2009 Honda Civic Ex-l on 2040-cars

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Honda celebrates the life of Ayrton Senna the best way it knows how

Honda is returning to Formula One in 2015 with McLaren, and when that engine maker and that F1 constructor are mentioned together, two other words are never far behind: Ayrton Senna. There are engine suppliers, constructors and drivers that have bigger numbers, but those three form a triumvirate that came close to defining F1 in the eighties.
Honda Japan has produced a commercial called Sound of Honda that celebrates Senna at a race that turned out to be one of the most momentous of his career for good and bad reasons: the 1989 grand prix at Suzuka where he won, then was stripped of, the driver's championship.
The commercial has a terrifically simple premise - there's no CG, no old footage of Senna, no one says a word, it's just sound. And it's pretty damn good. Check it out below.

Fernando Alonso expects to retire after McLaren-Honda

When Fernando Alonso was three years old, his father gave him a model of a McLaren-Honda grand prix car. That's where his path to Formula One started, and it's where he wants his career to end as well. Speaking with Autosport, the two-time world champion indicated that he intends to retire after he's done at McLaren, rather than switch to another team. Of course, he didn't indicate just when that would be, but as far as he's concerned, the road ends in Woking. The highly rated and immensely successful Spanish driver has been on the grid for fourteen years now. He started out with Minardi (precursor to Toro Rosso) in 2001, then spent four seasons with Renault, where he scored back-to-back world titles. He then switched to McLaren for one year, where he won four races, then back to Renault for another three where he and the team fell off their form. Fernando subsequently switched to Ferrari where he spent the last five seasons, thrice finishing second in the world championship but never quite managing to clinch an elusive third title. This year he's back at McLaren but has had a bumpy start. After crashing during a pre-season test session, he sat out the season opener, and failed to finish the second round in Malaysia. He's now in Shanghai preparing for this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix. Like this writer, he'll be turning 34 in July, making him the fourth oldest driver on the grid this year. So he's still got a good few years in him, and will likely want to see the troubled rekindling of the McLaren-Honda partnership through to winning form. But while nobody can tell what the future will bring, it looks like any other team that hopes to lure the champ away could end up disappointed.

Honda customizing Vezel to headline Tokyo Auto Salon lineup

With the Tokyo Motor Show now behind it, the Japanese automotive industry is gearing up for the next big event. That'd be the Tokyo Auto Salon, Japan's equivalent to SEMA or Essen, set to take place at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba. Subaru has already announced what it has in store for the tuner expo, and now Honda has followed suit.
Most interesting of all the tuner concepts Honda has lined up are a pair of modified Vezel crossovers. The one pictured above is kitted out with parts from the Modulo catalog, while a second one is being prepared by Mugen (similar to the one recently leaked). Both look pretty sharp and hint at the possibilities in store for the Fit-based crossover that'll come to these shores with turbo power.
Honda is also displaying Modulo and Mugen versions of a number of other vehicles, including its N family of Kei cars, the new JDM Odyssey and the Fit. There's an N-WGN kitted out like a cookie delivery truck, an N-Box+ modified to look like an Element, a series of Ninja Turtles-inspired Grom motorbikes and an array of racing machinery. Check 'em all out in the gallery above and the press release below.