Topic: Test Drive: 2014 Honda Accord Sport manual transmission

[Autos_Editor]

Awell-done,reasonably priced, fun-t0-drive sedan that comes with a manual transmission? Yes folks ' this unicorn exists.

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[Steve C]

I've been eyeing one of these as my next car for some time and have taken a number of Accords out for test drives. Not bad with the 6MT I must say. It seemed far more responsive than the automatic 2014 Mazda 6. In fact it just seems like a better vehicle. It looks quite upscale in person. I've also looked at the base LX which has the same power train minus 4 horsepower. It is a lighter car however.

What's holding me back from the Accord Sport is the 18 inch rims. They look great, but replacing tires and picking up snow tires is going to cost more than the 17 inch rims on the LX, which are nice rims themselves. The tires on the Sport are also of a lower profile. Looks good again, but with the shape of the roads around here I'm again wary. The dark interior on the sport, along with the leather wrapped steering wheel look so much better than the light grey interior and cheapy steering wheel in the LX. The interior of the LX is a turnoff.

Neither model, Sport or LX offer a sunroof and colour choices, especially the manual LX are scant. Honda really needs to give the consumer more choices here. Many reviews have knocked the lack of a split folding rear seat.

That being said, in my opinion this is the best overall choice in the midsize segment. The engine and transmission, especially the manual are hard to beat. You get Honda reliability and resale value. The local dealer here alsways carries a full assortment of models with both transmissions. I have yet to see a manual Mazda 6 locally and the dealer barely has any models in stock at all. The Mazda 6 looks good but is a bust. It's pricier than the Accord and slower. I'm not sure what it offers over and above in terms of options.

[Danno001]

What's holding me back from the Accord Sport is the 18 inch rims. They look great, but replacing tires and picking up snow tires is going to cost more than the 17 inch rims on the LX, which are nice rims themselves.

Many folks here would buy a 17" winter tire, steel wheel package for this car, for lower cost and better winter ride/pothole protection.

[Great_Big_Abyss]

This car is my favorite mid-size sedan, bar-none, and with a manual, it's just damn near perfect!

[quadzilla]

Awell-done,reasonably priced, fun-t0-drive sedan that comes with a manual transmission? Yes folks ' this unicorn exists.

Is this some new hip language?

[Ace]

I don't understand why Honda never offers Hatchbacks or folding rear seats except for the Crosstour

[Oldsguy]

I don't understand why Honda never offers Hatchbacks or folding rear seats except for the Crosstour

Given the chilly reception the Crosstour received from the buying public, perhaps that is your answer.

[redman]

Crosstour was/is hideous. Just offer AWD with fold down seats on the Accord !!!

[Jaeger]

Nice car for the money. You'd get hammered on resale though - usually a strength for the Accord.

Styling is subjective, of course, but about the only competitor more terminally boring than the Accord to my eyes is the Passat.

I'm not very impressed with 6.9 l highway rating for the normally aspirated 4 pot. Hopefully the car can do better in the real world.

No folding rear seats would be a deal- breaker. Couldn't take my bike anywhere without an external rack.

[greengs]

Nice car for the money. You'd get hammered on resale though - usually a strength for the Accord.

Styling is subjective, of course, but about the only competitor more terminally boring than the Accord to my eyes is the Passat.

I'm not very impressed with 6.9 l highway rating for the normally aspirated 4 pot. Hopefully the car can do better in the real world.

No folding rear seats would be a deal- breaker. Couldn't take my bike anywhere without an external rack.

6.9L is based on the new 2015 testing regime. 

Sonata is 6.7L albeit auto only, however manual Mazda6 is 6.4L, so not a huge spread between them.

[toolatecrew]

I've been eyeing one of these as my next car for some time and have taken a number of Accords out for test drives. Not bad with the 6MT I must say. It seemed far more responsive than the automatic 2014 Mazda 6. In fact it just seems like a better vehicle. It looks quite upscale in person. I've also looked at the base LX which has the same power train minus 4 horsepower. It is a lighter car however.

What's holding me back from the Accord Sport is the 18 inch rims. They look great, but replacing tires and picking up snow tires is going to cost more than the 17 inch rims on the LX, which are nice rims themselves. The tires on the Sport are also of a lower profile. Looks good again, but with the shape of the roads around here I'm again wary. The dark interior on the sport, along with the leather wrapped steering wheel look so much better than the light grey interior and cheapy steering wheel in the LX. The interior of the LX is a turnoff.

Neither model, Sport or LX offer a sunroof and colour choices, especially the manual LX are scant. Honda really needs to give the consumer more choices here. Many reviews have knocked the lack of a split folding rear seat.

That being said, in my opinion this is the best overall choice in the midsize segment. The engine and transmission, especially the manual are hard to beat. You get Honda reliability and resale value. The local dealer here alsways carries a full assortment of models with both transmissions. I have yet to see a manual Mazda 6 locally and the dealer barely has any models in stock at all. The Mazda 6 looks good but is a bust. It's pricier than the Accord and slower. I'm not sure what it offers over and above in terms of options.

Steve you almost wrote my post for me. I agree on just about everything.

The 18 inch wheels are not as big a deal to me. I always run winters so no big deal and I think I'd like the extra bit of cornering precision from the 8s.

The sunroof is a tick off...and now Mazda has followed suit. You can't get a sunroof on the LX or the Sport. Mazda did not let you get one on the Mazda 6 GX but made it standard on the more expensive GS. Now they have kept the price on the GS the same added some bells and whistles but for 2015 force you to pony up another 2K for a luxury package to get a sunroof.  ARRGGGHH

I think the accord looks very good. Classy even. The interior has huge room but I don't like it as much as say the Mazda 6. I'd like for the "Sport" to have a little more of a sporty interior.

