Compare the2024 Honda AccordVS 2023 Mercedes CLA

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Honda Accord are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Mercedes CLA doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Accord are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The CLA doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Accord Touring has a standard Low Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The CLA doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The Accord’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the CLA.

Both the Accord and the CLA have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Accord its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 36 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The CLA has not been tested, yet.

Honda’s powertrain warranty covers the Accord 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Mercedes covers the CLA. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the CLA ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the Accord for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Mercedes doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the CLA.

There are almost 3 times as many Honda dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Accord’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Accord’s reliability 40 points higher than the CLA.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 11 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 19 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

On the EPA test cycle the Accord gets better mileage than the CLA:

Regenerative brakes improve the Accord Hybrid’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The CLA doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Accord uses regular unleaded gasoline. The CLA requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Accord’s standard fuel tank has 1.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the CLA (14.8 vs. 13.5 gallons).

The Accord has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The CLA doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Accord higher (7 out of 10) than the Mercedes CLA (5). This means the Accord produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the CLA every 15,000 miles.

The Accord has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The CLA doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Accord stops shorter than the CLA:

For better traction, the Accord Sport/Touring’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the CLA (235/40R19 vs. 225/45R18).

The Accord has a standard space-saver spare (not available on Hybrid) so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the CLA; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the CLA don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Accord’s wheelbase is 4 inches longer than on the CLA (111.4 inches vs. 107.4 inches).

The front grille of the Accord uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The CLA doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Accord uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The CLA doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Accord a Large car, while the CLA is rated a Compact.

The Accord has 16.7 cubic feet more passenger volume than the CLA (105.7 vs. 89).

The Accord has 1 inch more front headroom, .5 inches more front legroom, 2.8 inches more front shoulder room, 1.6 inches more rear headroom, 6.9 inches more rear legroom and 2.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the CLA.

The Accord has a much larger trunk than the CLA (16.7 vs. 11.6 cubic feet).

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the Accord offers cargo security. The CLA’s non-lockable remote release defeats cargo security.

Consumer Reports rated the Accord’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the CLA’s headlights, which were rated “Poor.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Accord has standard extendable sun visors. The CLA doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Both the Accord and the CLA offer available heated front seats. The Accord Touring also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the CLA.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Accord, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Mercedes CLA isn't recommended.

The Honda Accord outsold the Mercedes CLA by almost 18 to one during 2022.