Accord euro takes on best of europe! (comparison)
http://carpoint.ninemsn.com.au/porta...opDefault.aspx
When Honda gets it right, the competition gets nervous. Time for Audi to step up and attempt to quell an Eastern uprising
HOW much is a German badge worth? On the face of it, you'd have to say about 10 grand, looking at this pair. That's the price difference between the cheapest of Audi's A4 models, and the most expensive Honda Accord Euro. Yet even before the cars are driven – or even seen – the Honda seems, on paper at least, to have so much more going for it that a mismatch might be on the cards.
The two cars have much in common: dimensions differ by mere centimetres and both share the conventional mid-size layout of front engine, front drive, with four-cylinder engines doing the work. Yet the Accord has far more engine capacity, out powers the A4 2.0 by about 50 per cent, and has demonstrably higher equipment levels despite its lower price. Also worth mentioning is that the Accord (including the Thai-built Seppo version) outsells the A4 by about 15 to one, and comfortably leads the 'Prestige' sector of the Australian market that encompasses everything from the Holden Statesman to Mini Cooper.
Prestige is a hard thing to define, but with cars it usually starts with a high price tag. That isn't true in the Accord Euro's case, which can be had from as low as $34,250. That's for the cheapest six-speed manual version; add the luxury pack and five-speed auto and it's a more expensive, but by no means unaffordable, $42,800 proposition. On top of the standard Euro's package of alloys, cruise control, stability control and side airbags, the Luxury adds a host of goodies including leather trim, sunroof, curtain airbags, heated and powered seats, front fogs and rain-sensing wipers. To say it's good buying is an understatement.
A manual A4 2.0-litre will set you back $48,300, but opt for the auto - as most buyers do - and you're looking at $51,550. Actually, it's Audi's Multitronic CVT that accounts for the steep option price, and an equipment upgrade earlier this year added leather trim, a multi-function steering wheel, 16-inch alloys and body-coloured bumpers. Our test car was an earlier version, and although it did have climate control, curtain airbags, alloys, cruise and virtually everything found on the Accord Euro, there was certainly no extra equipment over and above the Audi for the added spend.
The Accord's 2.4-litre four comes with Honda's i-VTEC (variable inlet valve timing and lift) and fairly cranks on both power and torque outputs. There's a maximum of 140kW at 6800rpm, and torque peaks at 223Nm at quite a high 4500rpm. In contrast, the A4's 2.0-litre four - even with its variable-length intake manifold and variable timing of the inlet valves - is only good for 96kW, albeit it at a much lower 5700rpm. Max torque of 195Nm similarly occurs lower in the range at 3300rpm.
Despite this, the A4 makes a good fist of standing-start acceleration courtesy of its CVT. Stand on the brake, floor the throttle, and the transmission selects perfect revs for a partial wheel-spinning getaway. The tacho locks onto peak power as the CVT does its stuff, and the A4 drones towards 100km/h in 9.4 seconds, and crosses 400 metres in 16.9. But the heftier outputs of the Accord are still difficult to argue with, and it's quicker on both counts – clocking up 100km/h in 9.2 seconds and zero to 400 metes in 16.6 – plus it manages to comfortably win in-gear times from 80 to 120km/h.
On the road, the Audi's CVT is initially disconcerting. Because the engine doesn't seem to gather revs as the gearing becomes continuously taller, there's the impression the A4 is not gathering speed when it is. Throughout this it emits an especially ordinary engine note.
While the Audi experience isn't an exciting one, it is efficient. The A4 averaged 9.9L/100km, which would be impressive if the quicker Accord hadn't come close to matching it with 10L/100km over the course of the test.
The Audi's drivetrain might have the objective measure of just about any other four-cylinder and conventional auto, but there's a slight problem in the context of this comparison. The Accord Euro's powerful and flexible four and intuitively accurate five-speeder are about the best in the business. The spread of torque across the Accord four's mid-range would put many medium-capacity V6s to shame, but it's just as happy to rev, and the pseudo manual shift is happy to hold ratios to the redline. Left in drive, the auto adapts to the driver's demands, even holding lower gears where a succession of corners on a rising and falling road will see the driver on and off the throttle.
It's in these driving conditions where the two cars show their stuff, and unfortunately for the A4 not much of it is good. Okay, despite its longitudinal four hanging over the front axle line, understeer is kept well under control, but the suspension is far from happy. The body will pitch and dive enough to upset braking, and, despite the wallow, the ride isn't especially compliant with stiff spring rates far from matching the lack of rebound damping control. Add a horrible rattle in the steering column over bumps, and the electronic throttle's tendency to cut power if the driver's left foot touches the brake, and the result is a car better suited to the suburbs than more challenging roads.
