2003 Honda Accord Euro Luxury review from Australia and New Zealand

Nothing.

The Accord Euro is indeed very European in the way it drives.

The suspension is firm, but never uncomfortable and endows the car with excellent handling. The steering is sharp and direct without being too light or over-assisted.

Honda's VTEC engines are always fast off the mark, but usually don't have the best in-gear acceleration. The Accord Euro is certinaly very different in this regard - the engine pulls strongly in virtually any gear, and can accellerate from 0 to 100 Km/H in less than 8 seconds, so the car is very quick all around.

Inside is very well equipped with dual climate control, powered and headed leather seats, 6 airbags and an electric glass sunroof and 6-disk in-dash CD changer which sounds great through the car's 6 speakers. The only thing really missing is a memory function for the drivers seat, but then again, most cars in this price range don't even have leather, let alone heated seats or most of the other features the Accord has.

There is also Honda's vehicle stability assist system which, along with the traction control, works effectively without being overly-intrusive and spoiling the fun.

On the road the Euro is very, very quiet and the engine can only really be heard when accelerating hard. The 6-speed manual is also a pleasure to use, with very short shift throws.

The Euro looks fantastic as well with an aggressive front, sleek lines and a dual exhaust (one left, one right) which makes the car look real mean from behind, and actually matches the performance.