I stumbled across this bit of info. Not sure what pictures they are referring to but....
"The 2017 Honda Ridgeline is thought to be coming out with an integrated
spoiler built in to the tailgate and we have seen flares on the fenders.
We are expecting the engine to be the V7 3.5 litre and it should give
out 280 horses."
Enthusiasts excited about the new turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine in the 2016 Honda Civic might not be too happy with the transmission options.
A color matrix for the 2016 Civic leaked on AutoGuide.com‘s 10thCivicforum.com suggests
that a six-speed manual transmission will only be available with the
base 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and not with the more expensive and
powerful 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder. What’s worse for
drivers looking for a fun experience, the turbo engine is rumored to
only be available with a CVT.
The base engine is expected to offer 158 horsepower, the most ever
offered in a base Civic, while the turbocharged 1.5-liter should deliver
174 hp.
When asked about the rumor, Honda spokesperson Robyn Eagles said, “We
have not confirmed it publicly, yet.” This seems to suggest that the
rumors are true and Honda simply hasn’t announced it yet. All of the
details on the Civic will officially be released on October 19.
Honda says this Civic was designed from the start to bring back the
car’s fun-to-drive roots. Honda claims body rigidity is up 25 percent,
while weight is down 68 pounds, for the body at least. Also helping in
the handling department is variable gear ratio steering, larger front
and rear stabilizer bars and brake-torque vectoring.
Our friends at CivicX have spotted a brand new 2016
Honda Civic Sedan in a parking lot sitting next to the outgoing coupe.
The size differences between the two are quite obvious - especially in terms of width - in
the attached images and there's now more room between the two axles as the
wheelbase has been stretched by 1.2 inches (3 cm) to enable superior rear legroom. The sloped roofline enables
a sleek profile that matches the outgoing coupe while the all-new
boomerang-shaped taillights give the 2016 Civic a distinctive rear end. It's
also more imposing with that large chrome grille and the lowered ride height
gives it a sporty feel.
This pre-production prototype has a Taffeta White
paint and lacks the optional LED headlights, but still comes with LED daytime
running lights and taillights which will be standard across the entire range.
Under the hood it has either the upgraded 2.0-liter normally aspirated engine
or the new 1.5-liter turbo teamed up to a tailor-made continuously variable
transmission.
Despite being larger than its predecessor, the new Civic has
lost 68 lbs (30.8 kg) and this will have a positive impact on the fuel
economy which according to Honda will be good enough to make the Civic Hybrid
and Civic Natural Gas redundant, with both engines enabling the sedan return
more than 40 mpg US on the highway.
Sales of the tenth-gen Civic will kick off this fall in
United States while the UK-developed Euro-spec
version will debut at the beginning of 2017 as a five-door
hatchback. Besides these two, there's also going to be a new coupe, Si
and a Type R which for the first time is US-bound.
Additional images can be found at the source link below.
Honda's tentatively named FCV fuel cell vehicle is a pre-production
prototype of the five-seat hydrogen-powered sedan expected to go on sale
next year
TOKYO -- Honda Motor Co. will unveil two visions of the future at
October’s Tokyo Motor Show: A near-production version of its hydrogen
fuel cell fastback sedan and a bell-shaped, omnidirectional, autonomous
driving concept vehicle.
Both vehicles tap wider industry trends toward zero-emissions drivetrains and self-driving technologies.
The tentatively named FCV fuel cell vehicle is a pre-production
prototype of the five-seat hydrogen-powered sedan expected to go on sale
next year. It gets slightly toned-down sheet metal from the sleek
futuristic concept that Honda unveiled in November 2014.
Honda’s booth-like Wander Stand autonomous driving concept is a
compact, joystick-equipped two seater that deploys the company’s Omni
Traction Drive System to move in any direction, even sideways.
FCV vs. Mirai
Honda’s upcoming hydrogen car follows this year’s release of the
Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicle from Japanese rival Toyota Motor Corp.