I'd love to have a Honda with the bigger 4 and a 6 speed stick. The only other choices really comparable are the Mazda 6,or a TSX. But my kids are small enough they would fit in a Civic SI for quite a while..and you get a sunroof and nav and sat radio all things you can't get in the sport.

I think if they offered Sat radio and sunroof as an optional 1.5- 2K on the sport it would really sway me.

I need to go drive one I guess.

[OliverD]

The sunroof is a tick off...and now Mazda has followed suit. You can't get a sunroof on the LX or the Sport. Mazda did not let you get one on the Mazda 6 GX but made it standard on the more expensive GS. Now they have kept the price on the GS the same added some bells and whistles but for 2015 force you to pony up another 2K for a luxury package to get a sunroof.  ARRGGGHH

They actually dropped the price of the GS by $800 but the luxury package is $2900, or $1100 more than last year. Good for people who don't want a sunroof, bad for people who do.

[Ace]

I don't understand why Honda never offers Hatchbacks or folding rear seats except for the Crosstour

Given the chilly reception the Crosstour received from the buying public, perhaps that is your answer.

Ahh, I think the chilly reception is the result of the Crosstour's bulbous rear end styling, not it's functionality.

[toolatecrew]

The sunroof is a tick off...and now Mazda has followed suit. You can't get a sunroof on the LX or the Sport. Mazda did not let you get one on the Mazda 6 GX but made it standard on the more expensive GS. Now they have kept the price on the GS the same added some bells and whistles but for 2015 force you to pony up another 2K for a luxury package to get a sunroof.  ARRGGGHH

Yes I've been keeping my eye's open for a 2014 GS with a stick to see if they go on year end clearout but its just a pipe dream. 6 inventory around here looks very sparse which is understandable given the poor sales I suppose. Lots of Accords in stock though.

They actually dropped the price of the GS by $800 but the luxury package is $2900, or $1100 more than last year. Good for people who don't want a sunroof, bad for people who do.

[JRM]

I must say I'm warming up to the styling inside and out, except for the LX, which is pretty plain and comes only in silver, black and white with that aweful light grey interior.  I didn't like the twin pod dash layout initially, but now I don't mind it at all.  I like driving a standard (learned to drive on a 3 on the tree set up), but my wife refuses to drive one, so It doesn't much matter.  But I do get to drive my daughters' standards once in awhile.  The fuel consumption is high compared to my Passat, which has averaged 7.8 liters/100km over the 1st 6,000 kms and takes as little as 6.2 in highway driving. 

I prefer the Passat over the Accord, especially the TSI engine, which is a hoot to drive.  My front tires won't last long at this rate.  I'm sure power and tourque ratings are well understated.  The Accord, and Fusion would be next on my preferred list.  The Mazda6 is also good, but is a bit of a slug and a bit tight on space for my 6'3" frame.

[Noto]

I won't beat Seabiscuit, here.

The lack of a folding rear seat and optional AWD do turn me off.  With that being said, only the Fusion and the Legacy do offer AWD, so it's not really necessary in this segment.

I will say this again, though:

Automobile manufacturers have to keep in mind the purpose of the vehicle they are building.  If (and note that I say IF, not THAT) Jeep built a Wrangler with 4" of ground clearance for better fuel economy, it'd be a dud.  What good is an off-road vehicle without ground clearance?

So, too, is my argument for the Accord.  If a Corolla or a Civic can have a flat floor for the rear passengers, and if a Corolla or a Civic can have a 60/40 rear split seatback, THEN WHY THE WOULD A MID-SIZE SEDAN, SOMETHING LARGER THAN A COMPACT (i.e. purchased because of its size and expected interior volumes) OMIT CARGO AND PASSENGER CAPACITY FEATURES?!

I love the look of the Accord.  I think those LEDs on the touring make this thing look like an Audi at night and something far more expensive than its price would suggest.  I think the powertrains and fuel efficiency are outstanding.  I really, really want to like this car.

...but like Tom, here (speaking of his article and his chocolate milk addiction, which I share - and love the square cupholders in the Forester for the same reason), the sheer amount of small nit-picks culminate in too much of a reason for me not to buy an Accord.

It's for this reason and this reason alone that I like CUVs and Compacts - the massive competition and demand for value has brought ample attention to detail to the car.  These mid-size sedans continue to sell well to Americans, and therefore, auto makers don't want to change the formula.  Sad.  Very, very sad.

Note: This isn't solely an issue with the Accord - I find a lot of the same with other models, most notably is the Mazda 6 and its cramped-feeling interior space and poor outward visibility.

[jamesautos]

You mentioned the shifter being notchy and in the last paragraph,  you said it has a great manual transmission?!

When did notchiness become a good thing and how is that suppose "to make it feel mechanical"

Honda used to make excellent Manual in all their cars even the civic shifter was excellent without being notchy...

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[Great_Big_Abyss]

No folding rear seats would be a deal- breaker. Couldn't take my bike anywhere without an external rack.

The seat folds, it's just not a SPLIT folding seat!

[Great_Big_Abyss]

I'd love to have a Honda with the bigger 4 and a 6 speed stick. The only other choices really comparable are the Mazda 6,or a TSX. But my kids are small enough they would fit in a Civic SI for quite a while..and you get a sunroof and nav and sat radio all things you can't get in the sport.

The interior and over all refinement of the Accord is yards ahead of the Civic though.  It's really a different ballgame altogether.  Their lack of options in the lower model Accords is frustrating though.  Pretty much all Honda's are tiered that way, though!  There are no options except for the different trim packages!

[Nuttygent]

  Never liked the last 2 gens of this car styling wise, but Honda has done a nice job with this handsome car still thinking the 6 is sharper. If they offered a hatch or wagon with the stick I would buy one today...being a huge minority I realise.