WASHINGTON — The Honda Accord Sedan has been a very popular car for years — it’s Honda’s best-selling vehicle. But I say the Honda Accord Coupe is the hidden gem.
It’s not just any coupe, but one with a sweet V6 and a choice of a manual or automatic transmission. I know the sedan is where the money is for Honda, but I appreciate that they still make the Accord coupe. It’s been my favorite Honda for years, and the 2015 is no different.
After a week testing the 2015 Accord Coupe EX-L V6, the top-of-the-line trim level with NAV and a price of $30,775, I found that a very fair price for such a substantial car with all the options. It’s worth it just to have the very smooth 3.5-liter V6 that lets in just enough noise when you let 278 hp sing.
The Accord Coupe finds the balance between sport coupe and a more luxurious coupe. It shies away from over-the-top spoilers and body kits or those big wheels that are thrown on some coupes.
It’s a handsome coupe that’s very comfortable — something I can’t always say about Hondas. The coupe has a nice interior with soft touch materials and heated leather seats. Adults would be fine in the back seat on shorter trips. For families, the downfall of any coupe is two doors, but I didn’t find too big of a hassle.
The dual screens on the center stack of the dash can be a little confusing until you get used to it. The one at the bottom is a touch screen. The upper screen isn’t; it’s controlled by a knob/button control stick on the dash.
Driving the Accord Coupe is as familiar as driving the Accord, with a bit more sport thrown in for fun. The V6 and automatic work well together, but I would choose the manual to give myself maximum involvement while driving. The two-door Accord isn’t really a diehard sports coupe, and that’s a good thing, because you can drive it to work and be very comfortable or you can open it up on the back roads. The acceleration was very good, and the body leans on hard cornering. Be aware that there’s a decent amount of power going through the front wheels.
The fuel efficiency was true to the sticker after 230 miles of driving. I saw 25.4 mpg of combined city and highway driving. It’s rated at 21 mpg city, 32 mpg highway and 25 mpg combined.
The 2015 Honda Accord Coupe is an intriguing car in a segment that Honda has mostly to itself now. They could have just thrown it together, but they didn’t. Honda continues to make a comfortable two-door coupe with a smooth V6, an optional manual transmission at a reasonable price. Honda delivers this solid car that’s fun to drive without the extra doors of the sedan, and it has Honda’s reliability.
Editor’s note: Mike Parris is a member of the Washington Automotive Press Association. The vehicles are provided by STI, FMI or Event Solutions for the purpose of this review.
