The ninth generation of the Honda Accord for the U.S. market was different than the one offered in the European market, which looked more like an American Acura. But the 2012 Accord was a piece of evolution.

It was smaller than the previous generation, which was already too big for a mid-size sedan. Actually, the eight-generation Accord was rated as a large sedan by the EPA due to the interior volume. So, the Honda stepped back a few inches from the length. The Accord has to be on the podium of the mid-size sedans, not somewhere on the bottom of the large-sedans.

The outside look has been changed by a bit, not too much but enough to differentiate it by its older brother. The new front fascia featured a raked grille and narrower headlights when compared to the 8th generation.

Inside, there was a new dashboard, that looked more like the 9th generation of the European Accord with the same place for the infotainment unit and its controls. The navigation and voice-commands were part of the equation. Due to the decrease in size, the interior room was not as big as in the 8th generation, but it was enough for five adults.

The powertrain was upgraded. For the four-cylinder engine, the Accord was available with an intelligent CVT gearbox that had few preset gears and mimics an automatic gearbox. But it was more efficient. It was more efficient even than the 6-speed manual transmission offered for the Accord. The V6 version though was available with a 6-speed automatic only. For those concerned about the environment, a hybrid and a plug-in hybrid were available.