Honda Has Developed a Completely New EV Battery

by Daniel Rufiange

 

When it comes to the relatively new domain of electric mobility and the technologies that surround it, question marks are common, uncertainty the only certainty. And one of the big unknowns concerns the type of battery that will be used in electric cars of the future. Enter Honda and its possible solution to longstanding problems to do with range, cost, safety and environmental impact.

 

A team of scientists at Honda Research, working in collaboration with the California Institute of Technology and NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab, have completed development of a new type of battery using room-temperature fluoride-ion technology. Up until now, these types of batteries could only be used when at a temperature of 300 F (or 149 Celsius) or above.

What are the advantages of using a fluoride-ion as opposed to a lithium-ion battery, you ask? There are two main benefits, according to Dr. Christopher Brooks, the head of Honda Research.

"Fluoride-ion batteries offer a promising new battery chemistry with up to ten times more energy density than currently available Lithium batteries. Unlike Li-ion batteries, FIBs do not pose a safety risk due to overheating, and obtaining the source materials for FIBs creates considerably less environmental impact than the extraction process for lithium and cobalt."
- Dr. Christopher Brooks, Honda Research

The potential safety and environmental benefits make the technology worth exploring.

Much works needs to be done before the new battery can be put to widespread use, of course, but Honda says that fluoride-ion batteries could well be the future of electric-car battery systems, not to mention any other products that require batteries.

Source;
https://www.auto123.com/en/news/honda-ev-battery-fluoride-ion/65391/

Inside Honda's ghost town for testing autonomous cars

by Roberto Baldwin of www.engadget.com

On the edge of the San Francisco suburb of Concord, California sits a ghost town. Dilapidated buildings and cracked roads are framed by overgrowth and slightly askew street signs. The decommissioned five acre portion of the Concord Naval Weapons Station that once housed military personnel and their families is now home to squirrels, jack rabbits, wild turkeys and Honda's mysterious testing lab for autonomous vehicles.

This former town within a Naval base -- now dubbed "GoMentum Station" -- is the perfect testing ground for Honda's self-driving cars. An almost turn-key solution to the problem of finding somewhere to experiment with autonomous vehicle inside an urban area. Thanks to the GoMentum Station, the automaker has access to 20 miles of various road types, intersections and infrastructure exactly like those found in the real world. Just, you know, without all the people getting in the way. While the faded lane markers and cracked asphalt might initially make it difficult for the car to figure out what's going on around it, that's exactly what you want when training a self-driving system.

Many roads in the real world are also in dire need of upkeep. Just because autonomous vehicles are hitting the streets doesn't mean the funding needed to fix all the potholes and faded lane markers will magically appear. The real world doesn't work that way and the robot cars that will eventually make our commutes less of a headache will need to be aware of that. Plus, it's tougher to train a car to drive downtown than to barrel down the highway at 80 miles per hour. A company is going to want to get as much practice as possible.

While semi-autonomous driving on the everyone-going-the-same-way-at-a-constant-speed freeway is already a reality, navigating in an urban environment is far more complex. If you've driven on the streets of Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago or Seattle you know that driving downtown takes far more concentration than cruising down the interstate.

With all that in mind, Honda's tricked out Acura RLX did a good job during an (admittedly very controlled) hands-free demo. It didn't hit either of the pedestrians walking across its path. It stopped at stop signs and even maneuvered around a mannequin situated in the middle of the road.

The reality is, watching a car drive around the block and safely avoid stuff is boring. Not to metion, Google has been doing this for a while in the real world. A few people joked that maybe someone should leap in front of the car to add some excitement. Honda, unsurprisingly, didn't seem too keen to that idea.

But, when it comes to autonomous cars, mundane is good. Boring driving is safe driving. Sure it was like watching an overly cautious driving instructor giving a lesson on how to avoid collisions. But, then you remember, there is no human in control. All the sensors, cameras, GPUs and development needed to keep the car from running into a pedestrian is insane.

Honda's Chief Engineer of Research and Development, Jim Keller, said the automaker has access to the facility for the foreseeable future. Part of the deal is that it has to take care of the upkeep. Eventually it'll paint new lines and add new signs. It's even going to create the driving conditions of European and Japanese roads. GoMentum Station will eventually go from quaint overgrown town to bustling car-testing mini-metropolis as the company aims for a 2020 release of an autonomous car. Just don't tell the squirrels.

Check this link out for more pictures and a video;
Source;
http://www.engadget.com/2016/06/02/inside-honda-gomentum-station/

Honda is Working on an Engine with Different-Sized Cylinders

by Jason Siu of www.autoguide.com

Honda has filed an interesting patent that could reveal what it is working on for its next generation of engines.
 

Found on Japan’s patent office database, it appears that Honda is working on a solution that would vary the stroke of each cylinder in an engine, allowing each cylinder to have a different displacement. For example, if you take a current Honda 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine where each cylinder has 500cc of displacement, you can only vary the displacement in four different ways, either 500cc, 1000cc, 1500cc or 2000cc depending on how many cylinders are firing.

The new technology could offer more than four different total displacements working at the same time, with a smaller gap between each of them. Given four cylinders of varying sizes, there are a total of 15 different combinations of one-to-four cylinders firing. Yes, that essentially means an engine could have 15 different displacements working at a time.

Interestingly enough, the patent describes how the technology would work on inline- two, three and four-cylinder engines as well as a V6. Presumably, this type of setup would help increase fuel efficiency, but Honda didn’t disclose what the purpose was. 

Source;
http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2016/05/honda-is-working-on-an-engine-with-different-sized-cylinders.html

Honda CEO to shift gears, distance sales teams from car design process - sources

Nearly a year into his job, Honda Motor Co CEO Takahiro Hachigo plans a back-to-the-future shift at the Japanese automaker, driving clearer demarcation lines between those who develop cars and those who sell them, two senior company insiders told Reuters.

TOKYO: Nearly a year into his job, Honda Motor Co CEO Takahiro Hachigo plans a back-to-the-future shift at the Japanese automaker, driving clearer demarcation lines between those who develop cars and those who sell them, two senior company insiders told Reuters.

The thrust of the changes, to be unveiled by Hachigo in Tokyo on Wednesday, will be to reduce the influence ofsales and marketing teams on car design, reversing moves by previous chief Takanobu Ito, the people said.