Honda said it expects its FCV production model to deliver a full-tank
driving range of more than 700 kilometers (435 miles) and a refueling
time of three minutes. That compares with the Mirai’s 312-mile range.
The FCV is also lower, wider and longer than the Mirai, and seats five to the Mirai’s four.
Honda said its fuel cell vehicle achieves a truer low-hood sedan
silhouette thanks to a downsized fuel cell stack that fits compactly
into a normal-sized engine bay.
The stack generates 130 kilowatts at a power density of 3.1 kilowatts
per liter. Electricity is stored in lithium ion batteries that power
the wheels through a 130-kilowatt motor.
Compact stack
Honda said it reduced the size of the new fuel cell stack by a third,
from its previous generation technology, so that it is about as big as a
3.5-liter V-6 gasoline engine.
That will enable Honda to deploy the power plant in various vehicle
types, which will help popularize the technology, the carmaker said.
Placement of the entire stack under the hood also allowed Honda to free
up cabin space and squeeze in the fifth seat.
Many automakers are positioning hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as a
future alternative drivetrain. The systems generate electricity through a
chemical reaction in the fuel stack between hydrogen and air. Heat and
water vapor are the only emissions.
But making the costly systems practical remains a challenge, and has
led to tie-ups in developing the technology. Honda has already teamed
with General Motors to develop a next-generation hydrogen fuel cell
system due around 2020. Toyota is cooperating with Germany’s BMW AG, and
Nissan Motor Co. has partnered with Daimler AG and Ford Motor Co.
Honda introduced its first fuel cell vehicle in 2002. GM launched a
test fleet of hydrogen-powered Chevrolet Equinox crossovers in 2007.
Also in the game is Hyundai Motor Co., which began leasing its hydrogen
Tucson compact crossover in California in 2014.
With the FCV's cabin, Honda aspired to create an “advanced modern lounge.”
‘Modern lounge’
Honda said its latest FCV’s exterior design is based on a “bold and
aero” concept to deliver a low, wide stance and sleek profile. The
gaping front side-gills of the earlier concept have been mainstreamed,
as have some of that rendition’s character lines.
But the overall look cleaves close to last year’s concept, with
slightly trimmed rear wheel flaps covering just the tips of its 18-inch
aluminum wheels.
“We sought beauty as a sedan as well as a sprit of innovation
befitting a model that breaks through to new age,” Honda said in a
statement.
Inside, the cabin aspires to be an “advanced modern lounge,” with
warm-feeling, high-quality materials and a clean simple design that
creates spaciousness, Honda said.
The Wander Stand: Honda’s latest experiment in the realm of autonomous driving.
Honda also is highlighting the FCV’s dual use as an emergency power
source, a point particularly salient in disaster-prone Japan, notorious
for its earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis. In a crisis, the fuel cell
stack transforms into a “movable power station,” that can be connected
to outside devices and power a typical home for seven days, Honda said.
Honda unveiled the previous concept late last year and promptly said
that the company was pushing back its on-sale date as part of a global
product quality review.
It said it aimed to introduce the car in Japan by the end of March
2016 and in the U.S. and Europe afterward. Previously, Honda had said
the car would go on sale in Japan and the U.S. in 2015.
Free mobility
The Honda Wander Stand is the automaker’s latest experiment in the realm of autonomous driving.
The concept uses the same omnidirectional in-wheel motor system that
propels Honda’s Uni-Cub personal mobility device. The Uni-Cub is a kind
of motorized stool that people can steer in any direction simply by
tilting their bodies. Think Segway with a seat.
The Wander Stand's windshield acts as a large head-up display to enable navigation, phone calls and e-mail.
The Wander Stand aims to explore “free mobility” through a
self-driving mode that allows the riders to connect with the outside
world through onboard telematics. The windshield, for example, acts as a
giant head-up display to enable navigation, phone calls and e-mail.
