Honda Motor Corp. has made great innovations on the Accord for its 2008 model year. With major changes, the Accord became more distinct from its predecessor and has turned closer to the Acura. The Accord is now a bigger and more comfortable sedan equipped with loads of technology in the cabin.

A test on the 2008 Honda Accord powered with 3.5 L V-6 engine revealed that the vehicle is sustained with decent power, reasonable gas mileage and excellently low emissions rating. The engine produces 268 horsepower and 248 lb.-ft. of torque. The vehicle also gets an EPA-rated 19 mpg in city and 29 mpg in highway driving. And, California Air Resources Board gave the new Accord a partial zero emission vehicle (PZEV) rating.

As expected, the 2008 Accord features loads of standard safety equipments. Road-holding electronics in the model has included traction and stability control, antilock brakes, and tire-pressure monitoring. The vehicle also comes with curtain airbags on both sides of the cabin along with front and side airbags in the front seats. To show Honda’s dedication to put safety as primary feature in the Accord, they made the side door beams and day-time running lights all standard.

Inside, the Accord also gained the same level of upgrade as with its exterior. Honda will be selling out Accords with trim levels from LX to the top-of-the-line EX-L, with or without navigation and Honda floor mats. The vehicle will be provided with big multifunction knob, which has been previously seen in the Acura models. There will also be a center stack literally covered in buttons. Compared with the previous model year Accord that is found with a touch-screen LCD set on top of the stack, the new model gets an LCD that has lost the touch-screen capabilities. The LCD, now, has been set deep into the dash to configure it and protect it from glare.

In the unfortunate side of adapting the Acura concept, the new Accord got too many buttons on the stack. The 2008 Accord will be equipped with Bluetooth cell phone integration, which has been an option previously reserved for the more upscale Acura vehicles. Same with Acura models, however, the new Accord lacks in integration, though the Bluetooth system considerably works well enough. The Bluetooth can be accessed with the use of voice command, through a set of buttons found on the steering wheel. There is also a separate voice command system that works to control the navigation, the stereo and the other car functions. This other voice command system has its own set of buttons that are placed alongside the other buttons in the steering wheel.

The navigation system has been slightly innovated from the previous model years. Now, it has several impressive features, including a complete points-of-interest database.

The stereo in the Accord EX-L has not obtained too much upgrade from previous iterations. For 2008, the six-disc changer plays MP3 CDs. It can also now tune in XM satellite radio. And, there is an auxiliary jack mounted in the console.

Honda will be selling out the LX trimmed Accord powered with a 2.4 L engine, manual transmission, and without navigation, at $20,360. On the other hand, the EX-L powered with 3.5 L V-6 engine, without other options and with a $635 destination charge, will be sold out at $30,895.

The third generation Honda CR-V was completely redesigned for 2007 and targets the women with children. Built on the highly esteemed Civic platform the small SUV is made even more practical and economical. It has retained and further improved the numerous features that make it an ideal vehicle for hauling groceries and baby errands.

The rear doors open to a full 90 degrees that makes access to the back seats easier. In the rear, the side opening tailgate was not included in this year’s model instead a more convenient overhead unit was built.

And since the third generation Honda CR-V targets the women market, it was given a softer and more tasteful look which was accomplished with smoother shapes and a sloping rear end that is complimented by body colored trim, 17-inch alloy wheels and privacy glass equipped on the top-of-the-line 4WD EX-L model.

The interior is also loaded with useful and practical features such as the foldable, removable shelf in the 35.7 cubic foot cargo hull, fold-flat second-row seating, a conversation or toddler check mirror, a folding center tray and lots of storage compartments and cup holders for the driver and the little occupants. The look and feel of the materials as well as the controls is unique and sophisticated.

Other features include a NAV system with a rearview camera, leather trimmed seats and steering wheel, a crisp sounding stereo with pretty stout sub woofer, MP3 jack and satellite radio, heated seats, multiple power outlets, tilt and cruise and an outside temperature gauge.

The third generation Honda CR-V lacks the V6 but its 2.4 liter 4 cylinder engine gain additional power that reach 166 horsepower with 161lb-ft of torque which is controlled by a responsive 5-speed automatic transmission with grade logic control which can be further enhance by the addition of a performance Honda part.

The limited power is traded off for EPA mileage estimates of 22 mpg for city and 28 mpg for highway.

In addition, the EX-L 4WD has power that flows through all four wheels especially to the front but reroutes to the rear once loss of traction occurs. The strut-based front and multi-link rear suspension increase the responsiveness and driving handling while the four wheel disc brakes with electronic brake distribution together with the variable assist rack and pinion steering, a drive by wire throttle and front and rear stabilizer bars support the starts and stops.

The third-generation Honda CR-V is also loaded with standard safety features such as ABS, a tire-pressure monitoring system, brake assist, front side and curtain airbags, active head restraints, side impact door beams, front and rear crumple zones and remote entry with a theft deterrent system that is aside from its strong warranty schedule.

Source: http://www.articlealley.com/article_244609_31.html