2018 Toyota Camry XSE V-6 vs. 2018 Honda Accord Touring 2.0T Comparison

By Mustaqim Jaed at December 11, 2020 Post a Comment

For more than three-quarters of family-sedan buyers, the base engine provides more than enough zip to get around town. Some like it hot, though, and for that remaining fraction, both Honda and Toyota offer powerful optional engines.

Comparing the mainstream powertrains for these two cars, we found the Accord to be the all-around superior vehicle. With the matters of rear-seat space, trunk capacity, number of USB ports, and smartphone integration already settled, we’ll focus singly on how well the versions with the big engines deliver on their sporting pretensions.

Honda replaced its 3.5-liter V-6 with a 2.0-liter turbo-four derived from the—wait for it—Civic Type R. Yes, Honda’s street-racing beast lent its engine to its sibling family sedan. At 252 hp, it’s down 26 hp on the old V-6, but the turbo breathes an extra 21 lb-ft of torque for a healthy 273, which comes on much lower in the rev range. You can have it with an all-new 10-speed automatic or a six-speed manual. It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for them.

The challenger walks loudly and consists of a huge stick. Under the SE/XSE bodywork stays Toyota?S mighty three.5-liter V-6, all 301 hp and 267 lb-toes of it. It?S to be had completely with an all-new 8-speed automated, and on paper it seems to have the Accord beat. Such a capability benefit is loudly telegraphed by using all of the racy bits brought to the automobile, including quad exhaust guidelines, black wheels, faux vents, and a fish-pout fascia that?S arguably more good-looking than the gigantic grille that looks like an air-situation vent on the base vehicle. The Honda, though not quite, both, eschews the boy-racer treatment and lets its 2.0T trunk badge do the speakme.

Despite the energy downside, the automated Accord is 0.1 2d faster to 60 mph than the Camry, and it posts an same quarter-mile time.

Although rowing your personal gears is for sure greater amusing, the Honda stick shift?S throws and snatch pedal journey are each lengthy?Possibly to ease the go back and forth drudgery of a short-shift box?And this adds a 1/2-second penalty each to the zero?60 and sector-mile times. One ridiculous factor: You need to interact the digital parking brake before you could begin the guide-transmission Accord. Patch that, pronto, Honda.

Behind the wheel, the guide-transmission Accord feels the most competitive?There?S no ready at the torque converter to fasten up. The Camry, meanwhile, doesn?T experience as sharp off the line but comes alive at four,000 rpm and pulls hard to redline. The automated Accord, in the meantime, is the Q-deliver of the crowd, with a long, easy pull of electricity. Its 10-velocity additionally plays higher on the way backpedal through the gears, supplying downshifts more without difficulty and easily than the Camry?S.

It?S the identical situation in the corners. The Accord, in particular the Touring version with its adaptive dampers, feels confident and planted. Even without the flowery dampers, excessive-zoot Accords have better tires than the bottom model, which facilitates spotlight its outstanding frame manipulate and extraordinarily flat cornering. The seats on sporty Accords should use thicker side bolsters, but regardless, it?S a remarkably capable and a laugh circle of relatives sedan on a again street.

The Camry, for all its bravura, is less succesful while pressed. The steerage is lighter but less fluid, with an aggressive ratio without delay off-center that makes the auto sense darty and fearful. This and the high-stop surge from the engine make it experience as though you?Re going quicker within the Camry while you?Re actually not. It leans extra in corners than the Accord, and frame motions aren?T as properly managed, all of that's made worse by the flat seats that don?T even try and hold you in vicinity.

In fact, this hotted-up Camry handles much like the 4-cylinder Camry XLE, with simply a bit greater cornering speed, thanks to stickier tires. With the V-6 engine also available on XLE fashions, as far as we will inform the XSE is often a body package and tires, now not a real game model?The dearth of nook-access downshifts are a disappointing omission. That stated, we have been able to hustle the Camry V-6 round a song faster than most people are going to do in the real international.

The skidpad tells the story. The Camry XSE V-6 pulls best one-10th of a g tougher than the XLE 4-cylinder and 3-tenths of a g weaker than the Accord 2.0T Touring on common. The XSE V-6 makes use of its more power to make up time at the determine eight, however the 2.0T Touring is proper at the back of it pulling barely higher common g.

It?S the equal story in preventing. The Accord has a quite aggressive brake pedal with robust preliminary chunk for a family sedan and little pedal tour had to get the task executed. Its substantially upgraded tires additionally assist with preventing distances. The Camry, with the aid of contrast, has an extended and smooth brake pedal, which is partially answerable for extending its prevent from 60 mph through 7 ft.

With the Camry XSE V-6 dealing with so just like the XLE four-cylinder, you may expect it to experience and drive the same, too, and you?D be right. The Camry rides truly corporation for a circle of relatives sedan, however the Accord 2.0T with fixed dampers rides about the identical?However it does have higher body manage to take away the head toss of the Camry. Step as much as the Touring?S adaptive dampers, and the Accord rides higher, too. In exams zooming around a closed-path oval, the Accord felt greater composed at a hundred twenty five mph than the Camry did at 90.

Once again, it?S a clean win for the Accord. It?S quicker, handles better, and is extra enjoyable to pressure speedy. It additionally rides higher and expenses less for more stuff, and you could even get it with a manual transmission. That?S for 2 for Honda.

Read our comparison between the 2018 Honda Accord 1.5T and 2018 Toyota Camry 2.5 right here .