2001 Honda Accord Leather 3.0 on 2040-cars

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2015 Honda HR-V looks fit for the urban jungle

Honda has been teasing us with the looks of its Fit-based compact crossover for months. Now the production version, dubbed the HR-V in the US, has finally been unveiled - in photographic form, at any rate - at the 2014 New York Auto Show. The CUV will slot into the brand's range this winter, and at the moment the company is keeping mum on many details about the new model.
The HR-V looks almost identical to the Urban SUV Concept unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show. The concept wore some nifty LED headlights and bigger wheels, but the rest of the styling has carried over to production. The handsome CUV sports diamond-shaped headlights, and a center bar splits the grille into two tiers. It has the same swoosh down the side running to the C-pillar, but it appears slightly less pronounced than in Detroit. The rear door handles are also hidden in the back pillar.
The compact crossover rides on the same platform as the new Fit. That allows it to take full advantage of the compact's highly versatile interior. The HR-V comes with Honda's Magic Seat that allows the back row to fold flat into the floor when needed.

2014 Honda Accord Hybrid priced from $29,155*

Honda has announced pricing for the new, 50-mile-per-gallon 2014 Accord Hybrid today, with three trims - Hybrid, Hybrid EX-L and Hybrid Touring - for owners to choose from. Prices for the base car start at $29,155, while the mid-range model will run $31,905. The top-of-the-line Touring trim starts at $34,905. Prices do not include the *$905 destination charge.
Regardless of which model is chosen, Accord Hybrid owners will be able to net 50 mpg in the city and 45 on the highway, numbers that compare favorably with the Ford Fusion Hybrid (47/47 mpg) and the Toyota Camry Hybrid (43/39). The Accord does cost a bit more than the competition, but if out-and-out fuel economy is your goal, the Honda wins based on these numbers.
It's also notable how much Honda was able to trim off the Accord Hybrid's price when compared to the Accord Plug-In. That car starts at $39,780, meaning the Hybrid variant is over $10,000 less, while matching that PHEV's 47-mpg combined rating. Take a look down below for the official press release from Honda.

Honda boss says Chinese drivers don't want green cars

According to The Wall Street Journal, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito believes that China's nascent car-buying demographic isn't all that interested in hybrid cars - at least not yet. The emissions story doesn't resonate with them, and certainly not for the higher purchase premium such models usually carry. What they really want, Ito believes, is reliable, affordable cars that fit their needs. When it comes to Honda sales, the numbers would appear to jibe with his thoughts: Honda sold 598,577 vehicles in China last year through its two joint ventures, yet just 542 of them were hybrids - not even a tenth of a percent. However, Toyota sold 840,500 cars in China last year, and two percent of that total, 17,300 units, were hybrids, which is closer to the still-piddling three-percent ratio of sales that Toyota posted in the US last year.
Honda offers the Insight, Fit Hybrid and CR-Z in China and plans to make components for its Integrated Motor Assist hybrid system there from next year, the hope being it will reduce the cost of hybrid cars for local buyers. That was one part of the plan Honda laid out last year to popularize its IMA system in China. Other initiatives include the introduction of a new hybrid system for mid-sized and large vehicles and a plug-in hybrid. Among the four new vehicles Honda showed during this weekend's press day for the Shanghai Motor Show (including the Concept M minivan pictured above) there was not a single hybrid among them.