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Honda recalls nearly 350k Odyssey minivans over unintended braking

A problem reported with the Vehicle Safety Assist System has prompted Honda and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to issue a recall for Odyssey minivans from the 2007 and 2008 model years.
The issue revolves around a combination of parts and software that have been reported to cause the vehicle to brake hard and unexpectedly, without illuminating the brake lights. Imagine driving behind one of these vehicles when the malfunction occurs and you can easily understand how an unexpected rear-end collision could ensue.
Unfortunately, Honda won't be able to fix the problem until next spring, at which point the manufacturer will call in the 344,187 units affected into their local dealership for a fix. In the meantime, Honda will instruct owners on how to avoid the situation. For further details, see the full recall notice below.

Honda's U.S. Plants Build Ten Million Accords, 20 Million Total Vehicles

The ten millionth American-built Honda Accord rolled off the assembly line Friday at the Japanese automaker's plant in Marysville, Ohio, according to Autoblog. Honda is celebrating not only the Accord, which is the seventh best selling nameplate of all time, but also an accumulative 20 million Hondas built in the U.S. since the company first started manufacturing at Marysville in November 1982. Honda was the first Japanese automaker to gamble on American manufacturing. Now, 94 percent of all Hondas sold in the U.S are American-built. They are made in facilities in Ohio, Alabama and Indiana. Honda's U.S. plants manufactured 1.3 million vehicles last year - a company record. Honda currently builds the best-selling Civic and Accord, as well as the Crosstour, CR-V, Pilot, Odyssey and Ridgeline in the U.S. Acura, Honda's luxury brand, also builds cars at the American plants, including the ILX, TL, RDX and MDX. Related Gallery History's 10 best-selling cars of all time View 11 Photos By the Numbers Honda

Acura organizes new business division to confront falling sedan sales

Honda and Acura North America have announced a major restructuring of operations in hopes of turning around Acura's flagging business. For 2013, sales for Acura's sedans dropped 10.4 percent, while its CUV sales grew by 21 percent. The newly formed Acura Business Planning Office will attempt to right the ship.
As part of the restructuring, Acura is promoting Erik Berkman from President of Honda R&D Americas to lead a new division called the Acura Business Planning Office. Berkman has been with Honda since 1982 and led development of the 2006 Accord. He was also the first US engineer to head North American research and development and has been head of Honda Performance Development since 2008. "Erik's appointment to the new Acura Business Planning Office is a clear indication of the high priority we place on Acura," said Honda spokesperson Jeffrey Smith to Automotive News.
American Honda Motor President and CEO Tetsuo Iwamura is also going to be working to improve the business. He has been elected chairman of American Honda's board, and has simultaneously taken the new position of Corporate Brand Officer to improve the management of the company's brands.