Not all sedans are created equal. If you’ve been searching for a new sedan, you understand the challenge of comparing features with the dozens of manufacturers out there. Add in all the different trims and package options, and the process can be daunting. That’s why we’ve created a quick guide of two of the most popular sedans on the market today. Check out our head-to-head comparison of the 2021 Toyota Camry and the 2021 Honda Accord.
Available Trims
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Toyota offers the Camry in eight trims with a gasoline powertrain and four hybrid trims. Honda has five gasoline powertrain trims on the Accord, plus four hybrid options. More trims on the Camry give the consumer more options, which means you are more likely to find a perfect fit with the Camry than the Accord.
Edge: Toyota Camry
Exterior Style
The Camry’s front fascia is sleek and sporty with an aggressive grille and sharp nose. Chiseled lines run the length of its body for an athletic posture. Toyota’s racing division inspired the TRD model, which includes a TRD gloss-black front splitter, side aero skirts, a TRD cat-back dual exhaust with chrome tips, 19-inch TRD matte-black alloy wheels, and a rear diffuser. These performance enhancements have the TRD trim actually living up to the hype of a sport sedan.
Honda’s Accord features a re-styled front end that falls a little short of aggressive. Lower side-body cladding is the only design element running along the side of the Accord. It does feature a fastback-inspired rear roofline that slopes sharply to the trunk, but the Accord is just a little too long to pull off this look.
The Accord offers an SE Sport trim, but aside from 19-inch wheels, there really aren’t any additional performance add-ons. Honda offers a sport-designed grille and a small rear deck-lid spoiler as options, yet the grille doesn’t add to its performance, only its looks.
Two-tone color patterns are available on several Camry trims, pairing a Midnight Black Metallic roof and rear spoiler to the exterior paint you choose. The Accord comes with a power moon roof, but the Camry features a panoramic moon roof that really opens up the cabin’s interior with light and air.
Edge: Toyota Camry
Powertrain Options
Toyota’s base trim LE uses a 2.5-liter Dynamic Force four-cylinder with dual overhead cams, 16 valves with D-4S Dual Injection, and Dual Variable Valve Timing with intelligence technology. Mated to the Direct Shift 8AT eight-speed automatic transmission, this powertrain gets 203 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque. The LE Hybrid trim uses the same engine and transmission with an 88-kW electric motor to put out a total system horsepower of 208.
Toyota’s XLE and SE trim make use of the 2.5-liter engine with slightly lower power numbers of 202 horsepower and 182 pound-feet of torque. The SE Hybrid and XLE Hybrid give you the same 208 total system horsepower as the LE Hybrid. Toyota’s SE Nightshade special edition is equipped with the same powertrain and identical numbers but offers the choice between a front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive platform.
The XSE trim adds performance tuning to the 2.5-liter engine to get a little more power, coming in at 206 horsepower and 186 pound-feet of torque. Your power numbers stay at 208 total system horsepower on the XSE Hybrid trim, but you get an electronic continuously variable transmission for smoother shifting and responsive power on demand.
Power numbers take a big jump with the race-inspired TRD trim’s 3.5-liter V-6 engine with 24 valves with D-4S Dual Injection with Dual Variable Valve Timing with intelligence technology and an ECVT transmission. The result is an impressive 301 horsepower and 267 pound-feet of torque.
Honda offers three engines in the Accord lineup. A 1.5-liter inline four-cylinder on the hybrid trims puts out 181 total system horsepower. Gas-powered trims start with a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine that gives you 192 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque. The Accord’s Touring trim features a 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder turbocharged engine that puts out 252 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque.
Edge: Toyota Camry
Interior Comfort And Convenience
Both the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord come with premium cloth seats standard on the lower trims and leather seats standard on the higher trims. It’s the middle trims that differentiate the Camry from the Accord, with Toyota’s SofTex seating material. It’s beautiful like leather and much easier to clean, giving you a premium look and feel that the Accord cloth interior just can’t match.
Heated and ventilated seats are available on six Camry trims, while only the Accord Touring trim offers ventilation. Toyota and Honda both use an 8-inch touch-screen display to operate your infotainment system. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are included with both vehicles.
Edge: Toyota Camry
Driver-Assist Systems
Toyota Safety Sense 2.5+ and Honda Sensing are the two driver-assist suites that are standard in the Camry and Accord, respectively. Toyota’s suite includes a pre-collision system with pedestrian detection, lane departure alert with steering assist, automatic high beams, lane tracing assist, road sign assist, and full-speed range dynamic radar cruise control. A blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert and intelligent clearance sonar with rear cross-traffic braking are two other available systems. Every Camry comes with a 10-inch head-up display that projects critical driving data to the windshield before you.
Honda’s suite includes forward collision warning, collision mitigation braking, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, lane departure warning, and a road departure mitigation system. These systems essentially do the same as the Toyota Safety Sense 2.5+ suite. Honda offers a head-up display on the Touring trim only.
Edge: Toyota Camry
And The Winner Is…
As you can see from this head-to-head comparison, the Toyota Camry consistently comes out on top of the Honda Accord. More trims mean more options, plus it has a superior exterior style and a more comfortable and convenient interior. The Camry also has more power options under the hood and a driver-assist suite that edges out the Accord.
At Panama City Toyota, we have a large inventory of Camry vehicles to choose from. We are conveniently located on West 15th Street in Panama City, Florida. You can contact us today with any questions you might have. Our friendly, knowledgeable staff will be happy to help you and can even schedule a test drive.
