD cash, $1500 might be possible. Honda never does customer cash back - that looks bad - they launder it through the dealer instead. You could get all kinds of crazy deals in the last month. BMW (not known for much discounting) was throwing $4K at 330 sedans in April when the new E90 was about to come out.

rajd1974

do you remember the deals on the 2002 Accords when the 2003 started arriving on the dealer lots? I thought the total Customer cash back + FTD was nearly $4000 or so.. Its been so long I forget. add to this holdback and You could purchase a brand new accord at that time and use it for a year and sell for around what you purchased - courtesy Honda.

alpha01

So far, it seems that there's new rear styling, and new design alloys (that are much uglier than either the ones on the EX V6, or the EX 4, which are my favorites on this model).

Will VSA be standard, or optional? And will be across the board, or standard on upper trim and optional on others?

What are the tweaks to the powertrain and interior? Overall, this looks more mild than the MMC upgrade to the Camry, though Toyota admittedly needed to make the strides they did with adding the 5A to the 4cylinder, 17 inch tires to the V6 SE, upgrading the interior, adding the steering wheel audio controls, etc.

~alpha

dampfnudel

So far, it seems that there's new rear styling, and new design alloys (that are much uglier than either the ones on the EX V6, or the EX 4, which are my favorites on this model).

I'm sure other alloys will be available. On vtec.net, some people like the new rims on the EX V6.

Will VSA be standard, or optional? And will be across the board, or standard on upper trim and optional on others?

Safety for Everyone

As for new features for the MY06 Accord, no official word yet from Honda. Keep in mind, the Accord MMC will have to stay competitive for at least 12-18 months (depending on the 8th generation Accord's intro) against the new Camry so I'm sure Honda will add features accordingly. The new Sonata will also influence the decisions Honda has to make. Based on that, the exterior changes may be a small component of the Accord's MMC.

~dampfnudel

rajd1974

so what are these "unpopular" configurations? other than the LX V6..
I am very flexible with what I want as long as it is a EX-L NAVI

rajd1974

I really dont care about the front grille looking like a whale feeding on phytoplankton. It is the rear and side that is what everyone sees most often and what matters. The current minimally imposing grille contributes to a very low overall coefficient of drag which translates to better fuel economy. I would rather save $5 or $10 a month in gas than have a grille like that of a bentley and pay for it. I am glad they didnt change the front grille. I think it looks sleek and great.