Honda Accord Hybrid vs Hyundai Sonata Hybrid: which is more reliable?
The Hyundai Sonata Hybrid is clearly ahead of the Honda Accord Hybrid on the federal record: 84/100 against 67/100 across every model year we score.
The record, side by side
Honda Accord Hybrid
- 11 model years scored
- 2,629 owner complaints on record
- about 33 complaints per year on the road
- 34 recall campaigns, 25 safety-critical
- best year 2017 (89/100) · worst 2019 (32/100)
Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
- 13 model years scored
- 746 owner complaints on record
- about 6 complaints per year on the road
- 33 recall campaigns, 20 safety-critical
- best year 2019 (94/100) · worst 2012 (59/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Accord Hybrid against Sonata Hybrid
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Honda Accord Hybrid
- Electrical System — 828 complaints
- Engine — 479 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 351 complaints
Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
- Engine — 324 complaints
- Electrical System — 194 complaints
- Service Brakes — 101 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Accord Hybrid's complaints concentrate in Electrical System, the Sonata Hybrid's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Honda Accord Hybrid — avoid: 2014, 2015, 2019, 2023.
Hyundai Sonata Hybrid: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018….
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Honda Accord Hybrid prices at about $28,100 and a Hyundai Sonata Hybrid at about $28,100 — they price within $1 of each other, which at this level is the same money, and they return 48.0 against 47.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Honda Accord Hybrid or the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid scores 84/100 against the Honda Accord Hybrid's 67/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The Hyundai Sonata Hybrid carries about 6 complaints per year on the road against 33 for the Honda Accord Hybrid.
Which Honda Accord Hybrid and Hyundai Sonata Hybrid years should I avoid?
Honda Accord Hybrid: 2014, 2015, 2019, 2023. Hyundai Sonata Hybrid: no year scores below 45. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Honda Accord Hybrid and the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid?
The largest complaint group on the Honda Accord Hybrid is Electrical System (828 complaints); on the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid it is Engine (324).
Is the Honda Accord Hybrid or the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid cheaper to own?
A recent used Honda Accord Hybrid prices at about $28,100 and a Hyundai Sonata Hybrid at about $28,100, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.