"Over the years, our product development process became overly complex and slow, involving a huge number of engineers and sales and marketing people," said one of the two Honda executives. As a result, "we began producing watered down, uninspiring, what you might call designed-by-committee, cars."

Hachigo, 55, has taken soundings internally and set up a small task force of mainly younger fifty something executives, said the insiders, who did not want to be named as they are not authorized to speak to the media.

As a result, he plans a re-balance of power between engineers and marketing on car design, they said, noting sales people focus more on a car's affordability than its performance.

"Sales people involved in product planning are more focused on customers' immediate needs. We need to stay focused on that, but it's not much help in figuring out what kind of car we should be putting out 5-10 years down the road," the second executive said.

"Tech people should design cars more freely, but take responsibility if the car isn't successful."
Hachigo, who has an engineering background, is likely to limit sales executives' participation at key product planning meetings, including the annual "long-term strategic conference" that usually is held in the spring, they said.

Honda's chief spokesman Kaoru Tanaka declined to comment.

TECH AUTONOMY
Hachigo will give more autonomy to Honda R&D Co, the technology unit, and rein in some of the independence at the group's regional blocs in Japan, North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe and China.

Increased localization has led to regional differences in engine size and features such as hybrid systems and all-wheel drive trains in global models including the Accord, Civic, Fit and CR-V in order to be cost-competitive, the executives said.

Hachigo is also likely to return to Japan the planning and development work on vehicle platforms and core technologies that had begun to flow to the regions in past years, they added.

In a management reshuffle announced on Tuesday, Yoshiyuki Matsumoto, Hachigo's rival for the top job last year, moved from automotive operations chief to head of Honda's Research and Development center, a key technology post.

Hachigo is expected to restructure Honda's global Automotive Operations headquarters, which looks after product planning among other functions. Senior engineers previously relocated to the Tokyo head office to promote cooperation with sales divisions are now likely to move back to Honda's tech center near Utsunomiya, north of the capital, the executives said.

The strategy overhaul will also see Honda revert to a concept of 'sogo hokan', or mutual interdependence among production facilities around the world, they said.

They noted that Honda failed to make the most of last year's strong U.S. market growth and a weaker yen because it had not set aside enough capacity in Japan to produce cars to sell in the United States, which accounts for around a third of global sales.

The immediate target, the executives said, is to boost sales globally with more innovative and distinctive cars, and eliminate excess capacity of around 750,000 cars a year.

Honda, which is battling the fall-out from a massive global recall over faulty Takata Corp air bags, sold around4.75 million vehicles last year and had the capacity to produce5.5 million.

(Reporting by Norihiko Shirouzu; Editing by Ian Geoghegan)

- Reuters

Source;
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/exclusive-honda-ceo-to-s/2542964.html

Honda Connect allows you to create a mirror like display on your screen

by Ulrich Bachman of www.technewstoday.com

While automakers from around the world are showing off their vehicles at the Geneva Motor Show in Europe, Honda Motor Co Ltd (ADR) (NYSE:HMC) is also presenting its new Civic this month, with Android installed under the name "Honda Connect". The company had announced the offer last year, however, now you are able to actually get hands on it and entertain yourself to the fullest.

The reports state what you will actually receive is a 7-inch display, featuring a grid of icons and Android apps. By this you will be able to connect your phone to the system and use most of the basic apps, even can install apps in it.

Honda Civic’s new entertainment system is completely built on Android, which is powered up with NVIDIA Tegra and has a built-in operating system - the Ice Cream Sandwich - good enough to entertain you while driving.

Although the car is released in 2015, yet it actually feels old, as the device is slow and offers a typical stereo in-car experience. However, Honda Connect allows you to create a mirror like display on your screen, connecting it via HDMI and also features video files to run on it through your iPad via cable output.

Source;
http://www.technewstoday.com/22066-honda-adds-android-to-its-new-civic/

Honda to Introduce World's First Predictive Safety Cruise Control System

Honda is to introduce the world’s first predictive cruise control system known as Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control (i-ACC), capable of foreseeing and automatically reacting to other vehicles ‘cutting-in’ to the equipped vehicle’s lane.　

Based on extensive real-world research of typical European driving styles, Honda’s Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control (i-ACC) uses a camera and radar to sense the position of other vehicles on the road. It then applies an algorithm to predict the likelihood of vehicles in neighbouring lanes cutting-in by evaluating relations between multiple vehicles, enabling the equipped vehicle to react quickly, safely and comfortably.

i-ACC will make its debut this year on the new European CR-V*, building upon the traditional Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) system. Traditional ACC systems keep a preselected longitudinal velocity, which is only reduced for maintaining a safe distance to a car in front. However, if a vehicle cuts-in from a neighboring lane, the traditional ACC system reacts later thus requiring stronger braking.

The new i-ACC system is able to compute the likelihood of a cut-in up to five seconds before it occurs, and is therefore designed to react very smoothly so as not to startle the driver, who might not yet be aware of the imminent cut-in. In this case the system applies just a mild brake initially, with an icon appearing on the driver display , informing the driver why a slow-down occurs.. It then proceeds to apply a stronger brake to adapt the velocity to keep a safe distance. Dr. Kleinehagenbrock, responsible for i-ACC at Honda R&D Europe (Deutschland) GmbH says, ‘i-ACC takes cruise control systems to a whole new level, offering what we call ‘predictive safety’.

i-ACC recognises the side of the road you are driving on whether in the UK or on the continent and automatically detects which neighbouring vehicle is the most critical to be aware of at any given moment. 

i-ACC is the result of an in-house Research & Development project undertaken by an international Honda team in Europe and Japan, specifically designed for European roads. Research into driver behaviour to develop the algorithm was carried out across Europe.

Dr. Schmuedderich, responsible for i-ACC at Honda Research Institute Europe GmbH comments: “i-ACC is a significant breakthrough and a considerable further step towards a new generation of driver assistance systems that anticipate the behavior of other traffic participants.”

*i-ACC will be available on the 2015 European CR-V, Executive grade only.

Source;

http://www.hondanews.eu/en/carnewsdetail/?id=4496

Honda Shows Wireless Charging System at Smart House

Honda Motor Co Ltd disclosed a new experiment using a wireless charging system to the media June 16, 2014.

The experiment is conducted at a smart house that the company is testing in Saitama City, Japan.

In the experiment, Honda charges its "Fit EV" electric vehicle (EV). The wireless charging system transmits electromagnetic waves from the power transmission coil installed on the floor of a garage to the power reception coil installed under the floor of the EV. The company expects to commercialize the system in 2016.

