Compare the2023 Volvo S60VS 2023 Honda Accord

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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The S60’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Accord doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the S60 and Accord have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The S60 Plus/Ultimate/Polestar has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Accord’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The S60 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Accord doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The S60 has standard Post-impact braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Accord doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

The S60 offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Accord doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The S60 offers an optional 360° Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Accord only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the S60 has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Accord EX/Sport/EX-L/Touring has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the S60 and the Accord have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and driver alert monitors.

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, with its optional vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the S60 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 112 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Accord has not been tested, yet.

Warranty

The S60 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Accord’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The S60’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Accord’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the S60 for 1 year and 12000 miles longer than Honda pays for maintenance for the Accord (3/36,000 vs. 2/24,000).

Reliability

The battery on the S60 is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the S60’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Accord’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

Engine

The S60 B5’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 55 more horsepower (247 vs. 192) and 66 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 192) than the Accord’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder. The S60 B5’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 43 more horsepower (247 vs. 204) than the Accord Hybrid’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid. The S60 T8’s standard 2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cylinder hybrid produces 251 more horsepower (455 vs. 204) than the Accord Hybrid’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the S60 running on electricity gets better mileage than the Accord:

			MPGe
S60
	AWD	T8 Electric Motor	74 city/73 hwy
Accord
			MPG
	FWD	EX-L 2.0 4-cyl. Hybrid	51 city/44 hwy
		Sport/Touring 2.0 4-cyl. Hybrid	46 city/41 hwy
		1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	29 city/37 hwy

The S60 T8 can travel with zero emissions for 41 miles. The Accord can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

The S60 has 3.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Accord Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (15.9 vs. 12.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The S60 has 1.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Accord’s standard fuel tank (15.9 vs. 14.8 gallons).

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the S60’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Accord:

	S60 T5	S60 Polestar	Accord	Accord Hybrid
Front Rotors	12.7 inches	14.6 inches	11.5 inches	12.3 inches
Rear Rotors	11.9 inches	12.6 inches	11.1 inches	11.1 inches

The S60’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Accord are solid, not vented.

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the S60 has larger tires than the Accord (235/45R18 vs. 225/50R17).

The S60’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Accord LX/EX/EX-L’s standard 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the S60 has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Accord LX/EX/EX-L.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the S60’s wheelbase is 1.7 inches longer than on the Accord (113.1 inches vs. 111.4 inches).

For better maneuverability, the S60’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the Accord’s (37.1 feet vs. 38.4 feet).

Chassis

The S60 is 7.6 inches shorter than the Accord, making the S60 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Cargo Capacity

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the S60’s trunk lid uses concealed beam hinges that don’t intrude into the trunk. The Accord’s useful trunk space is reduced by its intrusive beam hinge.

Pressing a button automatically lowers the S60’s optional rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Accord doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The S60’s standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The Accord’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the S60’s power trunk can be opened or closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Accord doesn’t offer a power or hands-free opening trunk.

Towing

The S60 has a 2000 lbs. towing capacity. The Accord has no towing capacity.

Optional Trailer Stability Assist on the S60 uses the Dynamic Stability and Traction Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Accord doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the Accord Sport-L/EX-L/Touring, the S60 Ultimate/Polestar has a passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The S60’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Accord’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

If the windows are left open on the S60 the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Accord can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The S60’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Accord’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the S60 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Accord doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The S60 offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Accord doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the S60 has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Accord doesn’t offer cornering lights. The S60 also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The S60’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Honda only offers heated mirrors on the Accord EX/Sport-L/EX-L/Touring.

The S60’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Accord offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

On extremely cold winter days, the S60’s optional heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Accord doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The S60 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Accord EX/Sport/EX-L/Touring.

The S60 Plus/Ultimate/Polestar’s Park Assist Pilot can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Accord doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Volvo S60, based on reliability, safety and performance.