Hybrid Odyssey?
Also in Tokyo, Honda will display a hybrid version of its
Japan-market Odyssey minivan, which is different from the North American
vehicle of the same name. It gets an updated version of the two-motor
electric-gasoline powertrain used in the Accord Hybrid.
That vehicle is expected to go on sale in Japan next spring. A Honda
spokeswoman declined to comment on whether the U.S. Odyssey would be
getting a hybrid variant.
Honda
has unveiled the new Greiz for the Chinese market which is set to take
on cars like the Volkswagen Santana. The car will be officially launched
on the coming 7th of November.
Now don’t get confused, Honda has two joint ventures in China namely
Dongfeng Honda and Guangqi Honda. Guangqi Honda already sells the City
sedan in China so Honda has developed another B-segment sedan in
collaboration with Dongfeng Honda. The new Honda Greiz measures 4495mm
in length, 1705mm in width, 1477mm in height and sports a 2600mm
wheelbase. The car will be offered with a 1.5-Litre i-VTEC petrol engine
mated to a CVT gearbox, the same combo that is offered on the Chinese
Honda City.
The Greiz is completely redesigned version of the Honda City (something
like the Skoda Rapid and Volkswagen Vento in India but by the same
company) and it shows. The exterior has a completely new design in the
front and the rear whereas the interior is pretty much the same as that
of the City. It looks more like the next generation 2016 Civic and the
recently facelifted Japanese Honda Vezel.
No complaining though as this is a pretty catchy design and will work
well with youngsters purchasing their first sedan. On the insides as
mentioned earlier, it is pretty much the same as the Honda City which
means it gets a 6.2-inch infotainment system, similar chunky steering
wheel with mounted audio control buttons and a touchscreen interface for
the climate control system.
The Honda City in India comes with 1.5-litre petrol and diesel engines mated to a
5-speed manual and a 6-speed manual gearbox respectively. The petrol
also features a new 7-step CVT automatic gearbox which is quite a
popular choice among City buyers in India.
If your car lasts more than 200,000 miles, consider yourself part of an
elite membership of high-mileage owners. But this particular Honda CR-X,
according to Tampa Honda
in conjunction with @SuperSecretCar off of twitter has more than one
million original miles on the same engine and transmission it came out
of the factory from. According to Duy Nguyen who actually saw the CR-X
in person, “I took my TSX in for service and they had this CR-X in the
service department. Original motor and transmission.” To add to the
credence of his statement, Duy queried the service department and
according to Tampa Honda, officials from Honda Motor Co. stripped apart
the original motor and transmission and confirmed that the serial number
from the CR-X matched those for the vehicle. Meaning to say this Honda
CR-X was 100 percent legit. Check out the picture of the CR-X provided
by @SuperSecretCar above!
Honda recently revealed its all-new, 10th-generation Civic, but so far only in the car's sedan bodystyle. There’s still a new Civic Coupe waiting in the wings and this time around we’ll also see a Civic Hatchback offered.
It was previously thought the hatch would simply be the Civic Hatchback currently sold overseas,
as Honda confirmed earlier in the year that we’ll be getting the hatch
from the plant in the United Kingdom responsible for the current Civic Hatchback.
However, Honda confirmed this week that a next-generation Civic
Hatchback, one sharing the global platform developed for the
10th-generation Civic, will be introduced in Europe in early 2017, and
it’s almost certain this is the version we’ll see in local showrooms. It
will still be sourced from the U.K. plant, but it will be a
next-generation design completely unrelated to the current Civic
Hatchback.
Our spy shots show a test mule for the vehicle,
which means the sheet metal you see here is not an indication of the
final design (in fact, the makeshift body combines elements from the
current Civic hatch as well as Acura's ILX). The car should feature the
same interior design and mechanicals as the Civic sedan, which means
powertrains will include turbocharged 1.5- and 2.0-liter four-cylinder engines. There will also be a new Civic Type R variant, a test mule for which has also been spotted.