This time, Honda combined the smart house and EV with a wireless charging system that IHI Corp prototyped using patented technologies of WiTricity Corp. The system consists of power transmission and reception coils, and power is transmitted from the transmission coil to the reception coil by using the magnetic resonance method.

The magnetic resonance method is one of electromagnetic induction methods. It can efficiently transmit power by using a specific frequency even when the power reception coil is not located right above the power transmission coil or when the two coils are away from each other. When the positional error of the EV is ±10cm in the horizontal direction, ±5cm in the vertical direction and ±2° in angle, the charging efficiency of the system is 80-90%, Honda said.

The output of the power transmission coil is 2.2kW. Technically, it is possible to increase the output up to 3.3kW, which is equivalent to the output with a normal charging method. However, because it requires new legislations, etc, Honda limited the output of electromagnetic waves in the test.

The power converter installed on the side of the smart house increases the frequency of residential electricity (50-60Hz) to 85kHz, and the electricity is transmitted to the power transmission coil. The gap between the transmission and reception coils is designed to be about 10cm. But when the two coils are covered, the gap becomes about 5cm.

Honda considers that, if wireless charging makes it easy to charge EVs, they will be more frequently charged, enabling to reduce the capacity of EV battery. 

 

Source;

http://www.houseofjapan.com/auto-moto/honda-shows-wireless-charging-system-at-smart-house

Honda Electric Car Charges Itself Automatically When Low On Battery

by Edwin Kee of www.ubergizmo.com

Electric cars like those from Tesla could be the future of the automobile, but until majority of the infrastructure in cities and the suburbs have been modified to include electric vehicle charging, seeing one of the road is not going to be as common as you might think it would be. Engineers over at Honda Motor of Japan are currently developing an electric vehicle which is touted to be able to drive itself into a home carport whenever it detects that its battery level has dropped to a predetermined amount, allowing it to be juiced up sans wires from there.

Basically, whenever you drive the Honda EV home and stop, getting out of the car, your smartphone will then be used to instruct the electric vehicle so that it will drive itself into the carport for a wireless recharging session, ensuring that you would have a fully recharged ride ready and waiting for you the next morning. The Honda EV is capable of pinpointing the exact location of the carport located a map in its computer.

There will be a bunch of cameras that will be installed on the EV as well as at the house so that they will all work in tandem to make sure the Honda EV will be able to avoid obstacles.

Source;
http://www.ubergizmo.com/2014/06/honda-electric-car-charges-itself-automatically-when-low-on-battery/

Four-wheel-steer returns for Honda

by Tony Davis of www.drive.com.au

Honda as re-embraced four-wheel steering, a feature the company pioneered back for mass-produced cars in 1987 then abandoned soon after the Japanese bubble economy burst in the 1990s.

The new 4WS system, using electric motors on the rear wheels, was among a suite of technology showcased at the Earth Dreams summit at the company’s rebuilt head R&D Centre at Tochigi in Japan last month during the 2013 Tokyo motor show.

Also demonstrated were lightweight bodies, new safety and autonomous driving technology, and a trio of turbo engines.

The centre was severely damaged – with one fatality and many injuries – during the earthquake that accompanied the 2011 tsunami.

Some senior executives believed the company would go bankrupt because of the complete disruption to new model plans.

The new 4WS system, first released on the RLX Acura in the US, does without any solid connectors from front to rear. Electric motors can alter the angle of the rear wheels in either direction, even independently of each other.

The steering angle change is only 3 degrees (1.5 degrees in each direction), less than the old Prelude, so some of the engineers refer to it as active toe-control. Active rear steering systems are becoming increasingly common in new vehicles – from Peugeots to Porsches – in an effort to improve dynamics and stability.

However, the Honda system is made far more effective by a new hybrid version of the car demonstrated at the research and development facility.

In this vehicle, two electric motors, generating 27kW between them, each power a rear wheel and can provide torque vectoring. This means one rear wheel can push out more power than the other to assist stability or cornering, or can brake to feed power back into the electrical system. And that’s as well as changing angle.

These electric motors work in league with a conventional petrol engine upfront that powers the front wheels in what is rather excruciatingly called the Acura RLX SH-AWD Super Handling (with the SH standing for “Sport Hybrid”).

A drive on a tight handling circuit showed the system dramatically improved the turn-in of what is otherwise a softly sprung US-style luxury sedan.

Project leader of the model, Mr Aoki, confirmed that improved handling and driving enjoyment was the main target, the added safety a by-product.

He wouldn’t confirm whether such a system will be extended to sports models, but did confirm the RLX hybrid system uses the same principles as that in the forthcoming Honda NS-X supercar.

That however, will drive the rear wheels with a mid-engined turbocharged V6 engine (of unspecified power), and use its electric motors on the front wheels.

Under a slew of slogans – Earth Dreams, Blue Skies for our Children, Safety for Everyone and the “man-maximum, machine-minimal” design philosophy – Honda also presented the Accord Hybrid that is on the shopping list for Australia, and a plug-in version rated at a remarkable 2.05L/100km, which is not.

Also presented were Honda engineers own take on other features available from competitors, including collision avoidance technology, blind spot monitoring, unmanned self-parking and autonomous driving.

The chance to be chauffeured by a self driving Accord around a test track – and to watch it brake or swerve for pedestrians and motorcycles – was fascinating.

The system uses V2V (vehicle to vehicle) and V2I (vehicle to infrastructure) communications as well as on-board sensors, but will require much government cooperation on the infrastructure side before being unleashed on public roads. With this in mind, Honda demonstrated the system two weeks ago to the Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe.

Honda R&D boss Yoshiharu Yamamoto says the company might have an autonomous driving car on sale by 2018, though admits it won’t be a so-called Stage 4 car, which is to say fully self-driving.

Steer-by-wire was recently released on the Infiniti Q50. Honda’s system gives a remarkably traditional feel with some real advantages over conventional systems, including no kickback even on a tight bumpy circuit possibly designed specifically to incite kickback.

Mr Yamawaki, the engineer in charge, said “the technology can be suitable for all cars, but we are not sure yet which cars we will apply it to”.

Unfortunately there are no weight savings. The lack of a steering shaft and rods is countered by the mechanical back-up system installed in case of failure.

We also had the chance to punt around the same course a prototype CR-Z coupe built around a carbon fibre tub. Said to halve the normal body weight, this also adds a million yen premium at this stage of the development. That’s about $10,700.

