Honda S2000 Convertible 2-door on 2040-cars

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Junkyard Gem: 1992 Acura Vigor

Honda was the first of the Japanese car manufacturers to bring a separate luxury brand to the United States, with the (Civic-derived) Integra and (Rover-related) Legend appearing as 1986 models. By the early 1990s, Infiniti and Lexus had muscled in with their own gadget-laden luxury machines, with even Mitsubishi and Mazda offering legitimate competition for the two Acura models. Something had to be done, in the viewpoint of Soichiro Honda, and so the NSX sports car was introduced as a 1991 model, followed by the Vigor luxury sedan the following year. Here's one of those rare first-year Vigors, found in a Denver self-service boneyard recently. The idea behind the Vigor (which, like the Integra, Legend and NSX, was badged as a Honda in its homeland) was that it would squeeze in between the Integra and the Legend and steal some sales from the Lexus ES 250 as well as European machinery. The Vigor was a front-wheel-drive car, but its engine was mounted longitudinally and angled to clear the hood. The differential sat directly beneath the engine and received power via a tortured maze of shafts. The reason for all this powertrain complexity was the fact that the Vigor's engine was a SOHC straight-five that wouldn't fit the engine compartment using Honda's usual transverse mounting (though both Daewoo and Volvo managed the feat with straight-six engines later on). The U.S.-market Vigor's 2.5-liter five-banger was rated at 176 horsepower and 170 pound-feet. The base transmission was a five-speed manual, but this car has the optional $750 four-speed automatic ($1,696 in 2024 dollars). This car is the cheaper Vigor LS model, so its MSRP was $24,999 ($56,539 after inflation). You could get a slightly smaller but still feature-laden '92 Honda Accord EX for just $20,175 ($45,629 now), though, and the cushier (though less nimble) Lexus ES 250 started at just $21,300 ($48,173 in today's money). American car shoppers just couldn't figure out the Vigor, and sales were weak. 1994 was the final year for the Vigor, and the TL replaced it beginning as a 1996 model. This one drove just over 160,000 miles during its life. Don't think of it as a drive to work. Think of it as a 30-minute vacation. If you get a German luxury sedan instead of a Vigor, you'll be sorry! I miss you… S. As was nearly always the case during the 1980s and 1990s, the JDM commercials were more fun.

Techstars Mobility brings transportation startups to Detroit

A new tech incubator is looking to combine the Motor City's automotive history with its evolving tech startup landscape. "Techstars Mobility, Driven by Detroit" kicks off its first round with 10 startups next week. Techstars is an established accelerator network with incubators around the world, and Detroit is a new addition. The projects center around mobility in some form, be it improving vehicles, moving goods, or working cars into the sharing economy in new ways. In return for a percentage stake in each company, Techstars provides mentorship, access to experts, seed money, and a collaborative environment. One startup we're particularly excited about is Motoroso. This site is like Pinterest for the car-obsessed, with boards replaced by garages that can contain photos and links to other projects. The site lets you follow brands – Chevy, Porsche, Ducati, and others already have profiles – as well as other users. For the Autoblog editors, Motoroso provides a new way to share stories, photos, and video, as well as a way to discover new products and interesting DIY projects. Take a look at the Autoblog profile and wander around the site to check things out. Another one of the startups, Classics & Exotics, is helping owners of interesting cars and would-be drivers connect in an Airbnb-style distributed rental program. Think of it as an auction catalog you can drive. Renters can specify the price, mileage, minimum driver age, and availability. Similar to Airbnb, Classics & Exotics provides each vehicle owner with $1 million in liability and damage protection. The company also vets renters for added peace of mind. Sounds like fun, and a cheap way to avoid a costly Craigslist or eBay mistake. Along similar shared-economy lines comes SPLT, a ride-sharing platform that finds people going where you're going and lets you hop in a car and split the costs. It's aimed at commuters but also has great applications for those looking for occasional one-way rides somewhere. SPLT notes that the system is a good way to meet new people – hopefully, good new people. Depending on how well SPLT keeps sketchy rides and riders out of the system, this could be a solid alternative to services like Uber and Lyft. This Techstars Mobility class has backing from corporate sponsors, including Ford, Honda, Magna, Dana, Verizon Telematics (Verizon has an offer pending to buy AOL, our parent company), and McDonald's.

BMW tops Consumer Reports 2023 Brand Report Card

Feels like we wrote about Consumer Reports' 2022 Brand Report Car and 10 Top Picks a few weeks ago, but it was last April. So the mag is back with a ranked roster of 32 brands and 10 vehicles in four categories for your debating pleasure. Starting with the brands, last year's top three were Subaru, Mazda and BMW. This year, the Munich crew climbed two spots to win the prize thanks to "Superb road test scores and solid results in CR’s reliability and owner satisfaction surveys." Subaru narrowly fell to second, maintaining its four-year run in the top three. Mini, eighth last year, jumped five spots to get the last step on the podium. The rest of the top 10 were Lexus (up one spot from last year), Honda (down one spot from last year), Toyota (up three), Genesis (up 12), Mazda (down six), Audi (down three) and Kia (up eight). The magazine and testing outfit says its Brand Report Card "[reveals] which automakers are producing the most well-performing, safe, and reliable vehicles based on CRÂ’s independent testing and member surveys," and that "Brands that rise to the top tend to have the most consistent performance across their model lineups." Last year's top 10 had six automakers from Japan, three from Germany (giving Mini credit for England), none from the U.S. or South Korea, and five luxury brands. This year's list counts five makes from Japan, two from Germany because Porsche fell out of the top ten, two from South Korea, still none from the U.S., and four luxury brands. Buick again ranked as the best domestic, dropping to 12th after being 11th last year. The big mover was Lincoln, its 10-place jump up to 16th attributed to better reliability from the Corsair and Nautilus. Tesla's improved overall reliability saw it climb six spots to 17th. Dodge climbed one spot to 15th. Jeep got out of the penalty box in last to come second-to-last. Land Rover fell three places into the penalty spot.  CR's top 10 vehicle models The 10 Top Picks list is practically a new list. Only two holdovers made it to 2023, those being the Subaru Forester and Kia Telluride.