Big Mistake? Honda Says No More V6's For It's Sedans

Luxury automaker Audi uses 2.0L 4-cyl turbocharged engines to drive their mid-size SUVs, and the engine is no slouch. Porsche uses a 2.0L 4-cyl turbocharged engines to drive the Cayman (718), and it's no slouch.

4-cylinder engines aren't a problem, unless you hold the belief that "more is always better."

Article: "...Honda says only about 10 percent of Accord buyers were choosing the V6..."

Lack of consumer demand could be a reasonable justification to drop an unpopular option or product.

As long as it has the same or more horsepower and torque, it will be fine. The performance will most likely improve as the turbo should be lighter than the V6

Not really a mistake, but rather expected. Honda V6 is aging, inefficient, and low performing. Smaller inline fours with turbo more than makes up for the V6.

I don't think anyone who buys a Honda or Acura expect a high performance German car anyway, hence there's no real need for Honda to develop high performing engines anymore.

I don't think it's a mistake. Output of the same engine from the Type-R should be approximately 300hp. Leave the 6-cylinder options for Acura.

If the new Accord is a cleaner, larger, more elegant version of the new Civic, then Honda will have a major hit on their hands and people will forget the atrociously styled Camry.

I have always preferred the more rasping sound of a V6 over the weak burr muted by a smaller I4

Amen

Well MDarringer here here!! I totally agree. I would take a V6 ANYDAY over a 4 banger regardless if it has a turbo charge. A V6 is smoother, quieter, and LESS gear shifting than a 4 banger. I will NEVER buy any car if it's a 4 cylinder even if it has a turbo. Give me a SUPER CHARGED v6, or a strong V8.

I could care less about 1 or 2 MPGs less than a 4 cylinder. Toyota stuck those crappy 2.7 four bangers in their Tacoma and the local dealer once said to me he couldn't get rid of them. If you want to throw one in a Civic - fine. My wife's new 5 series V6 ONLY; in my Audi-6 - V6 Super Charge with plenty of HP.

Get in those big SUVs with that loud 4 banger.

@runbuh yeah, just a heads-up, this is a guy who refers to his Audi A6 (let's just assume he has one) as an "A6er", there's a lot going on there.

Probably a good move. The turbo will improve the milage numbers on the all important EPA tests (probably no real life benefit). Customers will like the increased peppiness on test drives, and probably won't notice the harshness due to the radio being on and the salesperson blabbing. All the Germans have gone to 2.0L turbos in cars that cost a lot more than the higher end Accords and they have had no problem with sales.

Toyota would love to do the same thing but they have too many camry based vehicles that sell well to the "olds".

Your bigotry toward old people aside, its all about sales and if being a hold out with a V6 option grabs sales, then it is a brilliant move. The new Camry is embargoed for another week and a half, but it not only will have a V6 option, it will have a powerful V6 option.

@md

Curious to know if you also believe that people that say terms like: "liberals", "elites", "college educated", "conservationists", etc. also demonstrate similar levels of "bigotry"?

@MorePower The use of terms like: "liberals", "elites", "college educated", "conservationists", etc. in and of themselves does not connote bigotry.

Believing that the mere use of such terms is therefore bigotry is asinine.

Furthermore, truth is not bigotry.

These days, with the number of people who think their opinion is truth, the irony is that opinion-is-truth believers are, on one hand, unable to understand the concept of bigotry while, on the other, are practicing bigotry with every breath they take, every move they make.

The all-new Camry will have a 306hp V6 available.

I hope people here are aware that even the BMW 330i has a - guess what - 2.0 4 cyl engine.

But that does not mean it's engaging to drive because it isn't.

Are people buying the accord / camry because they are engaging to drive?

@Firewombat, you missed the point. The buyer of a 3 Series expects "sport" and the 320i is astoundingly bad at that. Accord/Camry buyers expect an automotive appliance and thus a naturally aspirated 4 cylinder is under the hood of the lion's share of them.

The point of the V6 is all about sales numbers. Let's say that 1/10th of Camry buyers go for the V6. That's about 40K vehicles. Now ditch the V6. It's illogical to expect that all the buyers will still buy a Camry.

Honda likes to pretend it's greener than thou hence the ditching of the V6, but it would not surprise me if in the real world, the V6 gets better MPG than the boosted 4.

Not sure what a V6 Accord has to do with a 3-series but I think you're kind of proving my point, if people are buying these cars as appliances then they won't care about the engine, as much as the very tiny amount of car enthusiasts would. If they keep producing the V6 then they have to sell, incentivise people to buy them. If they stop making it 99% people just buy the 2L. In a car that size, the way people use them, almost certain better fuel economy will be better.

@Mdarringer your premise is wrong, very few buyers walk into Honda/Toyota stores with the intention of buying a naturally aspirated V6. The higher engine is a upsell with the promise of better acceleration and being more fun to drive. The turbo 4 will offer even more of a performance plateau over the NA 4 due to the flat torque curve. Most of the buyers won't even notice the difference in NVH between the turbo 4 and V6, especially with ever improving noise insulation. Also while the MPG benefits of the turbo 4 is questionable, the numbers on the EPA sticker will most definitely be better, and unfortunately that is more important than thel real-world MPG.

WRONG!

As someone NOT in the industry, you presume something and then call your opinion fact. You, Tom, and Steve should form a "drum" circle.

Many older buyers want a V6 because they "know" the 4 cylinder won't have enough power. You'd be surprised how many older buyers won't consider a turbo 4.

Their recollection of 4 cylinder engines is from the Arab oil embargo and they almost have PTSD when it comes to 4 cylinders. Their recollection of turbos goes back to that era as well when turbo engines failed at an alarming rate.

One of the reasons Ford put a V6 option back in the mix for the Fusion was that their research showed that older buyers wanted a V6.

But make no mistake, while the Camry V6 will likely go 200K miles with very few mechanical problems aside from normal wear, a turbo engine is still not as long-term durable as a naturally aspirated engine. The gap has closed, but there is still a gap.

So the V6 club is witling down. That V6 in the Accord sounded nice. I hope the Type R engine has a decent noise. So it's Toyota and Ford, Nissan and VW now as the standouts for reasonable cost V6 sedans. It was inevitable. I will be interested to see how the 2018 Camry drives. Yes I would agree that turbo engines do not yet quite have the durability of a N/A four or six. The heat build up may be the issue. Time will tell.

My son's V6 Honda Accord drives like a boring underpowered rental car. How much more boring will Hondas be with only 4 cylinder engines?