The main problem is that it was necessary to step over a Lotus Elise-style doorsill to get into the cockpit. This sill was so high, that when the doors were opened, an additional portal in the roof lifted to give more access.

With lots of exposed carbon-fibre and uncovered wiring, the car was very loud and raw, making the Lotus comparison even stronger.

Although using the standard drivetrain, it was in another league to the everyday CR-Z: fast, responsive and great fun.

Also on display were full electric cars, including a new micro commuter known as the MC-Beta, and three engines that show a new interest in turbocharging from Honda.

These include a three-cylinder 1.0-litre producing 95kW and 200Nm, a 1.5-litre four-cylinder (150kW/260Nm) and a 2.0-litre (206kW/400Nm), which is slated for a future Civic Type-R hot hatch.

Executive Toshihiko Nonaka said the CVT, or continuously variable transmission, will be the main choice for Honda vehicles of the future, but the company also showed an ingenious double clutch automated manual.
This eight-speeder is the first double clutch transmission with a torque convertor, incorporated to overcome the main criticism of such units as VW’s DSG: roughness at city speeds.

Whether it can achieve similar efficiency as well, isn’t clear. Nor alas, is there any information on when it will go on sale.

Source;
http://news.drive.com.au/drive/motor-news/fourwheelsteer-returns-for-honda-20131211-2z4z7.html

Honda to introduce iOS integration with 2014 range, unveiling in December

by Sam Loveridge of www.trustedreviews.com

Honda will be unveiling its iOS in the Car mirroring in December, with the functionality to be included in its 2014 range.

The new iOS integration features will be unveiled in the first week of December, but the 2014 Honda Civic will be the first with the functionality built in.

Apple and Honda have been working together since 2011 when they initially announced Siri Eyes Free, but it seems new iOS in the car features will be announced in the next fortnight.

A source close to Honda said the iOS features are "more than just simple mirroring" and instead you'll be able to control your iOS device using a 7-inch multi-touch display built into the car's dash.

Siri Eyes Free allows you to hit a button on the steering wheel to control your iPhone using Siri's voice controls.  you might find this useful for changing the music track or making calls, but Honda's new iOS in the Car features will apparently go far byond this.

Honda confirmed mirroring tech would feature in the 2014 Honda Civic when it goes on sale in December via its witter account;

"Mirroring technology is available starting with the all-new 2014 Honda Civic - we don't believe that will be available in the 13 Accords."

The Japanese motor vehicle company also added that the Siri Eyes Free updates would be available in early December.

"We're anticipating Siri Eyes Free updates before the beginning of December."

Apple is also working with Audi, BMW, Chrysler, GM, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota to bring Siri Eyes Free to more vehicles.

The Honda iOS in the Car announcements are tipped for a December 4th, 2013 event.

Source;
http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/honda-to-introduce-ios-integration-with-2014-range-unveiling-in-december

Honda Thinks Smartphones Can Save Pedestrians From Bad Drivers

by Damon Lavrinc of www.wired.com

Smartphones are too often a colossal distraction to motorists, but Honda sees a way of using them to protect pedestrians from inattentive drivers.

The automaker hopes to tap into pedestrians’ phones to alert passing drivers to their presence. The technology — dubbed Vehicle-to-Pedestrian — uses a smartphone’s GPS and dedicated short range communications (DSRC) to warn drivers when a pedestrian steps out from behind a parked car or other obstruction. A light flashes on the dashboard to tell the driver of an approaching pedestrian, while the hapless walker gets an alert on their smartphone.

The DSRC system can be deployed through a dedicated app with the technology operating on the 5.9GHz band set aside for automotive applications. Honda’s not alone in pursuing this. General Motors is using the same tech to develop its own pedestrian detecting technology. But Honda is taking it a step further. In addition to the pedestrian detection tech, Honda is also testing Vehicle-to-Motorcycle systems using the same DSRC to alert drivers of a motorcycle outside their field of vision.

Honda is joined by several other automakers working with the University of Michigan through the Connected Vehicle Safety Pilot Program conducted by the U.S. Department of Transportation on the technology, and if all goes well, these systems could be deployed in the next several years.

Source;
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2013/09/honda-pedestrian/

Rules of attraction: How Honda added a vacuum to a van

Want to save some loonies at the car wash? The inside story of how Honda and Shop-Vac fitted a vacuum cleaner in a minivan

Minivans. Love them or loathe them, it's pretty hard to argue with their practical magic, be it people-packing, drywall-stacking, and making seats disappear so fast they almost need a lovely assistant smiling next to them in sequins. 

While some manufacturers have completely left the Hockey Mom/Dad arena of sliding doors and cup-holders, there are those that have carved enough of a niche to validate continued panel stamping. 

The Honda Odyssey is one of those players, and like the Toyota Sienna, and the Nissan Quest, the question that must be continually asked is this: how can we steal some steam from Chrysler, Father of the Magic Wagon?

Enter the vac

As in life, sometimes you just have to suck it up. With the 2014 Odyssey Touring, Honda becomes the only automaker to offer a built-in vacuum cleaner in a minivan. 

It's called the HondaVAC and it should be just the thing for cleaning up everything from spilled Chereeos out of even the tiniest of cracks. 

"It was interesting how the palm hit everyone's forehead at the same time," said Lennie Sherlinski, who witnessed the 'Why-Didn't-I-Think-Of-That' factor first-hand in The Big Apple, when the 2014 Honda Odyssey was revealed. 

Sherlinski is vice president of Shop-Vac Corporation, having been with the family-owned company for 22 years. He's just now starting to wind down from the press onslaught, brought on following the 2013 New York International Auto Show where the HondaVAC system was unveiled.

The Shop-Vac Corporation, based in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, has been cleaning up messes your significant other doesn't know about (in my house, anyway) for half a century.

How'd it start?

"Honda approached Shop-Vac in late 2007," said Sherlinski. "We were flattered that one of the best car companies in the world realized that they needed our expertise to make this thing work." 

This collaboration was the first time that Shop-Vac had worked with an automobile manufacturer. 

The HondaVAC system is also the first 12-volt DC vacuum that the Shop-Vac Corporation has developed for consumer use. Both companies were venturing into new territory.

Shop-Vac is well-versed in the field of over-engineering. (Just ask the still-working mid-80s model in my Dad's garage, wearing the pounded-out dents inflicted by my '71 Impala.)

