2011 Honda Odyssey Touring Elite Minivan – Dark Gray, Fully Loaded on 2040-cars

Auto blog

US Honda Civic to get Type R engine

Honda is bent on kicking butt and taking names with its upcoming new Civic Type R, but since the Japanese hot hatch is based on the European model and isn't slated to come to the United States, it's been of little consolation to American enthusiasts. But if you're one of them, we've got good news for you. According to Spanish site Motor Y Racing, a US version of the Civic Type R is in the works. The salient part of the Type R that would make the oceanic voyage to US showrooms would be the 2.0-liter turbo four that's said to produce between 276 and 320 horsepower, but we could expect upgraded suspension, rolling stock and other equipment to come as part of the package as well. Just what form it would take we don't know. Currently American Honda offers the Civic as a coupe or sedan - not as a hatchback or wagon like it does overseas - so chances are that it'd be one of these betrunked body-styles that would get the upgrades. We're hoping for something more than an upgrade of the current Civic Si. Competing rumors suggest that Honda could offer that same engine in a revised version of the CR-Z hybrid hatchback, which has long been begging for a more potent powerplant. But that's not to say that Honda couldn't offer both with the new turbo VTEC engine. Having driven prototypes for more performance-oriented versions of both the Civic and the CR-Z at Honda's R&D center in Japan a little over a year ago, this writer could tell you that either prospect bodes well for the return of the red H badge to the high-performance arena.

Honda fixes Fit flaw, improves performance on key crash test [w/video]

The Fit's grade on the small-front overlap test improved from "marginal" to "acceptable."
Back in March, safety engineers at Honda were disappointed when the much-anticipated 2015 Fit received a substandard grade on an important crash test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Honda recalling 100k more vehicles to replace airbag inflators

Additional recalls surrounding Takata's faulty airbag inflators seemed to be at an end, and the major issue was getting all of the affected models promptly repaired. However, Honda is voluntarily expanding its safety recall to include another 100,000-plus vehicles. The automaker is adding 88,549 examples of the 2008 Pilot, 10,868 units of the 2004 Civic and 5,454 vehicles of the 2001 Accord to replace the driver's side front inflator. According to documents submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Honda found these vehicles through its process of matching Takata part numbers to individual VINs to make sure every potentially affected vehicle was found. Both model years of the Accord and Civic are already included in the campaign, but the 2008 Pilot is new to the list. The company is clear in its announcement that there are no reports of inflator ruptures in the crossover, though. This expansion takes Honda's airbag-related recall total to roughly 5.5 million vehicles in the US. When these airbags rupture, they can spray metal fragments with enough force to injure or even kill people. The automaker also has an advertising campaign to get the word out to owners that having this problem repaired is vital to their safety. Statement by American Honda Regarding Expansion of National Safety Improvement Campaign: Driver's Front Airbag Inflator Supplied by Takata Mar 19, 2015 - TORRANCE, Calif. 2008 Pilot and certain 2001 Accord and 2004 Civic vehicles added under new NHTSA campaign number 15V-153 Honda will voluntarily expand its December 2014 national Safety Improvement Campaign (NHTSA No. 14V-351) affecting certain 2001 through 2011 Honda and Acura vehicles in the United States to include 88,549 Pilot vehicles from the 2008 model year, 10,868 specific 2004 Civic vehicles and 5,454 specific 2001 Accord vehicles. While certain 2001 Accord and 2004 Civic vehicles were previously included in 14V-351, no 2008 Pilot models were included before this addition. Honda has not received any claims of airbag inflator rupture in 2008 Pilot models. Since this expansion of the national Safety Improvement Campaign is taking place in a new year, it will be identified separately by the NHTSA as No. 15V-153, but the same repair, replacement of the driver front airbag inflator, free of charge, will apply to these additional vehicles nationwide. With this expansion, a total of approximately 5.5 million vehicles will be covered by 14V-351 and 15V-153 combined.