For 2026, the Ohio-made Honda Accord gets mid-cycle updates after its 11th generation introduction in 2023. Those updates are minor compared to previous generations because the Accord — the second best-selling non-pickup truck in America just 11 years ago — has seen sales plummet by nearly 60% in a dying mid-size sedan market.

Accord is a touchstone for the dramatic trends that have roiled the U.S. industry.

The first Japanese car to be assembled in the United States in 1982 under threat of protectionist U.S. trade policies, it rode a wave of consumer demand for reliable, fuel-efficient Japanese cars to become America’s #1 car in 1990 at 417,179 units. Since recording 388,435 unit sales in 2014 (second only to the Toyota Camry), Accord sales have been pirated by America’s newfound love affair with the SUV. With its 2026 update, the gas-electric hybrid Accord is a bridge to Honda’s all-electric future as it moves production to Indiana to make way for Honda’s 0 Series electric vehicles in Marysville.

“Midsize and large sedans were family vehicles,” said Stephanie Brinley, auto analyst with S&P Global. “Then along came compact and midsize SUVs that gave you more utility, easier ingress/egress and cargo space that’s easier to use. They don't have a huge fuel economy hit, and you sit up a little bit higher. It's all about how that functions within the family.”

Since 2014 — the year Taylor Swift’s hit “Shake it Off” climbed the charts — Accord sales have fallen 42% to just 162,723 in annual volume. Accord is not alone. Hyundai Sonata sedan sales in 2024 (61,701) are just 28% of what they were a decade ago. The Nissan Altima? Just 34% (113,896). Only the perennially best-selling midsize Camry at 309,875 (72% of its 428,606 in 2014 sales) has maintained respectable numbers.

This despite significant models like the Ford Fusion (306,860 sales in 2014), Chrysler 200 (117,363 units), and Volkswagen Passat (96,649 sold) having exited the market. The customer has fled to SUVs.

Honda, for example, introduced the subcompact HR-V SUV in 2015 and then accelerated to 151,468 sales last year. And the compact CR-V SUV (the compact SUV class is comparable in vehicle footprint to the midsize sedan) — which trailed the Accord at 338,581in sales in 2014, Matthew Stafford’s fifth year as Lions’ QB — is now the brand’s best-seller with over 400,000 units sold (402,791), an increase of 15% in 10 years.

No wonder, then, that the ‘26 Accord — in contrast to previous generations — will get minor updates.

Where previous model mid-cycle refreshes got new front/rear fascias and interior features, the 2026 Accord (available in six trims) will look the same — its Sport model gaining some black trim bits and the SE model adding 19-inch wheels. Other updates standardize features already available like a 9-inch touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto compatibility, and wireless phone charger.

“It’s a way to refresh the sedan without spending as much money,” Brinley said. “Is a little bit more body work going to have a big impact on sales? Maybe not. Is updating the infotainment system going to make customers happier? Probably. Accord’s probably got a smaller budget to work with.”

The electronic updates continue another major auto trend toward large tablet screens since Tesla wowed the market in 2017 with a 15-inch screen anchoring the interior.

Accord is also pivoting to a sportier, more high-tech model than its halcyon family-sedan days.

“The 11th-generation Accord continues to resonate with a diverse range of buyers,” said Jessika Laudermilk, assistant vice president of Honda Auto Sales. “For the 2026 model, we're raising the bar even higher, offering a vehicle that . . . delivers advanced tech features, sporty styling and premium driving experience.”

That driver-centric vibe has thrilled enthusiast media outlets that have praised the roomy Accord’s recent sleek styling as well as its nimble handling compared to taller, boxier SUVs.

“The Accord drives with an effortless cohesion,” thrilled Car and Driver this month in naming the sedan to its 2026 10Best list. “Its ride is supple enough to lull to sleep those buckled into the spacious three-across rear seat during long highway slogs. At the same time, it retains the handling dynamics that make flogging this unassuming sedan down twisting tarmac an absolute joy.”

Despite its sales swoon, the $29,590 Accord is an American icon in part because Honda has had an uncanny read on U.S. consumer tastes. In 1982, Accord was the first Japanese car assembled here as the company sought to build closer to its customers as well as avoid a protectionist wave in Washington threatening import quotas.

Accord’s U.S. assembly led a revolution in non-union, transplant U.S. manufacturing, and today nearly half of U.S. autoworkers are employed by foreign bands.

Accord is part of another trend that Honda hopes will transform the industry.

Along with siblings Civic sedan and CR-V SUV, Accord is pushing gas-electric hybrid powertrains in its 11th-gen model, part of a transition to all-electric cars by 2040 that Honda calls its Second Founding.

“More than 50% of Accord sales are hybrid-electric trims which is a key part of the Honda electrification strategy,” said Honda in its 2026 Accord press release.

Accord is vacating the Marysville plant where it has been built for 43 years to make way for a new generation of Honda EVs. Accord will share a production line in Indiana with the CR-V and compact Civic sedan. In its place, Honda has built a flexible Marysville assembly line capable of making everything from the gas-powered Acura Integra to the automaker's new, battery-powered 0 Series SUV and Saloon models.

“Electrification now is a little bit different from what we were expecting before,” CEO Toshihiro Mibe told The Detroit News in Tokyo last month of Honda’s plan to end gas-engine sales by 2040. “Maybe (we’ll see a) five-year delay as compared to our first expectations. And probably that means from 2040 on, the electrification will have to go faster. But as long as humankind has not abandoned efforts for global warming innovation, we have to keep up with our responsibility.”

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