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One headline read, "Sips Gas. Hauls Ass." Environmentalists pinned the term "muscle hybrid" on the Accord. David Welch of BusinessWeek, as if shocked, wrote, "The car bursts onto the road. Yea, this car—an environmentally friend and fuel-efficient hybrid—really did burn a little rubber."
There’s only one problem: Sales of the Accord Hybrid ran out of gas. Sales reached 16,826 units in 2005, but as the field of hybrids expanded (to include the Camry Hybrid), customers vanished. Sales of the gas-electric Accord slid to 5,598 in 2006. In June 2007, Honda gave up the ghost, announcing that it was discontinuing the hybrid version of the Accord.
The removal of the Accord Hybrid from the market follows Honda’s decision in 2006 to discontinue the Honda Insight, America’s first hybrid. While the Honda Insight was the reigning fuel efficiency king for six years, the two-seat teardrop designed vehicle was not practical for many car buyers. Unlike the Toyota Prius, a runaway hit because it strikes the right balance between practicality, adequate performance and superior fuel efficiency, Honda erred with the Accord Hybrid by falling below hybrid-level fuel economy numbers and failed with the Insight because it only had two seats.
Slipping sales never meant that those who did buy the Accord Hybrid weren’t happy. By all reports, they continue to be ecstatic. Dr. Oliver Sachs, who wrote The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, loves his. The Accord Hybrid converted auto economist Dr. Walter McManus (a blogger on this site) from a hybrid naysayer to a hybrid advocate. And Dr. Leon S.—another doctor—who found the Prius and Civic short on power and amenities, finds his AH a pleasure to drive.
It’s mysterious that Honda decided to discontinue the Accord Hybrid entirely, rather than moving the hybrid powertrain into the four-cylinder Accord. Perhaps the company is starting from scratch with its hybrids, and putting its resources into the new, smaller hybrid-only subcompact expected in 2009. With the release of the yet-to-be-named new Honda hybrid, the company is likely to regain its position as producer of the most fuel-efficient vehicle available in the U.S. market—and will put the mistakes of the Insight and Accord hybrids in the rear view mirror.
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