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Alonso pins McLaren's woes squarely on Honda's shoulders

BARCELONA (Reuters) - Fernando Alonso spent more time on the tennis court than driving his ailing McLaren on Friday, with his tilt at the Indy 500 looking ever more inviting after another dark day on the Formula One racetrack. Alonso's home fans had barely settled in their seats for practice at the Spanish Grand Prix before his car's Honda engine blew in a mess of smoke and oil. Liquid then poured out of the car as it was tipped up by a recovery crane. Having failed to start in Russia two weeks ago due to an engine failure on the formation lap, Alonso departed the Barcelona circuit after a few choice words and later posted a picture on Instagram of himself playing tennis. "The engine was not good enough. We came out of the pitlane and there was a hole in the engine, and the oil was streaming out. It blew up after 400 meters," Alonso told reporters after returning for the second 90-minute practice session. He was last on the timesheets and reported that the engine was even slower. If the tennis photo looked like a dig at Honda, accompanied with the seemingly sarcastic comment "keeping the body active", he said that had not been his intention. "I have very little time in these weeks, with traveling, with planes," said the 35-year-old, who will go straight from Barcelona to Indianapolis on Sunday night to prepare for his debut in the 500 on May 28. "So when I discovered that I had two hours free, instead of being on the sofa and watching television, I went for some training. My dedication is still 100 percent to my fitness and my preparation. "It wasn't humor to go outside the circuit to play tennis, it was preparation. People got it wrong. I went out to have some fun and escape the circuit." McLaren, the second most successful team in Formula One history in terms of race wins, have yet to score a point in four rounds of this year's championship and are last in the standings. Honda's Formula One reputation, after two seasons of unreliability and poor performance, is meanwhile being dragged deeper into the mud. Alonso is out of contract at the end of the season and has said his future whereabouts would depend on who could offer him a winning car. "It's not my reputation, it's theirs (Honda's) – and it's their money, and their image," he said. "I try to drive as fast as I can but it's a much bigger problem for them." (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by John Stonestreet) Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party.

2016 Honda Pilot, Acura RDX confirmed for Chicago Auto Show debut

The Chicago Auto Show this year is going to be chock-full of Honda crossovers. Not only has Japanese automaker announced that it will be revealing the all-new Pilot at the Windy City expo, but that it will also preview the styling of the next Ridgeline pickup, while its luxury counterpart Acura takes the wraps off the new RDX. Developed and built in America, the new Pilot will be entering its third generation, after the first arrived in 2002 and the second in 2008. The new model previewed in the teaser image above will include eight seats across three rows, "with new technology, advanced safety, class-leading fuel economy and enhanced family utility and versatility," all wrapped in what Honda promises will be a "dramatic shift in design." The arrival of the third-generation model follows the recent introductions of the new CR-V and HR-V that slot below the Pilot. Honda's not saying much about the Ridgeline at this point, but given its close association with the Pilot, it's not surprising to see the automaker grouping the two together. The four-door, short-bed pickup was introduced in 2005 and was discontinued with the end of last year. The second-generation model is expected to reach production in 2016. While it's at it, Honda's luxury division will reveal the new 2016 Acura RDX at the Chicago show. Not to be confused with the Pilot-based MDX, the RDX is the smaller model based on the CR-V and introduced in 2006. The second-gen RDX was just introduced in 2013, but an updated version is already being rolled out, promising to deliver "a long list of styling and performance improvements plus desirable new luxury and safety features" and encompassing "important improvements to performance, dynamics, comfort and NVH." ALL-NEW 2016 HONDA PILOT SUV TO MAKE GLOBAL DEBUT AT 2015 CHICAGO AUTO SHOW Honda to fortify light-truck leadership on Feb. 12 by debuting all-new Pilot three-row SUV, and revealing the styling direction for future Ridgeline pickup Jan 21, 2015 - TORRANCE, Calif. -- A completely reengineered and redesigned Honda Pilot SUV will make its world debut at the 2015 Chicago Auto Show on February 12 at 9:30 a.m. The all-new, eight-passenger Pilot SUV – completely designed, developed and manufactured in America -- will raise the stakes in the mainstream three-row SUV segment with new technology, advanced safety, class-leading fuel economy and enhanced family utility and versatility.

Recharge Wrap-up: Toyota FCV ready for production, Nissan tests Leaf-to-Home energy management

Toyota will begin selling its hydrogen fuel cell vehicle (FCV) in Japan in December. The US and Europe can expect to see the car become available next summer. The FCV, which will likely be called "Mirai" (meaning "future") in Japan, is ready for production ahead of its initial deadline at the end of the fiscal year in March. Toyota planned for annual production of 700 units, but might increase output to meet higher-than-expected demand, which is currently nearing 1,000 units. The cars will mostly be sold in the four cities where a hydrogen fueling infrastructure is already being put in place: Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka. Read more at Nikkei Asian Review. Nissan is testing the Leaf EV as part of an energy management system including "Leaf to Home" technology. The system allows the Leaf to help support the power grid during peak energy usage, or provide backup power to a home or building during outages, particularly in emergencies like natural disasters. Using the Leaf's battery to provide electricity during peak hours would lessen the demand on the grid and make the system work more efficiently. Furthermore, if consumers are compensated for the energy saved by using the Leaf for power during periods of high demand, it could encourage more people to adopt the EV. Learn more in the press release below. CDP has given Honda a perfect climate disclosure score in its Global 500 Climate Change Report for 2014. CDP keeps track of how much companies are disclosing about their impact on global climate change. "The need for data on corporate climate change impacts and strategies to reduce them has never been greater," says CDP CEO Paul Simpson. "For this reason we congratulate those businesses that have achieved a position on CDP's Climate Disclosure Leadership Index." Other perfect scores were earned by Nissan, BMW, Daimler and General Motors. Read more in the press release from Honda below. Scientists at Stanford University have developed a lithium ion battery that can warn users before it overheats. A thin layer of copper between the anode and the layer separating the anode from the cathode acts as a sensor. When it detects lithium buildups from overcharging are approaching the separator, it sends an early alert long before it gets to a point where it would cause a short (which could lead to a fire). The new safety measure could be used in all sorts of battery applications, and not be limited to EVs. Learn more at Phys.org.