Compare the2022 Honda AccordVS 2022 Mercedes A-Class

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Honda Accord are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Mercedes A-Class doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Accord Sport 2.0T/Sport SE/EX-L/Touring are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The A-Class doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Accord deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Accord’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The A-Class’ airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Accord Touring has standard Low Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The A-Class doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Accord’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the A-Class.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Accord Sport 2.0T/EX-L/Touring’s standard rear cross-path warning system uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The A-Class doesn’t offer a cross-path warning system.

Both the Accord and the A-Class have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available blind spot warning systems and rear parking sensors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Accord its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 80 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The A-Class has not been tested, yet.

Honda’s powertrain warranty covers the Accord 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Mercedes covers the A-Class. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the A-Class ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 3 times as many Honda dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Accord’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Accord’s reliability 41 points higher than the A-Class.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. With 29 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Honda higher than Mercedes.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 15 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

The Accord’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 4 more horsepower (192 vs. 188) than the A-Class’ 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Accord’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 64 more horsepower (252 vs. 188) and 52 lbs.-ft. more torque (273 vs. 221) than the A-Class’ 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Honda Accord 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Mercedes A-Class:

On the EPA test cycle the Accord gets better mileage than the A-Class:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Accord uses regular unleaded gasoline. The A-Class requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Accord has 1.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the A-Class (14.8 vs. 13.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Accord has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The A-Class doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Accord higher (7 out of 10) than the Mercedes A-Class (5). This means the Accord produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the A-Class every 15,000 miles.

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Honda Accord 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the A-Class.

The Accord has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The A-Class doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Accord stops much shorter than the A-Class:

For better traction, the Accord has larger standard tires than the A-Class (225/50R17 vs. 205/55R17). The Accord Sport/Touring’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the A-Class (235/40R19 vs. 225/40R19).

The Accord’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the A-Class’ standard 55 series tires.

The Accord has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the A-Class; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the A-Class don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Accord’s wheelbase is 4 inches longer than on the A-Class (111.4 inches vs. 107.4 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Accord is 1.1 inches wider in the front and 2.4 inches wider in the rear than the track on the A-Class.

The Accord Touring handles at .89 G’s, while the A 220 pulls only .87 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The front grille of the Accord Sport SE/EX-L uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The A-Class doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Accord uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The A-Class doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Accord a Large car, while the A-Class is rated a Compact.

The Accord has 12.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the A-Class (105.6 vs. 93).

The Accord has .5 inches more front legroom, 3.2 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear headroom, 6.5 inches more rear legroom and 2.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the A-Class.

The Accord has a much larger trunk than the A-Class (16.7 vs. 8.6 cubic feet).

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the Accord offers cargo security. The A-Class’ non-lockable remote release defeats cargo security.

The Accord 2.0L Turbo offers up to a 1000 lbs. towing capacity. The A-Class has no towing capacity.

Consumer Reports rated the Accord’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the A-Class’ headlights, which were rated “Poor.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Accord has standard extendable sun visors. The A-Class doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Both the Accord and the A-Class offer available heated front seats. The Accord Touring also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the A-Class.

The Accord will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Accord will retain 49.19% to 52.23% of its original price after five years, while the A-Class only retains 44.32% to 44.51%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Honda Accord will be $4231 to $13680 less than for the Mercedes A-Class.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Accord, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Mercedes A-Class isn't recommended.

The Accord was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 25 of the last 25 years. The A-Class has never been a Car and Driver “Top Ten” pick.

The Accord 2.0T Sport was chosen as one of Automobile Magazine’s “All Stars” in 2018. The A-Class has never been an “All Star.”

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Accord as the 2018 North American Car of the Year. The A-Class has never been chosen.

The Honda Accord outsold the Mercedes A-Class by over 20 to one during the 2021 model year.