The Honda Accord Hybrid was killed on Monday. Honda will not have an Accord Hybrid in its line when the next-generation Accord arrives this fall.
This was not much of a surprise, since the Accord Hybrid really didn’t deliver on the key reason people buy hybrids: fuel mileage.
But wait, there’s more: The Accord Hybrid, introduced in 2004 with a V-6 engine, cost significantly more than the gasoline version and about $5,000 more than the four-cylinder Toyota Camry Hybrid it competed against. Also, an Accord with a four-cylinder gasoline-only powertrain could get an honest 34 miles per gallon in highway driving. The Accord Hybrid was rated at 35 m.p.g. highway, but in actual driving it was lucky to top 30 m.p.g. The hybrid also needed pricier premium fuel.
So it never sold well. The $31,685 ($2,000 more with satellite radio and navigation) Accord Hybrid was marketed as a performance machine, which Honda concedes was a mistake. Sage Marie, a Honda spokesman, said the company is getting the message that hybrid buyers are primarily interested in high fuel economy numbers. Period. Lexus also had to defend its decision to put hybrid powertrains in its RX, GS and LS lines, which provide strong performance but little (if any) benefit in fuel economy.
It was interesting that Honda decided to kill the Accord rather than fix it. By dialing back the performance — perhaps transplanting the four-cylinder hybrid powertrain from the Civic Hybrid — the Accord Hybrid’s fuel economy numbers might have jumped into the mid- to low-40s.
This is the second hybrid Honda has killed in the past year, despite gasoline prices that are marching toward $4 a gallon. The Insight, the industry’s mileage king with mid-60s fuel economy, was axed last year.
So what is next for Honda’s hybrids, which are being outsold almost seven to one by Toyota’s hybrids?
The company is still moving ahead with plans for a high-economy vehicle to compete with the Toyota Prius by the 2009 model year.
Meanwhile, the Accord Hybrid will go down in Honda history as a misstep.