"We do extensive internal testing," said Sherlinski. "The auto industry takes it to a whole new level." While it's too soon to reveal the vacuum-geek specs, Sherlinski assures us that the mechanicals within the HondaVAC share much of what makes a standard Shop-Vac work. 

Performance of the Honda system was validated in varying weather extremes, in the same manner that other vehicle systems are checked for reliability.

Test, test, test some more

"The [vacuum] motor has been designed to take a lot of abuse," said Sherlinski. "Honda was very diligent about testing everything that you could expect to happen to an onboard vacuum in a vehicle environment." 

Honda Canada confirms that the HondaVAC is covered for the duration of the standard bumper-to-bumper warranty period.

Consumers should be aware that the HondaVAC is designed for dry pick-up only. Don't expect a 'Vac Full' indicator on the driver information display. "You still have to be diligent with emptying dirt and debris for optimum performance, just like any other form of vacuum," said Sherlinski. 

The QuattroFlex hose, which appears on other Shop-Vac products, has a four-to-one stretch ratio, easily circumnavigating the topography of the Odyssey floorboard. 

Tools have been designed to stow easily in the vacuum location, on the driver's side of the rear cargo compartment. 

"We're excited that the interest has really taken off," said Sherlinski. But, don't expect to see upright versions, next to Honda lawnmowers and generators. 

"It's currently forecast as a built-in product," said Sherlinski. "We hope that they're so successful, that Honda is compelled to put it into everything they sell." 

Considering the compact size of the unit, and the fact that dirt and grit doesn't discriminate between vehicle categories, the HondaVAC could be the solution. 

Yes: it could be what keeps Loonies and Toonies from exiting our palm, and ending up in the always-useless car wash vacuums that seem to hoover up spare change but leave floor mat dirt where it lies… 

Source;

http://autos.sympatico.ca/features/16013/rules-of-attraction-how-honda-added-a-vacuum-to-a-van#

Honda app can sense traffic jams before they hit

During a test in Indonesia, the smartphone application increased average vehicle speeds and fuel economy in heavy traffic.

by Clifford Atiyeh of www.msn.com auto's section

Honda has a smartphone application it says can predict traffic congestion and help prevent drivers from causing bottlenecks.

We've all experienced bottlenecks -- so named after the curves of the glass Coke bottle -- due to rapid slowdowns in a certain spot that cause traffic to build up steadily from behind, whereas in front it's relatively free-flowing.

Honda's smartphone app monitors the patterns of a driver's acceleration and deceleration over time and then predicts if a certain pattern, such as heavy braking, is likely to cause a traffic jam. It then coaches the driver with colors, just as many Hondas do on the instrument panel for achieving the best fuel economy, with the goal of smoothing out abrupt acceleration and braking.

Often, drivers leave little space between vehicles on congested roadways, which causes spikes in speed --  a main condition for those annoying bottlenecks.

Honda tested the app in Jakarta, Indonesia, between September and February on both a single car and as a cloud-connected network of cars running the same app. With just one car running the app, traffic jams were delayed by an average of three minutes and changes in the average speed were reduced by 60 percent. More importantly, fuel economy was improved by 20 percent. When connected to the cloud, congestion was delayed by an average of four minutes, speed changes were reduced by 70 percent and fuel economy went up 22 percent.

While many cars feature live traffic alerts and can overlay navigation maps with color-coded lines that show how fast traffic is moving on a certain route, no production system exists to stop traffic before it starts. Of course, Honda's system can't eliminate traffic -- anyone who's been to Mexico City, Mumbai or any crowded city knows that's impossible -- but friendly in-car reminders could at least dull some of the pain.

The app is not yet available, but Honda said it would eventually embed the system on future models, including a special version for its motorcycles that could send vibrating alerts to the rider.

Source;
http://editorial.autos.msn.com/blogs/autosblogpost.aspx?post=2f410e99-6239-4d5f-82f7-d28ef21d4743

Honda and Audi show the future of driving at Nvidia conference

SAN JOSE--Over the past decade, new in-car electronics have helped us navigate and made more music easily available while driving. But if the work shown at Nvidia's GPU Technology Conference (GTC) is any indication, bigger and better changes are in store.

Among the many automotive seminars at this year's GTC, Honda showed off its development of a head-up display, while Audi discussed its initiatives to make urban driving safer.

In Honda's seminar, Victor Ng-Thow-Hing, Principal Scientist at the Honda Research Institute in Mountain View, California, showed head-up display technology that makes current production examples look extremely primitive. Instead of simply projecting a speed readout or turn-by-turn directions on the windshield, Ng-Thow-Hing demonstrated work in augmented reality, projecting location sensitive information useful to drivers.

Cars on display at the GTC using Nvidia technology were this Lamboghini Aventador, a McLaren MP4-12C, and a Tesla Model S.

(Credit: Wayne Cunningham/CNET)

In one example, street names were projected onto the windshield in such a way as to appear to be signs on actual buildings. Ng-Thow-Hing explained that merely showing a flat street name on the windshield leads to drivers having difficulty adjusting between the 2D information of the label and the 3D world outside of the car.

This type of projection would be extremely useful in cities, where street signs can often be difficult to find amongst the urban clutter. And a clear indication of street names would lead to less confusion and stress for drivers.

Ng-Thow-Hing also showed two driver assistance projections, the first using a nine-square grid projection high up on the windshield to give drivers better situational awareness. The driver's car is always in the center square, while the other eight squares appear red when another car is in that space. This grid projection would serve the same purpose as current blind spot monitors, but also work as a quick driver reference to see note cars to the front and back.

The second example projected the path of the driver's car when waiting to make a turn through an intersection, coloring the path in red when oncoming traffic made going ahead with the turn unsafe. Ng-Thow-Hing pointed out that drivers cannot always correctly estimate the distance and speed of traffic coming through an intersection, and so make mistakes that can lead to a crash. With this system, sensors would see the oncoming traffic and the car's processor would determine when the driver could safety make a left turn through the intersection.

The urban problem
Giving Audi's presentation was Mario Tippelhofer, an engineer working out of Volkswagen's Electronic Research Lab south of San Francisco. He prefaced Audi's work by noting that urban populations have increased in the U.S. more than 80 percent of the population now lives in an urban area.

Most accidents in urban areas are caused by traffic, passengers distracting the driver, driver stress, and the constant search for parking, according to Audi's research.

