Honda?s first own designed and developed diesel will set the benchmark in the family car class

• High torque, low fuel consumption, low emissions and class leading refinement
• Outstanding performance/economy balance
• All aluminium diesel uses world-first, semi-solid casting method
• EU2004 compliant: therefore escapes UK?s 3% Benefit In Kind tax penalty for company car drivers
• Saloon and Tourer body styles, Sport and Executive trim levels
• On sale February 2004

Honda?s latest Accord has quickly established itself as one of the best prospects in the "quality" family car class. Early next year there will be a diesel version to complement respected 2.0 and 2.4 litre DOHC i-VTEC petrol engines.

It?s an important launch for Honda since it opens up potential Accord ownership to a whole new customer segment. And significantly the new 2.2 i-CTDi engine which powers it is the first car diesel unit to be fully designed and developed in-house by the company.

As such it has a lot to live up to. Honda is the world?s largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines and has a strong tradition of innovation; its customers have come to expect the very best in all-round performance.

The Accord 2.2 i-CTDi does not disappoint. Measured across a range of criteria, the new unit delivers a blend of performance, refinement and efficiency to compete with the very best in the market. A combined fuel consumption of
52.3 (Tourer 48.7 mpg) and peak torque of 340 Nm at just 2,000 rpm, are both improvements on the benchmark Audi A4 TDi 130 and BMW 320.

Moreover, with an output of 140 PS at 4,000 rpm, it delivers a level of responsiveness and acceleration that together with low engine noise and vibration make for extremely relaxed and comfortable motoring. High torque gives excellent acceleration and responsiveness at low speed for in-town driving, superior responsiveness and acceleration in the mid-range and sustained high speed driving at low engine speeds; it also brings the added benefit of minimal gear changing.
0-62 mph is despatched in just 9.4 seconds (Tourer 10.1 seconds) and 50-75 mph in 11.2 seconds.

This all-round performance is rounded off by low CO₂ emissions ? 143 and 153 g/km CO₂ for the saloon and Tourer, respectively. And it surpasses with ease the stringent Euro IV requirements. That means that Accord diesel company car drivers sidestep the 3% benefit in kind tax penalty that affects many competitors.

Behind these statistics is a specification that includes second generation common rail direct injection, four valves per cylinder, DOHC, variable nozzle turbocharger and intercooler. Particularly significant and of paramount importance in realising the aims of the development programme is a special aluminium, closed-

deck cylinder block construction. This has been made possible by an original, Honda-developed production technique that uses a semi-solid casting method to create a highly rigid, compact and lightweight engine.

The engine was developed by Honda Senior Chief Engineer Kenichi Nagahiro. Mr Nagahiro created the concept of Honda?s pioneering variable valve timing system; he was also responsible for the Indycar engine design and development programme, which in turn led to the current Formula One programme. Now he is the man in charge of the turbo diesel engine project.

Mr Nagahiro?s appointment says much about Honda?s determination to succeed with the project and is a measure of how seriously the Japanese company views the burgeoning European diesel market. Annual sales of diesel powered passenger cars in the D segment have grown dramatically in the last 10 years in the five main European markets: from just over 400,000 in 1990 to more than 1.2 million in 2002. This represents 60% of all D segment sales.

Here in Britain, sales of the Accord diesel start in February 2004. The model will be offered in Saloon and Tourer body styles, and in Sport and Executive trim variants ? with equipment broadly similar to the equivalent 2.0 litre i-VTEC petrol model. The diesel is expected to take approximately one third of all UK Accord sales, or approximately 6000 units per annum.