Stylish, roomy, 49mpg Honda Accord Hybrid gives the Prius a run for its gas money

By Nick Jaynes June 24, 2013

Honda Accord Hybrid — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Toyota Prius was the first to the hybrid game, as we’re sure you all know. Not long after, however, Honda had its own go and the resulting Honda hybrid push wasn’t so good. It was rather underwhelming.

Ignoring the spunky first-gen Honda Insight, the Honda hybrids haven’t been very good. Few hit the fuel economy ratings of the competition and after a few years, the story got worse as many Honda hybrids have seen premature battery failure.

Seems Honda has turned itself around, though, with the new Accord Hybrid. The new Accord, despite its mediocre predecessors, is surprisingly fun and a rather smart buy for those looking for a safe family sedan.

Honda has released two hybridized versions of its new Accord as well: the Accord Plug-in Hybrid and now the Accord Hybrid. With the two all-new alternative drivetrain-powered models, Honda hopes to flip its hybrid history on its head.

And on paper, it seems to have done a good job. The new Accord Hybrid has been rated to achieve 49mpg city (the best in its class) and 45mpg highway with a combined score of 47.

Built in Ohio, the Accord Hybrid is powered by a 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder coupled with a 124kW electric motor. The Accord Hybrid will drive in electric-only mode at low speeds and again at medium-to-high speed cruising velocities.

We’re hoping the new Accord Hybrid takes after the Accord, which saw huge improvements in quality and driving dynamics over the outgoing version. We’ll just have to wait and see, though.

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Nick Jaynes is the Automotive Editor for Digital Trends. He developed a passion for writing about cars working his way…

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