Hello all, my name's Frank Giovinazzi, Editor of Car Buyer's Notebook. A while back I was able to attend a one-day ride and drive for the Accord Hybrid. I only wish I had some more time with it:

http://www.carbuyersnotebook.com/arc...third_gene.htm

 

The "rpm guage" which is called a tachometer is more useful than the speedometer, well if you are an enthusiast anyways.

 

go write a book about it.

 

On a modern car with an automatic... they serve little purpose. IF you want to accelerate quicker...you push harder on the pedal and hte computer takes care of th rest....end of story.

They are handy for reference if youre trying to conserve fuel or if you actually use "1", "2" or D3 as intended. But I'd bet 95% of Accord owners will never use those selection...except on accident.

 

I use 2 and D3 a lot. You know, when you're making lots of turns and will never truly need 3rd or 4th gear. Oh yeah. Esp with a slipping transmission, saving shifts is key.

 

This is just me, but I'd rather save 11K and buy a 4 door Accord 4 cylinder. You'll still get better gas mileage than the Accord Hybrid.....You'll just lose the power...but hey, I'll have 11K more in my pocket...Not only that, but who knows the long-term...eg over 100k miles reliability of the Hybrid.

 

Wedley2: Thanks for the video link! I made a post out of it. Fun-nee.

 

I just posted a few observations from driving the one I bought under a different label, just look at my posts

 

Then I guess I must be getting to an accident a lot!

What kind of theory is that? For people that sit in a lot of traffic and don't feel like constantly shifting, there is nothing wrong with an automatic. Now, people that downshift manually with an automatic to have a little more control, there is also nothing wrong with that, and not saying that you said there was, however your accident theory just sounded like it came from thin air!