Honda vows to double annual sales of its Accord Hybrid after the 2017 version of the mid-size sedan goes on sale this spring.
The new car is part of a renewed strategy to aggressively boost sales of hybrid, electric and fuel cell vehicles in the coming years.
"In this era of sub $2 per gallon gas, we know this is a challenging target," said John Mendel, executive vice president for Honda of America.
Honda sold about 14,000 Accord Hybrids globally last year, but it stopped producing the car about half-way through the year so it could move production to Japan.
Honda unveiled the 2017 Accord Hybrid at a media reception Wednesday in Detroit along the Detroit Riverfront.
The new Accord Hybrid will get 49 miles per gallon in the city and 47 mpg on the highway for a combined 48 miles per gallon under new, more stringent U.S. EPA tests that go into effect for the 2017 model year. Under the old tests, Honda said the car easily would have achieved a combined 52 MPG or more, Honda executives said.
With that kind of fuel economy and other advances, Honda expects the Accord will become "a new volume sales pillar," Mendel said.
The Accord Hybrid will be one of several new vehicles the automaker will be launching in the coming years as it works to meet a goal of selling two electric, hybrid, plug-in electric or fuel cell vehicles for every conventional gasoline vehicle by 2030.
The Accord Hybrid is equipped with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and Honda’s two-motor hybrid system which will produce 212 horsepower. That's 16 horsepower more than the 2015 model and makes the Accord Hybrid the most powerful mid-size hybrid sedan, according to Honda.
"We’ve got a great product. And our fuel economy story is likely to get better as our competitors restate their fuel efficiency ratings," Mendel said.
The Accord Hybrid competes with the Ford Fusion Hybrid, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Hyundai Sonata hybrid and Kia Optima Hybrid and was outsold by all of them last year.
Mendel said the increased performance of the Accord Hybrid and the company's ability to build more of them in Japan will help the automaker boost sales.
"That's going to put us in a much stronger position," Mendel said. "Frankly, customers were challenged to find the prior model on dealer lots. Our supply was limited and we simply couldn’t keep up with demand."
The 2017 Accord Hybrid will be available in three trims – Hybrid, Hybrid EX-L and Hybrid Touring. A 7-inch Display Audio touchscreen as well as Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are available on the higher trim levels. The automaker did not release pricing.
2015 U.S. sales of mid-size hybrids:
Toyota Camry Hybrid -- 30,640
Ford Fusion Hybrid -- 24,681
Hyundai Sonata Hybrid -- 19,908
Kia Optima Hybrid -- 11,492
Honda Accord Hybrid -- 11,063
Source: HybridCars.com