The Accord is all serenity by contrast, with a composure that's not only at home with hard driving, but virtually incites it. It too has a grippy front end, but matches that with near-perfect body control, communicative steering, and an extremely absorbent ride on everything from sharp ripples to longer amplitude humps, and isn't upset by any mid-corner irregularities. While the A4's stability system is working overtime to overcome the suspension's deficiencies, the Accord's only cuts in gently to limit understeer and is virtually imperceptible. With strong, linear braking – compared with the A4's sharp initial retardation – and plenty of torque to exit a corner, the Honda's easily the pick of the two in any conditions.
There's little to choose between the two for accommodation, with near-identical rear-seat room and just a slight bias towards the A4 for the better shape of its rear pew, although the front seats are somewhat hard and flat. The Honda's boot is a little deeper, thanks to a space-saver spare, but the A4's is a little longer and has a full-sized spare under its floor. Both rear seats fold and have 70/30 splits.
Interior treatments are quite different, with the A4's businesslike and virtually unadorned, while Honda has gone for a highly stylised dashboard that, in our test car, was slathered in fairly gauche-looking dark-grey woodgrain trim. But the Accord has a naturally comfortable driving position despite the lack of telescopic steering-column adjustment, and more lateral support in its seats so the impression of German efficiency in the A4's cabin isn't matched by any real advantage over the Accord.
A clear win to Japan? You'd better believe it, and on a value-for-money basis the Accord would also give more dynamically exciting compact Europeans such as the BMW 3 Series and Benz C-Class something to think about. Better to drive in any conditions than the A4 2.0-litre, far cheaper and lacking nothing in equipment, the Accord is a class act that doesn't need the 'Euro' badge to sell its wares.
Out-of-date A4
Sometimes the product-planning departments and other factors conspire to deliver a car that isn't current spec, and that's just what's happened with the A4 you see here. As revealed at the Paris motor show, the A4 has copped a radical facelift that has not left a single panel unaltered, and it'll be in Australia probably mid-2005.Believe it or not, much of what we don't like about the current A4's suspension has been altered. The hardware remains similar, but springs, dampers and mounts have been revised, hopefully giving a more supple ride and better body control. The 96kW, 2.0-litre engine remains in the line-up, but a 147kW FSI turbo has been added, along with the 188kW 3.2-litre V6 FSI from the A6. To further cloud things, Audi Australia couldn't supply us with a current-spec A4 2.0, either. Our rather tired test car had more than 11,000km on the clock and lacked the larger alloys, leather trim, body-coloured bumpers, and multi-function steering wheel now fitted as standard.
The bottom line
Honda Accord Euro Luxury
$40,800/As tested $42,800
Drivetrain
Engine: in-line four, DOHC, 16v
Layout: front engine (east-west), front drive
Capacity: 2.354 litres
Bore/stroke: 87.0 x 99.0
Compression: 10.5:1
Power: 140kW @ 6800rpm
Torque: 223Nm @ 4500rpm
Transmission: 5-speed auto
Gear ratios: 2.65/1.52/1.08/0.77/0.57
Diff ratio: 4.44 Safety hardware
Active: ABS, EBD, TC, ESP,
Passive: Front airbags, side airbags (front), curtain airbags, pre-tensioner/force limiter seatbelts
NCAP rating: 4
Verdict: 4.5 stars
Tick: Excellent value, terrific blend of performance, economy and handling.
Cross: Interior a bit chintzy, space-saver spare.
Audi A4 2.0
$48,300/As tested $51,550
Drivetrain
Engine: in-line four, DOHC, 16v
Layout: front engine (north-south), front drive
Capacity: 1.984 litres
Bore/stroke: 82.5 x 92.8
Compression: 10.3:1
Power: 96kW @ 5700rpm
Torque: 195Nm @ 3300rpm
Redline/Cutout: 6500/ - rpm
Transmission: CVT
Gear ratios: 2.37/1.50/1.03/0.74/0.56/0.40
Diff ratio: 2.4-6.3
Safety hardware
Active: ABS, EBD, TC, ESP,
Passive: Front airbags, side airbags (front), curtain airbags, pre-tensioner/force limiter seatbelts
NCAP rating: 4
Verdict: 3.5 stars
Tick: CVT auto makes most of engine's outputs. Well built, roomy.
Cross: Suspension lacks control, seats hard, too expensive.
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Brings a tea to my eyes. I am so lucky to own a car like the euro. Sniff. :o
