By Moses Akaigwe 08072100049

IN June 1976 Americans were gearing up to celebrate the Bicentennial and pick a new President, singing along to the number one song on the radio, Silly Love Songs and paying just 59 cents for a gallon of gas. Along came the Honda Accord, a fun and fuel-efficient three-door hatchback, beginning a four-decade long American success story.

Over 40 years and nine generations, Accord has consistently set the benchmark for the United States and other auto industries, earning the trust of more American car buyers than any other car during that period – with sales of more than 12.7 million Accords, the vast majority produced in Honda’s U.S. plants.

The product has also been dominating the midsize segment in Nigeria where it earned for itself the sobriquet “End of Discussion” (meaning that the product is so perfect there is nothing else to add) – a marketing slogan used by The Honda Place (Stallion Motors) to drive the popular sedan right into the hearts of buyers and admirers all over the country.

Through continuous improvement and innovation, Accord has earned a reputation as a segment-defining product, delivering class-leading reliability and durability with outstanding fuel efficiency and low emissions – along with refined and responsive driving dynamics and top-class safety performance.

Accord has been named to Car and Driver magazine’s prestigious “10Best” list a record 30 times, a feat unmatched by any other automobile of any type. And while Accord built its success through the loyalty of the baby boom generation, its popularity continues with younger buyers as the top-selling midsize sedan and number two overall (to the Honda Civic) in sales to under-35 car customers for five of the past six years.

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“The Accord embodies the challenging spirit of Honda and our commitment to delivering innovative products to our customers of the highest quality, reliability and value,” said John Mendel, Executive Vice President of the Automobile Division of American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

Accord was the first Honda model and first vehicle from a Japanese automaker to be manufactured in America and has been in continuous production in America for nearly 34 years, since the start of Honda’s U.S. automobile manufacturing at the company’s Marysville, Ohio auto plant on November 1, 1982. Through the years, it also has been produced in the company’s plants in East Liberty, Ohio; in Birmingham, Alabama; in Alliston, Ontario, Canada; and in El Salto, Jalisco, Mexico. In total, Honda has produced more than 10.7 million Accords in North America for both local and global markets.

Accord was also the first U.S.- made automobile from a Japanese automaker exported overseas, beginning with the shipment of Ohio-made Accords to Taiwan in 1987, followed by the landmark export of the U.S.-made Accord Coupe to Japan in March 1988.

From its humble roots as a hatchback with a smaller wheelbase than today’s subcompact Honda Fit, to today’s full lineup of engines and body styles – including the Accord sedan and coupe and just-launched 2017 Accord Hybrid – Accord has a legacy of leadership unique in the industry. Accord’s ongoing success includes three consecutive years (2013-2015) as the top-selling car in America to individual car buyers.

The name Accord was derived from Honda’s unremitting effort to achieve “accord” between people, society and the automobile through advanced technology.