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Although there's no direct connection, it's worth bearing in mind that the diesel engine project was headed by one of the company's top technical men, Kenichi Nagahiro, previously involved in its Indycar engine programme. He's another of the Honda engineers seconded in his younger days to a "remote" motorsport project before being brought back to HQ to work at a high level on production cars.

The design team gave the four-cylinder intercooled diesel engine a balancer shaft, tuned the front and rear suspension to suit European driving conditions (since the diesel Accord is, to repeat, intended only for the UK and European markets) and came up with an ingenious arrangement which uses warmed-up air conditioning gas, boosted in temperature by the engine coolant system, to heat the cabin before the engine is ready to provide hot air on its own.

So what's the new engine like, in figures? The exact capacity is 2204cc, the peak power output is 138bhp at 4000rpm, and Honda - whose petrol engines are maximised more for ultimate power than for torque - is rather pleased at the 250lb/ft its turbo diesel produces at 2000rpm.

Weight And Shape Take Their Toll

There's quite a difference in performance and economy between the saloon and the heavier Tourer - and on the road the Tourer is considerably noisier than the saloon, because its large and echoing load space allows much more in the way of wind and tyre noise to reach the passenger cabin.

The saloon, by contrast, is one of the quietest, smoothest and most refined diesel-powered cars on the market. It manages the 0-62mph sprint in 9.4 seconds and goes on to a maximum of 130mph. If it hadn't been able to beat 60mpg in the extra urban economy test, it wouldn't really have been in the running, but the official figures are 61.4mpg extra urban and 52.3mpg combined. Similarly, 150g/km would have been the target for CO2 emissions, and the actual result is well below that on 143.

While the diesel Tourer has the same substantial load volume as its petrol equivalent, otherwise it loses out all the way to the saloon.

Some cars from the Far East are promoted as having been tuned to handle well on European roads, and they don't all justify the claim. But on some informal test routes over A-class, B-class and minor roads in obscure areas of the relevant Ordnance Survey map, the saloon in particular was light and agile to drive, properly balanced, and at ease on fast bends and tighter corners alike.

Controls, instruments and so on are naturally as in the petrol versions, while both the saloon and the Tourer are of course very roomy, front and rear, compared with other cars in their class. Honda hasn't taken on board, though, the prime directive about interiors, that no car worthy of premium status can have shiny wood-effect trim instead of the genuine article.

The entry-level model is the 2.2 Sport saloon at £18,700, with the Executive at £20,200. There's a £1000 premium in each case for the Tourer. These are competitive prices, and it has certainly made a difference that what is, in terms of world-wide engine production, the big beast has started to roam the diesel jungle.

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