QOTD: Are You Missing the Coupe Yet?
It won’t have escaped your attention that Honda hauled the wraps off its 10th-generation Accord on Friday. Some good things were added: trunk space, a ten-speed automatic, and turbocharged engines. However, as Soiricho gives, Soiricho also taketh away: the V6 disappeared, as did the coupe.
The move wasn’t surprising, as coupes (and non-crossovers in general) are currently enjoying the popularity of fish-flavored toothpaste. With their numbers dwindling, what car currently on sale today would you like to see as a coupe?
In 2005, I bought a three-year-old Accord Coupe, finished in silver with black leather seats and powered by the four-cylinder engine of the day. Back then, the Accord Coupe looked significantly different from its sedan brother, at least once one got aft of amidships. Designing a completely different (and, in my mind, wonderful) set of taillights for a low-volume Accord variation couldn’t have been cheap. This means I held the keys to a brace of silver two-door cars at one time: the Accord and the Mark VII. I’ve never fully considered that choice until this very moment.
The current Ford Fusion is a fetching looking thing, one which I think would be made even prettier if it shed two of its doors. The thought of the current aggro-Camry in coupe form would surely make Steph Willems weep, just as a twin-doored Malibu would arouse some of the Bowtie fans amongst us. A two-door Chevy SS would’ve been cool, but there’s an argument to be made that one is available in the form of a Corvette.
Of course, none of these dreams will ever come to fruition. The market has voted with their wallets and, with one notable exception, most buyers in search of a midsized car want them with doors that are four. How about you? If given the chance to coupe-ify a current model, what would it be? Or would you even bother?
Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.
More by Matthew Guy
Comments
Join the conversation
What I like most about Coupes is the position of the B pillar further back. The forward position of the B pillar is a major annoyance if you have long legs. However, a relatively long wheelbase 4 door sedan achieves this result with the added utility of 2 additional doors for rear seat passengers.
My daily driver is not only a coupe, but it's also a convertible and RWD! (from certain point of view, as Obi-Wan Kenobi used to say). Take that, Honda!