CarBrandLogos archive · Honda · 1976

HondaAccord

Proof a Japanese car could be built in Ohio and still feel like the real thing.

Photo: MercurySable99 · CC BY-SA 4.0

The story

A defining chapter in Honda history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the Honda Accord, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

Origins

Honda's replacement for the awkward Honda 1300 arrived in 1976 as a three-door hatchback, a size above the Civic and pitched at buyers who wanted equipment rather than just economy. Power steering, a tachometer and a cloth interior were standard fittings in a segment where they were usually options, and the front-wheel-drive package delivered space and fuel consumption that American compacts could not approach.

'89 Honda Accord Coupe · Bull-Doser · Public domain

Design and engineering

Its real significance is industrial. In November 1982 Honda began building Accords at Marysville, Ohio, making it the first Japanese car mass-produced in the United States. That decision preceded the trade pressure that later forced other manufacturers into American plants, and it gave Honda political cover as well as a cost advantage. By the late 1980s the Accord was among the best-selling cars in America, and by the 1990s American-built examples were being exported back to Japan.

1984-1985 Honda Accord hatchback 01 · OSX · Public domain

In production

The car itself grew steadily from compact to mid-size, splitting into regionally distinct versions as the markets diverged: broader sedans and coupés for North America, a tighter European model, and a separate Japanese line. Station wagons and coupés came and went, but the sedan has run without interruption since 1976. It is not a car anyone describes as exciting, which is largely why it worked.

1984-1985 Honda Accord hatchback 02 · OSX · Public domain

At a glance

The facts that define it.

Produced

1976–present

Body

3-door hatchback

Technical specification

The Accord, in detail.

Production: 1976–present
Class: Compact car (1976–1989); Mid-size car (1989–present)
Body style: 3-door hatchback (1976–1989); 4-door sedan (1976–present); 2-door coupé (1989–2017); 5-door station wagon (1989–2015)
Layout: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive
Manufacturer: Honda

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