Audi uses Nvidia technology to integrate Google Earth imagery in its A7 model.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Audi's Urban Intelligent Assist program attempts to address the causes of these accidents through a variety of technologies. One application presented by Tippelhofer was termed Smart Parking. Essentially, instead of a car's navigation routing you to a final destination, it would take you to an available parking space near the final destination. San Francisco has already installed smart parking meters, which detect when cars are parked next to them. This data can let the car know about available spaces before you start on a journey, and can update based on changing parking availability.

Complementing that technology was another application called Seamless Navigation, which would let you effortlessly send a destination from a smartphone to the car's navigation system. The car would then route to available parking, and your phone would provide walking directions to the actual destination.

Audi's parking applications would make it unnecessary to circle block after block looking for parking, and potentially causing an accident while scanning for an open spot.

Other technologies that Audi is looking to implement involve predicting traffic problems, helping drivers merge or make lane changes, and detecting when the driver's attention is away from the road ahead.
Tippelhofer said that Audi would be demonstrating some of these technologies this year.

Under the tech hood
Both the Honda and Audi technology initiatives go beyond current cabin electronics, which generally center around navigation, hands-free phone, and digital audio features. What might make these developments possible is the technology offered by Nvidia in the form of its Tegra line of graphical processing units.

At the GTC, Nvidia's Automotive Applications Manager Dave Anderson offered CNET some context for how automakers could deploy these new technologies. Nvidia's primary automotive product is the Visual Computing Module (VCM), a piece of hardware that includes a Tegra processor and will process sensor inputs from around the car, then output visual information for the driver.

Anderson touted how automakers can design a car's systems around the VCM, and plug the latest version of the module into the car at the time of production. As an example, he cited Tesla, which began designing the Model S to use Nvidia's Tegra 2 GPU. By the time the Model S was ready for production, Nvidia had released its Tegra 3 chip. The architecture let Tesla use the latest chip, keeping the car's electronics current.

This navigation unit in the new VW Golf runs off Nvidia's VCM.

(Credit: Wayne Cunningham/CNET)

The VCM mostly solves the problem of automakers releasing cars with cabin electronics two or three years old.

Nvidia's VCM currently sees use in models from Audi, Lamborghini, and BMW. As Nvidia has only made its VCM available for two years so far, many more automakers could be jumping on the bandwagon.
Addressing the issue of component cost, Anderson said that Nvidia can offer less capable but cheaper versions of the VCM. As an example, he noted that where Audi uses an advanced version that enables such features as Google Earth integration in its navigation, Volkswagen is deploying a simpler version in the new Golf, which we saw unveiled at the Paris auto show last year.

The presentations at the GTC, and Nvidia's own automotive offerings, show a huge technological potential for the automotive industry, with future models that can make driving more convenient and, hopefully, accident-free. In fact, they make today's car technology look very primitive.

Source;
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-57575479-48/honda-and-audi-show-the-future-of-driving-at-nvidia-conference/

Honda Develops New Technology to Join Steel and Aluminum with World's First Application to the Door Panel of Mass Production Vehicles

Honda Develops New Technology to Join Steel and Aluminum with World's First Application to the Door Panel of Mass Production Vehicles

 

Tokyo, Feb 18, 2013 - (JCN Newswire) - Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today announced that it has newly developed a technology to join steel and aluminum and applied it to enable adoption of aluminum for an outer door panel, which has conventionally been made of steel. Honda will adopt this technology first to the North American version of the all-new Acura RLX, which will go on sale in the United States in March 2013, and will expand application sequentially to other models.

To join together the dissimilar metals of steel and aluminum, the simultaneous establishment of several different technologies was required such as technologies to prevent corrosion (electrical corrosion) and thermal deformation caused by the different expansion rates of steel and aluminum.

Honda newly developed three technologies that enabled adoption of aluminum for the outer door panel.

1) Technology to join dissimilar materials: adoption of "3D Lock Seam" structure, where the steel panel and aluminum panel are layered and hemmed together twice.

2) Technology to prevent electrical corrosion: adoption of highly anticorrosive steel for the inner panel and a new form that assures the complete filling of the gap with adhesive agent.

3) Technology to control thermal deformation: adoption of adhesive agent with low elastic modulus and optimized position of the 3D Lock Seam.

The advantages of these new technologies include elimination of a spot welding process required to join conventional steel door panels. Moreover, these technologies do not require a dedicated process; as a result, existing production lines can accommodate these new technologies.

The new technology contributes to the improvement of fuel economy and dynamic performance of the vehicle by reducing door panel weight by approximately 17% compared to the conventional all-steel door panel. In addition, weight reduction at the outer side of the vehicle body enables to concentrate the point of gravity toward the center of the vehicle, contributing to improved stability in vehicle maneuvering.

Honda has been making a number of efforts to further reduce vehicle weight. In 2012, with the North American version of the all-new 2013 Accord, Honda began mass-production of a front subframe featuring the steel-aluminum hybrid structure that was made possible by the Friction Stir Welding (FSW) technology.

 

Soure;

http://www.stockhouse.com/news/usreleasesdetail.aspx?n=8740647

CarBuzz: Cars that Defied the Norm: Honda FCX Clarity Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car

By Jacob Joseph of www.carbuzz.com

Honda's first "production" Clarity rolled off the line in 2008. Like the Turbine Car which appeared earlier in this series, this wasn't an actual production car as such. The Clarity is a research vehicle which is leased to select members of the public as a means of gathering data on how practical the vehicle is in real-world situations. Honda loses a tremendous amount of money on each vehicle, and at least at the beginning of the Clarity program, sales to the general public were cost-prohibitive. It's said that as recently as 2005, a fuel-cell vehicle would cost Honda as much as $1 million to produce.

The cost has come down, but is likely still over $100,000 and that is quite a lot to ask someone to pay for what is essentially a slightly bigger Accord. The Clarity is a simple enough idea, it converts tank-stored hydrogen into electricity via a stack of fuel cells and uses this to power and an electric motor which drives the wheels. The motor produces 134 horsepower and provides smooth, albeit not especially urgent acceleration. Assuming you're one of the very small number of people Honda has decided to lease to, it will cost you $600 per month. The IRS has determined that the Clarity is eligible for a $12,000 tax credit, but since you can't actually buy one, this remains irrelevant.

