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Honda freshened the Accord last year with a new engine hood and fascia up front and a new deck lid and tail lights in the rear. The overall effect is even more sharply chiseled than before. Even so, the Honda Accord is beginning to look dated. It was last completely redesigned for 1998. It retains an understated, refined appearance. The nose is short, and the hood and cowl are low, which complement the glassy cabin to provide excellent visibility from inside.

Honda designed the Accord Coupe to have its own identity as distinct from the Accord Sedan. Only the coupe's headlights and door handles are shared with the sedan. It was enhanced last year by a more aggressive look to the bumpers, a body-colored front grille, and new alloy wheel designs. The Coupe is a handsome car, and a good choice for busy executives who want a car that is both sporty and practical.

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Honda used airline business-class seating as a model for the Accord interior, which is a marvel of space efficiency. The front seats are wide and comfortable and there's a surprising amount of room for rear seat passengers. It is a true mid-size sedan. Generous front and rear door openings make it easy to get in and out. It's easy to load cargo because the trunk opening is large and offers real luggage capacity.

Leather interiors are available in light tones that are warm and inviting, really nice. The instrument panel features a two-tone finish with big gauges that are highly legible. Features associated with luxury cars abound, particularly on the high-level models. Sun visors offer sliding extensions. A HomeLink remote control system can be programmed to open garage doors, turn on house lights and turn off security systems. The air-conditioning system, designed to quickly cool the car down after getting in on a hot day, uses an air filtration system to keep pollen out and reduce diesel fumes from buses and trucks.

Our Honda Accord EX V6 came with a superb 6-disc in-dash AM/FM/CD stereo. It sounded great. And the controls are a paragon of excellent design with big buttons that are easy to identify and use. This one does not require any reading of the owner's manual nor does it require taking your eyes off the road for long periods of time. Switching among six CDs, changing songs, scanning stations is all easy to do.