2008 Honda Accord vs. 2007 Toyota Camry

In the automotive world, there's no shortage of archrivals-two major players that battle for supremacy, day in and day out. Whether it's for sales titles, track times, or magazine comparison-test victories, being number one is an automaker's ultimate goal. From Camaro versus Mustang and Evo versus Sti to S-Class versus 7 Series and Supra versus Z, these combats of style, power, and agility have defined competitors throughout history. Today, no clash is more significant than...Accord versus Camry? You bet.Over the past decade, the Honda Accord and the Toyota Camry have waged war over "bestseller" bragging rights, with each moving around 400,000 per year. Camry has taken the title nine of the last 10 years, but Accord has always been right on its tail, even grabbing the title in 2001. For greater perspective, since Toyota introduced the Camry to the U.S. in 1983, it has sold nearly seven million copies; the Accord, which bowed in 1976, has found almost 10 million buyers.

Last year when Toyota introduced its seventh-generation Camry, the SE V-6 version -- mightiest of the lineup -- promptly laid claim as the most powerful (268 horses) and quickest (0 to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds and the quarter mile in 14.6 at 97.0 mph) Camry ever sold in America. Not only did it possess more horsepower than a Porsche Cayman, but it was also just as hasty to 60 and through the quarter mile as a 300-horse 2007 Jaguar XK. The new benchmark? Absolutely.

Honda's Accord, then in the final year of its seventh generation, was a stellar sedan in its own right. But in light of the new Camry, its age was beginning to show. As a company that prides itself on innovation, Honda is never happy when its most important model can be described as aged. For 2008, the tide has changed, as the only thing old about the Accord is its name.

Introduced to the media in Boston, the all-new Accord is fresher than an heirloom tomato at Whole Foods. Every aspect of the eighth-generation car, from styling and interior to engine and chassis, has been reworked. The hybrid has been dropped, as have LX trims for V-6-powered cars; the coupe gets sexy styling and an available six-speed manual (see sidebar), and there are two more-powerful four-cylinder options for the sedan (see sidebar). Rather than simply report our general impressions of the new Honda, we thought it wiser to commandeer a topline EX-L V-6 and pit it against the aforementioned king of the class, the Camry SE V-6. With a bit of finagling, some secrecy, and a 4 a.m. wakeup call, we managed to squeeze in a full day of comparative driving around Beantown.

Accord versus Camry. And may the best benchmark win.