We should see the new Civic Hatchback unveiled sometime in 2016, as a 2017 model
The
Accord audio and digital experience also is significantly upgraded with
the application of a 7-inch Display Audio touchscreen interface
featuring Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™, on EX and above trims, as
well as available HondaLink™ Assist (e911) and HD Radio. The intuitive
and easy-to-use capacitive touchscreen lets users swipe, tap and
pinch—just like on a tablet or smartphone—to control the vehicle’s audio
system, display settings and other advanced features.
Apple
CarPlay® and Android Auto™ are designed to support seamless smart phone
integration and offer a multitude of new functions and features.
Apple
CarPlay® takes the things you want to do with your iPhone while driving
and puts them right on your car’s built-in display. You can get
directions, make calls, send and receive messages, and listen to music
right from the touchscreen or by voice via Siri. Supported apps include
Phone, Messages, Maps, Music and compatible third party apps. Apple
CarPlay® is compatible with iOS 8.4 or later and iPhone 5 or later.
Update: During its WWDC 2015
keynote, Apple announced that CarPlay will soon go wireless – no need
to connect to your car's USB port. However, the company didn't specify
whether this connection would occur over Bluetooth or another wireless
connection protocol.
The firm also announced that CarPlay will
soon support a wider range of screen sizes and resolutions, not to
mention apps developed by the auto makers themselves. Original story follows...
The first Apple CarPlay cars are beginning to roll off the assembly line following the much-mooted "iOS in the Car" project announcement in March 2014.
With
our digital tech barely having made a scratch on the largely analogue
in-car experience, the automobile is considered by many to be the next
great tech battleground along with the Apple Watch.
Because
the lifespan of a car is so long compared to the lifecycle of digital
technologies like phones and the software they run, the challenge is to
create a smart in-car infotainment system that can stay up to date even
as your car ages.
Most of the big names in the auto industry have
their own systems, but in the last couple of years they've all been
converging on one simple idea – that smart in-car tech needs to be
driven by our external devices because they get updated regularly, with
the car being just the passive conduit.
We've already seen several Android Auto
in action, offering integration with Android smartphones. And that now
brings us to Apple CarPlay, a new way of building a car that starts
smart and stays that way.
What is CarPlay?
CarPlay is not
an in-car system that runs iOS or iOS apps. It's a system that
integrates your iPhone apps with your car's digital systems, allowing
you to control them and your device, more easily.
The idea is that
you plug your iPhone into your car via a lightning cable, and it
instantly handshakes with your vehicle. You can then use the
functionality of your iPhone without having to fumble around with it and
take your eyes off the road. It's safer, easier and more convenient -
or that's the idea, anyway.
Play your iPhone's music through your car's audio system
What can CarPlay do?
"The basic idea of CarPlay is it allows you to use all your iPhone functionality without actually touching the device."
The
idea of CarPlay is that it allows you to use all your iPhone's
functionality without actually touching it. So that includes playing
your music, navigating to the shops, taking phone calls, reading and
text messages.
In theory, there are no limits to the interplay.
Perhaps you'll even be able to turn your wipers on and off simply by
talking to Siri or unlock your vehicle using your iPhone - but that's a
way off even if it's possible.
From the start, you'll be able to
use your iPhone's phone and messaging functionality, play your iTunes
music, navigate using Apple Maps and watch videos.
However,
Apple's plan is to allow third parties to build CarPlay compatibility
into their apps, making them usable through the system.
Take calls and have your text messages read out to you
Confirmed apps with CarPlay features incoming are: Spotify, Podcasts,
Beats Radio, iHeartRadio and Stitcher. Expect a smorgasbord of other
options to be revealed in time - we foresee a future where all relevant
iOS apps are built with CarPlay in mind.
How do you control Apple CarPlay?
There are three ways to control CarPlay, and none of them include touching, looking or even thinking about your iPhone.
