Car and Driver compare seven of America most popular family sedans, searching for value and verve. The 7 sedans are: Cevrolet Malibu LT, Dodge Avenger SXT, Ford Fusion Sel, Honda Accord EX, Hyundai Sonata LTD, Nissan Altima 2.5S, and Toyota Camry LE.

In its 32-year existence, the Accord has landed on C/D’s 10Best Cars list 22 times. We must have cost Honda a pile of cash in trophy cases alone. In this group, our Accord carried the highest base price, but it was because we wanted to sample the 190 horsepower that comes with the EX, rather than the base LX’s 177. It paid off. Our test car was the second quickest to 60 mph.

The Accord’s essential goodness, how-ever, doesn’t derive from power alone. Even with the standard stability control chipping away, our EX was also the fastest through our lane-change test.