Sunroof Bluetooth Aux Input Satellite Radio Heated Seats Leather Rearview Camera on 2040-cars

Auto blog

IIHS says these are the safest cars of 2013

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has revealed its annual list of Top Safety Picks, an award that highlights automobiles it says offer "superior crash protection." A new and still more significant award, the Top Safety Pick+ honor, is given to those vehicles that earn good ratings for occupant protection in four out of five areas of measure. And while some 117 vehicles were given the TSP seal of approval for 2013, just 13 passed muster for TSP+.
To be fair, IIHS only evaluated 29 vehicles with its new testing procedures for TSP+ (we'd expect that the number of qualified cars will rise substantially for 2014). Luxury and Near Luxury midsize cars were the first groups evaluated, followed by midsizers in the Moderately Priced Cars category - unsurprisingly, it's only midsize cars that you'll find among the class this year.
Only two luxury sedans made the list of 13 for 2013: the Acura TL and Volvo S60. The other 11 cars on the list included entries from domestic, Japanese and German car makers: Dodge Avenger, Chrysler 200, Ford Fusion, Honda Accord (sedan and coupe), Kia Optima (but not its close kin, the Hyundai Sonata, strangely), Nissan Altima, Subaru Legacy and Outback, Suzuki Kizashi and the Volkswagen Passat all made the grade.

Acura NSX is this year's Pikes Peak pace car

Acura's new NSX is the official pace car for this year's Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. The hybrid supercar will go running up that hill on June 28, leading a group of 140 racers up the 14,110-foot mountain. It'll be driven by Sage Marie, Honda's senior public relations manager (and friend of Autoblog), who competed in the Pikes Peak race in 2013 and 2014. To make the most of the occasion, Acura is installing 24 cameras along the course to capture the pace car's run. But this won't just be for a cool photo gallery. Acura will use the cameras to create a 360-degree video that will be posted to the company's social media channels after the NSX completes its climb. Look for that to drop sometime on the morning of the 28th. The NSX heads up Pikes Peak at 7:40 AM Mountain time (9:40 AM Eastern). We'll have plenty more information about the Pikes Peak Hill Climb throughout the coming days. For now, check out the NSX pace car in the image gallery above, read Acura's official press blast below, and be sure to scroll through the amazing photo galleries from the practice sessions (Day 1 and Day 2) shot by our own Drew Phillips. Related Video: Next-Generation Acura NSX to Serve as Official Pace Car for the 93rd Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Pikes Peak-first 360-degree video to capture NSX run to the top TORRANCE, Calif. (June 25, 2015) – The next-generation Acura NSX supercar will serve as the official pace car in the 93rd running of the Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on June 28. With a custom racing-inspired livery, the twin-turbo charged NSX pace car will lead the field of 140 entrants to the top of the 14,110-foot Colorado mountain. "The Acura NSX is the ultimate performance vehicle, and a novel way to promote its capabilities is the iconic race up Pikes Peak," said Mike Accavitti, senior vice president and general manager of the Acura Division. "As the pace car, the beast that is NSX has yet to be fully let out of its cage, but fans and drivers will get a first glimpse of the unique character, performance and handling it will deliver in this one-of-a-kind racing environment." Powering the NSX through the 12.4-mile, 156-turn course is a bespoke 75-degree twin-turbo V6 engine mated to a 9-speed dual clutch transmission and three motor Sport Hybrid Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD) system, which delivers 'on the rails' cornering capability essential to conquering the demanding mountain course.

Honda airbags are being stolen

The latest hot target for car thieves might just be the airbag mounted inside your steering wheel. And late-model Honda and Acura vehicles are a particularly hot target right now, for reasons not well understood. USA Today reports that criminals across the country are stealing airbags out of relatively new Honda models for apparent resale online or to black market repair shops. It's a trend that has caught the attention of law enforcement agencies in cities like Miami, New York City and Washington D.C. The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) estimates that around 50,000 airbags are stolen each year. In Miami-Dade County, thieves stole 875 airbags in 2017, up from just 13 in 2013, according to police records obtained by USA Today. In the Virginia suburbs outside Washington D.C., thieves recently smashed the windows of 10 Hondas at an apartment complex to steal the airbags. Second Lt. Jonathan Bryant told the local Fox affiliate that stolen Honda airbags often end up in chop shops and can command between $300 and $500 each. A quick search of eBay listings for Honda steering wheel airbags turns up results being sold for as high as $700, though most are listing for hundreds less than that. New replacement versions purchased from dealerships approach $1,000. Many dishonest repair shops install the stolen airbags as new and charge the owner or their insurer full price for the replacement, a version of insurance fraud. Last year, police in Coral Springs, Fla. published an alert on the neighborhood social networking site Nextdoor urging residents who own a Honda or Acura to park in a garage or well-lit area, "or if you have another vehicle, pull it as close to your driver's side door as possible," they wrote. "We have seen an increase in airbag thefts, primarily in Acura and Honda models," the posting added. "The suspect(s) often disarm the alarm by cutting the battery, punch the driver side door lock or smash the window. It is believed these criminals take approx. 5-10 minutes to steal the airbag." One theory for the apparent rise in airbag thefts is that a spate of airbag recalls in recent years — including the ongoing recall of nearly 50 million potentially explosive Takata airbag inflators that left suppliers scrambling to make new parts — may have boosted demand for replacements. Most of the vehicles involved are late-model Honda Civics and Accords, but it's not clear exactly why Honda is being targeted.