Honda Accord Euro :: decision on future due within months

Honda Australia director Stephen Collins told CarAdvice he had no news about the model at this stage, though said a final ruling from head office was not far away.

“I would expect a decision on Accord Euro in the next month or so,” Collins said.

He said the local division was pushing hard for a successor to the Accord Euro, though said larger markets would determine its future.

“The decision more so rests on what happens out of Europe,” he said.

“But I can guarantee you that we’re fighting to keep our two Accord strategy going because it’s been hugely successful for us. So if there is one that becomes available then we’ll absolutely be going for it.”

The Honda Accord Euro has been a pillar for the brand for much of the past decade. Sales topped 10,000 in 2005 and 2006, and averaged 6257 between 2007 and 2012. Sales rose 26 per cent in 2012 to 6155, though fell off a cliff last year, plummeting 70 per cent to 1834. It's down a further 56 per cent so far this year, with only 352 sales in the first four months, and just 44 in April.

Collins says the local division remains committed to the current Accord Euro into 2015, though admitted its future beyond that was less clear.

“We’re absolutely committed to the current one into next year, and beyond that is the uncertainty at this time. It is [struggling, but] our focus has very much been on the wide-body Accord.”

Collins said while many questions remained about the potential new model, he said what was certain was that a new-generation model would not be based on the new left-hand-drive Acura TLX.

“It’s still to be decided if it’s a goer or not … but what I do know is that it’s not a version of the Acura.”

The second-generation Accord Euro was twinned to a US model, the Acura TSX, which is about to be replaced by the TLX.

Honda has also ruled out the new Accord Euro being based on the new Chinese Honda Spirior.

Collins said logic suggested a new Accord Euro would share its basic underpinnings with the wide-body Accord.

He admitted that with so many details still up in the air, an all-new model would be unlikely to emerge until 2016 at the earliest.