1. Control CarPlay using Siri
Using
Siri, you'll be able to talk to your vehicle and tell it what to do.
That includes playing music from your favourite band or even requesting a
specific playlist. You'll also be able to have your messages read out
to you before you dictate your reply.
2. Use a touchscreen display
Some
CarPlay cars will come with touchscreen displays cooked into the
dashboard. Using this display, you'll be able to open and close apps
using a very simple homescreen. This will certainly be the most
straightforward method of using CarPlay - expect touchscreen options
being added to new car models.
3. Use your knobs
Of
course, your car will still have physical buttons, knobs and controls
and you'll still be able to use these alongside the touchscreen and Siri
options. Volume controls, track skip and the like are all seemlessly
integrated and will work as expected.
Use Apple Maps as an in-dash sat nav system
Can CarPlay drive me home?
CarPlay is not a driverless
technology. So the command "Siri, drive me home" will no-doubt simply
trigger a typical pre-planned sarcastic Siri response. "You.. are..
having.. a.. laugh.. aren't... you...David?"
However, what CarPlay
can do, is use your iPhone's Apple Maps app to guide you while you
drive. If you have an in-dash display, the Maps app will launch a sat
nav style window that will give you turn-by-turn guidance without you
having to put your iPhone in your field of view. If you don't have a
display, you'll still get the turn-by-turn audio cues.
Is my iPhone compatible with CarPlay?
Apple
CarPlay requires a certain amount of oomph and a lightning connector,
so older iPhones with a 30-pin dock connection are simply not capable of
running it.
When it was first announced, only the lightning port-equipped iPhone 5S, iPhone 5C and the iPhone 5 were compatible. Since then, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have been added.
Are there any CarPlay cars yet?
The singularly and therefore
appropriately named CarPlay is riding solo right now. Only one automaker
supports Apple's in-dash system.
The expensive Ferrari FF is the first and only commercially available vehicle in the world with Apple CarPlay.
Yes,
Mercedes and Volvo were revved up to deliver the same iPhone-compatible
experience in 2014, but were delayed into next year with the rest of
the pack.
On the upper-end, the Volvo XC90 SUV and Mercedes-Benz
C-Class will join Honda, Hyundai and Jaguar models, which have been set
up for a 2015 release date since the beginning.
We've seen both the 2015 Hyundai Sonata and 2015 Chevrolet Volt
with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto side-by-side, and fully expect
more commitments from BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ford, KIA, Land Rover,
Mitsubishi, Nissan, Opel, Peugeot-Citroen, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota.
Volvo has posted a cool CarPlay video:
Can you get CarPlay for your existing car?
Just bought a car?
Fret not. Apple CarPlay aftermarket solutions are coming from companies
like Alpine and Pioneer to make existing cars compatible with iPhone's
in-dash experience.
CarPlay support in these receivers will arrive
in the form of a firmware update to Pioneer's existing line of 2014 NEX
units, which range in price from $700 (about £449, AU$861) to $1,400
(about £900, AU$1,730).
Additionally, Mercedes is one automaker
that said it'll soup up its existing cars. It's already committed to
installing CarPlay in its C-Class vehicles and word is that it's
building a unit that will allow current Mercedes drivers to make use of the CarPlay technology.
Are there any rivals to CarPlay?
Predictably,
Google is already heavily involved in this space. In fact, with its
huge investment in Google Maps and driverless car technology, some would
say that Google is already well ahead of Apple when it comes to in-car
tech.
After
a side-by-side test drive comparison, we found that Android Auto has
two advantages: it features Google Maps and a slicker Google Now-powered
interface.
But Android Auto isn't street legal in existing cars
at the moment, with the 2015 Hyundai Sonata vying to be the first to use
Google's system. It's also only available to Android users.
What does Apple say about CarPlay?
"CarPlay
has been designed from the ground up to provide drivers with an
incredible experience using their iPhone in the car," said Greg Joswiak,
Apple's vice president of iPhone and iOS Product Marketing.
