I haven't driven the Honda Accord Hybrid in a long while. I'd forgotten how choppy it feels. The transition from electric motor to gasoline engine is jolting. When accelerating, the engine kicks in ungracefully but it's even more pronounced when braking...
This lack of subtlety is especially annoying when trying to parallel park in tight spaces. Maintaining a slow roll is difficult. And when you do actually stop, an annoying "Auto Stop" light keeps flashing. Is that to reassure you that the jolt you felt wasn't the car stalling?
We recently tested the new Toyota Camry Hybrid, which drives as smooth as the non-hybrid Camry and has the potential for much better gas mileage. I appreciate that Honda built their Accord Hybrid with a V6 to prove that hybrids can have some horsepower. And I'm a big fan of the non-hybrid Honda. But the hybrid version of the Accord is rather unpleasant to drive.
Honda has a long way to go to catch up to Toyota's unequaled hybrid system.
Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor
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