2018 Honda Accord Hybrid Review
Pros & Cons
- Suite of newly available tech and safety features
- Cabin has plenty of room for adults
- High fuel economy
- No loss of cargo space over traditional Accord
- The powertrain makes irritating noises at low and high speeds
- Low seating position slightly hampers entry and exit
- The throttle can be touchy at high speeds
- Braking distances in panic stops are unusually long
Other years
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Which Accord Hybrid does Edmunds recommend?
Even the base Accord Hybrid gets adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and forward collision mitigation this year. But we'd upgrade just a bit and go with the EX. The EX gets you a larger touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability, an upgraded eight-speaker stereo, and blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert. It's quite a bit of equipment for only a marginal jump in price.
Edmunds' Expert Review
Overall rating
7.8 / 10The Honda Accord Hybrid has been a class leader for some time thanks to its excellent fuel economy, roomy interior, and above-average handling and acceleration. For 2018, the Accord Hybrid gets even better. Like the regular Accord, it's fully redesigned and has even more interior space, plus a sharp, new look and new technology and safety features.
Now standard safety features such as adaptive cruise control, forward collision mitigation, blind-spot monitoring and lane departure warning add quite a bit of value to the base Accord Hybrid. The new Accord Hybrid also gets an upgrade to cargo capacity thanks to a repackaged hybrid battery. Previously, the Accord Hybrid's battery pack kept you from folding down the rear seat, but no more. The Hybrid now gets the same 60/40-split folding rear seat and the same cargo space as the standard Accord: 16.7 cubic feet.
Underneath the hood, the 2018 Accord Hybrid has the same powertrain as last year's model: a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine mated to a pair of electric motors. The hybrid system has lost a step in the changeover, even if it is a tiny one, going from an EPA-estimated 48 mpg combined in 2017 to 47 mpg combined this year. Still, it's an impressive number for a car this size.
In short, one of the best hybrid sedans just got better. If you're looking for a practical hybrid with enough space in the back seat for adults, the 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid should be at the top of your list.
Notably, we picked the 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid as one of Edmunds' Best Hybrid Cars for this year.
2018 Honda Accord Hybrid models
The 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid comes in five trim levels: base, EX, EX-L, EX-L w/Navi and Touring. Powering every 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid is a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine hitched up to a pair of electric motors that are fed by a lithium-ion battery pack. Total system power is 212 horsepower.
Standard equipment for the base Hybrid includes 17-inch alloy wheels, automatic headlights, LED taillights, keyless ignition and entry, dual-zone automatic climate control, a manually adjustable driver's seat, a 7-inch central display, active noise cancellation, Bluetooth, a rearview camera, and a four-speaker sound system with a USB port. Adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning with automatic braking, lane departure warning and lane keeping assist are also standard.
Going with the EX gets you the above, plus a sunroof, LED foglights, heated mirrors, heated front seats, a power-adjustable driver's seat, an 8-inch touchscreen with upgraded smartphone integration (via HondaLink, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), and an upgraded sound system with eight speakers, satellite and HD radio and an additional USB port. Blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert is also standard on the EX.
Move up to the EX-L for an auto-dimming rearview mirror, driver memory settings, a power-adjustable front passenger seat, leather upholstery, and a 10-speaker stereo. The EX-L w/Navi is equipped like an EX-L but with the added benefit of a navigation system.
Lastly, the Touring adds adaptive suspension dampers, LED headlights with automatic high-beam control, front and rear parking sensors, wireless smartphone charging, a driver head-up display, ventilated front seats and heated rear seats.
Trim tested
Each vehicle typically comes in multiple versions that are fundamentally similar. The ratings in this review are based on our full test of the Honda Accord Hybrid Touring (2.0L 4-cyl hybrid).
Driving
7.5The Accord Hybrid accelerates well around city streets but lacks merging power at freeway speeds. The braking feels natural in typical driving, but the Hybrid took longer than average to stop in our testing. Power delivery is immediate, but there's also a surginess in certain cruising conditions.
Comfort
7.5The Accord Hybrid offers decent overall comfort. It insulates against traffic noise particularly well, though there are a number of unpleasant drivetrain noises. The ride is smooth albeit a bit bouncy over bigger bumps. The seats are accommodating, even if the cushions feel a little flat.
Interior
8.0Some small points aside, the interior of the Accord offers modern design, quality soft-touch materials, lots of room, and a user-friendly infotainment system and control layout. But taller drivers will want to test the seating position since their knees may rub on a piece of hard plastic trim.
Utility
9.0The Accord offers about as much utility as is possible for a sedan, with best-in-class trunk volume, plenty of spots for small items in the cabin, and generally more space than you'll know what to do with.
Technology
8.0Honda's new infotainment system is a huge step up from the last generation, and it's integrated nicely with the gauge-cluster screen and head-up display. A lot of active safety and driver aids come standard, and they work well. Voice commands fall short, and we generally relied on manual controls.
Scorecard
| Overall | 7.8 / 10 |
| Driving | 7.5 |
| Comfort | 7.5 |
| Interior | 8.0 |
| Utility | 9.0 |
| Technology | 8.0 |
Consumer reviews
Read what other owners think about the 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid.