"iPhone
users always want their content at their fingertips and CarPlay lets
drivers use their iPhone in the car with minimized distraction. We have
an amazing lineup of auto partners rolling out CarPlay, and we're
thrilled it will make its debut this week in Geneva."
As Apple
CarPlay arrives in 2015 cars that aren't as expensive as the Ferrari FF,
we'll continue to test drive iPhone's official in-dash experience and
update this page and see how it compares to Android Auto. Joe Osborne also contributed to this report
HDMI ports are pretty commonplace in the world of consumer electronics,
but less so in the automotive realm. That's starting to change, though;
they've even found their way into relatively inexpensive cars like
Cars.com's long-term Honda Fit. The port is included on EX and EX-L trim
levels, which also come with a 7-inch touch-screen multimedia system,
and it lets you play audio and video from any device that outputs those
signals through an HDMI cable, according to Carl Pulley of Honda
technical public relations.
Connecting an HDMI source is straightforward. First, I plugged a Type A
HDMI connector into the Fit's HDMI port, which is at the base of the
dashboard next to the standard USB port. I connected the other end of
the cable to a Lightning connector adapter so I could plug it into my
iPhone, which served as my media source for this test. After selecting
HDMI on the Fit's touch-screen, an image of my phone screen appeared on
the dashboard display. Whether swiping on my phone to a different page
of apps or opening one of them, the dash screen responded in kind.
2015 Honda Fit;
Cars.com photo by Evan Sears
The connection, however, doesn't let you use the touch-screen to
interact with your content; you have to use the device itself, according
to Pulley. That more sophisticated capability is present in services
like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, both of which are rolling out on model-year 2016 cars, and HondaLink, which uses your smartphone to enable navigation functionality, among other features.
I noticed some color inconsistencies between my phone's screen and the
duplicate image on the dashboard touch-screen, as well as some
graininess. However, image and color quality improved greatly when
playing a YouTube video and a video on my phone. The picture was crisp
and clear, and sound quality was good. There was just a hint of screen
jitter in scenes with a lot of motion.
2015 Honda Fit;
Cars.com photo by Evan Sears
The setup's big drawback is that you can only view video when the Fit
is stationary, and that's to be expected considering the placement of
the touch-screen in relationship to the driver. Shift from Park to Drive
and the touch-screen will revert from whatever you're watching to the
HDMI input menu. The associated audio will, however, continue playing
through the car speakers. So while you could use the HDMI port to pass
route guidance commands from your Google Maps app through the speakers,
you won't see the map on the dash screen — or be able to listen to the
radio.
Since the HDMI port is only fully operational when the Fit is
stationary, its overall usefulness is limited. With smartphone screens
available in larger sizes and the rise of tablets, there have never been
more ways to bring videos on the road — and to do so without the
restrictions that come with a screen that's fixed to the dashboard. Most
Honda Fits in Cars.com's new-car inventory
have an HDMI port, but after testing it and knowing how many portable
media devices are available to consumers, I can't see it getting regular
use.
This isn't cost-cutting. This is outright cynical deceit.
Most of the time, media test cars are distinguished only by a license
plate that might bear a discreet "manufacturer" tag. Audi diesels,
though, are a different matter. Whether a Q7 or an A3, the diesel press
cars from Audi (which is part of the Volkswagen group) always bear
towering "TDI Clean Diesel" decals across their flanks. I guess the
theory is that when the cars are out on the road they're serving double
duty as billboards, spreading the gospel about the Volkswagen group's
engineering prowess.
A
few years ago I bought a nasty Ford F350 diesel for an engine swap, and
I parked it next to an Audi A3 and took a few shots to capture the
juxtaposition: truck from the dirty diesel past, Audi harkening to the
clean-burning future. That certainly looks ironic today.
There's no cheap fix nor easy settlement here.