 

Hydrogen is sold by the kilogram, rather than by the gallon, and it costs slightly more for a kilogram than a gallon of gasoline. But since the Clarity will get a combined 60 miles on one kilogram of hydrogen, this pretty much balances out. It looks pretty normal for a Japanese sedan, in fact, some people have been said to be disappointed by just how normal it looks. It also drives pretty much like any other car, but unlike a battery electric, it can be refilled from a pump and driven for several hundred miles before needing a refill. This brings us, once more, to the subject of politics in the automotive world.

 

Proponents of battery electric vehicles hate hydrogen vehicles, absolutely hate them. Because a hydrogen car is so much more usable than a battery EV, they have at times received more attention from manufacturers. The manufacturing and distribution of hydrogen fuel remains incredibly and impractically inefficient in terms of the amount of energy needed to power the vehicle, but from the point of view of a manufacturer and what is within its control, a hydrogen car makes much more sense as a consumer product. But that didn't stop the conspiracy theorists from howling that the promise of hydrogen cars was simply being used to distract the public from demanding battery electric cars.

 

Of course, automakers still built electric cars for the mass market, people haven't bought them in huge numbers and automakers have continued right on working on hydrogen. This means that this was either the worst conspiracy in history, or these people are full of it, but the presence of actual facts has never discouraged a good conspiracy theory. So perhaps you've heard that hydrogen is a pipe dream, but this brings us to the central point of the Clarity. Honda doesn't know how our energy needs will be met in the future, and neither does anybody else.

 

The current manufacturing techniques for hydrogen make full-scale implementation impossible, but in that way it is absolutely no different from any other alternative energy. Biofuel has its own problems blocking it from larger implementation and the usability problems of battery cars make them something of a joke. A massive breakthrough is needed by each of these before it could conceivably replace gasoline, and for anyone to think that this is possible with one technology and not another is absurd. In researching hydrogen and building the Clarity, Honda is hedging its bets in the event that hydrogen takes off in a big way. Because, like the rest of us, it simply doesn't know.

 

Source;

http://www.carbuzz.com/news/2013/1/11/Cars-that-Defied-the-Norm-Honda-FCX-Clarity-7712458/ 

MotorTrend: Honda Seeks Its Roots

by Todd Lassa of www.motortrend.com

Pundits have warned about Honda losing its way since at least the early 1990s. With the last few generations of Acuras, the 2011 Civic, and the just-replaced Accord, those warnings finally came to roost.

Enter the 2013 Accord, a return to form with good dynamics, and the big-on-the-inside, smallish-on-the-outside, low-cowl design that Honda calls "Man Maximum, Machine Minimum." It comes on the tail of Honda's announcement last year that it would design, as well as build, the sinewy 2015 Acura NSX in Ohio.  American Honda president and CEO Tetsuo Iwamura also serves as executive vice president of Honda Motor Company. He spoke of changes and updates for Hondas and Acuras that give us hope the automaker has turned the corner, and is on its way back to the kind of design and engineering leadership that made it an enthusiasts' affordable favorite a quarter-century ago.

The new Acura RLX flagship, unveiled at the Los Angeles International Auto Show, adapts the traditional Honda low cowl of the new Accord. It will be available as a front-drive car for the first time (replacing the RL), with Precision All-Wheel Steer rear toe control, or in AWD form with the three-motor/V-6 Sport Hybrid Super Handling All-Wheel-Drive. Its 3.5-liter V-6 has been updated with gas direct-injection.  Iwamura-san spoke to a group of auto journalists about the RLX and other cars in a roundtable discussion at Automobile magazine's offices in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 

How will you position the FWD and AWD Acura RLX?
We want it to be a luxury model. We still want to do it smartly. It has a driving feel like a V-8, but offering much better fuel efficiency. We think we'll have 30/30/30 [city/highway/combined] EPA fuel economy [in three-motor hybrid form]. 

Are you considering a 2WD version of the NSX?  
Anything is possible, but we cannot explain the detail of the NSX at this moment. Since we are planning a similar system for the RLX, well...you can guess that. [Honda public relations says that, officially, there are no plans for a RWD NSX. "The car is better, faster, more fun because of the SH-AWD system, not in spite of it."]  

After lagging Toyota and Ford with its IMA system, Honda has become very aggressive with hybrids.
One is the one-motor IMA system, currently in the North American Civic. It will be enhanced, in-house, with a new transmission for the next models [not Civic]. The second is a two-motor hybrid, first in the Accord plug-in, which will be available early next year in the U.S. Following this plug-in hybrid, we will have a full hybrid version of the Accord, which will have a two-motor hybrid system. It will generate very good fuel efficiency. Together with the three-motor hybrid system for both RLX and NSX, we will have three very competitive hybrid systems.  

You scuttled plans for a diesel Acura TSX.  
That stopped, unfortunately. We are watching very carefully and if diesel becomes a major stream in the U.S., we would definitely do it.  

Any more turbos?

Everybody's talking about the downsized turbo. That is, so far, the best approach to make fuel efficiency up, especially from a CAFE point of view.  

 

What have you learned from having to create a major face-lift for the Civic after just two model years? 

We see the current Civic as a nice car. It has a very, very strong competitive edge. It has been the best-selling model in that segment, but we are not satisfied with the model. We really wish to be best in the segment...to be the benchmark again in the segment. So Accord, we made it best, and CR-V, we made it best. Civic, we've made it best in the segment as a benchmark. That is our strategy.

 

Source;

http://www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2012/1302_honda_seeks_its_roots/

Honda Develops "Honda Smart Ecological Paint," Highly-functional Painting Technology that Shortens Automobile Painting Process

TOKYO, Japan, December 12, 2012 - Honda Motor Co., Ltd. announced that it has newly developed the "Honda Smart Ecological Paint (Honda S.E. Paint)" process, a highly-functional painting technology that eliminates a middle coating process from a commonly used 4-coat/3-bake auto body painting process to realize a 3-coat/2-bake water-based painting process. Honda will introduce this new painting technology at its Yorii Plant at Saitama Factory in Japan that is scheduled to become operational in July 2013.

Conventionally, eliminating the middle coating process would have restricted the paint colors that can be used; however, Honda overcame this challenge by developing a highly-functional material for the color base coat used in the final coating process. This material used for the color base coat makes it possible to use any exterior paint color, which is an automobile industry first for a 3-coat/2-bake process*.

