I traded in an 06 Accord for an 07 Camry Solara for some of the same reasons, stiff ride and road noise. I found the Toyota to be much more refined than the Honda, HOWEVER, the Toyota soon revealed it's cons. When I'd mash the gas, the transmission would literally pause for moments before it would respond and downshift. The rear shelf would rattle so bad during cold mornings that it sounded as if I had two blown speakers in the rear. The overall driving experience just became very numb and I found myself having a case of buyer's remorse. So, I went back to an Accord and haven't looked back. Yeah, it's got a little more road noise and it isn't quite as refined as the Yota, but it's got many other attributes that make it worth the drive. The Honda just has a level of responsiveness that a lot of other cars in this class just can't match. I believe I had the sportiest mid-sizer Toyota makes... and although it was great during the new car honeymoon, it got very boring very fast.