2020 Honda Accord Sport 2.0T vs. 2009 Pontiac G8 GT: Can America Get the Better of Japan?

Still, many Americans will look at the G8 and just see a Pontiac, which means they’re going to root for it when they see one next to a Honda on the drag strip.

This is actually a fascinating race. There’s a significant technological gap between the two cars, which also happen to operate based on different drivetrain philosophies – meaning one is front-wheel drive (Accord) and the other is rear-wheel drive (G8).

According to the description of the video, this is a 2020 Accord, which means it’s a tenth-generation model. It’s also the 2.0T Sport variant, meaning power comes from a 2.0-liter turbocharged VTEC four-cylinder unit, good for 252 hp (255 ps) and 273 lb-ft (370 Nm) of torque.

Everything goes to the front wheels via a 10-speed automatic gearbox, and foot to the floor, you’ll be doing 60 mph (97 kph) in 5.5 seconds, which isn’t bad at all, especially in a car that costs just under $34,000.

Now for the Pontiac G8, seen here in GT spec, which means it’s powered by a 6.0-liter V8 with 355 hp (360 ps) and 385 lb-ft (522 Nm) of torque. All that grunt goes to the rear wheels exclusively, courtesy of a six-speed 6L80 automatic transmission. On paper, it’s quicker to 60 mph than the Accord 2.0T, needing 5.2 seconds in order to get there.

In reality though, the Honda got off to a much better start, as you’ll be able to see in the footage below, but ultimately the Pontiac’s extra grunt helped the G8 GT win this short 1/8-mile race by 0.16 seconds.