If you're not up to speed on Volkswagen's shenanigans, you can catch up here.
Suffice to say that it seems the A3's sanctimonious TDI Clean Diesel
stickers were relevant only when the cars were actually undergoing an
EPA emissions test. Out in the real world, 2.0-liter Volkswagens and
Audis were as much as 40 times above the legal emissions limit for
nitrogen oxides (NOx). According to the EPA, about 482,000 four-cylinder
Volkswagens and Audis built since 2009 included what the agency defines
as a "defeat device," which is really just software that detects an
emissions test and "turns full emissions controls on only during the
test." The cheater software was discovered by researchers at West
Virginia University who were trying to document the cleanliness of
modern diesels. Volkswagen surely wishes they hadn't bothered.
The
revelation of this emissions subterfuge answers at least two questions
about VW's mighty little diesel. The first concerns urea injection,
which every other modern diesel uses to pass emissions tests. The
urea-injection systems help to neutralize NOx emissions, but they also
add weight and cost to the car, and saddle car buyers with yet another
tank of liquid that must be monitored. If you run out of this diesel
exhaust fluid, it's like running out of fuel—on trucks with such
systems, running dry on urea triggers a severe limp-home mode with a 5
mph speed limiter. That's how seriously the EPA takes NOx.
Everyone
wondered how VW met emissions standards while foregoing urea injection.
As it turns out, they didn't. It wasn't magical German engineering.
Just plain old fraud.
The second question concerned
fuel economy. It's been widely noted that four-cylinder TDIs tend to
smash their EPA fuel economy estimates in real-world driving. The last
TDI Jetta SportWagen I drove was rated at 42 mpg highway, but on 60-mph
two-lane roads I averaged more like 50 mpg. That's a huge difference.
Did running non-compliant emissions improve fuel economy? That's
possible. And if so, that raises an interesting question: When the
cheater VWs emitted too much NOx, were they also emitting a lot less CO2
thanks to improved economy? Maybe the good doesn't offset the bad, but
it's something to consider. You can bet that VW's lawyers will.
The intentionality behind the deceit makes this situation different from even a huge-scale recall.
So, how is Volkswagen going to fix this? Putting aside the
inevitable fines, possible criminal charges, and massive public
disgrace, there are half a million cars running an emissions setup that
never should've left the factory. And there's no quick fix to make up
for VW's lies.
All the other carmakers control diesel
emissions by spraying a urea solution into the exhaust stream, where a
catalyst converts it to ammonia. The ammonia breaks down NOx into
nitrogen and water. If all of that sounds like it would be tough to bolt
right in, you're correct. Maybe VW can meet the standards without
adding equipment—say, by tweaking the engine control unit (ECU) with a
different tuning. But what if that new tuning meets the emissions
standards but sacrifices performance or fuel economy? Now you've got
482,000 customers on a class action lawsuit.
There's no
easy way out of this, but they'd better figure something out, and
pronto. Right now dealers are banned from selling 2.0-liter TDIs, which
make up about a quarter of VW's U.S. sales. News of the scandal caused
VW to lose about a quarter of its market value, indicating that
investors understand how bad this is. There's no cheap fix nor easy
settlement here.
The intentionality behind the deceit
makes this situation different from even a huge-scale recall. This isn't
a story about a part that was made one cent cheaper than it should've
been, where a car company cut a corner to save a little cash. It's about
a huge corporation eying the rulebook and deciding there's a
competitive advantage in violating the Clean Air Act. Incompetence is
one thing, but calculated mendacity is quite another.
It's too
bad. That Golf SportWagen TDI is a punchy, fun car. It's got great fuel
economy, tons of torque and a bargain price. But when something seems a
little too good to be true, maybe that's because it is.
Honda has commenced testing procedures for a production
version
Concept
D
and our spies caught a prototype testing in Spain.
