Hondata tune gives 2018 Accord more torque than Civic Type R

For one thing, the dearth of torque people have complained about with Honda engines is gone. For another, it's proving to be quite easy to extract even more power and torque from those engines with some computer tuning.

Honda tuning company Hondata is a prime example. The company has engine computer reflashes available that can make a Civic Sport a legitimate hot hatch, and can make the Civic Si even hotter than it already is. We even experienced the former, and for as little as $350 to as much as $695 for the computer tuner, it's excellent bang for the buck that makes a real noticable difference. Now the company has gotten its hands on the 2.0-liter turbocharged Honda  Accord, the one with a detuned Civic Type R engine. Two preset tunes are available, either Stage 1 or Stage 2. The first one is mild adding about 10 peak horsepower and 40 pound-feet of torque. As seen in the dyno plot above, that was an increase from about 266 horsepower to 276, and an increase of torque from 292 pound-feet to 332.

That should be enough for quite a bit of fun, but the Stage 2 tune goes a big step further. Shown in the next dyno plot, this tune adds about 20 peak horsepower over stock and a stunning 85 pound-feet more peak torque over stock. On Hondata's dyno, that was an increase from about 265 horsepower to about 287, and about 292 pound-feet to about 377. That's well above what the Civic Type R hyper hatch puts out, and it's all wrapped in a subtle family sedan package.

Like with the Civic computer upgrades, the Accord tune can be installed by a Hondata dealer for just $350. Or for $695, you can buy the FlashPro computer tuner and be able to install or uninstall the tunes on your personal car as you see fit, as well as do additional tuning depending on the version of the FlashPro. Finally, the preset tunes are CARB pending, so although they aren't legal in California just yet, they should be in the near future.