Moreover, in addition to the Honda S.E. Paint, Honda also will introduce a wall-mounted paint robot system with a built-in quick load / quick wash paint tank. This will lead to a significant improvement in painting efficiency, reduction of the amount of paint materials and a 40% reduction in the number of processes compared to a conventional painting process. As a result, the amount of CO₂ emitted during the painting process will be reduced by 40%.

Including this new painting technology, the Yorii Plant will employ a number of innovative technologies and begin production as a world-leading energy saving plant.

*Honda's internal research

 

Source;

http://world.honda.com/news/2012/c121212Honda-Smart-Ecological-Paint/index.html

Honda 3-Cylinder Engines a Possibility, Exec Says

Ever more stringent CAFE requirements in the U.S. and CO2 regulations in Europe are squeezing automakers like never before. They’re turning to technologies and fuels they would have never considered just 10 years ago. What’s Honda’s strategy to meet these standards?

 “Trend-wise, downsizing powertrains [is key]” said Tetsuo Iwamura, President and Chief Executive Officer of American Honda Motor Co., Inc. He also said small displacement engines and turbochargers “are the direction” for all automakers, but stopped short of saying if or when the capital “H” would introduce such a powertrain.

Interestingly Honda went in the opposite direction with the new Acura RDX. In its first-generation this compact luxury crossover featured a turbocharged four-banger under the hood, but the latest incarnation is powered by a 3.5-liter V6 that surprisingly delivers more power and is more efficient. Front-wheel-drive models deliver up to 28 miles per gallon on the highway.

“Three-cylinders could have a possibility as well,” Iwamura said, a statement that suggests Honda is possibly considering a small engine with an odd-cylinder count.

Next year Ford will offer a Fiesta in North America with a three-cylinder EcoBoost engine. Displacing just 1.0-liter, it delivers reasonably snappy performance and superb fuel economy. If the Blue Oval is successful with this unconventional small-car effort Honda could follow suit.

Diesel is another route to higher efficiency, but if you’ve been praying for oil-burning Hondas to land at dealerships in America keep on dreaming because it doesn’t look like that is going to happen anytime soon.

Iwamura said they would have to sell between 30,000 and 50,000 diesels in the U.S. annually to make a business case for offering them. They would also have to be made available on the Accord and Civic “to be accepted by the mass market” he said.

Cost is another issue. Diesel engines are more expensive than their gasoline counterparts as is the fuel itself. Iwamura said oil refiners in the U.S. are optimized to produce gasoline; they’d have to invest in their production facilities to make more diesel. As such there’s not enough of the fuel to go around, which increases its price.

One alt-fuel area Honda has played an active role in is compressed natural gas. With the Civic, it’s the only OEM to produce a CNG-powered passenger car in the U.S. However, on the pickup side, the 2012 Ram 2500 CNG is the sole OEM-built truck in North America to be powered by the vaporous hydrocarbon.

Of course natural gas has its own issues, from limited availability at fueling stations in the U.S. to insufficient range. But one potential advantage is home filling. Drivers can top-off their tanks from the natural-gas line in their houses. There are issues, though.

Iwamura said the CNG sold at gas stations has been dried, meaning moisture has been removed from it. This is not the case with the natural gas used in people’s homes. It contains excess water, which is very bad for vehicles. Furnaces and kitchen ranges don’t mind the extra moisture.

Source;
http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2012/12/honda-3-cylinder-engines-a-possibility-exec-says.html

Ohio r&d for next Accord?

TOKYO -- A clean-sheet redesign of the Honda Accord just left the gates, but engineers are already planning its successor.

Development of Honda's next-generation flagship sedan, due in 2016 or 2017, likely will be led from Ohio instead of Japan. The car may get a downsized turbocharged engine for better fuel economy. And the gasoline-electric hybrid variant will be made in North America.

That is a preview of Honda Motor Co.'s thinking from Shoji Matsui, large project leader of the Accord's current redesign.

Matsui has led the Accord since 2009. A good English speaker and self-confessed Disneyland devotee, the jovial engineer was tapped for his expertise in developing cars for America.

He cut his teeth on earlier generations of the U.S.-spec Accord and most recently was chief engineer of the Odyssey minivan. His orders with that vehicle: Seamlessly transfer Odyssey lead development from Japan to Honda's American r&d center in Ohio.

With the ninth-generation Accord, which hit showrooms in September, Matsui overhauled the car with the American market in mind. The same strategy will apply for the 10th-generation Accord.
The Accord is already one of Honda's most Americanized cars. But the company's global tech center in Utsunomiya, north of Tokyo, still handles key engineering.

That will change with the next generation, Matsui says.

"Technologically speaking, Ohio is fully capable," Matsui told Automotive News. "As the future trend, it is for sure that the r&d is being transferred over there."

Honda has said that the Ohio tech center will lead development of the next-generation Civic. A spokeswoman says no decision has been made for the Accord.

But President Takanobu Ito, in an October interview, said he wants to give America top responsibility for the next Accord.

Honda also aims to build the hybrid version of the car in North America. That shift would require a beefed-up r&d operation and a new supply chain for specialty parts such as batteries.

Honda plans to make the plug-in and regular hybrid variants of the new Accord at the company's Sayama plant north of Tokyo, at least initially. The plug-in hits the United States next year.

But hybrid manufacturing should shift to the United States by 2015, within the Accord's current generation, Matsui said.

"We intend to produce them around the world within the current design of the vehicle," Matsui said. "It's not too far away. Right now in Ohio, they are looking into it and making studies."

The start of hybrid manufacturing would have to coincide with a Christmas or summer shutdown to allow for factory retooling, he said. That limits the window to twice a year.

For the next generation, made-in-USA hybrids should be routine. Matsui also expects some drivetrain tweaks next time around.

Boosting fuel economy was key in the recent redesign.

To increase efficiency, Honda considered using a downsized turbocharged engine. But Matsui's team scrapped the idea because it felt the turbocharger's delayed kick-in wasn't conducive to the smooth ride the team desired from a family sedan.

But Honda hasn't forgotten the idea.

"For the next-generation Accord, it will get a downsized turbo for better fuel efficiency," Matsui predicted, saying that turbo systems and control technologies are evolving quickly.

In the newest Accord, Matsui opted to improve fuel economy by using a continuously variable transmission.

One problem: CVTs typically deliver slower driving response than automatic transmissions. But Ito wanted the CVT to deliver better torque than an automatic at low RPMs.

Matsui said the solution was to keep the CVT for fuel efficiency and add a direct-injection engine to boost torque.

Source;

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20121203/OEM03/312039984