Honda Launches U.S. Hybrid Resurgence

Honda Motor Co. describes the introduction of its 2014 Accord Hybrid sedan on Oct. 31 as the first salvo in the company's battle to reclaim hybrid leadership in the U.S. from Toyota Motor Corp.

Honda became the first company to sell hybrids in the American market when it debuted the Insight three-door in 1999, shortly before the arrival of the Toyota Prius. Honda says the new Accord powertrain will be a strong contender against the Prius and Ford Fusion Hybrid.

The Accord Hybrid, which has a U.S. combined highway/city rating of 47 mpg, will start at $29,200 about the same price as a comparable V-6 gasoline-powered Accord. The Prius, with a combined rating of 50 mpg, is the only non-plug-in hybrid in the U.S. with a higher efficiency rating.

Toyota expects to sell 250,000 Prius cars in the U.S. this year compared with about 19,000 vehicles for Honda's hybrid lineup. Honda anticipates Accord Hybrid sales of 2,500 to 4,000 units per month, comparable to the Fusion Hybrid and the Toyota Camry Hybrid.

Honda's next hybrid, due before year-end, will be a sport hybrid version of the premium Acura RLX sedan. A variation of its three-electric-motor, all-wheel-drive powertrain also will be used in the 2015 NSX supercar.

Smaller and less expensive Honda models will be equipped with a version of the simple single electric motor hybrid system used in the Fit in Japan.