Earlier this year at the Auto Shanghai in China we saw Honda's
radically styled mid-size SUV featuring a fastback-like rear end. At that
point, Honda said their plan is to roll out a production version in 2016 exclusively
for the Chinese market where it would act as the company's flagship model. Now,
a fully camouflaged prototype has been spotted undergoing testing in Spain.
To put it nicely, the concept was far from being one of
Honda's most attractive designs and hopefully the translation to a production
car will bring a more appealing body. Despite the massive disguise, the
mid-size SUV appears to look significantly toned down and seems to have a very
flat rear window. The rear end will definitely be the most interesting or
perhaps controversial part of the design and hopefully it will be less busy
compared to the concept.
Little else is known about the production car, but Honda
said during the Concept D's reveal the road-going model will have "advanced
safety technologies and other advanced features" to be worthy of the
range-topping status in China.
Those who were disappointed that animator PES wasn't hired for this Ikea spot will rejoice today upon seeing the Oscar nominee's latest brand work—a remarkable two-minute Honda spot from RPA that tells Honda's entire history though an intricate paper-flipping journey.
The spot, titled "Paper," which took months to make, broke Sunday during CBS's NFL games. It features thousands of hand-drawn illustrations from various artists—filmed by stop-motion wizard PES—that show Honda's mobility products through the years.
It opens with founder Soichiro Honda's use of a radio generator to power his wife's bicycle, and continues through the company's development of motorcycles, outboard motors, CVCC vehicles, automobiles, race cars, robotics and more.
The film, while devised in CGI, was shot practically, with a few scenes stitched together.
onda has told its history many times before—notably in spots out of Wieden + Kennedy London like 2013's "Hands" and, going back a decade, "Impossible Dream."
Much like the "Hands" spot, "Paper" aims to embody—rather than just
tell—the Honda brand promise, by being as impeccably engineered as the
products themselves.
"The goal is for the marketing itself to become a demonstration of
Honda thinking and all the people that touch our wide range of products
along the way," said Tom Peyton, assistant vice president of marketing
for American Honda Motor Co. "This commercial stands for the courage and
conviction to imagine and make dreams a reality and speaks to Honda's
innovative nature and respect for personal achievement and
contributions."
Conceptually, "Paper" is about as stripped down as you can get—every
complex vehicle, after all, starts with a few sketches on paper. And the
details pay off the lofty concept, as we move from the sepia-toned
early scenes to modern graph paper by the end.
The tagline is, ""You never know where a dream will lead you."
The spot will get further full two-minute airings on network shows
including Dancing with the Stars, Rosewood, Minority Report and Blue
Bloods, and on ESPN next weekend during Saturday College Football. A
60-second version will air throughout October on NBC, CBS, Fox and ABC.
It's also on Facebook and YouTube.
Check out the behind-the-scenes video below, including commentary from PES himself.
Some of you may have seen these already, they were taken in July of this year, don't know how I missed it, these are some of the clearest pictures that I've seen yet.
US-built supercar to commence mass production in Northern Hemisphere Spring of 2016
Honda has today confirmed that mass NSX production will commence in the Northern Hemisphere Spring of 2016.
Speaking
at Honda's Frankfurt Motor Show press conference, Philip Ross, Senior
Vice President of Honda Motor Europe, the NSX "is in the final stages of
development."
Ross confirmed that "trial production is underway
at the Raymond, Ohio plant", and that "mass production will commence in
the North American spring of 2016, with deliveries to commence shortly
after."
It was originally planned to commence NSX production at around this point, in the 2015 northern hemisphere autumn.
The
delays were apparently due to ensuring the twin-turbo V6-powered,
nine-speed DCT hybrid machine could deliver on its claim to "offer a new
supercar experience", though it has previously been noted that it was
the decision to turbocharge the V6 that delayed progress, as a bespoke
engine needed to be built as a result.
The latest information
suggests that NSX will eventually go on-sale in Australia in late-2016, though don't be
surprised if that is pushed out into 2017.
