We've had Accords and a '97 Outback.
Posted by: g2d
on Nov-02-12 12:56 AM (EST)
Our stick Outback 4 got 29 mpg with no boats and no racks, and 25-26 mpg or so with a single ww tandem canoe on Yakima crossbars. In the SE, one seldom needs AWD for snow, and only occasionally for ice, but the Outback is outstanding on heavily rain-puddled highways, and extra competent when negotiating long stretches of gravel road.
Our latest Accord is an '08, and gets 32 mpg highway mileage with no boat and no racks. It gets 27 mpg with racks and one ww tandem on top. Last weekend we got Sandy tailwind going to New Orleans, and clocked 28 mpg. All of our Accords track straighter in crosswinds than our Outback, with or without boats. The latest Accord holds cruise control speed as well as the Outback, in spite of being much longer geared.