Most helpful consumer reviews
Jim W,07/31/2018
EX-L 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
Got rid of my 8 year old Audi A4 after looking at a large potential engine repair. Looked at new Audi's, BMW's, Acura's, Toyota's, and Genesis. Liked the fit, finish, and quality of the interior of the Accord just as much as the luxury brands. Actually preferred the cockpit and control layout in the Accord compared to all of the other cars I looked at. I drove all of the variants of the Accord, from the 1.5T and Sport Manual to the 2.0T 10A. The power of the 2.0T is great, the 1.5T is fun in the manual and adequate with the CVT ... but I had to be honest about the kind of driving I do which is a mixture of city and highway driving with a fair bit of traffic thrown in. For that, the Hybrid made a lot of sense and cut my fuel costs in half compared to the Audi. The hybrid is quiet, smooth as silk, and unless you are pushing it hard is completely unobtrusive; the shift from electric to gas power is almost imperceptible. It really is an electric car that just happens to have a gasoline generator for power with a battery to smooth things out. It is a different driving experience to be sure with the pedal being quite linear and the engine revs being somewhat disconnected from the speed of the car. Despite it being a 'hybrid' which is usually not associated with performance, if you tromp on the pedal, it will go in a hurry particularly if you have Sport mode engaged. The overall performance of the hybrid is in between that of the 1.5T and the 2.0T. Unlike a gas car, in around-town driving situations, if you need a quick burst of power, the torque is available RIGHT NOW because of the battery / electric motor; low speed pick-up is better than a gas car since there is no need for the engine to down-shift or wait for revs to build ... I really like that part. Yes, if you are going up a long steep hill, the engine will get buzzy, but that's about the only time; in normal driving situations, the engine is barely noticeable. I'm seeing mid 40's MPG around town and 48-52 MPG in mostly highway driving (55-70MPH). If you go 75MPH+ mileage will suffer, but not that much. I've averaged a bit over 47MPG for the first 2K miles, so pretty much just as advertised. Actually really like the electronics and use Apple car play pretty much every day to anticipate the urban traffic in the Baltimore/DC metro area. The adaptive cruise control works great; lane keeping assist is a bit lazy and I would not count on it in areas with substantial curves, but for keeping the car in the lane of a fairly straight highway while you fiddle with the radio or deal with a momentary distraction it works just fine. Overall my wife an I love the car and are looking forward to a long an happy relationship with our new Accord. It's the same a the regular Accord, just quieter and with better gas mileage.
Saul Weinstein,05/07/2018
Touring 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
Why five stars when not all of the areas above are five stars? Simply, it's the overall car I like so much ( so far, I have only owned and driven if a couple of days ). I drove the Camry, Fusion, and Optima hybrids. None felt as solid as the Accord, although I liked how the Optima drove. But the Accord drives even better IMHO. The CVT makes itself known on long uphill grades but is otherwise unobtrusive and works fine. It's plenty powerful - My ride home 65 miles from the dealer includes a long 6% uphill grade. The only potential comfort issue is getting in and out of the driver's seat - It's a little bit lower than the others and there is a bit of "drop" into the seat and pull up from it. The technology is comprehensive in the Touring ( top of line ) model I bought but from what I read good throughout the line. Touring has about everything you can imagine and lots you didn't that is useful or helpful The head up display is a favorite. The navigation is quick to accept entries and find what I am looking for. My Android phone hooked right up to Bluetooth. The Android and Apple apps for use in the car are both available. The drive is quiet and comfortable. You can use the paddle shifters to decelerate and get extra energy to the battery, especially useful on long downhills although the adaptive cruise control will brake to maintain speed and thus also store energy. The front seats are heated and ventilated, the rear heated. ( No heated steering wheel except in Canada, darnit. ) The automatic high beams work nicely, as I found on a dark highway drive home. I am guessing at some of the Value items as my ownership is short term for now. I am not filing in a mileage as too few miles driven so far to make a good estimate. Just driving home from the dealer, the first 15 miles in traffic and lights, averaged 49 MPG ( city ).
UPDATE: Now over 14,000 miles and counting! Rating reduced to FOUR STARS. Why?
1) I am not getting the 47 MPG / 47 MPG rated mileage, although doing better now than when new. I know, "your mileage may vary". Started out averaging 40 - 41 MPG, now averaging 43 - 44 MPG per tank fill up although that's in "Eco Mode" ( which works fine in both daily driving and trips, no drawbacks ) and usually driving conservatively to hypermiling.
2) The electronics are proving a bit wonky. The infotainment system will shut down and eventually reset ( takes a few minutes ) while driving. This is very disturbing when navigating someplace strange. It happens more on trips than local driving and is averaging two to three times a month. The adaptive cruise control does NOT hold / limit speed on downhill sections like I originally thought. You have to "do it yourself" unless someone in front of you is going slowly and setting off the radar system to brake. The ( Garmin ) navigation system is poorly configured for route selection. It has sent me on some strange, longer, and less attractive roads for no apparent reason on trips. Locally, it selects routes, then, when I use local knowledge and go a different way, the estimated driving time goes down several minutes. Since I have it set for fastest time, why does it take me a slower route when it seems to know other routes are faster? ( Note - I have NOT set it for "shortest route". )
3) The seat ventilation doesn't provide much volume or cooling. ( This was over the long, hot summer in Southern Nevada ). I had the dealership check it out. They reported it was working the same as other examples on the lot. Which IMHO doesn't mean strongly, means this car is weak in general, not broken or malfunctioning. This is IMHO the infamous "performing as designed" excuse common to most manufacturers when they don't get it right in the first place.
All of this said, I still like this car. A lot. It's pretty comfortable, performs reasonably, and economical, although IMHO not as economical as it should be. I am going in to the dealer this morning to get the recall done for the rear view camera, which seems to me to be working just fine
Karl Zack,06/18/2018
Touring 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
I test drove Toyota and Kia Hybrids and was intrigued by the fuel economy but the style was blah. The I drove a Honda Accord Hybrid 2018 Touring and just went "WOW!!!!". First it looks nice and sleek on the outside (with out the Hybrid badge, you'd never know it was a hybrid). When you get in, your sitting in technology. All of the info that can be displayed on the windshield so your eyes still stay on the road. The wireless cell phone charging, The NFC just let me tap my phone on the dash and it married up to my phone. Android auto gives me access to Maps, Waze, pandora, TuneIn Radio,etc. The ventilated seats are so nice to have in the blazing hot Florida sun.I can remote start the car to have it cool off before I get into it.It is extremely quiet when driving (just hear the outside woosh). The different doing modes are so convenient, like to merge into fast 5 o'clock highway traffic, clicking on Sport Mode gives me tons of speed (plants me back into the seat). The paddles on the steering wheels, once I got used to them, are amazing. It is used with the brake regeneration which recharges the battery surprisingly fast. Now I can calculate how to use them when approaching a stop. On my first 100+ mile cruise, I played it light slow acceleration , ac at 76 and a mix of highway and city driving. I got 51 mpg. Next weekend I went the same route in reverse, ac at LOW (which is pretty cold), using sport mode occasionally, and getting unto speed normally from a dead stop. I got 46 mpg. I went one step further and installed 3m Crystalline Tint (look for it on YouTube). The car is literally and figuratively cool.
H-dub,06/18/2018
Touring 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
Some serious research went into my ultimate decision to buy this car. My previous vehicles were mostly sports sedans (BMW 3, 5 and 6 series) interlaced with a couple of Acuras. After my last appointment for routine maintenance on my 3 series cost me nearly $1,000, I decided I was done with German cars. Furthermore, I was tired of losing a significant amount in depreciation on these BMWs after my typical 3 to 4 years of ownership. My purchase criteria this time was based on reliability, economy, resale value and fun to drive. I also wanted something more substantive than a basic compact car like a civic or corolla. I think the Accord hybrid provides the best combination of those characteristics. Furthermore, the interior has all the elements I consider as luxurious in the Touring trim that I purchased. As for fun to drive, this is definitely not a Prius. It has great low end torque and will accelerate very quickly, either from a stop or on the freeway ramp when I need the pick up (0 to 60 in 6.9 seconds is what I have read). I will never drive this in the ECO mode, but have a blast driving with an occasional heavy foot and still getting 40 mpg. I read in some reviews that the seats are too low and cause back pain. I am a senior that has a herniated disc and have dealt with back issues for the last 30 years. However, I don’t have any issues entering or exiting this vehicle and find the seating comfort to be just fine. The stereo system is fantastic. I also love the safety features that are all customizable to suit my driving style. I also love the brake regenerative paddle shifters that feel like the old days of downshifting to slow down in a manual shift car. Trunk space is huge. Still learning how to take full advantage of the Android Auto program. I do think Honda should have sold this car with a compact spare instead of the inflator kit that is provided. However, I will incur the expense and buy a spare and jack. I really think Honda has done an excellent job with this car and believe this is the best “value” in the mid size car segment.
Features & Specs
MPG
47 city / 47 hwy
Seats 5
Continuously variable-speed automatic
Hybrid
212 hp @ 6200 rpm
MPG
47 city / 47 hwy
Seats 5
Continuously variable-speed automatic
Hybrid
212 hp @ 6200 rpm
MPG
47 city / 47 hwy
Seats 5
Continuously variable-speed automatic
Hybrid
212 hp @ 6200 rpm
MPG
47 city / 47 hwy
Seats 5
Continuously variable-speed automatic
Hybrid
212 hp @ 6200 rpm
Safety
Our experts like the Accord Hybrid models:
- Adaptive Cruise Control
- Maintains a preset following distance on the freeway by monitoring the speed of the vehicle in front of you and keeping pace.
- Lane Departure Mitigation
- Warns the driver of lane departures when a turn signal isn't used. Can automatically steer to maintain lane position.
- Forward Collision Mitigation
- Monitors forward traffic, alerting driver of obstacles or stopped cars ahead. Can automatically apply the brakes in emergencies.
